Movie Forums > Miscellaneous Forums > Intermission: Miscellaneous Chat > The VR Conundrum
PDA
View Full Version : The VR Conundrum
Pages :[1]2
Golgot
07-19-17, 08:29 AM
EDIT: Ok this changed from a 'Should I buy VR?' thread into an 'I BOUGHT VR!' one pretty quickly :D. Will now mainly be about games and tech from here on :)
REVIEWS: HERE (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1915191#post1915191)
'ONE YEAR WITH VR': HERE (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1949216#post1949216)
VIDEO PLAYLIST: HERE (https://bit.ly/2MVT8ll)
---
There are many VR conundrums. (Is putting your head in a box a good use of your time? Is this tech just a brilliant new Betamax? Is AR the real future of face candy (https://goo.gl/DKEVkn), especially given the cheapy launches (https://goo.gl/8hGoUN)? Etc...)
My core conundrum here though is: Should I buy a gaming VR kit?
My criteria are:
I'm not too hyped for 'roomspace' gaming for now. Still seems uber gimicky, and difficult to pull off in a small flat. Seated 'classic' gaming and casual standing stuff is fine.
3D interactive movie-style experiences could be cool down the line.
With the established but imperfect Rift on a six-week sale, and the budget Microsoft kits coming at the end of the year (including some decent advances)... I'm torn...
---
IN THE RED CORNER: THE RIFT
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSED5yQoUmY
PROS
Known entity. Works well with games I'm interested in.
Thanks to its cunning software my gaming rig can run it reasonably well.
Solid hand and head tracking once set up. Ideal for seated play.
Currently nearing affordability at £400 (!) for the sale bundle
CONS:
Glare (https://goo.gl/TQf4UN) is a known issue.
Resolution isn't ideal for reading small text.
The 'screen door effect' is noticeable.
Setting up for roomscale is not easy (https://www.oculus.com/blog/oculus-roomscale-balancing-bandwidth-on-usb/).
UNCERTAINTIES:
This price drop hasn't come from nowhere. Could be superior competitors on the horizon, could be their lawsuits mean they're in trouble...
IN THE BLUE CORNER: THE MICROSOFT ACER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6XVZlVzHBKo
^^First look - confirms most of the claims to date. Further Q&A here (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/6ns79i/acer_mixed_reality_hmd_vs_rift_vs_vive_vs_psvr/?st=j5arr5v4&sh=d4abb2ff)^^
PROS:
Plug and play (https://goo.gl/PSzA6o), no external sensor set up, use easily in multiple locations
Has far lower minimum specs to run than current gen (in the vid above it was running on a 2012 graphics card). The official reason is that they can make big savings as they know their own OS so well. (The question is does it scale to the high end machines, allowing better gaming graphics than currently achievable).
Crisper text and images. Allows for eye roving.
Predicted to be in a cheaper band (approx £300 for the full kit).
CONS:
Unproven, no gaming pedigree as yet.
Cheaper construction shows in the headset not standing up well to quick head movements. Not ideal for involved gaming.
The 'screendoor effect' is noticeable, and appears in the periphery too.
The controllers will only work well when in your field of view (https://goo.gl/7Ntywd), as they use the 'inside out' tracking from the helmet. Bit more limited than current gen.
Lower field of view than the current gen.
Also has 'god-ray' glare.
No in-built microphone.
UNCERTAINTIES:
Still so many unknowns about it's intended use, capabilities and software support.
A slightly higher quality model (HP) is coming, but dev kit not out yet.
EDIT: UPDATE:
The general roll of early dev impressions (https://uploadvr.com/impressions-acer-windows-vr-dev-kit/) is suggesting I was in the right ballpark here. The release kit will probably be far more accessible than the current gen, but is ultimately aimed at a more casual user, and will need to populate it's software ecosystem etc. Interesting for the future but not in the game right now. EDITEDIT: Decent look at the Dell's pros and cons (https://www.pcworld.com/article/3222871/virtual-reality/dells-visor-is-a-gorgeous-vr-headset-but-windows-mixed-reality-still-needs-polish.html) here and broader pricing (slightly pricier than forecast etc - the tracking aspects are definitely the bits that bug me the most though, despite the ease of set up). Decent general overview of the Windows kit, and test of the Acer, here (https://www.gamedev.net/articles/game-design/game-design-and-theory/windows-10-mixed-reality-devices-%E2%80%93-the-definitive-consumer-review-r4743/). EDITEDITEDIT: Reasonable overview of all the Windows headsets here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1792949#post1792949).
---
Current conclusion:
Test a Rift kit in the wild here. If it suits my face, wait til the last week of the sale to see what else crops up about the MS kit, especially gaming tests with the controllers. Then make a call...
Tacitus
07-20-17, 05:03 AM
Honestly?
I'd hold off until the second generation of the tech..... says he who has just bought a Switch. ;D
Golgot
07-20-17, 05:30 AM
Honestly?
I'd hold off until the second generation of the tech..... says he who has just bought a Switch. ;D
That would absolutely be the sensible thing to do :D
Kit's going to depreciate like mad, and it's clear the visual experience still isn't that easy on the eye. I am still really intrigued though, and have been saving for well over a year, so these price drops mean I could jump in without toooo much pain.
Reckon it'll all come down to the hands on. 15 minutes in a John Lewis trialling the kit should be enough to see if this 'presence' business is worth the punt. I kinda feel like I'm aware of the downsides. Just need to see if the upsides live up to their claims ;)
Golgot
07-21-17, 03:30 PM
Hands-On Report:
First Impression:
Wow. Definite wow. This gen does make an impression!
Demo Tried:
The Climb
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a5hB-9bhLkI
Detailed Impression:
First off I was just happy that the kit worked fine with my eyesight (which is eccentric, supposedly I need a monocle ;)). Popping the helmet on it was really pleasing to gauge the initial hub environment straight away and read all the the option panels etc.
The demo booted swiftly, with some standard cyber-fog transition, and then boom. I was in a sunny X-games mountain climb :). (On a really narrow wooden plinth of course. The bastards.)
Really stood up to close inspection much better than I was expecting. Legibility of the (large) text was fine, the standard world convincers (shadows, light glimmer, textures etc) all looked genuinely at a decent level even if I shoved my face into them (although I'm not the pickiest in these regards). It was incredibly easy to buy I was in this (pseudo-real-looking, gamey) scenario.
I was looking for all the negatives, and they were there for sure. The screendoor was the most obvious when looked for, but didn't really bother me. It almost has a retro '80s view of the future' imperfectness to it, which almost feels fitting. It wasn't really distracting at all for this short session and I mainly wasn't aware of it. The field of vision does feel a touch tunnelled, but swinging your head around in this environment felt natural and fine. Didn't really feel enclosed at all, did feel like I was on the side of a mountain, with an expanse all around me. (The border warnings worked fine as a way of stopping you wondering off in the real world. Could see them being an issue if you were truly story immersed, but found it easy to work with them while still essentially feeling like I was in this situation).
The controllers are nifty, I dropped into the game aspect of it really easily. It was totally intuitive to climb up the mountainside, fathom the tip system, mess with the inputs and ephemera.
What's interesting is what drops away when you're focused on the game (or just hanging taking in the scene). I didn't notice that my hands were disembodied. Didn't notice or didn't care, probably because they responded really well to my actual hand movements. Didn't notice the light gap around my nose once I got going, which I'd observed at the start. Like didn't notice it at all, despite looking down on multiple occasions. Did notice the very genuine feeling of vertigo when I looked dowwwwwwwn :D
Caveats:
The Climb shows off all the kit's strengths and non of its weaknesses. A brightly lit scene with no really dark backdrops (so glare not apparent), no small text, no nausea-inducing world motion etc. The trial was probably 8 minutes tops too, so no endurance issues, or noticeable after-effects or disorientation. (I noticed a slight after-image of the screendoor effect possibly about 10 minutes after).
Definitely feels like an extended session, with more demanding games, would be needed to know for sure if my eyes and mind could get decent playtime out of this thing.
Conclusion?
Do I care if I never play The Climb again? Nah, not really. As an experience and a game it did get my heart rate up, did feel kinda fantastic to be on a faux jutting cliff side. Purely as a game it's hard to see where they can take the skill ceiling to make it engaging for long though.
Could this type of 'front facing' (but not fully 360) roomspace gaming be engaging? Yep. Could I set this type of 2mx2m floorspace up with 2 desk sensors in my flat relatively painlessly? Yep...
Do I want to try VR again? Hell yes :D. That is very much a take-home...
Specs:
GPU: GTX 1080, CPU: 'latest' i7, RAM: 32G (not really needed, reco spec = 8G)
Tacitus
07-21-17, 03:56 PM
First off I was just happy that the kit worked fine with my eyesight (which is eccentric, supposedly I need a monocle ;)).
That's encouraging from my point of view as well - I'm blessed with one eye significantly more short sighted than the other to the extent that I use one for distance and one for close-up. It's the result of being too vain to wear my mildly prescripted specs in school.
Golgot
07-21-17, 03:58 PM
That's encouraging from my point of view as well - I'm blessed with one eye significantly more short sighted than the other to the extent that I use one for distance and one for close-up. It's the result of being too vain to wear my mildly prescripted specs in school.
That's essentially my situation too, so yeah it was really encouraging. (I've read that the lenses somehow prep your eyes for long-distance viewing, even though the actual info is super close. Was expecting one or the other aspect to be blurred).
I'd want more time with it to see if any strain issues emerged, but yeah off the bat it's a relief :)
Golgot
07-22-17, 02:16 PM
The Tech Has Game, But Are There Any Games?
Ok, I'm pretty sold on the Rift kit. The questions about software spread, and game design that doesn't make you vom, definitely remain though...
The short story is: There are very few big titles that offer longevity, and although there's a decent back catalogue of slighter gaming, many of them suffer from interfaces and content that are either slightly unpleasant to use, or pared back to simplicity. Or both ;)
The long story is...
Games I've Got:
Elite Dangerous:
Attack of the galaxy geeks :D
https://youtu.be/5J1VuT2nE1I
I'd be relying on this to be a mainstay. Despite the issues I'd have with text, jaggies, and lost-pretty on my rig, could see VR adding a big lease of life to the existing content (driving round the alien crash sites again, flying through the Arena architecture in small ships? in VR? Yes please :)). And then there's hopefully years more content to come with my lifetime pass, including the unfolding alien invasion, and at some point, space legs...
Pulsar Lost Colony:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLzVS7F3MgI
Still very much a work in progress on the VR front, with 'look to walk' locomotion, and a tilting flight deck that makes most people feel space sick. Could definitely do with more UI refinement to tackle that side. On the plus side, lots of content, lots of silliness potential :)
Games I'd Probably Buy:
Lone Echo (£30):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfIG_ilDUko
This just released, and does look pretty grand. Although at about 6 hours for some atmosphere and puzzling that's some poor bang for buck. The big selling point is that they seem to have nailed a locomotion system which is both flexible and fun to use. Here's a quick example (https://goo.gl/4zBhaA) of the handhold system in action. Does seem pretty cool.
Super Hot VR (£19):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knIKlA-ijk8
Again not much game. But by all accounts, what a game ;)
Esper 2 (£8):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yq-QRYecINc
Creative wee puzzler. Liking what I've heard.
Free Games:
There are almost too many to mention here (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6no4l1/freebies_for_noobies/?st=j576ux3g&sh=06c3f271), but a few that stand out as possibly having some legs...
Echo Arena: (free until Oct 2017)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSC8nEgHKN8
Now a free spin-off from Lone Echo (probably to ensure a playerbase), this seems to be Ender's Game made real. Again the most interesting thing here is just how robust the motion system is. It looks odd from the outside, but they seem to have nailed a load of aspects which prevent your brain from rebelling, allowing for some pretty sweet zero G moves.
Portal Stories (free with Portal 2):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xYAyWp8fbY
Apparently there's no actual portal-ing, but the teleport mechanic at least feels fitting here.
Vivecraft (free with Minecraft - works on the Rift):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lusGHgSCXHw
Look I'd have to give it a go. Infamously nauseus classic locomotion system though. Bows work well tho :D
Rec Room
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPb6XoJN9KQ
Wii Sports meets the birth of the internet. What's not to like? ;). (Well, the weird groping and general inter-net-ness, but aside from that the mini games and daftness seem great...)
---
And then there's a ton of experiences, educationals, art programs, puzzlers, nonsense farms, novelty demos up the wazoo. The works. Can see my girlfriend swooping around in Google Earth and painting in Quills. Can see myself bopping various moles in all the different amusement parks.
Hopefully there'd be enough there to tide me over until some major releases gain form ;)
---
Current Status: I would actually jump right now if I wasn't just off on hols and unable to accept delivery. High chance I'm snagging one on return if the sale's still on. It's supposed to be. Guess I'll see :D
Golgot
07-22-17, 02:45 PM
What Causes VR Nausea?
I've been looking into this, and finding it pretty intriguing. Because if there's a real block between presenting fantastical scenarios and the body then rejecting them (because they're fantastical), the whole tech is a dead end.
Thankfully it does seem there are solutions. There's been a lot of intrigue around the Echo games, as they seem to have solved a slew of issues. My amateur summary of the issues would be:
Problem:
If there are more sensory inputs contradicting (or failing to confirm) your perceived scenario than supporting it, you're going to feel nausea / discomfort.
Solutions:
Motion systems that give primacy to your inputs (instantaneous acceleration/deceleration, not allowing others to inhibit your motion suddenly) and encourage propulsion towards the area you're viewing solve many issues.
Visual guides that mask peripheral motion / 'vection' (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusions_of_self-motion#Vection) where necessary and focus vision into central areas solve some other 'car sickness' causes.
The body will accept analogues. If you moved laterally because of a big 'push' movement from your arm, your body will accept that as a reason to believe the movement and its direction.
It's way more involved than that though. For more colour, here's a big player discussion (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6ooab0/why_is_echo_arena_so_comfortable_to_play/?st=j5em1jew&sh=e0af3ea8). And here's a fun perspective from a guy who works with vertigo (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6ooab0/why_is_echo_arena_so_comfortable_to_play/dkj3otl/?st=j5fdx6f0&sh=10ced00b) on conflicting inputs. And great breakdown (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6jlv50/how_come_there_is_much_less_motion_sickness_in/djfjfqc/?st=j5em6bgl&sh=159719c6) by a VR pro of what Echo Arena does right:
Since I study this stuff professionally (and Echo Arena is my new favorite case study):
Mission:ISS uses yaw (there is no up), which is the #1 cause of motion sickness. Someone I was playing with turned it on in Echo Arena and started getting sick. Echo Arena keeps you upright by default
Larger spaces are less sickness causing than small spaces, because your eyes see less vection.
The HUD gives a fixed point in front of you, which reduces motion sickness
The primary booster is an instant acceleration in the direction you are looking, at a time you decide. This minimizes motion sickness from acceleration since instant > gradual, forward > sideways, expected > unexpected.
Other players cannot unexpectedly change your directory. This would be extremely nausea inducing. Instead, it's whoever is being grabbed that has control. You can still get nauseous from grabbing onto someone because of this, but generally you're looking at the person you're grabbing, creating a large fixed point in your field of view. (Also note, grabbing someone instantly matches your velocities, minimizing acceleration)
If you are unfortunate enough to be using a 180 setup, snap turning works pretty well (instant turn rather than showing the vection + acceleration).
When you are playing, most of the time you are focusing on either the disk or the disk indicator, both of which are fixed points that distract you from your own motion.
Edit (comments on this post):
Sound played when bumping into objects/walls prevent motion sickness from the unexpected deceleration
Relatively plain textures (textures with too much going on increase vection, and can also cause other visual pain)
The hand jets are physically aimed, so you are expecting the movement (user activated) and are aiming it with actual motion (increased vestibular override). Additionally, the vast majority of the time you are using the hand thrusters to go the same direction you are looking.
As a bonus here's a Gamasutra piece (http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/LukeThompson/20170713/301575/VR_Comfort_and_Optimisation_in_Sublevel_Zero_Redux.php) on techniques used when speedy gameplay meant even a vehicular model needed aids. You can see the learning that's going on. This stops 'vection' nausea etc in an emergency:
http://www.sigtrapgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/basicTunnelEdit.gif
But this does it better. And looks like a game ;)
http://www.sigtrapgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/gridTunnelEdit.gif
---
**UPDATE**
How many people experience nausea on average?
A little round-up study I did:
Exact numbers are pretty hard to come by, given the range of potential causes. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_reality_sickness#Individual_differences_in_susceptibility)
Back in 2014, with the DK1, and early game prototypes, Oculus had the numbers at roughly:
20% of the population doesn't get motion sick
20% of the population gets motion sick and always gets motion sick
Maybe 60% of the population gets better over time
(source) (https://bit.ly/2p4Gk0P)
But things are probably better now, due to improved tech & software design. (See for example Onward-style controller-led motion for free locomotion & zero-G models like Echo Arena. Here are some interesting pro theories on why the latter works: [1] (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6jlv50/how_come_there_is_much_less_motion_sickness_in/djfjfqc/?st=j5em6bgl&sh=159719c6),[2] (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6ooab0/why_is_echo_arena_so_comfortable_to_play/dkj3otl/?st=j5fdx6f0&sh=10ced00b))
This reddit poll (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf2BkybV5BEDgYbCkd6NItIeZBDeJOW_17dEKmH7hWykxSOqw/viewanalytics) found much closer to a 50/50 split for 'nausea' vs 'none', dependent on game type. (I'm a bit suspicious of this being the hardy hardcore tilting the results a touch here, but could also show how design improvements and player adaption can help)
What's Changed over the Last Year?
Essentially devs have learned better techniques to avoid the main causes of nausea (prolonged acceleration curves, fast and input-controlled rotation, sudden cinematic removal of player control etc), or at least to use such things sparingly. Locomotion techniques such as 'controller led' (vid) (https://bit.ly/2QqrgHt) are a gaming step up on the 'meh' that is teleportation too.
Plus people like me in the '60%' have also learned to adapt, and probably physically acclimatised to an extent. I can still feel woozy even in 'comfortable' game designs at times, but it's rarely an issue at the moment. (I suspect I am closing my eyes at key junctures to avoid being exposed to certain stimuli though :D. Such as decelerating suddenly when hitting a wall. It's all pretty intuitive ;))
Golgot
07-23-17, 06:22 PM
Ach, what can I say, barring the sale ending earlier than expected (and I can't find any official source confirming the '6 weeks' that's been widely touted :/)... I'm getting me one of these beasts :)
They've got a big delivery backlog (https://forums.oculus.com/community/discussion/comment/538565/#Comment_538565), so gonna risk ordering a week before my holiday ends and hope it doesn't actually get delivered too promptly (and end up in a puddle in my front yard...)
Computer says yes...
http://i.imgur.com/sauoSLg.png
Caveats elsewhere say: You're gonna have to tinker like a fool, fool. But I'm cool with that ;)
(Spotting that the two touted Echo games both have reco specs higher than my rig has been sobering. No doubt many future releases will be pushing that envelope :/)
And lord knows the hijinks to get 'off platform' games like Elite to play nice get properly meta. Many ways to do it wrong it seems, and get gnarled up in launcher wars and the like.
But hey, there was a minor Green Man Gaming offer on. I now own a game for a platform I don't own :D
http://i.imgur.com/3sgQ8Qc.png
*EDIT*
There's no fool like a 40-year-old fool :/
http://i.imgur.com/b7qCgwJ.png
70% off on GMG, down to £12. I had to I tell you...
Golgot
07-28-17, 09:25 PM
So I've been properly down the rabbit hole, trying to figure out what the gaming landscape of VR looks like. Found a beguilingly odd thing today:
https://youtu.be/nm8CgAHlK2I
It's not this lone dev's passion that's interesting. (Please, nobody try and sell me another procedural planet game :/). It's the way his passion is communicated through his bobbing head, body sways, and gesticulating hands, all while lugging a virtual camera around inside his own game.
It kinda feels like a mirror image of the 'presence' in game that everyone rabbits on about. Seeing presence 'projected' was intriguing, especially while he's able to tinker with his game at the same time (and show his wonderfully ludicrous interfaces, which include many giant levers that you can adjust 'by hand', a subject on which his passion really does brim over ;)).
I have no idea why he has giant blue balls.
I could currently rabbit on for ages about how intriguing this presence / interface / game potential stuff is, but for the sanity of anyone passing I'm going to keep this short :D
---
On the gaming ecosystem, the short story is it's clearly subsisting on a ton of indie output, and a lot of the overall output has charged off down early dead ends or done the same old wave-shooter **** etc.
But there are definitely some glimmers of promise out there in indie land:
Rough looking parkour games that make you feel like you're actually belting through the air:
https://youtu.be/uj0rbE4Nr6c
Asymmetric VR-vs-PC prison breaks with a minor Spy Party twists (God head tries to spot identical minion with spotlight and godly sniper shot)
https://youtu.be/qsQrUAgVguQ
A slow motion insurance super agent game? Sure why not:
https://youtu.be/7OhkfF2DqhU
The last of which is an hour long and costs £15 :/. Which also speaks volumes to where things are at. Even slightly intriguing conceits are often short yet pricey.
The Lone Echo release is definitely hopeful (AAA execution, inventive locomotion etc), and not at a crazy price point either. (Hell the online side is free thanks to sponsorship). Just about every other upcoming AAA does genuinely seem to be a wave shooter though. Most with elevator pitches like 'Imagine dinosaurs in SuperHot'. :/
What I've seen to date still suggests some pretty sweet stuff could actually happen in VR. In the ability to 'monkey see, monkey do' tinker, the ability to get subsumed into another world, in the 'personable online' aspects etc. It's still a punt whether it actually will tho ;)
And dammit, I rambled on anyway :/
Tacitus
07-29-17, 05:30 AM
Superhot VR would probably be the first thing I buy, and I've seen DiRT Rally VR played - it looks one of the most solid VR driving experiences right now.
My buyers remorse on the Switch has totally started, now, and I'm constantly looking at stuff I could have spent that money one - This week it's either a VR kit or a super widescreen monitor. :(
Golgot
07-29-17, 10:14 AM
Ach, if it helps, it's clear that this stuff is still in the early adopter stage, still finding its way. It'll involve much compatability and graphics tinkering (which you were getting bored of on PC), and it's hard to sift the gold from the trash on the gaming front. Also novelty on-foot gaming dominates ;). Coming to it later, when both the tech and the games have refined, is probably far wiser :)
(That said, if you're near a hub of civilisation where they're doing demos, def give it a go. Does look fine on a 1080 ;). And you don't have to staple anything to a wall to enjoy it ;))
Tacitus
07-29-17, 10:52 AM
(That said, if you're near a hub of civilisation where they're doing demos, def give it a go.
I live in Clogher.
gandalf26
07-29-17, 12:41 PM
I hope for a day when you can jump in and play Elder Scrolls type games or Fallout in high quality VR.
Imagine if they could do it like Inception where you go and live a lifetime in a dreamstate then come back to reality and only a few hours has passed. Awesome but obviously fantasy.
Golgot
07-29-17, 04:53 PM
I hope for a day when you can jump in and play Elder Scrolls type games or Fallout in high quality VR.
Imagine if they could do it like Inception where you go and live a lifetime in a dreamstate then come back to reality and only a few hours has passed. Awesome but obviously fantasy.
Hah, well Skyrim and F4 are coming to current day VR at the end of the year. (F4 for PC in Oct & Skyrim for PSVR in November. Might have to wait longer for the time dilation ;))
If the F4 execution is cool, and I can run it, I'll def jump in :). Some of the sneak peaks (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&highlight=fallout&p=1718548#post1718548) look promising. Actual walking (hard to do right in VR), aiming down sights, teleporting dances in VATs etc. I doubt it'll be everything I want (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&highlight=fallout&p=1721428#post1721428), but I'll def keep an eye on it :)
Golgot
07-29-17, 07:53 PM
Must. Stop. This.
http://i.imgur.com/vAVm3Vm.png
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pp8GciOM7tQ
Hey, it was 15% off and they have fun plans (http://steamcommunity.com/app/614970/discussions/0/1470840994963362061/). Plus it's an Early Access multiplayer indie game, what could go wrong :D
(Still like at least 2 weeks until my kit even ships :/. I now, perversely, live in fear of them not taking my money...)
Golgot
07-30-17, 09:46 PM
'HOW TO REALISE VIRTUALITY?'
(Or how I'm going to keep trying to communicate an 8 minute demo ;))
Weirdly, this crappy footage of a 75-yr-old woman in The Climb is the closest communicator of that 'experience' I've seen yet :D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJU969tSZo8
You can stop when the Benny Hill music starts ;). (Ok, maybe it's not the best example...)
It's interesting trying to communicate this ****. (I mean communicating that many of the games seem to be shoddy or slight is easy ;). But explaining what's redeeming about having your head and hands in the game, and having much of your vascular system go along for the ride, is a lot harder :D).
The above footage is mainly daft, but I do like that people are still knocking out decent green-screen 'mixed reality' footage elsewhere (Unity games and Minecraft support it it seems. Explanation of the technique here (https://goo.gl/H3QQew)). Does feel like the closest way to express the positives that I felt in the demo.
Here's an old school example. (Most of the modern footage is commentated by people you wouldn't want in your reality ;))
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vT6SAjIzPE0
As the comments state there though, that's essentially Pong :D
I kinda like this (vid) (https://goo.gl/KEB6nG) example, from the hand waving dev of a previous post, as it gives a good feel of what being in the mix adds:
https://j.gifs.com/Rg2AAV.gif
Even if that's not a game I massively want to mix with either ;). (Apparently that's 'Arm Swing' locomotion. I guess 'Duck Waddle' didn't stick :D. Those cartoon rubber maces do look kinda ace tho...)
Golgot
07-31-17, 09:47 PM
Found this musing (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6qizdf/just_an_observation_about_embodiment_over_time/?st=j5sv1vlp&sh=869f60b9) by an old VR hand to be intriguing:
Something I noticed last night while playing Rec Room was that I could throw an object, teleport, and catch it. This was something I had tried to do months ago when first starting Rec Room, but to no avail.
At some point through all my play of games with Teleportation, my brain had gained an automatic awareness of where it would end up, allowing a quick teleport and instant expectation of where a moving object would be in relation to my arms.
I wonder what gameplay changes will come out of increased VR embodiment in the userbase.
It is a fun idea that reflexes we take for granted in current games are still bedding in in VR, and might form a platform for future fun game designs.
(Just from that one could see various tropes combining: low G sports + teleport + 'self passing skill' etc. Could have it be that if you snag your own pass the ball gains a new power or whatever. Could be totally unplayable, could be neat ;))
---
Also I just won a free copy of this oddity by just engaging too much with Reddit. Works for me :)
https://youtu.be/P8BtKiM1Bvs
Seems a kinda odd use of scale (floating over giant planets one minute, and picking them up like cue balls the next...), but could be a good one to try on my old man I'm thinking...
Golgot
08-01-17, 10:43 AM
Aha, one way to deal with a price-bloated market. Mods :)
https://youtu.be/IvBfJUdup7U
That said, I've now scoured 100+ indie offerings. If it weren't for so many of them being Early Access numbers (with £25+ pricetags :/), and apparently stalled dev runs, would have mopped up quite a few. Plenty of fun ideas out there. Lots of freebies too, just don't want to mainline on jank :/
Someone stop me buying this 'Elite-like' speeder game:
https://youtu.be/TjlvKzzZnEw
And this strange one with very long arms...
https://youtu.be/orVJKMt9RmA
(Really tempted by the flying / locomotion aspect in the latter. Looks like it inspired some more polished recent AAA output. Plus I love flying ;))
Golgot
08-03-17, 07:13 AM
My trip down the rabbit hole is complete. I've found what the crypto-currency Metaverse guys are up to...
https://youtu.be/O6DUV19Ri_8
https://youtu.be/xxmPJ0DFRPI
I can see how they think that's one step closer to Snowcrash land. Not my thing (and my imaginary money is on it being full of S&M vampires immediately), but could see it going a good distance. (Possibly further than the more traditional models, like the new Second Life etc, given that VR social hubs are crashing left and right at the mo)
Golgot
08-06-17, 08:39 AM
Oh my...
https://youtu.be/m6Tqf1kKstg
It's only Greenlit, so HL3 will probably come first, but I could go for some crowbar action :)
Golgot
08-10-17, 12:20 PM
Nearly timed this perfectly. Got back from hols today, my massively delayed Rift should drop on my doorstep tomorrow :D
I'll be working late though :|. So, I've prepped my machine to hell and back and gone on another mad dash of mini purchases (making full use of my time like). Sure hope the kit actually works ;)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hYJ0sIABoY
Esper 2: The trippy telekinetic head-tracking puzzler. NB vid gets good here (https://goo.gl/DYUh8J). (£11 bundle with the original)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKRPHeaiCmk
Omega Agent: James Bond low-poly jetpack fun (£3)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gf0P4Yvyx7c
Batman Arkham VR: The short but sexy puzzle-lite 'experience' (50% off: £7)
Have also snagged a ton of free stuff, from 'explore your inner cell' (http://store.steampowered.com/app/451980/The_Body_VR_Journey_Inside_a_Cell/) educational stuff, to Rear Window style red scare silliness (http://store.steampowered.com/app/625470/The_Red_Stare/), to shiny but stunty RPGs (http://store.steampowered.com/app/673070/The_Ranger_Lost_Tribe/).
And then have a load of mid-tier actual-games I'm ready to pop on when sales come. Particularly liking the look of the fantasy spider-man trappings of Windlands, although I'll have to get my VR legs first...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffS7Hr_XFwc
(Minor point, but I can imagine even basic first-person platforming (https://goo.gl/UdqmVM) would be vertigo-city in VR, in a fun way. The swing is the thing here though :))
That and a slew of other intriguing 'one third length' games. Too many to list. (And too many priced at £25+ to consider right now ;))
But hell Rez, I might also get Rez :D
Golgot
08-12-17, 09:04 AM
DAY 1:
Ok quick thoroughly subjective impression: ****ing wow :)
I set up voice recognition to take some screengrabs. Here are some 'non spoilery' shots from the super cute intro (none of the fun little physics toys shown, just an impression of the ability to move about inside the world and interact etc).
http://i.imgur.com/xIA31lM.png
http://i.imgur.com/4vvmHdS.png
http://i.imgur.com/euXk81j.png
In the control familiarisation bit prior to this I literally found myself staring at the rendered controllers going: 'Wait are these the controllers in my hands, or CGI ones...' :D. (Obviously because that area was a willo-the-wisp type mist zone they could focus all the render power on the controller representation, but still, it was freaking weird :))
---
Here Be Caveats:
The screendoor seems much more noticeable than on the high end demo I played, and jaggies definitely much more in attendance on my 970. I'm guessing their downsampling 'HMD setting' was smoothing a lot of these sins.
Set up was a minor pain (slightly worrying file errors, need to take headset off to faff with things etc), and the higgeldy piggedly play space I've cleared will be hard to maintain during daily living.
Counter-Caveats:
Honestly don't care about any of that at the moment. First impressions are super cool :)
But off I go to try some actual games ;)
Tacitus
08-12-17, 03:20 PM
Congrats!
But ... tidy your room, dude. And buy Superhot VR. ;)
Golgot
08-12-17, 05:20 PM
Congrats!
But ... tidy your room, dude. And buy Superhot VR. ;)
Hah, done and done :D. (Although it's the pokey scale of my basement flat that I'm up against. Doesn't offer many convenient 2mx2m+ spaces. I've just shoved a dining table out of the way while the Mrs & bairn are away ;))
---
Just gonna slam down some thoughts on a break, coz I'm intending to binge some more :D
The Negatives:
PC madness gone mad:
Had some heavier technical issues. First the headset kept disconnecting periodically, which I think I've solved by stopping the USB busses from power-saving. That's held on relaunch, but now the headset has started streaming audio alone at the start of sessions. Reconnecting the HDMI fixes it, but obviously something's up. Might be a conflict with the Steam VR portal, might be a dodgy cable, might be USB bus conflict. Unclear right now.
How big is space?
I'm hitting the edges of the '270 degree' set up the 2 desk sensors affords me. It's surmountable, but full 360 freedom would be more fun, rather than periodically having to figure out where my desk is to ensure hand tracking. (A 2 sensor '360' is possible, but would involve plenty of wirework and ceiling stapling...). I'm also very occasionally hitting the ceiling and walls ;)
---
The Experiences:
(Ton of bootleg screengrabs with these in the links. They look odd, coz they're mainly just one eye's worth, and don't really communicate the weird 'I'm in the game-ness', but they give some of the flavour...)
The Intro Demos: First Contact (above) (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1753363#post1753363) & The Lab are pretty delicious little delicacies.
http://i.imgur.com/nxt3FRn.jpg
Valve's Lab (pics) (http://imgur.com/a/eLmrX) is a more sprawling affair than the compact Contact, scattered with numerous slickly presented skunk projects. It has more misses than hits for all that, but the highlights all had me grinning in delight at some aspect or other... (The bizarre verisimilitude of the Venice streets, the clockwork orrery of the correctly-ratioed solar system, the ridiculous Portal references & twists strewn throughout half of the 'experiments').
---
http://i.imgur.com/aOe3FK6.png
Batman: Arkham VR is bizarrely phenomenal (pics) (http://imgur.com/a/6wdrU). It seems to be very much a collection of set pieces, with some bonus detective/narrative optional strands thrown in, but the attention to detail is just grand. I barely left the batcave because I was having too much fun seeing what every single lever did ;). (In the end I took a break because it was just so full on - not in action terms, just in terms of being a bit overwhelming existing entirely in that world. Still need to find my VR legs. And all the batarrangs I dropped ;))
(Amusingly/terrifyingly it glitched at one point and left me stuck 8 metres above a floating batcave workstation. The vertiginous views were genuinely disturbing after a while. Then I fell through the world, and confused the game further by trying to grappling hook my way back up. Glitches in VR are bizarrely intense and personal :D)
---
I also tried one of the higher end 360 videos. Weird as it was to watch Obama walk around Yellowstone (http://imgur.com/a/6Lgif), it was the most "kid's face pressed to the TV screen" experience to date on the visuals front, and the least technically engaging. There were a few magical moments (sitting in a canoe drifting down river, sitting on a mountain edge as it time-lapsed through the day). But on the whole I can see why people rate the fledgling 'volumetric' stuff that you can actually move amongst more highly.
---
Also I drew this shitdragon in imaginary clay :D
http://i.imgur.com/p5ZKk2w.png
---
The Yet To Become Clear:
I'm gorging on headline experiences here for the most part, and as blown away as I am by some of it, I'm still looking for the 'game' to an extent. In part because even fun mechanics have their blockers when lined up against classical game expectations (the zenith of which is 'go explore this world, while immersed' which they seem a fair way short of still. Teleporting, even when very snazzily executed, still doesn't feel quite right, and strips a fair bit off the otherwise stellar immersion.)
Can also vouch that the 'intense' experiences will flip your stomach for real initially. The only way I made it around a 3D representation of a Van Gogh painting was by tiptoing in time with the stick motion. (Lateral strafing just makes the body say 'baaaaaaaaaad' :D).
Golgot
08-12-17, 09:47 PM
Gonna write up some more game stuff tomorrow, but Google Earth is surprisingly rad. You get the buzz of flying at speed over scanned natural formations or the weird claymation-like reconstructions of cities. Plus you get to sit in the middle of Hackney like a giant :D
http://i.imgur.com/YXOfTV4.png
http://i.imgur.com/MK4E7eG.png
TON MORE PIX (http://imgur.com/a/Uxc81)
Delving down streets you haven't seen for ages is really odd. Made extra trippy by the fact that the human scale stuff goes super papier mache style. It's bizarre, but strangely beautiful at times.
http://i.imgur.com/mm36R2U.png
Golgot
08-15-17, 09:33 AM
After the After-Effects?
Day 1 Back At Work:
Very weird. Seeing 'depth' in my work screen all day. Woke up thinking I didn't have any shoulders (a result of having mis-matched bodies in Elite and Dirt Rally I think). Plus I dreamed I had CGI hands. The VR hangover is real ;). (But then I did have a proper binge over 2 days :D)
Day 2 Back at Work:
Today was a lot more tame. (All I did last night was sit in the middle of San Francisco in Google Earth, then play a seated puzzler - all very sedate, plus got 7 hours sleep). The effects today are much more muffled. Still dreamt that my bed was at 3:1 scale though, and have spent much of the day feeling slightly wobbly again (like I might reach for something and miss, or take a step and misjudge it). It's not hugely unpleasant, but it's not exactly pleasant either. Would rather everything settled into a comfort zone sooner rather than later...
Golgot
08-15-17, 09:52 AM
Reports from Game Lands...
---
Elite Dangerous:
http://i.imgur.com/tu77KTf.png
So hard to describe how all the pluses and minuses combine here, so I'm going bullet points...
Pros:
Holy christ the scale. The DBX in the tutorial is ENORMOUS. It's an expanse of metal you can scud past for an age. Why this is so apparent now, given the fly-by takes the same time in 2D, I've no idea. It's really surreal. (I look back at pictures I took and they just don't convey the heights / widths / depths experienced at the time. Those hexagonal heat sinks on planets surfaces just are 50 feet high now. Things tower generally, hovering Goliaths hove mightily overhead, headlight glare and skimmer scans add extra voluminous vibes. It's striking stuff.)
The little things: The sun glares on cockpit imperfections really make it feel like there's a curved bit of uber-glass just in front of you. Shadows now crawl in '3D' over the ship's interior. Tiny bits of space debris zip past in ways which real make the external vacuum feel like it has volume...
The GalMap is just glorious. I accidentally turned on the PowerPlay filter at one point, and in a hallelujah chorus I was suddenly surrounded by huge scoops of candy-coloured galaxy expanse in all directions. Looked amazing :)
Cons:
Distance view is just a muddle of pixels on my 970. You can get the general shape of things but no chance of spotting a ship type from its silhouette or whatever. It's pretty awful, mainly just mush. (I'm gonna have to toy with some down-sampling or 'supersampling', dialling other stuff down to get there).
The ASW trickery kicks in every time I'm in a station, and sometimes on surfaces, turning everything into a juddery, melting Matrix world at its worst. Not ideal :/
Much faff. Many crashes, much GalMap key remapping. Etc etc.
On Balance:
Amazing experience when it worked. Some big negatives to go with the big plusses though. Think the desire to constantly tinker with the graphics is going to always be there. (And the long-term itch to buy a 1080 once the price drops, to clean up those distance views :/)
---
Robo Recall:
http://i.imgur.com/9Cs1YL7.png
Experience:
As with Elite, the graphical downgrades accompanying the more classically replete gameplay are really obvious here. I mean yes this is just a fancy wave shooter, but you can teleport down reasonably sized city-scape routes, and the action gets very busy and kinetic - they've obviously had to dial it right down to jaggy town to get all that working for the 970.
Actually enjoyed it a fair bit (pulling different weapons from different 'holsters' works really well, as well as the novel melee stuff). Only reason I stopped playing was a succession of glitches and crashes :/
Conclusion?
Definitely pushing me to trial the 2 sensor '360' set up. Although they had some really slick UI to help you work with 270, it was one thing too many to stay on top of amongst the hectic interplay. Could definitely see 360 being a lot of fun here, even with a confined space. (RR seems to do the UI really well, including a simple floor icon to help you recentre painlessly when you've wandered too far).
---
Dirt Rally
https://roadtovrlive-5ea0.kxcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/dirt-rally-vr-review-oculus-rift-9.jpg
"I'm going sidewayyyys! Waaaargggg!" *scatter scatter scatter*
This was fricking amazing :D. I don't know how long the buzz will last, but driving like Miss Daisy down a rally course was itself strangely exhilarating, and pelting around a Rally Cross race was excellent. I'm not even sure what the VR actually brings here (aside from the clear verisimilitude of having a helmet on :D), but objectively speaking I was definitely driving better for whatever reason (better times / positions). And subjectively speaking I shouted 'Holyyyy sheeeeeet' a lot more going round corners :D. Whether it's coz I was more afraid of the corners, so slowed more sensibly, or because I was gleaning just a touch more info on competitors from glances around or whatever. Can't put my finger on why the races were noticeably more fun, but they definitely were :)
---
Windlands
http://i2.wp.com/metrouk2.files.wordpress.com/2017/01/windlands.jpeg?crop=0px%2C31px%2C1600px%2C841px&resize=1200%2C630&quality=80&strip=all&ssl=1
A Tale of Two Control Settings:
Lovely little world to drop in on, but with the most 'intense' move-set I've trialled yet. Went for classic smooth turning (rather than the crappy 'snap turns'), but chickened out on the strafing for now. Made it a bit unintuitive to walk around, but given you're mainly high jumping or grapple-swinging around trees, it worked out pretty well. (Was quietly smug that I didn't get tooo motion giddy using all those things in conjunction, although there were definite 'woah, lets just stand still for a bit' moments). The swinging, when I could get it to work fluidly (which was rarely), was pretty great, and also vaguely amusing when just desperately saving yourself from plummeting. In the end I noped out after about 30 minutes of play though. These forms of locomotion in conjunction are pretty intense.
Golgot
08-18-17, 05:34 AM
Girlfriend in Space!
Happy to report that my lady, who is normally the ultimate boss battle at the end of every gaming purchase, has signed off on this deranged project :)
For the record: The Oculus First Contact demo, followed by Google Earth were a winning combo in her case. (She was a bit less sold on the locomotion complications and bitty-ness of The Lab, and has got a touch motion sick generally with classic motion titles). Elite was a hit today though, until the flight got a bit much. Reckon puzzle games are probably the future.
---
Blade Runner lives!
Aircar (https://www.oculus.com/experiences/rift/1204731822978255/) is an amazing one-dev project. Not a game, just a 'fly around Blade-Runner-land' simulator, but an excellently done one. You practically hallucinate some accompanying Vangelis ;)
https://youtu.be/2qqWej30ZAs
---
Elite VR Report:
Rarg, finally had a proper go at optimising the settings (http://i.imgur.com/am9mKAM.png), and this can get a bit special at times :D
Main highlight was scudding past the city-surfaces of coriolis station in a tutorial Sidey, and realising I just had to go and have a traditional FA-off fly inside :)
http://i.imgur.com/RGRu9LV.png
Pix still can't get across what's cool about being in the middle of all this stuff, but here's another album anyway (http://imgur.com/a/BjRsI) just in case :D
http://i.imgur.com/OUhPIu9.png
I guess pragmatically I can discuss how my current settings pan out. Dumping a load of Supersampling and glitter (bloom, blur, ambient occlusion, high end shadows) and making do with lowly FXAA etc allows me to boost the 'HMD' setting to 1.5 (basically downsampling, as I understand it). Gives much better distance views and general fine detail render. Decent balance of smooth & pretty. Getting the reco 90fps in space & stations and a solid 'asyncronous 45fps' (IE 90 fps with half the frames filled in) on surfaces, and all looking pretty clean. (Turns out I was dropping sub '45' previously, which is why it was a melty hell).
This pic probably gives an idea of some of the payoffs:
http://i.imgur.com/GNtZAIw.png
Text is all big and bold on station menus, but you can see some aliasing shimmer in the bigger cockpit of the 'Conda. (Aliasing / shimmer is probably one thing I'd still like to tweak - most of it's fine, but station meshes do crawl a fair bit on some approaches). The slight barrenness of the cockpit is barely apparent when you're in motion. (Keeping reflections high seems to help in some of the shinier cockpits too - the Courier's interior looks pretty fantastic as the starlight shifts over it :))
---
TLDR: The game's still stupid (got sent on a '10 minutes away' assassination, agaaiiin). But now I've got it stable in VR, it is also pretty fantastic again. Flies and feels like a wonderful sci fi beast :)
Golgot
08-19-17, 09:18 PM
I'm charging through some of the official Oculus freebies and assorted promo stuff.
---
Short Stories / Animations:
Nothing super stellar so far (the lack of depth movement really undermines a lot of the 360 intrigue), although having a rabbit body in one was a cute touch ;). I'm hopeful some detective style narrative stuff that's out there might be better. There's some potential there, but these early offerings are still finding their way with the interactivity level, or mainly come across as novelty alone in the case of straight narratives in a 3D environment.
---
Science Silliness:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKbwmTG8chQ
This was a promising glimpse into what could be done on an education front. It fell short ultimately, but some of the visualisation of cell internals was great. It just needed a bit more of a bridge between dry sci and practical demonstration. Meaningful interaction with the DNA/RNA/protein models etc. The mad glory of cell structures and floating mitochondia was cool though, and drama of the virus attack was getting somewhere.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8BtKiM1Bvs
Tried this out, it's completely insane. Looked amazing, played very eccentrically (grabbing passing planets etc). Eventually it glitched, placed me permanently on top of the ISS, and me and my vertigo noped our way out of there ;)
---
Physics Fun:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOabe5glPCI
This stood out as a really well executed bit of physics fun. Loads of neat ways of just messing about, cross-pollinating things, and occasionally messing with forces you shouldn't have ;)
---
Plus some bonus Elite musings:
Combat:
After doing some prolonged CZ combat, I can say that it is a bit like viewing everything through a sieve. Even though you essentially rely on the larger HUD info, you still spend a lot of time tracking small dots at range, be they the sub-system boxes, or the orientation hints of the target in flight.
Not playing to any of the tech's strengths really. But with the bonuses of the headlooking for target tracking and general whizz bang when shots got close and **** got intense, still happily spent an hour doing it ;). (Really wish the Arena mode was active - would love to use this set up with that 'visual make and break' rule set)
Alien Ambience
Visited a fully sprouting alien zone...
http://i.imgur.com/iUsLDTE.png
Again impossible to put it across, but here's a mini-album (http://imgur.com/a/NZeHL) trying to show the 'waarg' element that VR adds to being 'in' this classic sci-fi style environment :)
Canny Valley
Seeing your own Av in 3D is odd :D. Impressive, but most strange...
http://i.imgur.com/kRzacA1.png
Tacitus
08-20-17, 10:04 AM
Superhot is the most innovative shooter I've played in years.
Golgot
08-20-17, 10:30 AM
Superhot is the most innovative shooter I've played in years.
Haha, oh yes, I am totally getting there :D. Have heard very grand things about the VR implementation too.
Saving it up for a day when I've got the flat to myself and can just get ludicrous though. Leela's got a classic aversion to shooty gaming, and I think the sight of me smashing through glass men would definitely test her current acceptance of this beast in our lives ;)
Thankfully there's actually a ton of content for me to chew through still, while I wait for other AAA stuff like Lone Echo to devalue :). Lots of freebies, lots of tinkering needing doing, and ultimately I am going to superglue or screw my 2 sensors high up in the 'experimental 360' format, as it'll get a lot more out of my place space. Like a ton more.
Such disruptive changes require baby steps though :D
Zotis
08-20-17, 11:18 AM
I've gone to a VR cafe twice, and I already started feeling the novelty wear off. At first it was incredible, but as I got the hang of it things became boring. It may likely just be the games, since they had very few multiplayer games that I could play with my friend there. They said the liscencing was pretty expensive. Most of their games were a bit too cartoony for my taste. I also found my hands getting pretty tired, and it was just really hard on my system after an hour. My friend felt nautious because he opted for full screen when moving, where as I opted for the black tunnel vision when moving because I noticed it felt more comfortable even though it reduced my field of vision. Neither of us were thinking of vection, but I could feel that I was making the right choice. Now it makes more sense after reading some of your posts.
Some of the games you're posting look really cool, and I haven't tried a racing game yet.
If you already said something to this effect then sorry for missing it, but I didn't thoroughly read every post. How much time do you find you can comfortably play in one session? Are you able to play for a few hours, or does the experience wear you out in an hour?
Golgot
08-21-17, 05:42 AM
I've gone to a VR cafe twice, and I already started feeling the novelty wear off. At first it was incredible, but as I got the hang of it things became boring. It may likely just be the games, since they had very few multiplayer games that I could play with my friend there. They said the liscencing was pretty expensive. Most of their games were a bit too cartoony for my taste. I also found my hands getting pretty tired, and it was just really hard on my system after an hour. My friend felt nautious because he opted for full screen when moving, where as I opted for the black tunnel vision when moving because I noticed it felt more comfortable even though it reduced my field of vision. Neither of us were thinking of vection, but I could feel that I was making the right choice. Now it makes more sense after reading some of your posts.
Some of the games you're posting look really cool, and I haven't tried a racing game yet.
If you already said something to this effect then sorry for missing it, but I didn't thoroughly read every post. How much time do you find you can comfortably play in one session? Are you able to play for a few hours, or does the experience wear you out in an hour?
Damn really, I'm definitely still feeling the novelty :D. Yeah might be the spread of games they had on offer. Which ones did you try?
[EDIT: Ok whoops I went to town on the answers!]
On Simplicity:
I think graphical simplicity is always going to be an issue, but games with 'AAA style' graphics seem to be coming out in greater numbers now, whereas it's been more indie guys pushing the field since launch, and cartoon graphics ensure they can hit the 90fps x 2 requirements of the kit. (I'd guess the arcade has solid machines, but if they're not top end I can see why they'd go for reliable games - ensuring they hit 90fps also removes one cause of nausea etc, and I doubt they want to run a vomatorium ;))
Think repetition is also a big aspect in the early launch material. Everyone's still trying to figure out what's possible, so when someone finds something that works there's been a lot of copying. And damn there are a lot of wave shooters and physics games... (For every new possibility VR brings, it definitely has at least another limitation ;))
Possible Multiplayer Games:
I haven't ventured into the online side yet, but there seem to be a healthy spread of launches. Of the current crop Echo Arena looks a good one to try (zero G sports game), and then the shooters run from 'realistic' like Onwards & Pavlov (VR legs required), to the big spread of wave survival ones and teleport stylings: Arizona Sunshine is supposed to be a solid zombie one, and the early magical teleport-duelling of The Unspoken is supposedly pretty decent too. Bizarrely the free novelty game Rec Room has the most celebrated Co-op Adventure mode out at the moment.
On Session Lengths & Comfort:
I haven't hit exhaustion at any point so far, but the longest I've played a standing game at a time is probably about an hour and a half, mainly because I'm just running through my library trying everything :D. (Seated sim games like Dirt Rally and Elite I've already got some 3 hours sessions in just fine, with occasional screen breaks). Fatigue is definitely there as a possible issue though. (In games where you're looking to get your heart-rate up the standing aspect actually feels like a bonus, but can definitely see it limiting super long sessions). It might help that I'm in OK shape and quite light bodied, I haven't hit any physical fatigue there as such. No hand discomfort as yet either. (Were you using a Vive or a Rift? The Vive 'wand' controllers seem to be a bit less ergonomic. Rift ones sit in a pretty natural hand position it seems).
A bigger issue than potential physical fatigue are the factors like the motion intensity, and the general 'presence' intensity. For games that require some nausea stamina I'm kinda building up my tolerance, and have been doing things like 10 minute tests up to like 25 minute sessions. The Spiderman-like Windlands definitely required me to put it down after 25 mins. And on intensity of the certain worlds... let's just say I probably will try the Alien: Isolation mod, but I'm not sure if I'll last more than 5 minutes :D
If anything though I'm kinda liking the challenge of getting my VR legs. If bigger AAA experiences like Fallout 4 and beyond turn out to be any good, I want to be ready... :D
Golgot
08-21-17, 08:39 AM
Game Update: Dirt Rally is Fricking Awesome :)
God I am mainlining a lot of Dirt! Partially because I'm keeping the 360 experiences in cold storage until I can sort out my sensors. But mainly because it's a deep AAA and fairly fricking phenomenal :D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lBoBnzO2gI
^^I endorse this message^^
(But not their use of horizon lock and crash blinkers, which detract from the epic ;))
A Blur of Impressions:
I'm now on my second go at a 1960s rally, urging my plucky Mini to 2nd and 3rd places. The intensity of dedicating your full attention to each stage is just grand, and the way both the stages and settings bring a range of challenges and aesthetics is really cool. It's a proper joy to spray your way over the muddy knolls of Wales, bouncing over rutted blind hills one minute, churning through soft forest turns the next, then snaking over a set of simple hilltop 6-turns, slipping ever closer to flipping as their subtle switchbacks and scrubby tilts accrue... and the grass rushes by as the speed starts to gather round your ears... And then you're off. Scudding across the treacherous icy twists of Sweden, because why stop at one country? :D And then you're hairing around the rude rocky inclines of Monaco...
They all have their different beguiling variations, both inter-stage (landscape transitions, weather hazards), between stages, and then in each country's dynamics. But they'll seek to sucker you.. you think you've got the vibe of this country, the beat of this stage, but they've always got a jutting post-jump rock awaiting you, a taped-off twist seeking to ensnare, a casual spray of gravel from a poorly tended drive, a shaded corner glinting with lingering midnight ice...
And that's before you even get to the 1970s, with the most over-steery 'I want to kill you' car ever invented...
http://historygarage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/stratos-sliding.jpg
Cross Rally Cross:
It's a good thing me and my Mini-moke are actually making dollar out in the gritty expanses, because Rally Cross is the most immensely difficult thing I've ever encountered in my life! So far I've profited nothing more than expensive blows to my chassis and pride. Thankfully, from reading around, it turns out that it's by design :D
Apparently you're meant to start as a total scrub, completely incapable of winning your first 20+ races, because your car and crew just aren't up to it. Which is cool, because it's made me experiment with every corner, track every cauterised trace of rubber, shorten my gears down to spiky points, and seize on every dirty manoeuvre available. And I'm still coming last. But I'm getting closer.. :D
The weirdest thing was, I had one round where I swallowed a placebo pill and actually came second in two of the qualifiers, racing raggedly over the line right on the tail of first place. And it's all because I'd finally hired an engineer, and assumed he had upped my stats. (Turns out they just improve your repair efficiency, so useful for Rallies and major racing prangs). I've no idea what happened, but I can only assume I was throwing myself into corners with wilder abandon and assuming my car would pull me out the other side :D
I've got a plan though. I'm gonna grab this guy's setup (https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/509279488238238599/20FB6AA046787F29FF49C36ACEF746619032DAB4/?interpolation=lanczos-none&output-format=jpeg&output-quality=95&fit=inside|637:358&composite-to%3D%2A%2C%2A%7C637%3A358&background-color=black) from the Steam workshop, as I'm clearly in need of semi-professional help ;)
Why Is This So Much Fricking Better In VR?
I don't fully know. It helps that there's a focus on the sounds and scintilla of the experience in the Dirt sims perhaps? It helps that the rally courses are beautifully and believeably crafted (in a way that is still striking, despite seemingly perceiving it all through a spray of digital detritus with safety netting across your face...).
Does it help that you can kind of 'feel' the shape of that lumpen congealed mound in the mud road as you approach it more effectively? Or how the rut to its side will flip you if you catch it wrong? Or that you saw it earlier than normal, peaking sideways out of your window as you wet-slalomed around the corner on approach? Hell yeah, I reckon all that stuff does help :)
But what that all really helps with, as you speed along, hunkered down in your seat scanning the road, while you assort the jumbled instructions of your co-pilot into the twisted forms looming ahead, is that you're kinda actually there doing it...
(And stringing hair-raising risks together at ludicrous speeds without the threat of actual fatal compression :). Although the risk of converting your wildly scampering steed into a hobbled hissing hunk is a pretty good motivator to keep you careening between the jagged lines :))
---
EDIT:
Made a quick scrubby vid of me trying out a new car in Dirt Rally :). Excuse the dodgy border and audio levels, I'm still figuring out how to capture in VR :D
https://youtu.be/VMQ4d_RyyfA
Obviously the depth perception stuff can't come across, but I guess there are a few bits there where you can see me peeping round the corner and stuff. And generally turning to berate my co-driver ;)
Tacitus
08-21-17, 10:54 AM
Superhot is the most innovative shooter I've played in years (https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&q=superhot%20is%20the%20most&src=typd)
Golgot
08-21-17, 11:25 AM
Superhot is the most innovative shooter I've played in years (https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&q=superhot%20is%20the%20most&src=typd)
I think it's becoming clear that you were subsumed by the metaverse some time ago :D
(Oh I will get my Matrix on. And also discover all about Frank the binary Hedgehog, or whatever other arcane mysteries are in there...)
(I've been kinda putting my guns in front of my face and shouting in capitals to avoid spoilers to date ;))
TheUsualSuspect
08-21-17, 11:35 AM
So I played this yesterday...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QIbI4Wtgug
It was $25. About ten minutes. Really fun walking around and having the real environment interact with the VR stuff. 3 of us did it.
It could have used one more section to it to make it really great. But it was fun walking around, seeing my buddies as Ghostbusters. When they shot at me, my best tickled me. I could hear them in the headset. It was an experience alright.
Golgot
08-21-17, 12:26 PM
So I played this yesterday...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QIbI4Wtgug
It was $25. About ten minutes. Really fun walking around and having the real environment interact with the VR stuff. 3 of us did it.
It could have used one more section to it to make it really great. But it was fun walking around, seeing my buddies as Ghostbusters. When they shot at me, my best tickled me. I could hear them in the headset. It was an experience alright.
Ahhh wow, that does look grand! Freedom of movement and haptic feedback like the tickling must be great. Seeing StayPuft looming into view must have been immense too :D
(Love it when they demo these things with the 'mixed reality' camera work too - really well done there considering they seem to have done it with live action footage rather than green-screen.)
Ironic that they've got the classic 'where's my next act' problem that all VR stuff seems to get too - long form isn't it's thing right now it seems. Does look badass tho :)
I've slammed this link (https://www.wired.com/2016/04/magic-leap-vr/") out a lot, but I'm really intrigued by what other magician's tricks can be performed with this type of installation. IE like making the areas appear 'infinite' and cunning use of physical objects. Will be interesting to see if we get a whole spread from AAA razzmatazz to hipster arthouse uses and more....
Untethered, youre released from worrying about tripping over a cable or tangling or straying too far. That relief heightens the effect of being present in the VR. Inside, you navigate an Indiana Jones-like adventure that seems to take place over a large territory. The illusion of unbounded space, or, as Hickman describes it, a magical space bigger inside than it is outside, is achieved by a trick called redirected walking.
As an example, whenever you turn 90 degrees in the room your VR will show you the room turning only 80 degrees. You dont notice the difference, but the VR accumulates those small 10-degree cheats on each turn until it redirects your route away from a wall or even gets you to walk in a circle while making you think youve walked a mile in a straight line. Redirected touching does a similar trick. A room could contain one real block but display three virtual blocks on a shelfblocks A, B, and C. You see your hand grab block B, but the VR system will direct your hand to touch the only real block in the room. You can replace block B and pick up block C, but in reality youre picking up the same real block.
Its astounding how those tiny misdirections fool your gut into believing that what youre seeing is real. Stairs can be made to feel endless if they drop down as you walk upward. In fact, at one point in the Void a decaying floor collapses while youre walking across it, and you see, hear, and feelin all your bodya plunge down to the floor below. But in fact the real floor only sinks 6 inches. You can easily imagine a room 60 by 60 feet packed with a minimal set of elemental shapes, ramps, and seats, all recycled and redirected for a variety of multihour adventures.
Golgot
08-22-17, 08:07 AM
Just some supa-cute noob-induction in Echo Arena. I definitely have to get on this...
https://youtu.be/lLpaetWYTXI
Although given how chaotic and rambunctious open play looks, I'm still gonna wait til I'm full 360...
https://youtu.be/_WRM7M4A57U
(I've heard snap 45 degree turns just don't cut it for quick adjustments to grab the disc as it flies past you etc. Plus that kind of zero-G sport zen just calls for a 'free' axis of movement :))
---
And some bonus hardware stuff. The trial 'Elf' kit (https://www.roadtovr.com/kopin-prototype-vr-headset-lightning-microdisplay/) - small, high resolution, high refresh rate screens which might point to smaller, clearer next gen kit. Current downsides are lower field of view and the standard lense artefacts etc.
(There's a load of other tech stuff in the nearer future, like Valve looking to attach sensors to your knees, and their full-finger-tracking strap on controller, and a ton of other peripheral, speculative and pie-in-the-sky stuff. Just thought that piece was nice and in-depth on a slice of long-now tech happening at the moment).
Golgot
08-22-17, 07:13 PM
Made a quick scrubby vid of me trying out a new car in Dirt Rally :). Excuse the dodgy border and audio levels, I'm still figuring out how to capture in VR :D
https://youtu.be/VMQ4d_RyyfA
Obviously the depth perception stuff can't come across, but I guess there are a few bits there where you can see me peeping round the corner and stuff. And generally turning to berate my co-driver ;)
doubledenim
08-22-17, 07:33 PM
I don't know what I liked better, the end or how you kept turning on the wipers. :lol:
A driving-sim would be the thing to get me in VR. If you do some more vids, can you pipe down the navigator? I couldn't really make you out over him.
Golgot
08-22-17, 08:13 PM
I don't know what I liked better, the end or how you kept turning on the wipers. :lol:
A driving-sim would be the thing to get me in VR. If you do some more vids, can you pipe down the navigator? I couldn't really make you out over him.
That guy will just not shut up :D
Cheers man, yeah if I shoot another will def try and trim him. (I found if he was much lower I kept mishearing and driving into cowsheds tho :D).
I reckon you'd love this to bits! Sounds like it's grand on the PS4 too. (My only worry with the PSVR generally is that it seems weaker in the non-seated stuff right now, tech and game wise, so maybe less bang for buck there. Right now I'm almost feeling like I could have bought the Rift just for this and got my money's worth tho!)
(PS the wipers are on auto. I've got evvvverything on auto. I'm such a scrub ;))
Golgot
08-23-17, 07:22 AM
SUPERHOT!
Ok so I've only tried 30 mins, and still haven't delved into the memes, but already yeah, what a game :D
That 'SUPERHOT' sign-off when you've Matrixed (https://media.giphy.com/media/l0MYs2CoIaEtXAseY/giphy.gif) a wave to pieces is just off the chart :). Loving the air grabs and improvisation with the VR hands too. (Throwing is a bit shonky, but with with a straight 'push' you can get fairly accurate strikes, and throwing long range ones to the next realm feels really natural).
It's also sweaty as! Even in these early rounds there's been much squat ducking under punches, cowering behind desks, and dual spraying maniacally in circles... (I have also naturally given parts of my flat a light punching ;))
http://cdn4.dualshockers.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/superhot_gun.gif
Loving the look too. There was a wonderful moment early on when I turned around to check for trouble, and saw the fine-flecked concrete detail of a white wall behind me instead, covered in diamond mesh shadow cast by the high window above. It was surprisingly realistic-looking, yet imbedded within the game's aesthetic too. (Really fitted with this VR philosophy of adding to presence in proximity but not baffling your vision at range).
----
Talking of which, there was a great AMA (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6vdfjf/lone_echo_echo_arena_ama_with_ready_at_dawn/?st=j6ooidyg&sh=4ee5c376) with some of the Lone Echo devs last night. Really interesting to hear their thoughts on everything from balancing immersion against interaction (and how narratives are tricky with this novel '4th wall') (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6vdfjf/lone_echo_echo_arena_ama_with_ready_at_dawn/dlzn8b7/), to hitting that 'real but readable' aesthetic (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6vdfjf/lone_echo_echo_arena_ama_with_ready_at_dawn/dlzjrmd/), to... Why they think stick locomotion won't work this gen - But hey, they proved others wrong on arms, bodies and smooth motion ;) (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6vdfjf/lone_echo_echo_arena_ama_with_ready_at_dawn/dlzul0f/)
We aren't currently working on stick based locomotion, and our current thinking (which may very well be proven wrong) is that that it may not be possible to do on current hardware in a way that is both:
1) Comfortable to a wide audience, including people with sensitivity to motion sickness
2) Done with a high degree of convincing presence.
I'll outline a few of the reasons we feel this way after our learning experiences on Lone Echo, but let me bold the disclaimer that VR is still in its infancy and any development practices we or anyone else suggests is set in stone might be completely invalidated when someone else comes up with the secret sauce that makes it work.
Case in point: we started development on LE, the prevailing school of thought for wider audience VR titles was No Arms, No Body, No Smooth Locomotion, so it would be pretty hypocritical to suggest land-based stick locomotion can't be solved!
... That said.... I'm not sure we're going to be the ones to solve it :)
For a little more insight into the reasons we feel this way currently, for the experience we wanted out of Lone Echo, we found that almost anything that wasn't one-to-one player motion was either uncomfortable, immersion breaking, or both. The slight middle ground was our arm / body IK, but even with that we had to bend over backwards to not make it super off-putting to people. This is the reason pretty much all of the mechanics in the game, from locomotion, to world interactions and tool and interface usage is mapped almost entirely your your hand position. For every system we would try to avoid using secondary buttons and sticks as the point of interaction, as we wanted the player to feel like Jack and his connection to the world was one to one with theirs. This is also the reason a lot of mechanics that could have been controller button based were mapped to virtual buttons on your virtual body (cutting / scanning tool, helmet visor, headlamp, etc), and we tuned the placement and ergonomics of them to feel like your real body and headset were actually part of your virtual robot one, which formed a stronger bond with your virtual body with each press.
For other functions that didn't quite fit the mold above we would still make sure there was a clear abstraction of the mechanic that was intuitive to the fiction of the world and the character. This is why the face buttons are reserved for things like micro-thrusters and boost and break. As a human being we don't have these things, and we can see mechanically what is happening in response to the button press with the notion of the futuristic robot, so it is a lot easier for us to accept this as second nature to our virtual character.
So, long story short, our takeaway is that until there is a mainstream tracking solution that gets some degree of one-to-one with ground-based-humanoid movement, given our goal of maintaining a high degree of presence and having a more broadly comfortable experience, we will probably stay away from the walking ourselves.
We're super excited to be proved wrong though!
-Nathan
Tacitus
08-23-17, 09:59 AM
Superhot VR is one of the handful of things I'd want to play in VR. I know it's a separate, shorter game but does it have any of the outside-of-mission meta lunacy that the original has?
Golgot
08-23-17, 10:13 AM
Superhot VR is one of the handful of things I'd want to play in VR. I know it's a separate, shorter game but does it have any of the outside-of-mission meta lunacy that the original has?
I suspect yes. There have been some meta-games and sidestep breaks from the carnage already... (won't discuss in case they're distinct 'n spoilery like...)
---
Also driving games T, you'd probably like driving games in VR :). Get DD online as well and you could both destroy me in some cruel and unusual race format. Like one that requires driving nous or something. (I'd win at swearing tho ;))
doubledenim
08-23-17, 10:24 AM
Absolutely. I am the worst driving, over hyper car enthusiast on the planet. I've played every GT, have the original "bible" instruction manual and still can't set up a car.
It would be great!
Tacitus
08-23-17, 10:50 AM
I suspect yes. There have been some meta-games and sidestep breaks from the carnage already... (won't discuss in case they're distinct 'n spoilery like...)
---
Also driving games T, you'd probably like driving games in VR :). Get DD online as well and you could both destroy me in some cruel and unusual race format. Like one that requires driving nous or something. (I'd win at swearing tho ;))
Is there a messaging client? That's all I'm sayin' ;)
Golgot
08-23-17, 07:40 PM
Nah just floppy discs and subliminal instructions so far ;)
---
Skyrim VR jank will be a whole new dimension of jank... (http://m.uk.ign.com/articles/2017/08/23/gamescom-2017-skyrim-is-pretty-rough-on-psvr?watch)
Around 50% of the time my right hand, with my sword, was floating in the air several feet away from me. It popped back in place seemingly randomly, and I never really figured out if there was a 'right' way to hold my move controller to prevent this.
:D
Golgot
08-24-17, 11:16 AM
Indie Odds & Ends:
Oh god, players hack cyberpunk horror game... activate VR...
https://youtu.be/n-CYUJVYShU
(Well actually, it turns out most games built in Unreal probably come with VR capability built in (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6vp7nh/the_game_observer_has_hidden_vr_support/?st=j6qj2ux6&sh=8c6ae1b7). But still, that looks spooky...)
---
On a more calm and soothing note, it looks fun to be an incarcerated potato...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oA-FSrhlZxQ
Golgot
08-25-17, 07:58 AM
Tech Tests & Future Fun:
Liking these shonky attempts to turn simple 360 footage (just filmed with the classic bundled GoPros) into '6 degrees of freedom' 3D vids, allowing viewer position to move around within the footage etc. There are a ton of artefacts and glitches, and all of this will probably get superseded by 'lightfield' or something sexier, but still, pretty neat :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nu9OgM5Kvoc
Examples with positional tracking and lighting effects etc:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hye8b9NuW_o&feature=youtu.be
The middle clip in this one looks pretty classy too. Not sure what the CGI-looking treescapes are about though.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRfJ9DYYjMI
Golgot
08-25-17, 06:23 PM
Ok two epiphanies!
In Space Things Are Big (but you are always the same size):
I've figured out why the scale really kicks home in VR. It's not just the stereo imaging. It's that you've got a point of reference! Even when not in my ship, just floating in the CQC menu screen looking back over my shoulder at the echoing chasm that is the bay behind me, it feels enormous because I know how big I am compared to it. We are the scale. In my case I know that I'm 1.80 metres, and that thing over there is ****ing huge :D
So sure, there's always been points of reference. I know that this perk disc is wider than my ship, but now I know just how big my ship is compared to me (in a way that just doesn't bite until you're 'in' the game, 'being' the av, rather than just jiving with the idea of seeing from its point of view). Something about the stereo view and the precise head tracking really does kick in an extra convincer for your brain that this sh*t is actually there in relation to yourself. Some extra hard-wired world-perceiving part of you really does buy into it, and brings a few more instincts and calculations than normal along for the ride...
This thing is fricking massive :D
http://i.imgur.com/zXcJiCj.png
Can confirm Arena is even more insane in VR!
It really is space pew daydreams writ real :). I'm in a weird niche position in that I'd gotten a handle on it when it was still properly alive, so despite being VR-bedazzled, after a small amount of shooting the wrong team (due to to my new VR friendly HUD colours I swear :D) I was able to not get totally murderised. Finished mid-tabley each time, and had an absolute blast :)
A few vague thoughts on the VR side:
You can track fleeing ships a lot better, no doubt. The 'visual lock' system is also totally suited to it. (Being able to 'lock target in front' just by looking in their direction is dead handy too).
You do have to scramble around to refind the actual radar sometimes, so busily are you rubbernecking at all the predators and the pretty ;)
The enormity of the infrastructure made me feel like I could go for even small escape gaps then in the past.
It was the closet to vom-comet city Elite has taken me too, but it still felt fitting given the manoeuvrers. Wasn't ultimately that bad, but when the numbers dropped I was happy enough to step down after 45 minutes. It's pretty fricking intense!
http://i.imgur.com/5c5irEK.png
http://i.imgur.com/WgVYurK.png
---
I've also bought this IndieGala VR bundle (https://www.indiegala.com/vr) for £2.78. Possibly more than just fool's gold in there. It's easier to take a punt on Early Access games at 30p a pop anyway ;).
The more promising looking ones are...
A pretty-looking semi-on-rails solo & offline shooter/brawler:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_6z98cSsCE
An RTS played at the scale of your choosing...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJTbiZV3LyY
The rest are all swatting bees, defending towers, flimsy Steampunk chuminess, and bow-and-arrowing Unity assets. Also a really terrifyingly bad horror one about riding a paperboy's bike through a terribly rendered forest. Not doing that one :D
---
--EDIT--
http://i.imgur.com/AnEHh2k.png
Damn, SuperHot lives up to its name like this! It's getting me doing squats and all sorts. I'm genuinely hot! (Although most of the Neo-feeling moments probably look more Drunken Lemur, Upset Turtle in reality ;))
They have also made me do... things. No spoilers, but... I feel dirty. Oh the things...
EDIT: PS, I totally smashed my lamp, trying to throw a gun around a corner on a plane. Lamp still works though :D
---
EDIT:
Form Over Substance: 3(-)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-HY3NA01v4
Snagged the puzzle game Form for £8. Knew it was short and simple even for that cash (think it was something ludicrous like £25 at launch), but wanted something on the slick end. It's definitely that. At points it's almost horror-like in the world it takes you into, of shifting forms and half-seen intangibles, at others pretty resplendent, when it takes you into the light. Unfortunately the puzzles, despite some classy visual design, are best compared to the most grandiose, operatic, slightly unnerving version of Simon Says ever committed to silicon :/
Do feel like I've got my money's worth, purely in terms of actually feeling like I was a lab toy in an alien thoughtscape at points, periodically being bestowed with aesthetic rewards. Just unfortunately, it was also like being inside the mind Jean Michelle Jarre. While he's playing snap...
https://i2.wp.com/www.speakforyourself.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/simonsays.jpg
EDIT: Well ******. I flung it back on for what I thought was the third act. Instead I was presented with a quick epilogue at the final 'door' which was both visually stunning, and narratively incredibly trite. I guess it fits :D
To sum up: It's a terribly thin puzzle game. What it does very well is to lavish the vibe and tone. I'm not entirely convinced that 'escape room' style puzzlers should be enjoy evoking claustrophobia quite so much, but it was effective at times, and made the catharsis of the 'light' sections more effective too. Even with such novel light licks to the cerebellum, still gotta highlight the lack of gaming gumption in the score though: 3(-)
Golgot
09-03-17, 12:13 PM
The 'Experimental 360' Sensor Setup:
All done, and working nicely :). Nabbed a pair of GoPro 3M adhesive mounts (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01N0K9GK2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) for £15 (Prime deal), the cable extension they recommend (https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t39.2365-6/15397552_232732683816172_4121045365602385920_n.pdf?oh=46432a557a4885677187ac849d4dd104&oe=5A5A3247), and some cable tidy odds and ends (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B06XXB6TVK/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). Was pretty painless:
http://i.imgur.com/mQhbRBy.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/UtwieDy.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/5ODFTJx.jpg
Helps that my playspace is like 1.5m x 1.5m. Two sensors can totally handle those distances, the tracking is pretty flawless.
As freeing as it is to be able to spin 360 completely now, it does also open up the 'I wish I had more room' pangs. (I was genuinely opening doors to allow me to reach things in Rick & Morty's Accounting ;)). Has opened up more games and more locomotion methods though, which is all cool.
---
Some '360' Games:
Robo Recall:
Pros:
Much more enjoyable to play like this. Felt like I was 'in the middle' of this ridiculous 80s wave shooter, allowing for more fluid and coherent teleporting about and setting up strategic angles of fire painlessly. Was very freeing not to have to care about my real-world orientation throughout.
Cons:
Forgot about the real world and shinned a small table really hard. I believe I was leaping into action at the time ;)
---
SuperHot
All pros here. The game is very front-facing-friendly, but being able to pull off ridiculous behind-the-shoulder shots without worrying about it was cool. Also meant I could reach every potential weapon (previously a few directly behind me were unusable)
---
Echo Arena
Lots to learn here, but the vaunted locomotion method is very cool. I was mainly a lost zero-G duckling in the one online game I played though. Very easy to get stranded miles from the action. Also crazy just how much rotation and free-motion is involved (conceptually, not physically). It all works, but I'm pretty sure something's gonna get smashed in my room... I was losing my real-world bearings instantaneously. Which is cool, but... dangerous :D
---
Looking forward to trying the 'point and move' locomotion some more in Minecraft. Felt I was nearly onto something cosy with the old set up, reckon 360 could actually be practical / enjoyable :)
Golgot
09-03-17, 07:07 PM
Just bought two games in the £10 range thanks to sale savings. They're launch titles that both come highly lauded :). They both also clock in at around 2 hours long (and were both initially £20+)... :/
The price-to-content continuum still crazy out of whack then. Reckon I should have some pocket fun with these though:
https://youtu.be/RauvvV4QAHQ
^^ Vanishing Realms: Zelda-ish dungeon-crawling mini-RPG-lite ^^
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBeMBdmo1pI
^^ The Gallery: Puzzle-lite '80s action fantasy movie' ^^
Golgot
09-05-17, 01:49 PM
Biiiinge Tiiiiimeee :D
---
REVIEW: ROBO RECALL 4
Despite the fact that this is essentially a wave shooter, with only 9 short-ish maps spread over 3 locations, and with heavily recycled boss battles to cap it off... they still knock every aspect out of the park :)
Pros:
Locomotion: The teleport system is particularly fluid, allowing you to dictate your facing position on arrival and allowing for seamless and coherent consta-zipping around the playspace. From vertical leaps to progressing down streets you don't really feel the lack of classic locomotion, and focus instead on the advantages of strategic mobility. (The UI is nicely tailored to help 'front facing' set ups work, but it really comes into its own when you can move freely in 360 degrees).
http://i.imgur.com/dh6jLyN.png
Great weapon system: Pulling your chosen weapons from 4 holsters (hips and shoulders) is very satisfying, and then the customisation unlocks allow for plenty of tinkering and tactical shake ups (and also add replayability to the maps). The ability to slot the new additions onto your weapon 'physically' (above) is a cute touch. (And makes up for the lack of physical 'reload' functions, which while cool in other games, would be too much upkeep amongst the anarchic abandon here).
Physics fun firestorms: You can get pretty playful here. Want to ride out a round purely armed with a robot's arm? You can do that, swatting bullets and bopping fools madly. Grabbing and flinging low moving projectiles, using foes against each other, seeing how many times you can chain-shoot a robot through the air, catching their falling weapon and charging on without a care. These are the core mechanics, which are all gaudily encouraged.
http://i.imgur.com/OHukgQA.png
Consistently fun 'retro future' stylings: As the credits rolled, the future-blimps roiled over the rooftops, and some tongue-in-cheek song called 'Shooty Face' played, I could definitely say they've done a fine job with the presentation overall. My system struggled with the visuals, but ultimately I acclimatised and got pretty embroiled in it. The lurid Robocop-meets-iRobot setting worked well, the audio was all grand playful fair (despite the comedy baddie and 'plot' being exceptionally slight). Little touches like robots bewailing their handles as you hurled them about never really got old.
Cons:
Short-ish, recycled boss, a bit of a struggle with a 'front facing' set up
Rating: 4 (Based on it being free - If it was a full fat £40 price it'd be a 3 just due to length).
---
PREVIEW: REC ROOM
It's a fricking creche! :D The few adults in there tower over the diminutive hoard of youngsters, drawn by the cartoon style, cute upgrade system, and accessible mini games and quests. We try to corral them, but their flitting herd mentalities and gaming acumen dominate all corners of this world. How this many 8-year-olds have access to £400+ kit I have no idea...
Stand Out Quest: Jumbotron
http://i.imgur.com/2zqAPjB.png
This was an absolute blast, Lazerquest made 'real' :D. Yes I had to accept many high-five revives from a 5-year-old, and yes we perished horribly to lurid robot lasers in the end. But everything clicks here, this would be a blast with mates :)
Teleportation really fits here, zapping from cover to cover, and the giant clunky white blasters all have some great reload actions that really add to the strategic peep-and-pew gaming. Laying down covering fire while others advanced felt great here...
Mini Games: (& the meh of PvP teleportation)
Mainly underwhelmed, although they're obviously proof of concepts for the most part. Might be more fun with a mate in tow. Frisbee golf could be a chilled distraction. The most fleshed-out, but the most disappointing, was Paintball. Although it was very cool in many ways, with solid map design and great 'blindfire round corners' action, teleportation is much more irritating in a PvP environment. It's on a cool down, making your own movement feel sluggish, but equally opponents zap in unpredictable fashion. The winning strategy was to teleport-mash, never staying still, which was frankly annoying to do, and annoying to play against. Needs some work :|
---
PvP LOCOMOTION MUSINGS:
Possible solutions here might be the 'animated teleport' option that others are trying. Games such as Sairento (vid) (http://bit.ly/2xMU0B0) have used the 'leap to location' animation to good effect in PvE, and I've tried something similar in the freebie 'RPG' The Ranger: Lost Tribe. No motion sickness at all weirdly, and would at least give opponents more chances to hit you and clues as to your actions.
It seems that the upcoming 'FTL meets Borderlands' space-em-up From Other Suns is going for a 'quick walk animation' that might fit the bill, but weirdly it seems you go into a third person view (https://www.engadget.com/2017/02/28/from-other-suns-lets-players-move-in-vr-however-they-want/) for the process. Unfortunately the article suggests it's good for general movement, but falls down in combat. Hands on description here (vid) (http://bit.ly/2iZUikF). I could imagine a faster first person 'rush' option (which blurs peripherals to smooth the experience') could go somewhere though...
---
Wallowing in DIRT
Earned my Renault Turbo. Turned off all the visual aids....
Of course I got Greece for my first Rally... Of course the second stage was at night. Of course you can smash out your headlights... of course you can...
This game is so fine :). Front wheels skating over the abyss when you power slide that corner he told you not to cut. Moonlight peeking between mountain peaks to give you desperate glimpses of detail (when you've foolishly smashed your headlights out). So many classy touches :)
Golgot
09-05-17, 05:13 PM
INTRIGUING UPCOMING VR GAMES:
Stealth Games:
Espire 1: - 'Metal Gear Solid meets Goldeneye'
Some neat touches here. Climbing is a good fit, and the sound mechanic looks neat (anything can make a noise, either deliberate taps of your gun on a surface, or accidentally knocking things with your swinging arm etc). The nausea-reduction viewing options make sense, given it uses 'sliding' locomotion (IE classic stick motion), if not immersively ideal.
This is paid up propaganda, but demonstrates the latest demo build:
https://youtu.be/vXrnGvm4FlE
The Dev on the project:
https://youtu.be/m1S9vyCofIk
---
Budget Cuts:
The other big stealth contender is this cartoonier teleporter. The gimmick here is that you can use your teleport destination as a spy portal. Some fun body stashing and scalpel throwing physics on display...
https://youtu.be/5MORehJY31Y
---
Space Games:
From Other Suns: - 'FTL meets Borderlands'
As mentioned upstream, it's kinda a ships, stations and away missions affair, in co-op format, with rogue randomisation n'est pas...
Trailer:
https://youtu.be/B_qMwH8kZao
---
Dungeon Crawlers:
VR Dungeon Knight: - Dungeons meet crawling... (http://bit.ly/2x8z2PZ)
Some great Knightmare-style tongue-in-cheek Dungeon Master narration here. Sounds like it might sling comfort out the window by animating your body, lack on the sword and board, and still need some more time in ye olde clay oven. But the co-op aspect and deeper-content-than-most-Early-Access games aspect, well, well they're something. Vids intrigue...
Steam Co-Op montage thing:
Online Co-Op Gameplay (http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/256693012/movie480.webm?t=1502900193)
Some randoms Co-Op-ing...
https://youtu.be/Y6elH5OKYfc
Golgot
09-06-17, 10:33 PM
Just The Weirdest Thing:
A hologram of Buzz Aldrin just tried to convince me to 'cycle' to Mars. Then he exploded. It was properly odd.
http://i.imgur.com/WKaDSvw.png
http://i.imgur.com/zKodova.png
http://i.imgur.com/09UEV2F.png
Some pretty grand depictions of lunar mining and his weird solar craft in there, with crazy scale. I was too taken aback at the time to take screengrabs of that tho :D
---
Also tried this utter oddity: Flicking switches to get the first manned Mercury craft into orbit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEAYakClECU
A strange project, but on an educational front, it did at least highlight just how damn cramped and rustic that module was. And alongside the audio of the time, and the flickering flames, just how damn terrifying that first re-entry must have been! ('Ok....' 'Ok....' 'The Pilot is saying that he's ok.' '.......Ok...............')
Golgot
09-06-17, 11:58 PM
First Impressions: The Gallery - Episode 1
Oh damn, this is pretty neat. Pix don't do it justice (yadda yadda), and it's just a familiar mystery / puzzle narrative affair, but the fit is good. The teleport system works fine here, and there's a gentle pacing which is a cool change of beat. The use of a backpack which you grab from over your shoulder works really well - it's a gimmick but a pretty seamless and somehow comforting one. Dropping new finds into it over your shoulder works particularly well. The retro 80s 'Goonies' vibe is also pretty ace :).
http://i.imgur.com/WHqSCg7.png
That note is more tongue in cheek than it appears. The big font does help in VR tho ;)
http://i.imgur.com/9DzA679.png
http://i.imgur.com/cZWEUN2.png
It looks a bit odd when slung open, but the mix of UI and 'grabbable' works well with the rucksack menu.
http://i.imgur.com/PJf6Dp2.png
Mmmm, torch :). (Lord this looked better in motion :D)
But hey, I'm just past the first puzzle. Should probably judge it properly down the line ;)
False Writer
09-07-17, 12:38 AM
From what I've heard about VR, I actually think that VR arcades would do extremely well (it would be pretty awesome if arcades made a comeback in that way)
Have a car seat and steering wheel for racing games, plastic machine guns for shooters etc.
The main thing I hear is that all the games just feel more like tech demos than real, full-fledged games. Now granted I don't follow VR closely, so I don't know if this is already being done in some way, or if they're still just trying to do PC/PSVR stuff. I just know that the extreme hype for VR last year has really cooled down since they were released, and am unsure if VR has really been as successful as people predicted.
Just a thought.
Golgot
09-07-17, 12:52 AM
From what I've heard about VR, I actually think that VR arcades would do extremely well (it would be pretty awesome if arcades made a comeback in that way)
Have a car seat and steering wheel for racing games, plastic machine guns for shooters etc.
The main thing I hear is that all the games just feel more like tech demos than real, full-fledged games. Now granted I don't follow VR closely, so I don't know if this is already being done in some way, or if they're still just trying to do PC/PSVR stuff. I just know that the extreme hype for VR last year has really cooled down since they were released, and am unsure if VR has really been as successful as people predicted.
Just a thought.
Yeah Arcades might be the big public access route for now. The kit costs are still pretty high for anyone other than hardcore gamers.
I've only just bought in, but it does seem like they're slowly lifting out of the indie-freewheeling of the first year. Oculus have been averaging around one big 'exclusive' launch a month recently, which suggests the dev pipelines are opening up, and they've been big glossy well-received things on the whole, with more matured takes on interfaces & game mechanics etc. (Although we're still talking about games with 6 hour playtimes for £30. The bang-to-buck is still heavily reliant on the novelty factor etc).
Think they're turning that particular corner in terms of getting 'AAA' content out, but if the tech's gonna make it to broad accessibility (and more accessible pricing / meatier content investment) it's gonna be a lonnng road. The VR Reddits console themselves with things like this (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6yfwyw/adoption_rates/?st=j79wvclw&sh=f2ce00b3) ;)
http://fowens.people.ysu.edu/DiffusionRatesCommunicationTechnologies.jpg
Golgot
09-07-17, 11:28 AM
Oh fricking sweet news. LA Noire coming to VR... (https://blog.vive.com/us/2017/09/07/rockstar-la-noire-for-vive/)
https://d201n44z4ifond.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2017/09/06204518/RSG_LAN_VRCF_FACEBOOK_851x3151.jpg
Just 7 cases from the original rebuilt, but they're slinging in the driving and shooty bits too, not just reformating point-and-click to be 'prod and point'. (The free writing notes in a pad, while a nice bit of flexibility, does have huge silliness potential though. Pens I've used to date in VR have tended towards the enormous :D).
With each of the seven cases rebuilt for virtual reality, players can use real world physical motions including grabbing, inspecting and manipulating individual clues or using the detectives notebook to make notes or draw freehand. Experience first person driving in VR with additional real-world vehicle interactions including steering, operating car doors, changing radio stations, shooting from vehicles and much more.
The things that spring to mind are:
I bounced off this hard because the point and click aspect was so tedious. Also the driving and shooting were just too damn familiar. Shaking those aspects up, and placing me right in there under the detective hat, are at least addressing some of those issues.
On the plus side, having bounced, most of the content would still be new to me.
If they can get this working, then GTA V............? :)
Golgot
09-07-17, 08:44 PM
Foolish Purchases of the Day!
X-Rebirth VR: £15 (54% off)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM3TYjWfjgw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIA1kQuN5OI
The Early Access rework of the much-maligned (then much loved) X Rebirth. What can go wrong? :D
In theory a solid amount of content in there, lotsa single player silliness and vibe to soak up hopefully.
---
Aaannd:
Ship It: £3.50 (50% off)
https://youtu.be/T1WQyWOa1is
Packing Tetris blocks into suitcases...
(What can I say, I chatted to the dev a while back and he seemed like a nice guy ;))
Golgot
09-07-17, 11:32 PM
http://i.imgur.com/aALU44v.png
Aha, so yes, The Gallery: Episode 1 was indeed pretty short. And a bit more Laura Croftian by the end, stylistically, as that non-spoilery shot shows.
Possibly 3 hours all told, and that's with lots of digressing and bouncing things off things for fun. Maybe only two real set piece puzzles as such, with diversions and tricks linking them up, and an ending that was more narrative then anything. Hard to review, but the experience was enjoyable, and classy at points :). Just short...
EDIT: As cool as the feeling of being on this 80s adventure was (4), and even though I got it for £8, the length and challenge do have to weigh against it, so I've dropped it to a [rating]3_5[rating]+++. It's as much vibe and techniques as actual puzzles. What was there was pretty cool, it just couldn't build too far. (Next version is pitching to be 3 to 4 x longer supposedly (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/6yh215/small_new_teaser_for_the_gallery_heart_of_the/dmnehhr/?st=j7b9wgzz&sh=ee68f86e)).
Here is another inaudible vid :D. Demonstrating one of the cool touches: The rucksack menu...
https://youtu.be/FLquaB2ydWQ
---
EDIT: Initial impressions: here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1772240#post1772240).
EDIT: REVIEW: Episode 2 (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=2057300#post2057300)
Golgot
09-08-17, 03:27 PM
Foolish Purchases of the Day - 2
Vertigo - £11
https://youtu.be/tbFnWj867sA
Figured I'd jump now rather than wait for a sale on this one, the devs seem worth the full hat tip. Generally summed up as 'A budget Half-Life in VR' (so no pressure ;)). It's got around 6 hours playing time, and seems to layer up new tools and odd environments. Supposedly buggy in places still, but a fair old adventure too. Intrigued :)
Golgot
09-10-17, 12:34 PM
Foolish Purchases of the Day - 3
Aaand, another audio-tape-driven, narrative-through-location, puzzle-lite, walking sim...
Pollen - £7
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sikKm-Fhhk
Again felt like rewarding the fair pricing here, so didn't wait for a sale. Although the original £20 launch price was clearly nuts for what appears to be a few hours of prodding and tinkering, the price-drop response to it bombing, and the general detail apparently lavished on the walking sim side, all make it worth a punt. Also the fact they've added hand control now.
---
iOMoon - £4.50
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7WkeYdCwVs
Probably a daft purchase this, as it's clearly on the hokey, Jules Verne, end of things, but I'm a sucker for space craft stuff (and at home with the mild nausea it involves, as it always feels fitting). Music from the Bioshock guy helps (and again the enthusiasm of the dev, who jumped from working on the likes of GTA V to go lone passion project for this).
---
Stimulating Walking?
I'm really not normally a 'soak in the vibe' style walking sim guy. I do kinda like piecing together background lore sometimes (say Fallout 3), but normally as a backdrop to more activity and game mechanics. VR is making it all more appealing at the mo though. If the world is well realised then the 'prod and tinker', 'sit and ponder', 'amble slowly' aspects all seem to gel well together. Tempted by picking up longer experiences down the line IE : Obduction and The Vanishing of Ethan Carter. (Although I do kinda wish they'd get hands in for both of those too, it really does bring you further into the world).
EDIT: Oh yeah, I remember now. Both of those bulky adventures have hella high requirements, and run into trouble even on top machines. That's why I was holding off. On the plus side it seems Obduction has actually added hands. But unfortunately not very well (https://www.roadtovr.com/obduction-vr-review-oculus-rift-myst-vr/). Will keep tabs though.
Golgot
09-10-17, 08:48 PM
FIRST LOOK: POLLEN
Ok sweet, this is proving worth the punt so far :)
http://i.imgur.com/9c7rfPD.png
Got off to a very rocky start (Pro Tip: Unplug any peripherals like joysticks if you want the menus to work...). Then, despite a neat little intro, Titan's surface storms were only partially impressing on the settings I'd juggled together, and involved some ludicrous load times when transitioning inside. But get inside the complex I did. And things got better :)
http://i.imgur.com/ygFKj7D.png
Like better in a 'hairs on the back of your neck' way, without being outright horror. No jump scares, more the unnerving clank of a disconnected ventilation tube banging away as you approach, wondering 'Who would disconnect that? And why?', as you shine your helmet light into the murk of the next room...
It's very much a 'piece together the story' scenario, with a mix of minor engineering puzzles and alien mystery as the main pillars. But also with plenty of bonus chaff and fitting items to peruse and kick around. (Did I have to sweep a load of stuff into a storage cupboard with a broken mop, to improve a slovenly room? Nah, but it amused me ;). Do I have to read every taped note on each box of tupperware? Nope, but I'm liking that each is unique. Did it matter that I didn't depressurise those random tubes, or that I left the heating tray on in the kitchen? Not sure yet...)
It seems to have various little working systems and item arrays around the place that don't exist to propel the story on, but purely to cement the world as a place. I'm definitely in the mood for that kind of thing.
http://i.imgur.com/Hb5hMSU.png
It's not perfect, it's definitely budget. I don't even have hands, despite being human. I've got these (admittedly swanky) controllers instead. When I heated up a can of delicious salmon soup until it smoked, no yelp was heard as I picked it up. When I hear the solid audio tapes humanising the missing crew, I feel a tiny bit odd that I pressed play with my plastic mandibles. These little things are a shame, but I can appreciate that they took the other details as far as they did...
http://i.imgur.com/YFllcd0.png
Golgot
09-11-17, 07:43 PM
Dirt Endurance Update:
Man, I thought this was losing its grip on me. My new Renault Turbo wasn't feeling as peppy as the trial version, Sweden had stupidly narrow roads, and Germany? Germany can flip off with its endless artificial hairpin turns. I was getting some joy out of clambering around the place, but it was feeling increasingly grindy.
And then I realised I hadn't unlocked the turbo yet :D
And then Finland happened :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baHsoEAAMZU
Endless ribbons of fast slidey gravel with evil gullies and horse-bucking jumps, some so ramped they obscure the trees you thought would always show you the bend, or threaten to flick you clean over other nested corners. I ended with my car about a foot shorter, scraped down both sides, and with a radiator so crumpled it was emitting a high pitched whine that cut through the cacophony of other rattles. (All the engineers ever wanted to repair was my suspension ;)). But hell that was fun again :)
To be honest, it's mainly that I had my crazy kick back to get me out of trouble. I could have enjoyed the channelled fish-tailing of Sweden again, even the composed poe-facedness of Germany, with that back under the hood. Dirt really does like to punish you in the noob stages of each discipline :/
---
Elite Dangerous - Arena:
I'm essentially on repeat here, and I'm preaching to the non-converted because Arena is so damn hard to break into, but damn it's good to get a game in. Only Deathmatch was populated (I prefer Team), and I barely broke even on K/D terms, but the gaps you can zip through in VR, and the intensity of the duels as you track your opponent visually while on the move, just takes it to a whole other level :). Flashing through a gap and seeing the sun flash back, as you death dive down and between the struts of a space elevator. All while feeling like this **** is really happening... It's properly immense :D
I can only spam this old vid again to get even halfway to what it's like when you dodge a pursuit and hear the boom of them hitting the superstructure instead of you ;)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5e-sgkN-C48
Golgot
09-12-17, 09:54 AM
-- VIRTUAL REALITY: ONE MONTH REVIEW --
---
THE WOW FACTOR:
It does feel a touch less miraculous to pull on the headset now, a bit of that wide-eyed magic has been tamed by daily use. As some of the cherubic glow clears there's a stronger strand of objective crit emerging instead, now I've got a feel for what the games can or can't do. (If a game's not working for me I certainly seem more likely to dwell on the graphical imperfections too...)
That said, the core joys are still in place :). I'm not uttering 'holy f*ck!' and dropping my jaw every five minutes, especially now I've consumed the main freebie 'experiences', it's true. But... I am still encountering flabbergasting audio-visual showcases that make me stop and grin, still gasping my way through high octane 3D-fu, and still enjoying the quiet moments of 'presence' which ground these conjured worlds. All those things are still holding true :)
NOT THE GAME YOU'RE LOOKING FOR?:
As a corollary to the above, there are generic negatives worth noting. Fundamentally, certain game types may never work swimmingly at this resolution and with these immersion limits. (Ones built on detailed menu management spring to mind, or on untrammelled movement at speed). The shape and beats of old favourites are altered necessarily, and still in experimental form. Many require degrees of upright activity, and may involve you leaning foolishly on an imaginary shelf by mistake, or kicking a very real table. You'll have to remember to do things the opposite way to your natural one (so that your cable doesn't end up like a pretzel, for example). Online games are also not well served by the small-ish community.
At this stage I'm really not feeling the bite on any of these fronts though. Pros definitely outweighing cons. But this may change if I run out of...
GAMING CHOICES:
The bulk are more on the indie end certainly, and so require a forgiving nature at times, but there are definitely more varied and considered experiences out there than I initially figured. (Lots of devs clearly got busy very early in the tech's life cycle, as these are often the fruit of 2yrs+ dev). Established vehicle sims, exploration narratives, adventures of various lengths, puzzlers, shooters, online, offline, yadda yadda, there's a decent spread of styles.
The coming of old title conversions like Fallout 4, LA Noire etc are interesting forays by the big guns, but it's perhaps the bespoke AA & AAA exclusives dropping month by month that suggest a decent pipeline of sorts is open.
Pricing bang-for-buck on the other hand? That still sucks pretty mightily as a rule of thumb. But there is this cheaper back catalogue out there. And you can also broaden your options considerably with the help of...
THE SENSOR SET UP:
The 360 roomscale set up (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1769697#post1769697) has been key in the end. It made a load more games playable and improved most of my existing ones. Neither too pricey or tricky to do once I bit the bullet, but it will vary depending on your playspace. There's the odd detection wobble now that I've got the two sensors facing each other, but the coverage is generally solid for a small 2mx2m space, and the benefits of having your hands tracked wherever they are, and being able to rotate 360 freely, are pretty wide, improving everything from chilled exploration games to hectic shooters. Plus it also helps with...
PLAY COMFORT:
Nausea Stuff:
I've found a locomotion system that works for me: 'Point walking' (which still lacks an established name ;)). Essentially pointing your preferred direction with a casual gesture and pressing to proceed. Becomes second nature very easily. You can combine it with 45 degree snap turns etc to travel everywhere, but I've found it far more enjoyable when I can just turn 360 (and deal with the inevitable cable loops that follow ;)). Done right it sorts all of the issues brought about by classic strafing (vid) (http://bit.ly/2eYABZ5), acceleration and rotation (vid) (http://bit.ly/2eZfh5X), while still working well for a lot of game styles.
Kit:
Long play sessions definitely start hitting a wall. Either my face or the back of my head will start getting uncomfortable 3+ hours in. It's not huge, as taking a break is a good idea anyway, but once you hit that point the breaks normally start beckoning every half hour, and that can get annoying.
---
TLDR:
The tech is properly cool. It and the gaming ecosystem do have their limitations though. Currently pros outweigh the cons :)
Golgot
09-14-17, 03:01 PM
Indie Options:
Some more intriguing long-tail indies added to the Wishlist. Yeah they're both zombie-spanking-spellcasters (a more trodden path in VR than bow-wielding wave shooter...), but def worth keeping tabs on:
Spellbound:
This 'first chapter' Early Access seems ludicrously short, but having read this cool long read (https://www.gamedev.net/articles/industry/interviews/challenges-of-a-vr-indie-developer-interview-with-eric-nevala-of-wobbly-duck-studios-r4748/) by the dev about how he got into VR (started developing about 3 years ago it seems), and heard some good things about the attention to detail, I've got a feeling he's going to keep plugging away at it, despite the current gap in updates. More a watch and wait, but could be fun:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCEzybyOpUM
Left-Hand Path:
Dark-Souls-inspired (natch) gesture spellcaster with recent updates and what seems to be at least 6hrs+ of content. Don't really know if my game time will love something with such cruel edges and disparate save points, but production looks decent for an indie.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ep7q6HXbUN4
Golgot
09-16-17, 10:07 AM
Trying to Verbalise VR: Part 3
I know these pics are thoroughly underwhelming, but they represent moments where I could happily stare at an object for an age and absolutely believe it was there.
https://i.imgur.com/2i9HoTD.png
https://i.imgur.com/wRZwNpM.png
In both cases I think it was the appropriate reflections as light passed over the object that helped suggest physicality. Something about it really communicates the sense of shape, and perhaps of material make up too ('plastic' surfaces seem particularly effective), in a way that just overrides other graphical infidelities or counter-info. At these times objects can appear strikingly solid and palpable.
The reflection tech isn't novel, but in stereoscopic view, while freely touting the dinner tray about, it seemed so present that I felt I could bash it over my head ;). (It probably helps that you can also fling it instinctively through a gap somewhere, and hear it make a suitable tray-clatter sound. All these interactions and possibilities reinforce its 'presence' too)
I do wonder if one appeal to developers is that they get to see technical details and touches they've always added to 3D worlds spring to life in this way?
Anyways, it's pretty impossible to communicate just how weirdly convincing some of these tech strands are when running in tangent, but I'll probably keep trying ;)
---
Perusing Pollen: Part 2
https://i.imgur.com/tyVYRRW.png
Pollen's timeline uses the slightly silly conceit that computers never took off even as interstellar travel did. It doesn't bear too much scrutiny, but I can see why they did it. The paper notes & giant push buttons come with two benefits. One is that you feel like you're in an early 70s sci fi movie where people were still using clipboards (and it's consistently done). The other is that things like paper notes with the watermarks of past scribblings, and things like analogue counter wheels on old tapedecks, are very satisfying to scrutinise and prod. (I can see Minority Report style interactive screens being just as fun and detail-rich, but this is still a cool retro approach).
https://i.imgur.com/O0gsrA2.png
I'm not sure the game would merit lionisation in normal circumstances, but the attention to detail is still the stand out aspect in VR. There are a fair few tropes used (recycling of locations etc), and I'm pretty sure the story won't be ultimately stellar, but I'm enjoying just flipping everything over and tracing the actions of the missing astronauts. I keep seeing examples of dev efforts put into making little aspects function and little incidental moments convince. For that I can forgive the odd crash, spaced out save points, and the horrendous initial load times ;)
https://i.imgur.com/DsuItdw.png
---
Indie Offerings to the Gods of Affordable Gaming:
I may have overpaid here ;). But got these for 75p in the latest Indiegala bundle....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SjCi9TOiSg
Hey, I've always wanted to fly :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luL5GAqhs8k
And I've always wanted to smash an imaginary city up too, sure ;)
Gave my last bundle purchase a try, which is now £18 on Steam (!), and it looks pretty promising. Run of Mydan (https://imgur.com/a/JHbeo) takes the uninspiring route of 'rail shooter', but ups the skill level by allowing you to dodge around the moving platform (skipping past the descending swords of GIANTS etc) while also slowly strafing the platform about to help you psyche opponents and aid your dodges amongst environmental machines. The choice between your own projectile or shield when dealing with mobile enemies seems standard fare, and the whole affair might be toooo gymnastic for my tastes and roomspace, but alongside the fairly lovely art design first impressions are decent :)
https://i.imgur.com/FweRU8f.png
Golgot
09-20-17, 07:45 AM
Wishy Washy Wishlist:
A dinosaur-strewn land? Made by Crytek? Should be a no-brainer right...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9p1IM-vS6U
And given they've just added to motion controls to its puzzle-lite environments, I reckon I will nab it :). But not at £30 for 5-ish hours. Just no. (Also need to wait and see if they've broadened the locomotion options, as it was considered something of a vom comet at launch).
---
I wonder if this dev (https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/304774/The_state_of_the_VR_industry_devs_weigh_in.php) is right and rolling updates / ongoing soft support will be the way for a lot of VR titles:
Or as Schell puts it, "if you're not ready to take that long view you're going to run out of runway and be in trouble." Growth will be slow and steady, not explosive, which Schell points out is perfect for a pervading trend across the games industry at large: that of games as a service, supported and expanded for years after release, rather than a product.
I guess it could make sense. With fewer titles competing for attention, certain games will be able to maintain a steady-ish ongoing uptake. (I'm certainly raiding those types of titles now, and zoning in on the ones that are still updating).
---
EDIT:
The Solus Project: (£6.50 in GOG sale)
https://youtu.be/TkivRfYyGhs
It seems I'll need to do some command line short-cuttery to get it to launch in VR mode, but this looks likes some fine 'Indiana Jones archaeological exploration on an alien planet' walking sim content :). Trailer says 12hrs of play (players say about 6 ;)).
---
EDITEDIT:
XING: The Land Beyond (£15 - launch price)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-hLrdHqCzE
Bespoke puzzle-n-chill game. Bit of a punt, but the buzz has been good, and it's supposedly 8-16hrs long, according to the main dev (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/71l7hu/xing_the_land_beyond_now_available_on_oculus_home/dnbjfv1/?st=j7uum1wg&sh=369b25cd). Felt like rewarding the pricing too. (Many others have been slapping £30+ price tags on stuntier and less focused launches purely because they're VR compatible).
Golgot
09-21-17, 06:57 AM
REVIEW: VANISHING REALMS 3_5(+)
https://i.imgur.com/H0T8FQT.png
Cutesy dungeon crawler & adventure-lite with some fun melee AI (vid) (https://goo.gl/WnC8i7). I ended up liking the cartoon stylings here (if also hankering slightly for a more grounded realism, and for the painterly outdoors to have more 3D form over implied shape on simple flat planes). All told it's a decent pocket adventure though :)...
PROS:
The melee feels chunky, and although it was never hugely challenging, having the higher-end enemies vary the speed of their attacks and order of their combos upped the interest and made it feel more like a face-off. Especially the way they'd lock their eyes to your weapon and flinch or alter their attack based on its approach, or try and psych you with fake attacks. Experimenting with dual wielding and giant pole-axes and the like was all fun, especially against the giant beasties, and the ranged stuff was solid.
Atmosphere was actually pretty cool, considering how cartoony the art style was. Although I rarely thought I was going to get trounced by the mystical beasts, I often worried about what was hiding down the next misty corner.
Playful interaction: They make decent use of some simple interactivity, such as the ability to set fire to almost everything. Makes the world feel like a more realised place. Simple acts like picking up a skull to find the gold coin naturally stashed beneath is all very freeform here too.
CONS:
Length is still an obvious issue. Even at £10, having got 5 hours out of it via exploring every niche, it felt it had been padded out via the Arena setting of the second stage. Prior to that, despite some slightly shonky pathing and hint system (which really screamed 'lone dev'), it did at least feel like an adventure.
Although the locomotion is functional (teleporting around, then investigating in 'roomscale'), it would have been more immersive to have some free-roaming options. [EDIT: Aha! He literally added that and climbing today (http://steamcommunity.com/games/322770/announcements/detail/1459587068197374052) :D]
It feels pretty clear at points that this is the product of one dev. Passionate, but threadbare of necessity in places.
https://i.imgur.com/9MwDK5A.png
https://i.imgur.com/z4mveuh.png
3_5(+)
Golgot
09-22-17, 09:06 PM
Pollen Review: 3_5+++
https://i.imgur.com/MAd98HG.png
Really torn on the rating here, as the bulk of the experience was pretty 4-y for me, in an understated fashion, but it's definitely not a perfect game. Think my previous ponderings ([1] (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1774740#post1774740), [2] (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1778435#post1778435)) cover its main strengths and foibles. Perhaps it's a case of: Classical game components (3_5) + VR components placing you 'in' the scenario (4) = 3_5+++
It's the details that are the stars, from the character of the locations, to the layers slowly added to the relationships of the missing astronauts. If you're up for sifting through such things, in an eerie setting (if not a horrific one), then this could be the space walk for you. (If you just speed run the puzzles needed to advance you could probably burn through this in 2 hours though :/. I've somehow managed to potter around it for nearly 8 :D)
PROS:
Solid hand crafting for the locations, ideal for poking around in VR. Along with some well executed audio that's essentially it. But it's a pretty cool it. Scenarios left in notes, tapes and sealed doorways...
They included the 'point to move' locomotion system, which I find a ton more immersive than teleporting, and has none of the nausea of normal strafe & smooth turn motion etc. Regularly felt like I was genuinely there hopping over tumbled tables and shuffling through dusty interiors.
CONS:
It definitely has some technical issues. I've had one crash, fallen through the floor to my death, and had entire ventilation shafts disappear on me.
Initial load times are crazy. Stick it on an SSD if you've got one...
Save points are a bit spaced out. Bit annoying if you want to save for the night.
The story is ultimately eccentric.
Fair warnings: It goes properly 2001 by the end, don't expect a completely logical tying off of every line of inquiry. It's a journey-over-destination experience in that sense, although I did find the ending a mixture of tense and entertaining (even if it did feel that I'd been thwarted from pursuing a last few engineering heroics). The denouement is ultimately too budget-flambouyant for its own good, but putting my feet on the rungs of that final act, and approaching the final destinations, was amazingly tense in VR. Loved that aspect :)
https://i.imgur.com/Pqx8FFs.png
Golgot
09-22-17, 10:22 PM
Holy crap I tried X Rebirth and I have no idea what I'm doing. I think this is some kind of defence drone that I've deployed...
https://i.imgur.com/3LH3pJP.png
But it could equally be one of the angry security guards that was trying to kill me. I may have shot some of the wrong things.
It's kinda pretty, in a painterly way. Helluva lot of menus to decipher tho...
https://i.imgur.com/aZZnKG1.png
There also seems to be a willowy woman guarding a pot plant in the back of the ship. I'm not sure what they're doing either.
Golgot
09-23-17, 11:34 AM
THIS POST IS ABANDONED NOW. **UPDATED REVIEW PAGE HERE** (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1915191#post1915191)
REVIEWS:
--SHOOTERS & BRAWLERS--
http://oi65.tinypic.com/qmysd3.jpg
SUPERHOT VR (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1785584#post1785584) 4_5 - Superhuman slow-mo super-antics. Short but pretty perfectly formed.
Robo Recall (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&highlight=review&p=1770909#post1770909) 4 - Gaudy teleportation shooter, short-ish but slickly executed. It's future-90s cities felt like a place you were scudding through, but the focus was on the high octane gamery. [Rift Freebie]
GORN (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1785581#post1785581) 4 - Ludicrous arena melee-fest that deploys its cartoon hammers and bendy swords to great effect. [Early Access]
Onward (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1809818#post1809818) 4 - Arma-style 'realistic' mili shooter that really places you in the moment! [Early Access]
Hotdogs, Horseshoes and Hand Grenades (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1807485#post1807485) 4-- - Ridiculously replete gun simulator sandbox with bonus zombie sausage scenarios. Even though it's more a suite of mechanics than a game it's surprisingly good. [Early Access]
Run of Mydan (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1802517#post1802517) 3_5 (+) - A short but pretty & trippy flying platform shooter which ends up like a duel inside a 1990s microchip [Early Access]
--SIMULATORS--
https://i.imgur.com/iUsLDTE.png
Elite Dangerous VR (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1785608#post1785608
) 4(+/-) - Flying a spaceship never felt so real! (Some queueing for parking required...)
Dirt Rally (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1758808#post1758808) 4+ - 'Dark Soulsian' offroader that shows no mercy in its starter disciplines, but rewards with deep challenges.
--TEAM SPORTS--
https://i.imgur.com/ykufxoq.png
Echo Arena (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1789942#post1789942) 4 - Challenging and super-slick Zero-G team frisbee, Ender's Game style... [Rift Freebie]
--ADVENTURE / PUZZLE / WALKING SIMS--
https://i.imgur.com/cZWEUN2.png
The Gallery - Episode 1: Call of the Starseed (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1772995#post1772995) 3_5+++ - '80s adventure' with some neat tricks and touches, just ultimately light on puzzles and length.
Pollen (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1783899#post1783899) 3_5+++ - Explore an abandoned space outpost in search of missing astronauts - Tactile, 70s-style, and not a little bit trippy by the end.
--ACTION ADVENTURES & RPGs--
https://i.imgur.com/Bt1tfXG.png
Vertigo (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1793857#post1793857) 4++ - Eccentric but pretty damn excellent 'escape the lab' adventure, with some stand out giant boss scenarios.
Vanishing Realms (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1782389#post1782389) 3_5(+) - Satisfying melee and cartoony consistency make this dungeon crawler overcome it's short-ish length. [Early Access]
Edge of Nowhere (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1844266#post1844266) - 3rd person linear Cthulu-horrors don't tick my boxes, but the art and swirls of storytelling raised this above its more monotonous mechanics.3_5(+)
--PUZZLE GAMES--
https://i.imgur.com/cz7A1gL.jpg
XING: The Land Beyond (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1818427#post1818427) 4-- - Super zen puzzler which sees you flipping environmental effects and pacing around various natural zones.
I Expect You To Die (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1831585#post1831585) 3_5+++ - Giddy and gleeful physics puzzler, set in faux 60s Bond scenarios. Only let down by short content and some repetition mis-steps.
Form (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1762153#post1762153) 3- - Evocative puzzler that is unfortunately all form and very little substance.
--SURVIVAL GAMES--
https://i1.wp.com/www.vivecraft.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/wesYwME.png?w=650
Vivecraft (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1822166#post1822166) 4_5 -
Excellent mutation of the survival classic, featuring a huge suite of options, leading to some surreally immersive results. A ton better than the official version. [Free Mod]
Star Shelter (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1802517#post1802517) 3_5++ - Neat 'rogue lite' space scrounging simulator. Punishingly cruel at times, but has a certain something in its loops. [Early Access]
--PLATFORMERS--
https://i.imgur.com/vMd41qI.png
Herobound (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1815658#post1815658) 3.5+++ - A pretty tight little combat/puzzle platformer, with some minor non-linear aspects. Gains almost nothing from being in VR, but hey it's 8hrs long and it's free. [Rift Freebie]
--EXPERIENCES--
https://i.imgur.com/4vvmHdS.png
First Contact (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1753363#post1753363) 5 - Just an exceptional and super-slickly designed intro to the tech. Highlights what's special but makes everything feel natural. [Rift Freebie]
Batman: Arkham VR (
https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1815664#post1815664) 4 - Super immersive, if super short, chance to don the bat cape and tangle with some dark Gotham dilemmas. On the light puzzle end, and more experience than game, but immersively good for all that.
Waltz of the Wizard (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1758133#post1758133) 4+ - Lovely free physics plaything, with the odd mini-narrative hidden in its playful folds... [Rift Freebie]
Google Earth (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1753725#post1753725) 4++ - The capture tech and motion freedom here can get pretty mind-blowing at points. Yes, it's blobby at human scale, and many bits of the earth are 'flat' scanned, but from flying like an eagle over natural formations, to settling in a favoured city dell, there's some strange joy here...
Interkosmos (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1796783#post1796783) 4 - Great little 'land the lander module' mini-adventure, featuring tongue-in-cheek Cold War stylings & audio story.
Blade Runner 2049: Memory Lab (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1810287#post1810287) 3_5+(+) - Too short, and slight on a gaming front, to even rate if it wasn't free. But as a demonstration of what full actor capture could do, and for slipping into the Blade Runner reboot neatly enough, it's definitely worth a reco. [Rift Freebie]
Aircar (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1757024#post1757024) 4++ - Another free super short experience, which is never-the-less properly epic. It's just a wonderfully rendered cityscape experience, which is immediately evocative of the original Blade Runner. [Free]
Mission:ISS (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1816151#post1816151) 4 - Another high class freebie, featuring solid zero G locomotion, the sci-steeped setting of the station, but what's genuinely glorious is the ability to space walk outside it all... [Rift Freebie]
Kismet (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1915173#post1915173) 3_5+(+) - A slight but slickly-present collection of Tarot reading, Astrology, & a fun little board game from Ancient Ur... well worth a sale snag, if missing hand control.
Farlands (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1820417#post1820417) 3+ - Delightful alien locations mixed with deeply tedious gameplay. Worth a download for the initial transporting sections though. (Warning, includes chirpy robot guide...) [Rift Freebie]
Mythos of the World Axis (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1820417#post1820417) 3 - Super-short early proof of concept that makes your feel like you're controlling a tiny hero in a cavernous room of adventure...[Free]
Cycling Pathways to Mars (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1772179#post1772179) 0 + 5 = ? - Buzz Aldrin in hologram form. Need I say more...? [Free]
The Body VR (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1758133#post1758133) 3-- - A hint of what education VR could become, but not there yet. Some of the scale as you passed over and into the mechanisms and environments of the inner cells was pretty cool though. [Free]
---
CAVEAT: It's really hard to come up with a number that represents these nascent games and golden nuggets fairly. I'm not even sure if I'm high or low balling the scores any more. (I'm afraid of rating some slightly too highly purely because they stand out amongst an immature market, or because the woo-factor is washing over more obvious software shortcomings. The bang for buck aspect also can't be ignored, and I've tried to factor that in. Some should drop to a more reasonable price over time of course, but their pioneer mechanics will also date...)
The brass tacks are though... almost every game here honestly feels like a 4 to me thanks to the immersion and novelty aspects etc, I've often just gone woooooo and given them a 4 anyway :D. Even if objectively there are enough flaws and downsides from a classical gaming perspective that I should really chip off at least half a point...
Golgot
09-25-17, 03:44 AM
REVIEW: GORN 4
Think of this as a first-person Gang Beasts for VR. It's experimentally Early Access, foolishly physics driven, and its secret sauce lies in its jelly-legged action...
https://j.gifs.com/Rg2AAV.gif (https://goo.gl/KEB6nG)
The sword and board of Vanishing Realms got me hankering for more meaty melee encounters. This may just be an arena wave affair with its tongue firmly in its cheek (until the tongue gets severed in some horrendous cartoon accident), but damn it is strangely engrossing :D
The ultraviolence is leavened by the sheer ludicrousness of your tiny-legged opponents and the actual tactical reactions required by their varied loadouts. It's hard to take a boss fight against a giant guy with tiny nunchucks that seriously... :D
https://i.imgur.com/tKINFTg.png
I mean ultimately the tactics normally involve kiting at least one opponent while you splang the armour off key areas of another one, or contrive to get a weapon that will help with that. But aspects like slow-mos after a successful block, the ability to target chinks in armour, and last ditch desperate shoves allow you to manage mobbings and bring some refinement to the chaos. (Thankfully the game also allows for 'point to move' motion, which is pretty fluid, and weirdly not unsettling to use with strafing in this environment).
The game is famous for damaging household fittings, and I've already given my keyboard a good bash. (If you're dealt a blow by an opponent you've got a tiny window to finish them off or you'll perish. Much windmilling and desperate lunging normally ensues ;))
I've tried most of the main weapons already, and can see most of the longevity will come from the core mechanics staying fun, as much as expanded content. Happy to 4 it right now though, and call the £15 already well spent. It's sweaty cartoon escapism with some great little details. Plus any game where you can whittle an opponent's shield down to a stub, or accidentally backswipe your opponent clean out of the ring with a giant hammer, is alright by me :)
The updates are still coming strong, which is a good sign. The latest added a ton of content, including local Co-Op - although I'm damned if I'd risk standing near the whirling dervish in the headset :D
---
EDIT: Actually there's only been one update since Early Access started. But it was a big one :D. Some info here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1790001#post1790001).
Golgot
09-25-17, 04:19 AM
REVIEW: SUPERHOT VR 4_5
https://i.imgur.com/AnEHh2k.png
I've already pretty much covered this (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1760323#post1760323), because at heart it's what you'd expect: It's clean lines, black humour, and feeling like an absolute badass as you watch a bullet whistle just past your chest... (before limboing into what you like to think is a deadly Matrix-style response :D)
Yes, a core 'campaign' that's only a few hours long, for £15 or so quid, doesn't strike as great bang for buck. But **** it this stuff is art. Or at least, it looks incredibly striking with its red-on-white motifs and the set pieces feel focused yet creatively fluid in action ;). Once you've got a handle on the throwing mechanic you can improv your way out of many a scenario. You can go all puzzle-king, pausing the action and parsing out the best response. Or get your kung fu guru on and blindfire over one shoulder while doing the half splits and firing under your armpit with another :D. (Which frankly, while often ill-advised, feels absolutely amazing when you nail it and get rewarded with giant 3D SUPAHAWT salutations :))
The meta stuff felt more flavouresome than flat out awesome, but the framing kept things playful (if on the dour Polish end of play ;))
I'm not sure how many of the novelty 'end game' variants I'll play through, but revisiting the whole thing again on hard is definitely happening (suddenly item placements are much more vital, now hand melees aren't one shots any more, items only block one bullet, and guns only have one blast in the chamber...). Plus I'll definitely drop back into standard mode again just to feel like a badass ;)
Golgot
09-25-17, 06:08 AM
REVIEW: Elite Dangerous VR 4 (+/-)
I've written a bajillion things on Elite here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?t=37518), on its excellent aspects, and the tedium and grind you have to negotiate to enjoy them. But to just focus on the VR side, these posts probably sum it up [1] (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1754373#post1754373), [2] (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1757023#post1757023), [3] (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1762144#post1762144). Here's the 'first impressions' one:
Elite in VR:
http://i.imgur.com/tu77KTf.png
So hard to describe how all the pluses and minuses combine here, so I'm going bullet points...
Pros:
Holy christ the scale. The DBX in the tutorial is ENORMOUS. It's an expanse of metal you can scud past for an age. Why this is so apparent now, given the fly-by takes the same time in 2D, I've no idea. It's really surreal. (I look back at pictures I took and they just don't convey the heights / widths / depths experienced at the time. Those hexagonal heat sinks on planets surfaces just are 50 feet high now. Things tower generally, hovering Goliaths hove mightily overhead, headlight glare and skimmer scans add extra voluminous vibes. It's striking stuff.)
The little things: The sun glares on cockpit imperfections really make it feel like there's a curved bit of uber-glass just in front of you. Shadows now crawl in '3D' over the ship's interior. Tiny bits of space debris zip past in ways which real make the external vacuum feel like it has volume...
The GalMap is just glorious. I accidentally turned on the PowerPlay filter at one point, and in a hallelujah chorus I was suddenly surrounded by huge scoops of candy-coloured galaxy expanse in all directions. Looked amazing :)
Cons:
Distance view is just a muddle of pixels on my 970. You can get the general shape of things but no chance of spotting a ship type from its silhouette or whatever. It's pretty awful, mainly just mush. (I'm gonna have to toy with some down-sampling or 'supersampling', dialling other stuff down to get there).
The ASW trickery kicks in every time I'm in a station, and sometimes on surfaces, turning everything into a juddery, melting Matrix world at its worst. Not ideal :/
Much faff. Many crashes, much GalMap key remapping. Etc etc.
On Balance:
Amazing experience when it worked. Some big negatives to go with the big plusses though. Think the desire to constantly tinker with the graphics is going to always be there. (And the long-term itch to buy a 1080 once the price drops, to clean up those distance views :/)
The main things to bear in mind here are: The game isn't hugely accessible, and often requires a lot of keybind tinkering before you're comfortable. This can be a major pain with your head sealed in a helmet. Once you've got your head in the game it can also leave you flying a spaceship through deadspace for prolonged periods, with no access to the external tools many rely on to add content and diversion.
On the plus side, with a 'helmet' on your head, and a spaceship apparently all around you, a lot of these gameplay and convenience worries fade into the background. Because you're flying a fricking spaceship ;)
---
EDIT: Bonus... Elite Arena mode is just insane, close-flying, seat-of-your-pants, PvP-Star-Wars bliss :)
https://youtu.be/ksMgpyQz74c
Golgot
09-27-17, 03:56 PM
Real Virtuality...
As part of my ongoing mission to translate the VR experience (and to totally kill everyone's bandwidth ;)) have some more 'Mixed Reality' gifs...
https://j.gifs.com/AnjBvl.gif
(via TribalInstinct) (http://bit.ly/2wUHZwm)
https://j.gifs.com/Rg2WmO.gif
(via Barnacules Nerdgasm) (http://bit.ly/2k2cNVT)
https://j.gifs.com/mwlBjR.gif
(via Weird Wizard Dave) (http://bit.ly/2xArJhh)
https://j.gifs.com/lOjJj5.gif
(via VoodooDE VRGaming) (http://bit.ly/2wkbpzv)
https://j.gifs.com/66LnLn.gif
(via SweViver) (http://bit.ly/2fz0rTE)
https://j.gifs.com/nZnDBY.gif
(via Get Good Gaming) (http://bit.ly/2wVRlbo)
---
These are in-game captures auto-synched with green-screen footage. No real post editing used as a rule in streams like these. What you see is what the player does, just from a 3rd person perspective. (Explanation of the capture technique here (vid) (https://goo.gl/H3QQew)).
They definitely communicate an aspect of the 'in-the-game-ness' at any rate. (If not the cardiovascular & psychological responses you get when your body buys that you're in that event ;))
Golgot
09-28-17, 03:37 PM
Ok I've got a brainwashing drive, ahem, I mean Co-op evening coming up, so splashed on some of the asymmetric games out there:
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes (£3.29)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7HIjkZvSzLw
Pretty famous game, but liking the idea of having actual hands to cut the wrong wire. Sticking the manual up on the 'mirror' screen saves on giant paper tomes too. Should be cool for handing around the headset after each death/success hopefully
Mass Exodus VR (£5)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoNrSMOlSGY
This looks cool. Essentially identical to the still in-dev Panoptic. Liking the 'Spy Party lite' potential etc.
---
Plus, the just-added ridiculous VR-vs version of Gorn :D
Gorn PvP
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn8oHotd_r4
Can see this working if I set up the mirror on my tv screen (like welllll away from the whirling VR loon), and get the full 4 opponents to even things up :)
Golgot
09-30-17, 06:30 AM
FIRST LOOK: FROM OTHER SUNS [BETA]
So I haven't played FTL, but in theory this is it in VR...
https://i.imgur.com/ORmATUS.png (https://imgur.com/a/Ydc06)
^^enclicken for more screenies and thoughts (https://imgur.com/a/Ydc06)^^
Things you can definitely do, and which seem good/promising, are:
Raid randomised ships & stations with your randomised weapons (atmosphere and gunplay seem decent)
Stalk around your own giant ship, repairing breaches & modules (or assigning your crew repair jobs from a map view).
Upgrade your ship (although ship fights are static affairs, and there's no flight within systems generally).
Be reborn as a surviving crew-member if you die.
Ultimately I suspect it's more streamlined than FTL, and it seems less deep than Pulsar Lost Colony on the ship management co-op. The atmosphere and core intents were solid though. If/when the price is right can definitely see myself getting it ultimately. The remaining questions are: How much mission variety is there? Will I find anyone to Co-op with?
If they added 'away missions' to cheesy 60s planets I'd be totally sold though :D
To space!
https://i.imgur.com/4PEcUlf.png
Bonus: Here's some fella playing a bit:
https://youtu.be/KkbGNga7RJg
Golgot
09-30-17, 06:54 AM
Second Look: Echo Arena
Finally got my teeth into this, and it really is pretty damn slick. And riding a big old wave of potential. If you've ever wanted to live out Ender's Game fantasies (of cerebral Zero G sport, not annihilating alien races ;)), this is the place...
https://i.imgur.com/ykufxoq.png (https://imgur.com/a/Ze7Uc)
Discussing tactics - click for more discussion & pix (https://imgur.com/a/Ze7Uc)
I'm only at level 6, but I'm definitely seeing some depth in the gameplay that could give this real legs. The tactics and strategies (http://www.eaafterhours.com/teamsystems) being employed by regulars are pretty neat:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/files.enjin.com/1488642/Playbook/Boost_Right_of_Way.gif
IE: Boosting off team mates, giving the ball carrier a boost-tow. (Hell, forming three-person kernels that can explode off in unpredictable directions... spitting out a defender to allow a human raft to smash their way through...). Stuff like that is definitely do-able.
Well... not by me yet. And THE BIG QUESTION is: Will it ever have the sustained player base it needs? The matchmaking was really struggling to sort out noobs and high end players, of which there was a fair split. (For some reason, at level 4, I got pitched against 3 more experienced guys. Not sure what the matchmaking is actually doing :D)
But hey, at least I didn't feel guilty about taking photos in that one ;)
https://i.imgur.com/9SFZYtY.png
That issue aside, on pure presentation and core mechanics alone, this is looking like a 4 all day long. Need to get some more time in to completely confirm (and not smash my controls during heated and disorientated moments :D). And need to stop being terrible at throwing too. But I can get to the boost tubes now at the start, and cruise around tactical zones with more control... and when I do pull off an intercepting block, or provide an option for the pass, or make a last ditch save, it does feel damn good :)
EDIT: Worth noting the one big con of this game. You will hit bits of your house while disorientated about your real-life position. I've thumped my tabletop lamp 3x and the wall at least twice to date. No side effects to date (both the lamp and the controllers are tough), but definitely a downside.
---
EDIT: Possibly not the slickest intro to the game, but here's a look at the Lobby node, and some super noob action :D
https://youtu.be/3QitU8FG6Us
https://youtu.be/sOA2-aUMVYI
Golgot
09-30-17, 09:50 AM
GORN'S BADGERMANCER UPDATE...
https://i.imgur.com/I4Eq0bP.png
This was the chunky update (http://steamcommunity.com/games/578620/announcements/detail/1443822567709018998) that convinced me to jump in. Gave the local multiplayer a go, annndddd, these are my thoughts :D
Guiding a fighter with an Xbox controller feels a bit like Gang Beasts mixed with QWOP. I could do ninja leaps fairly reliably, but my jelly fighting skills will need some work.
Messing with the parameters in Custom mode could be good. 4 players vs a VR giant should be fair right? :D
I'm gonna mirror to my TV, as far as possible from the flailing VR viking! (Either that or buy everyone helmets...)
**More Pix**
(https://imgur.com/gallery/eKTNs)
Golgot
09-30-17, 11:06 AM
Render Tokens: A blockchain currency for online rendering
I'm trying to fathom this prospective crypto-currency (https://rendertoken.com/) (and hell, blockchain finance generally :D). The short story seems to be: If it makes it, you'll be able to rent out your spare GPU capacity for online render work, getting paid in these 'Render Tokens' (RNDR). And indeed, use earned tokens to pay for increased GPU processing for your gaming, art production etc potentially.
I mean in principle I could see this working. I've donated my GPU downtime previously to calculate climate models using BOINC etc. That was relatively painless.
Some links for those who are intrigued, or who can bring more light to this topic:
In-depth AMA with the CEO Jules Urbach (https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/72ds8k/im_jules_urbach_the_ceo_and_cofounder_of_otoy_we/?st=j87a2lt2&sh=e7c41388)
Urbach biog / hagiography (https://uploadvr.com/jules-urbach-holodeck-quest-otoy/)
I'm actually genuinely tempted to buy in for a small amount, if I can figure out how the hell you do that :D. Or (more likely) to at least use the service when it launches. Currently my thoughts are:
CONS:
Blockchain ICOs are ten a penny and frequently scams or failures.
Going by the 'biog' the OTOY outfit is a real guru-led affair, with Urbach being the lone leading light on whom everyone is betting.
Some OTOY customers suggested in the AMA (https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/72ds8k/im_jules_urbach_the_ceo_and_cofounder_of_otoy_we/dnhrt24/?st=j87hyuhf&sh=da17fdfc) that they're dropping behind in the marketplace due to focusing on blueskies over their current product.
PROS:
OTOY does seem to be an established company, running on the same principles, which has earned its cash doing specialist high end rendering (Transformers, the intro to WestWorld, etc). Hence they've a lot of Hollywood glitterati dumping cash on him.
General Speculation: What would they do with all that rendering power?
The basic potential of ramping up and 'outsourcing' GPU power is cool, if it works, and the output claims don't seem outlandish IE higher polygons, resolution, interactivity.
Beyond that, on a more 'futuristic' front, it seems one plan is to push aspects like '6 Degree of Freedom' point cloud vids. IE proper 3D video that can be further altered using CGI techniques, deployed straight into games, baked into super high quality fixed cinematic experiences etc.
https://youtu.be/EK3RaU6IPf4
And generally Virtual Reality & Augmented Reality are seen as key recipients of that extra oomph. If that all happens, I'm on board for some of that ;)
Golgot
10-01-17, 06:34 AM
Had a great session of Echo Arena last night :). (Only smacked my lamp twice and kicked my cat once ;))
Here's a quick cruise around the Lobby, just showing how smooth the locomotion and interaction stuff is really. And then some intensely noob-ish examples of the gameplay :D
https://youtu.be/3QitU8FG6Us
https://youtu.be/sOA2-aUMVYI
Golgot
10-04-17, 08:37 AM
HEADSET OVERVIEWS:
Great breakdown of the full range of headsets about to broaden the market here (https://www.vrandfun.com/holiday-season-might-define-outcome-vr-industry/). Have pulled out the Microsoft models as they look the ones with the most potential to open up the market (slightly cheaper & more accessible, but still a decent VR experience, with head and hand tracking, not just phone-style non-positional stuff).
Samsung Odyssey (https://www.vrandfun.com/samsung-odyssey-vr-headset-unveiled-featuring-oled-display/) November 6th for $499
Dell Visor (https://www.vrandfun.com/dell-visor-vr-headset-set-release-october-400/) October 17th for $449
Lenovo Explorer (https://www.vrandfun.com/new-lenovo-vr-headset-will-cost-less-than-400/) October 17th for $399
Acer Mixed Reality (https://www.vrandfun.com/microsoft-displays-the-first-windows-holographic-vr-headsets-including-hp-dell-acer-and-3glasses/) October 17th Headset for $399
HP Mixed Reality Headset (https://www.vrandfun.com/microsoft-displays-the-first-windows-holographic-vr-headsets-including-hp-dell-acer-and-3glasses/) October 17th for $449
Asus Mixed Reality Headset (https://www.vrandfun.com/microsoft-showcases-asus-mixed-reality-headset-dells-mixed-reality-headset-computex-2017/) 2018 for TBD
---
VERTIGO:
https://i.imgur.com/hB2uJdV.jpg
On a gaming front, the 'budget Half Life' that is Vertigo is proving properly grand :). The description has been pretty apt. (Well I'm guessing, as I never played the original HL. But certainly I'm escaping a lab, there's Portal-style tongue-in-cheekness aplenty, disturbing metal clanks in the background, and plenty of invention. Will write up a review when I'm done, 6 hours in so far...)
Golgot
10-05-17, 02:05 PM
VERTIGO 4++
https://i.imgur.com/mUQavs9.png
Quick Summary:
PROS
Genuinely glorious boss battles. (Not revolutionary in terms of technical challenges, but in VR they felt really fresh and involving. Being suddenly 'confronted' with a monster can do that I guess ;))
Some grand settings that would please a James Bond villain no end.
Lashings of tongue in cheek humour
Functioning physics to keep your hands busy. It's not that they're super functional, or hugely leveraged by the puzzles, but their absence would have hurt the world-building.
Little touches like detailed imperfections and staining on glass, or disturbing noises in the distance, make the giant cartoon locations feel more like real places.
CONS:
Some serious bugs (like not being able to use both hands on ladders, requiring a level reset, or being so blinded by some rogue glare that I couldn't see the puzzle at all, leaving me to prod blindly at space...) break up the flow, and occasionally left lingering doubts as to whether a puzzle is eccentric or actually broken.
Communication is a mixed bag. (PSA: Your teleportation device can also slow down time. This is helpful for some puzzles. Being directly told it would have been helpful too ;))
REQUIREMENTS:
Roomscale, with full rotation and tracking when hands low down.
https://i.imgur.com/Bt1tfXG.png
Vertiginous Wall of Words:
My first complete VR adventure! :) In flat-game terms it's still not the longest at 7+ hours, nor the most innovative with its 'escape the compromised lab' setting. Where it shines is in the scale and variety of its world, the mischievous details which give it colour, and the titanic punctuations brought about by the boss clashes. The core combat and puzzles just tide you over solidly while you sweat on the next major event. The naturalistic moveset also helped the sensation of actually being there. All round it was a properly enjoyable and involving jaunt :)
It sits in a particular sweet spot (for me) in terms of the mix of kinetic action, progression puzzles, and playful narrative-through-location. The 'end of level bosses' were really well implemented, often catching me on the hop and using scale and location really effectively. Cowering behind an item and firing at an eye on a stalk has never felt so fun :D
Caveats exist though. One is that the main dev was 15 when he started this. This both explains the way its a frothy love letter to a load of gaming archetypes, and also... why it has some really glaring bugs. Like some major major bugs on the Rift. But although they detracted from the experience and the flow at points, they were brief exceptions on balance. I genuinely had so much fun that they couldn't kill the buzz, or knock the overall score down exceedingly. The ending is eccentric, hell, the whole thing is eccentric, but the overall journey was grand :)
---
4++
https://i.imgur.com/gjhf63K.png
Golgot
10-09-17, 10:33 AM
Interkosmos 4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0eFXv6Eumg
I'm gonna call this an experience rather than a game, even though it has lots of neat interactive functions and a narrative running through the middle. It's really fun, and really evocative at points, just also really short. I got an hour out of it, but felt it well worth the £2.67 I spent on it.
Definitely the best 'land the landing module' scenario I've played (and there are many), elevated further by the reactive tongue-in-cheek audio story. It's a cartoony take on Cold War impasses for sure, but manages to add some extra tension to events.
I'd recommend playing it on Hard from the start. Figuring out where the hell everything is, and how it works, without visual guides (as seen in the vid above) is much more fun and immersive. (The save points are automatic and generous, and it's quick loading, so deaths aren't that punitive...)
4
Golgot
10-10-17, 09:30 AM
Decent non-spoilery review of the 'real time' detective murder mystery game-xperience The Invisible Hours:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xp32GKt-zI
Definitely intrigued by this one. Seems like it's essentially Clue the VR game. 5 hours or so playtime if you follow every strand it seems, and decently immersive (if a bit mannequin-y). Won't be jumping at the £30 (!) launch price, but can see it in a sale for sure.
Golgot
10-11-17, 10:36 AM
WISHLIST:
POSSIBLE LAUNCH BUY:
Star Shelter - Space survival build-a-thon. Waiting on a few reviews but looks pretty promising and replayable for the price point. [£10]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kvr1YDR4Mmw
WORTH IT IN A SALE:
Narcosis - 4hr-ish 'walking sim' underwater semi-horror. Good atmosphere but trippy/fractured dialogue perhaps. Some say it's a slog until the second half, but end worth it. [£15]
Bomb U - Cheap, cheerful single & multi-player bomb throwing competition etc. The drop on losing is... impactful. [£5]
Infinity Fall - Lo-fi storified zero g parkour space shooter - Indie Lone Echo with guns? Vive only at mo though :/ [£11]
https://youtu.be/ahwHynvf1JQ
MOST ANTICIPATED NOVEMBER LAUNCHES:
Fallout 4 - Nov 12th - Vive only at launch
LA Noire - The VR Case Files - Nov 14th - Vive only at launch [But should work in Rift with workarounds]
From Other Suns - Nov 14th - AA rogue-lite - Can't quite compete with the above on potential grounds. Beta showed some promise.
[B]
OTHER INTERESTING UPCOMING:
Sprint Vector - high paced day glo parkour race? Can see some nice design elements in there that suggest this could have got high speed motion working...
https://youtu.be/0zhTMTxHpcQ
Talos Principle VR - Good conversion? It's a minor frustration that The Witness is unlikely to get a conversion apparently, as some of the puzzles are easily brute-forced in VR [in the game's current build at least]. Next best thing maybe... :/
---
ROOMSCALE WITH A VIEW...
So back in Feb, 75% of VR users (http://steamcommunity.com/app/358720/discussions/0/350532536103514259/?ctp=2#c133258092253222557) on Steam had a playspace at least 1.5mx2m
That seems insane to me. I am so fricking jealous of other people's houses...
(My space is calculated to be 1.2mx1.2m by Steam. Although in fairness I have set it really conservatively, like a foot in from the walls...)
Golgot
10-16-17, 10:45 AM
First Look: Star Shelter 3_5++
Here's me rambling around space looking at the core mechanics of the game. Hopefully gets across some of the flavour:
https://youtu.be/OvrXQA903jg
Very much Early Access, repelling me slightly with its inane bugs and innate rogue-like cruelty, but there's a solid core here. Feels worth the £10 entry fee for sure. The core conceit is that if you die you lose all your scrounged consumables, and any improvements to your suit, but your homebase keeps its improvements. So when you rock up as a fresh stranded astronaut you've got an an increasingly sparkly platform to sally out from...
I'll probably keep fortifying my base and hitting mission milestones until the next update wipe comes, then set it aside to flower in space for a fair while...
Early Access Rating: 3_5++
Second Look: Run of Mydan 3_5(+)
Kinda agree with this vid on the whole...
https://youtu.be/1s6fImqJ4Zs
Pretty stunning environmentals and stonkingly large bosses elevate the slightly stilted 'control your platform' motion. The campaign was an hour of spoon-bending enjoyable oddity for the most part. The Arena looked pretty but it flattered to please with its invisible walls in front of fun formations (which would have been cool to duck and dive around) and the waves of bots didn't hold me.
Hard to rate as I got it for <£1 in a bundle. Not really sure it's worth £15 in it's current state, longevity and online wise, but for now...
Early Access Rating: 3_5(+)
Golgot
10-17-17, 12:22 PM
Oculus Connect 4 - Keynote Summary:
^^subliminal Facebook colour scheme^^
*Vid of the full thing* (https://www.engadget.com/2017/10/11/oculus-connect-4-keynote-livestream/)
The Big Announcement:
The $400 price-drop is now permanent :)
Software Improvements:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvP_RI_S-bw
The 'Dash' dashboard allows for multi-app use in Home (Minority Report style 3D desktopping). The coolest aspect is that you can open up stuff like browsers or vids as 3D items within games and other apps though. (So I could have my music player as a floating panel in Elite or whatever). [48mins+]
'Multiview' can 'boost' framerate up to 30fps by reducing load on CPU. (Only confirmed for one Gear game initially, but assuming this will be rolled out more broadly. Could be good news for min spec & general performance etc). [58mins+]
Hardware:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RlPZ_EGIv4
The 'Santa Cruz': Wireless, with inside-out tracking. '6 degrees of freedom' gaming on the go, potentially, although not high end gaming, as it's relying on onboard CPU/GPU. 4 cameras means it should have better controller detection than the Windows models just released etc. Will start hitting dev hands in 2018.
The 'Go' is a '3 degrees of freedom' portable all-in-one device that's essentially a mobile phone headset with the 'phone' built in.
Game Announcements:
Kinda slim and cryptic pickings in terms of big exclusives. On the AAA front, it's good that Ubisoft are still working on their zero-G shooter, that Respawn are working on something CoD-ish for 2019 by the sound of it, and that Ready At Dawn are adding guns to the Echo Arena franchise & a sequel to Lone Echo. A campaign coming to their mainly forgotten mage-PvPer The Unspoken looks a tad hopeful though. Barely a teaser to muster all told tho...
On the more AA and Indie front:
A Blade Runner freebie drops on Thurs.
The talk is (https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2017/10/new-blade-runner-vr-game-foretells-a-sega-cd-styled-story-revolution/) that it's both terrible (as a game) & wonderful (as a tech demo of '3D video people').
https://youtu.be/2DrPe_z6KmI
Red Matter - AA narrative puzzle/adventure game:
https://youtu.be/FVbuJftvfuE
So no big depth charges here then.
Golgot
10-17-17, 05:49 PM
This is probably one of my biggest gaming punts ever, but hell, I knew I was going to do it :D
https://i.imgur.com/MrPzI3F.png
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jspdtha3t1k
The GreenManGaming 15% off, plus that 10% stackable took the pre-order down to £30. In hard-nosed terms that means I sneak it in for this payday, and cover my inevitable LA Noire purchase with the next ;). (Plus I'm guessing there's unlikely to be comparable price drop for 6 months after launch, unless it completely bombs... :D)
Reasons it's a silly punt? Well hell...
It's a Vive exclusive. I own a Rift. (Although almost all games work on all the kits these days, just with slightly bewildering keybindings and other annoyances as a rule).
It's a giant open world game, and more importantly, a Beth game. It will be a jankfest at launch, and a beast to run generally. With my 970/i5 only just sneaking into the 'recommended' tier, the odds of me even running it with any degree of pretty at launch are slim.
Hands ons have been very very mixed. (Although there's a claim floating around that the demo is a pretty old build (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/71tec1/my_fallout_4_vr_experience_at_gamescom/dne5g5m/?utm_content=permalink&utm_medium=front&utm_source=reddit&utm_name=Vive), but that doesn't mean the newer builds have fixed all the issues ;))
But ach, yeah, I was always gonna take the punt :D. That much content is something no bespoke game has had time to lay out for the ravening VR crowd...
---
A mix of user previews to date:
A mainly positive take from a dedicated Beth modder [11:40]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gViTJNGeV0
Big ole laundry list of mightily mixed player previews here (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/6y7zrs/fallout_4_vr_feels_incredible/?st=j7ajzg5l&sh=15202e74) and here (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/71tec1/my_fallout_4_vr_experience_at_gamescom/?st=j8w5kkz8&sh=2f6b85b8)
Golgot
10-18-17, 03:42 PM
In Other News:
Gallery Episode 2 - Heart of the Emberstone looks like a solid must-buy-at-some-point....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GAJ4krEetU
They've supposedly expanded the gameplay time and the puzzle ratio, so the bang for buck should be ok at £22. But I'm pretty stacked up on the puzzle & walking sim front (Xing, Herobound, Solus Project), so will be letting this one simmer.
---
Some of the Lone Echo devs had a vague idea of programming for hands because they'd hacked together their own PowerGloves back in the 90s (3m24s) (https://soundcloud.com/sjandfun/sj-and-fun-episode-004-ready-at-dawn-studios#t=3:20) :D
---
I forgot that Fallout 4 got pushed back from early November to early December. D'oh! :/
Golgot
10-19-17, 03:31 PM
Snagged Breach It (£3.50) as I fancied some manual clip loading and grenades with pull-able pins. Add destructible walls a la Rainbow Siege 6, and it's pretty fun for a barebones Early Access :)
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/875247637250665036/59C004BE432C5CF9E3AE1BEC0022D080A8F99272/
I spent most of my time baffling bots with my snipy pistol and lump hammer, making various bespoke holes in their chipboard home. There's a nice spread of tools available as attackers. (Can see how police shield + semtex would be a good pairing in a team...).
In the meantime, the AI are not the brightest...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/875247637250665553/66B156EF8CBCEED23517B5290D36AF5455ECE6A1/
The few rounds I did get with other players were fairly incompetent. (I blew myself up while trying to understand grenades :D). But can definitely see some promise here, with defence all about the strategic reinforcing and positioning, and offence all about those surprise entry points...
Golgot
10-19-17, 04:03 PM
Wish Upon a Car (Or: How Cool Would Open Worlds with Hand Steering Be?)
Fricking cool is the answer, I reckon :D. This initial LA Noire tease (https://blog.vive.com/us/2017/09/07/rockstar-la-noire-for-vive/) got me really hankering for it...
Experience first person driving in VR with additional real-world vehicle interactions including steering, operating car doors, changing radio stations, shooting from vehicles and much more.
And this GTA-style mock-up...
https://youtu.be/gd3ZNsODZ6s
The idea of moving easily (hopefully :D) from foot movement to car, in a big Rockstar-style open world, smashing around in the semi-arcadey driving model, then smashing or rocking your way out onto the mean streets again. Could be potentially pretty seamless, and extra immersive as a result. (Then there's all the little bonuses like being able to one-hand cruise, maybe while shooting out the window, or grabbing people's hats, or opening the door to take out a dog you've been hired to dispatch...)
In the meantime it seems I could hack my way into racing games...
https://youtu.be/lb0zGBVwN4Y
But I reckon it'd be the transition between a 'walking world' to driving within that world that could be really compelling here.
---
On the plus side, it seems the guys making the Half Life 2 mod (https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=923491647) are planning to have hand-driven hovercrafts (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/74fnt9/driving_with_hands_any_games_using_a_grab_to/dnxy3ko/?st=j8ythmrh&sh=c3294634) :)
Golgot
10-20-17, 05:37 PM
A Classic VR Conundrum: Something For The Weekend...
So I could have bought this new release: Skyworld (£23). A pretty full fat title with lashings of presentational panache. It's even got a 'launch reduction' (down from a slightly more heart-stopping £30).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SN20mKCMEe8
An RTS-lite, sitting somewhere between Civ Revolutions and Clash of the Clans, it does look fun. But limited content fun, just with some delicious presentation. (Most reviews are already saying: 'Nail your iron mine and you're golden, maps don't change the strategy...' :/).
So instead, I bought this! Deism (£6).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=df1XpPYIpAs
An indie 'open world' twist on the God game. Sure it's not that innovative to have a VR gamer be a man in the sky, but hey, no one's nailed the formula yet, and this looks worth the price of entry... or at least feels like a lower risk if it ends up only being only a few hours of fun :/
---
The take homes are probably familiar...
The are plenty of high end releases around, but their bang for buck is poor
Indie experiments feel like better returns on the entertainment front
A premium title with premium content & longevity really would be lovely...
(I shouldn't complain really, I've got some pretty varied titles on rotation depending on my mood. But it's probably because I don't have one big full fat game to sink my teeth into that I'm rotating EA and indie quite so much ;))
Golgot
10-21-17, 12:26 PM
Somethings from the weekend...
Echo Arena laid on some ludicrously lush Halloween toys for the lobby...
https://i.imgur.com/HfX8Vw3.png
This is a tiny, remote-controlled, voiced model which I'm holding in my hand. If she'd been animated too I would have completely lost my **** :D. Steering her little broomstick around and watching people get transfixed and chase after her was great :). (Again, really really hard to describe just how freaking convincing these things are in the high-end graphics games...)
Fun as the matches were, it felt wise to stop playing after a while though. Mainly after one guy punched his own floor. Twice. And then we all heard the distinct sound of breaking glass from someone else's mike. Game is dangerous! :D
---
Breach It! Is pretty damn cool when it works. All the weapon physics, destructibility and eccentric human tactics come together well. Being able to punch handy holes in any wall with a mallet, and blind fire for low impact hits straight through the wooden walls are neat dynamics.
Mainly though... it doesn't work at all :D
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/875247637256859772/15BBED8613868DF10686A7B116CED8AA8331FA17/
Spent a large part of today's game being marched off the edge of the map to my death by unknown forces...
---
Deisim is super cute. Much more of a zen sim than an outright game...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/875247637257734206/4236D59C72A4652D23B92D1B13369203428B75F2/
I mean yeah you do defend your evolving villages from heretics, and heal the odd disaster (and visit the odd one yourself), but these challenges are very languidly spaced out. The main passtimes include throwing looping seed shots onto new tiles (this is strangely satisfying) to spread the map in ways that encourage village growth, and then occasionally picking up a house to snag the heretic hiding under it ;). (Supposedly it gets a bit more grandiose once the map gets too big for you to micro-manage, with whole heretic villages forming etc).
Golgot
10-23-17, 08:43 AM
So I couldn't resist splashing out further this weekend. I went for the worst-named game of all time:
Hotdogs, Horseshoes and Hand Grenades
Or H3 to its aficionados ;). And what you're getting for your £15 is primarily just: A stupidly in-depth gun simulator... The guy has absolutely gone to town on making a huge spread of working replicas...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/875247991181518883/53F82D5C29431AA34AFF9BA08D0B4E9F4264B185/
Like with this 6-shooter you shake the bullets free, and then snap the cylinder back into place with a wrist flick having fed it with bullets. There's no safety here (but lord knows there are on other guns, and fire-rate switches, and breaches to be loaded and such...). Every cinematic clunk-click of battle prep is represented in full, and feels strangely kinetically cool to do, in most cases. (Screw the 1850s breach-loading pistols tho :D)
As a Brit who has no exposure to the real thing this was all strangely educational. And doing things like flip loading old-school rifles like Arnie in T2 didn't hurt either ;). I literally didn't leave the initial shooting range for hours, playing with everything from mini guns to matches...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/875247991181516765/01007E6434FD257A1806187371C4FE1B9D228665/
---
The actual game-modes are mainly a mix of destructive physics puzzles and 'clear the room' style bot-fests. It's pretty clear the dev has just been amusing himself rather than constructing a hugely coherent game ;). It's strangely fun for all that though: Toying with loadouts and slapping weapons onto your chest before storming a hostage situation (the hostages are rabbit statues, and you have a choice of enemies, from stationary targets to rogue robots) for example...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/875247991181519560/7746D696D2957651CBF5AE1F058A4FAEE7E308AE/
Scaling the tight bespoke race course that requires parkour and calm shooting; taking on the daft 'West World' style wild west zone. (Honestly this was a bit annoying, but the thought was there, and working up through the historical guns was cool). And I haven't even got to the hotdog-zombie scenario yet. (Of course that exists...)
---
Even though at its heart it's a physics sandbox first and foremost, as this vid amply demonstrates...
https://youtu.be/z96TwW1NSUI
I'm going to class it as a shooter and give it a 4-- though, coz I had that much fun in my first 4 hours :D. (DISCLAIMER: I fricking love a good sandbox, so alongside the more delineated game-modes I'm definitely getting my bang for buck here. Others expecting a more coherent game experience, even for £15, may be more disappointed. Worth noting I'm also weighing in just how active the dev has been, and expecting him to keep adding content and game mode additions...)
EDIT: The ongoing dev (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1811915#post1811915) is definitely a thing :)
Golgot
10-26-17, 10:07 AM
First Look: Onward
The latest update convinced me this was worth the full £20 asking price. The fact that they were adding some co-op 'get to the chopper' maps was cool, alongside the Arma-style online action it's more renowned for. But actually it was the little innovations - like checking the pulse on a revivable comrade - that convinced me it was going to keep developing in interesting ways...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/871870489331593180/D2FB2EBA231D141ADA1B4D094D0F6BE94350158A/
'In the game' intricacies:
Continuing with my guilty gun fetish, this game totally layers on the involved clunk-and-click mechanisms (https://thumbs.gfycat.com/AcidicIdolizedHarrier-size_restricted.gif). Loading the big suppression guns involves grabbing the ammo and feeding it into place before clacking many gun parts together (http://bit.ly/2y5ze3k). Stuff that might seem ludicrous, but reloading in the heat of the action, hunkered down behind some sandbags, is actually pretty cool.
Despite the game looking notably gash, the sense of place given by things like reaching to your shoulder to radio info to your squad, or actually stabbing your downed mate with your magic syringe, or running faster if you lower your gun, all really adds up. Pragmatically speaking the scrubby maps make up for their lack of looks with scale too, allowing for a ton of flanking and squad cover and the like.
Solo Missions, Co-Op Escapism and Online opiates...
I spent a happy hour or so in the offline modes just learning some of the guns and playing with some of the solo modes. (Surviving against 6 AI in the 'Hunter' mode looks like it might actually be distracting fun on its own for a bit. Had the most success sneaking around with a silenced sniper kit on an open map). But online squad play is definitely the star. Despite the cautious 'realism' approach, and some downtime during death (staring at birds flying over black and white brutalist Iraq...), the rounds are still only 5 minutes or so as a rule and I was immediately on that heroin feed of 'one... more... game...' :D
Provisional score: 4
EDIT:
Ok I finally won a Hunter round, me vs 6 'Normal' AI. I was proving a bit too impatient to pull off a full daytime sniper round. Spent my outfitting points on a silenced mid-range rifle and night vision instead... Had to do it with ironsights, but night vision vs mainly torches was kinda weighted in my favour ultimately ;)
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/871870489339725426/4FED4BC12C9129337D8CFD7DC7CDBF455EB044DE/
Golgot
10-26-17, 09:59 PM
Blade Runner 2049
Cool little freebie dropped today. A Blade Runner mini adventure using new volumetric 'hologram' footage capture. Here's some examples :)
https://youtu.be/wT_3X-aY-Jk
Pretty impressed :). You can see some outline trimming and such, but used as holographic entities & recordings they totally pass muster. Really cool to see volumetric vid capture like this that you can move around and approach etc. How they use this in more classical narratives I'm not sure, as all the story elements were really playing to the tech's strengths. Eye contact would definitely be an issue, as of course they can't track you like a normal NPC would. Actor exchanges would certainly work though.
EDIT: Although having seen how they capture it, I've just remembered that this 10 minute experience was a 10GB download :D
https://youtu.be/OzIo8OTZFy0
Golgot
10-28-17, 11:40 AM
Quick Look: Farlands
This kiddie-friendly, collect-em-all isn't really my jam, but the execution is super slick for a free launch title. The beasty animation, sense of place, cute tilt-shift aspect to the map, and orbital vibe are all great, even if the gameplay kinda isn't ;). Here is a quick vid of me eyeballing a space chicken, surviving an overly excitable robot guide, and poking around the orbiting space module...
https://youtu.be/onVj-Ax7qO4
(I know these 'one eyed' vids don't really communicate the fun of VR, but I can't help but keep trying :D)
Bizarrely content was so limited at launch that this has a 'come back tomorrow for unlocks' structure (it's genuinely not a micro-transaction thing, it just seems to be gating content so it's not consumed in one day). And do you know what, I want to see the jungle so I probably will dammit... (Probably helps that they teased a pretty awesome space whale in the intro :D)
---
Steaming Halloween Sales:
Oh the excess... :/
Obduction (£12) - My biggest punt, but that's a lot of content potentially, and their last patches have address some key concerns (poor motion controller use, performance hitching).
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter VR (£1.39) - A whole world of puzzle-adventure for that money. Still got fears about performance and comfort, but that's a lotta game :)
Please Don't Touch Anything 3D (£4.39) - I'm pretty fond of these 'play with anything you can see' room puzzlers, and this seems to have a decent pedigree. Good 'puzzle and hint density' apparently.
Adrift (£3.75) - Got this for the Gravity-style space vista vibe and drama, less for the slightly sickly motion system and repetitive 'hunt the oxygen' gameplay.
Infinity Fall (£2.75) - Another clamber-around-inside-a-spaceship Zero-G indie...
Downward Spiral: Prologue (0.63p) - Super short, but fairly swish it seems
Coffin Dodgers (£1.79) - A one track MarioKart rip off, but hey, cheap...
Plus a £2.72 bundle buy (https://www.indiegala.com/vr?utm_source=newsletter20171027&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=VIRTUAL+REALITY+XV+BUNDLE+-+20171027) that got me:
Alice VR (http://store.steampowered.com/app/513320/ALICE_VR/) - Very mixed reviews for this, but I reckon there may be some decent walking sim astro escapism tucked away there.
VRobot - Look it's giant robots smashing up a city :D
Golgot
10-29-17, 09:45 AM
Update: Hotdogs, Horseshoes and Hand Grenades
The tiny dev team definitely are churning out the updates. Not making the game hugely more coherent, but they're creating more uses for their guns at least :D
This month they've got swept up in full-on feature creep, presenting a 50s-era zombie mode. Cute use of 'character' load outs, proc gen weapon loot, music and voiceovers...
This vid is just 50% me filling my pockets, 45% me dying (and 5% me struggling to use a zippo). Does show the bones of this new mode though, and some of the gun physics...
https://youtu.be/hXipkQi7blc
Given that it's mainly just an endless wave mode, it's still neat. The use of the weapon drops is cool, given how wide the pool of guns is, and how differently they behave. (It makes me think of GTA when you had to get straight into a car and learn to drive it on the spot).
It's really crying out for some proc gen picket-fenced suburbia and giant farm barns though. As it is it's all tree dodging and hiding in outhouses ;). Supposedly they're at least going to add some of more eccentric melee weapons (broadswords and shields etc) to the mix once the balance is settled.
EDIT: Day 1 Patch!
They added houses :D. And faster zombs. And some new difficulty curves and stuff. The guy doesn't sleep...
https://youtu.be/vUeYJSJ7H4M
Golgot
11-01-17, 03:02 PM
Nice, an actual long-play of Skyrim VR:
https://youtu.be/9bw5B4_QoJM
Still PSVR, so a bit scrubby, but can imagine a lot of aspects being cool in VR here. Big takeaways for me were:
They've got an 'on foot' option working: They've gone for 'Onward' style locomotion, which is the neat traversal technique which causes no real nausea. Basically you point where you want to go and mix that with turning physically in the real world (plus added 'snap turns' where needed). It works well, and once you're happily walking about everything's a ton more immersive. Only downside is you can't always point where you want to go and use that weapon simultaneously. Pros and cons :/.
Hands are ideal for spells and bows: Ok, you can see some aiming issues with the spells in particular. But if they've got the essentials down I could live with some Beth jank here. (Weapons I just don't expect them to get right, although that'd be cool if they did ;))
That scale: Can see the mountain views, bigger cities, giants, and even claustrophobic caves being properly cool here.
So yeah, still Skyrim. Been there done that, and the textures / 3D modelling are unlikely to stand up to great scrutiny. But good to see it working well at least :). Looking forward to it hitting PC down the line now... (And to F4 having comparable motion at least)....
Golgot
11-02-17, 11:15 AM
Herobound 3_5+(+)
https://i.imgur.com/vMd41qI.png
Found myself weirdly sucked into this one. Which is odd because there's nothing really innovative here in terms of VR usage. You can aim projectiles with your gaze, and you're sitting above the playspace like a minor deity in a cloud, but neither aspect is a game-changer here. I regularly wanted them to at least entice me to look down and amongst the platforms for puzzle solutions, but it was never rewarded, so I just sat in one stock position. Aside from a bit of minor vertigo in the cloud city, it was essentially just a classic platformer.
(The more recent Lucky's Tale felt much more like a living cartoon under my control, possibly thanks to the closer playing angle & sprucier graphics. Ultimately it was just too linear and simplistic on the combat front to fully intrigue though.)
https://i.imgur.com/mEbU3w2.png
Ultimately though, it's a pretty tightly designed platformer, with a decent mix of enemy scaling, lite fight mechanics, pretty satisfying 'slide the block' style puzzles, a coherent 'complete the room' format, and a slightly free-roam way of linking the rooms and broader levels. The challenge escalated pretty well and pretty fairly, leading to some terse swearing at the odd boss stage, and proper head scratching at some of the physics puzzles. A few mechanics weren't explained hugely well (you can evaporate your water sprite, just so you know...), some of the block sliding took a bit longer than was strictly necessary, and the final boss was perhaps a bit straight-forward. But for a free game that clocks in around 8 hours I really can't complain ;)
https://i.imgur.com/eGoANMA.png
3_5+(+)
Golgot
11-02-17, 11:29 AM
Batman: Arkham VR 4
This was genuinely stunning at points. Even though it's more a series of set pieces than an outright game, they absolutely nail the tone and the quality levels. Seeing a concerned Alfred glide in to admonish me, a mo-capped Robin clamber perilously outside the cage I'm trapped in, a tricksy Joker sucker me into some mind games... those were all properly classy moments. And even though they pad much of the rest of it with some lite puzzling to mixed effect, pulling levers in the majorly operational Batcave really struggled to get old...
https://i.imgur.com/aOe3FK6.png
It's a very short experience, but assuming you get it in a sale, well worth the admission price. Definitely expect the grimmer end of the Dark Knight world. (In fact I took a pause initially, after VR intensity + poring over a backstreet assault proved a dark immersion too far for that evening).
The puzzle easter egg hunt that attempts to re-use the locations is pretty thin, but worth a play into the tail end. On the plus side, they've got one of the best 3D puzzle mechanics I've encountered, with really weighty feel, and other set pieces like spinning a metal model of Gotham city round to complete a simple puzzle all really worked well. The rest were pretty dialled in though.
https://i.imgur.com/ieBQJhe.png
This experience is all about standing high up on Gotham roof tops and feeling the vertigo, being seemingly at the mercy of vicious criminal mutants, using some cool Bat toys, and doing some detective work in the dark hours. And on those fronts it does pretty much knock it out of the park :)
4
Golgot
11-03-17, 11:27 AM
Mission:ISS 4--
https://i.imgur.com/edgszxb.png
Another Oculus freebee with some great production values. Manoeuvring is successfully executed via the now familiar hand-grip technique. (You can also use gaze-led thrusters, but it's a slightly defunct technique which can cause a bit of nausea in some circumstances, best not to rely on them wholesale). Drifting around inside the station, batting objects about and learning about the different locations (mainly via canned vids) is all cool, and the mission to dock a new payload using the external arm genuinely involved (and extra neat because you do it by peaking out of the infamous 'cupola' window). What really makes this shine is the ability to go full spacewalk at will though. Just go to free mode, enter the airlock, and the menu lets you head outside for a truly majestic push and glide session :)
https://i.imgur.com/QosULRi.png
https://i.imgur.com/0ra6H0C.png
https://i.imgur.com/eSE5stc.png
4 [Short, Free, High Quality]
Golgot
11-06-17, 08:23 PM
XING: The Land Beyond 4--
https://i.imgur.com/dIkDLRv.jpg
Step through the doorway onto the lovely island. Walk past the fountains spouting painful aphorisms (https://i.imgur.com/tDeNg3t.jpg). Fling away the tablets inscribed with insipid stories, told in wretched rhymes. Turn off the music piped from a Hong Kong soap opera, close your eyes to the cod philosophy...
And this game is a properly chilled and beguiling experience :). Wondering around overgrown Aztec-style architecture and pushing puzzle pieces to the correct conclusion feels like something VR was made for. The scale of the locations, the soft awe of the larger elemental shifts, the ability to size up and pace around the physical puzzles laid out before you. The game's focus, and where it often excels, is in getting you into a state of quiet contemplation as you move around these environments and individual puzzle zones...
https://i.imgur.com/cz7A1gL.jpg
The puzzle motifs are built around finding the right environmental settings (night/day, stormy/dry etc) to allow items to be manipulated and progressed, often involving a throw or set of jumps to be executed along the way. While never getting deeply fiendish or completely fantastical, both the puzzle difficulty and atmospheric endeavour ramp up after a fairly anodyne and easy first map. The core elements slowly layering up in a pretty satisfying fashion, occasionally getting their own twists and tweaks, and taking place in a surprising number of locations by the end too.
With cliff edges your only peril, and respawns forgiving for the most part, the biggest frustration that impinged on this zen experience was the jump detection, which would occasionally insist you hadn't made what seemed to be well-timed leaps (even passing you through the physical platforms in question). I can only assume it was calibrated to some central standing position that I'd wondered from on those occasions.
https://i.imgur.com/Atcst6g.jpg
The slowww walk speed also suited the tone but would would have benefited from a sprint option at times. There's a fair bit of back and forth as you flip environmental settings and enact your theories. (Combine this with the odd glitched jump that had no convenient reset and it did start to get counter-zen at times...)
Overall though, these 15 hours of super-chilled unwinding, for £15, makes this one of the best bang-for-buck VR titles to date. And those hours bore many hallmarks of thoughtful quality along the way which belie their indie origins :)
4--
https://i.imgur.com/JbvcgTH.jpg
EDIT:
Just a quick moment of XING zen I grabbed:
https://youtu.be/kEo9gyrK2gE
Golgot
11-07-17, 03:09 PM
First Look: Tales of Glory
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/871871701961708833/050ADEEE50839B02D096BE9D0E4A5125D861FB8F/
Tooled up
As far as I can tell, this Early Access melee-fest is aiming to be like Mount & Blade, minus the NPC aspects. So essentially, lots of sieges, much stalwart defending by spawn points, some hot horse-on-horse action...
I am liking what I've seen so far. The sword and board isn't the most nuanced, but it's meant to be used in giant disorganised brawls, so works for all that. The opponents are pleasingly nippy and cagey at points, and show some variety between classes. Currently it's the mix of scale and little details that's most pleasing though (even if I've had to smash the visuals through the floor to get the big scenarios working). I like being able to pick up a dropped weapon to try a new approach on the fly, the little acts like raising your weapon to prompt a snarled speech and boost local moral. The fairly generous weapon attachments meaning I can be both archer and dual sword wielder as I attempt to lead a motley crew of AI along some battlements. The fact that I always take my horse behind enemy lines one too many times and get stuck there ;).
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/871871701961710997/C8C416D08CBB34E3EF7619BA336A94BEEE9B28AB/
It's definitely not the prettiest, but I opted for it (at £20!) because it's another passion project that seems to be working to a fairly focused philosophy, while also churning out sizeable updates. I can see this guy getting the offline campaign working for sure. (Whether he untangles the complexities of online by early 2018 as he hopes, I guess we'll see ;))
And hey, in the meantime you can fight the Black Knight with a flaming sword, what's not to like? ;)
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/871871701961709500/D613BF04F03F3C65C62E849AE8DBD38E0BAAF51C/
Golgot
11-08-17, 05:07 PM
NOVEMBER LOSES AN A...
Dammit, LA Noire got pushed back to December (http://www.pcgamer.com/la-noire-the-vr-case-files-has-been-delayed/) as well. That's all the big AAA retrofits fully shunted to Xmas then :/
So looks like it's a AA month. Payday 2's free VR beta drops on Nov 16th (https://www.roadtovr.com/payday-2-getting-full-vr-compatibility-with-payday-vr-beta-begins-2017/), which is something. Not quite the hit of cream I was looking for though.
Soooo.... I've opted to splash my squirrelled cash on the AA delights of From Other Suns as my November treat instead.
FIRST LOOK: FROM OTHER SUNS [BETA]
So I haven't played FTL, but in theory this is it in VR...
https://i.imgur.com/ORmATUS.png (https://imgur.com/a/Ydc06)
^^enclicken for more screenies and thoughts (https://imgur.com/a/Ydc06)^^
Things you can definitely do, and which seem good/promising, are:
Raid randomised ships & stations with your randomised weapons (atmosphere and gunplay seem decent)
Stalk around your own giant ship, repairing breaches & modules (or assigning your crew repair jobs from a map view).
Upgrade your ship (although ship fights are static affairs, and there's no flight within systems generally).
Be reborn as a surviving crew-member if you die.
Ultimately I suspect it's more streamlined than FTL, and it seems less deep than Pulsar Lost Colony on the ship management co-op. The atmosphere and core intents were solid though. If/when the price is right can definitely see myself getting it ultimately. The remaining questions are: How much mission variety is there? Will I find anyone to Co-op with?
If they added 'away missions' to cheesy 60s planets I'd be totally sold though :D
To space!
https://i.imgur.com/4PEcUlf.png
Bonus: Here's some fella playing a bit:
https://youtu.be/KkbGNga7RJg
I'm sceptical that it'll be much more than the Beta at launch (Nov 14th). So a solid rogue-like FPS adventure, in VR, but of limited meaningful variety and longevity. Just enough to make the £25 pre-mod price worth the punt, in lieu of stiffer competition.
I'm guessing it should at least see me good on my new VR bang-for-buck minimum metric at least: £5-per-hour-of-fun... Kinda full-fat movie hire levels... ;)
---
EDIT: And ok, if my AAA November is to be thwarted, I'm doing it. I'm going full Walking Sim. I'm going games as art...
https://youtu.be/Q5j5qPjEWqQ
https://youtu.be/RAI3B0K9HiU
It's £5 in the horror sales, although appears to be more docu-drama than anything. Intriguing...
Golgot
11-09-17, 03:38 PM
LA NOIRE TEASES:
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/4SB8bmGLrCroivzUZZHr6Y-650-80.jpg
Ok so finally the official LA Noire teases begin :). And the confirmations are pretty solid:
The Good:
Full open city to drive and run around in.
Full body representation.
Lots of physics interactions IE: flipping gun barrels open, pulling records from sleeves, remastered mission items etc.
Fisticuffs and shoot outs.
Ludicrously hands-on driving...
...the driving still conducted in first-person is a comprehensive rendition of being in control of a 1940s car. Players must turn the key in the ignition, grab the steering wheel and use the motion controllers to pilot the vehicle upon its route.
$30 price tag (so hopefully in the £22 range)
The Mixed:
The mobility stuff sounds a mixed bag (teleportation and arm swinger, and possibly the dubious gaze-tied motion). Easy to avoid nausea like this, but not the most immersive. (Or in the case of arm-swinging, maybe too immersive ;)). Would like to see more nuance there.
The main world is slightly dated, but the faces stand up to close inspection
---
Summary:
Those are most of the touchstones I was hoping for :)
On the face of it they've done it justice, given it some AAA flourish, and made good use of existing assets. Sounds like it's impressed all the hands-on guys (lots of talk of actually dusting off their personal VR kit again etc ;)). Possibly looking like the first peek at a 'killer app'? (Although it will be too short and niche at launch to fully qualify I suspect, and I'd def like to see more movement options).
I'm definitely psyched to spend some time in this 40s world for sure. (And in any Red Dead or Grand Theft worlds it makes possible ;)). Fingers crossed...
Sources:
http://www.pcgamer.com/punching-people-on-the-vr-streets-of-la-noire-is-way-more-fun-than-i-expected/
https://uploadvr.com/la-noire-hands-on/
http://www.techradar.com/news/la-noire-is-vrs-first-blockbuster-now-the-tech-just-needs-to-catch-up
https://www.pcgamesn.com/la-noire/la-noire-the-vr-case-files
https://www.vrfocus.com/2017/11/preview-l-a-noire-the-vr-case-files-a-deep-exploration-of-personality/
http://www.gameinformer.com/games/la_noire_the_vr_case_files/b/htcvive/archive/2017/11/09/whats-gained-and-whats-lost-in-la-noires-transition-to-vr-hands-on-impressions.aspx
http://www.pcgamer.com/la-noire-the-vr-case-files-shows-that-vr-needs-to-focus-on-humans/
EDIT: Some bonus pull quotes on locations and interactions:
I picked up a still-burning cigar and waved my hand through the smoke, opened the bullet chamber of Phelps' highly detailed revolver with the flick of a wrist
A nearby record player emits soothing jazz. I swap vinyls by pulling a new one from its sleeve and placing it on the turntable. I pick up the phone and raise it to my ear, and smile as the operator asks the familiar line, How can I help you, detective? As I pick up the handset, I notice that my sleeve pulls back to reveal my watch. It is the small touches like this that show why L.A. Noire is perfect for VR. It is a game about picking objects up and taking a good look at them, and there is no better platform than the virtual reality for that kind of business.
And there was a lot of reaction to the actor capture in VR too. Can totally imagine that stuff working really well. It has almost all of the strengths of the volumetric film capture shown in the recent Blade Runner mini-game, with all the benefits of a current interactive NPC. Promising...
As she spoke, it felt pertinent to monitor both her face and her body language, in the way we do with real people. And thats the nugget of L.A. Noires interrogation system of course, but the fact that it worked so well startled me. I had momentarily behaved like I would in front of a human, and Ive never done that in VR before.
Golgot
11-10-17, 10:03 AM
https://cdn.uploadvr.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/farlands-screen-3.jpg
^^^generic online snap, but yeah it looks like this. Just in 3D. And with goofy aliens.^^^
Farlands
This Oculus freebie has delicious visuals and really evocative alien locations, tied to some of the most tedious gameplay ever envisioned :|. It seems to have be an experiment in gating limited launch content, as you're made to wait a day to view new unlocked territories and items. Which turn out to be less and less impressive after the initial shimmering reveals.
Here's a quick vid trying to capture what is impressive about it though. Primarily the locations and the caricatured creature behaviours:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onVj-Ax7qO4
Eyeballing 6ft bipedal frogs and giant space elephants is actually pretty cool, even though the scale doesn't really come across in the vid.
I was almost tempted to plow through til the end. The central mechanism of tempting alien creatures into displaying new behaviours to be photographed is actually neatly done. And the space whale they teased at the beginning looked well worth a full viewing. But as the unlocks turned into flower gardens and other busy-work errata the wonder was progressively pissed upon from greater and greater heights...
Still totally worth a download and an initial bask in the alien though... (if you can survive the chirpy robot guide that is... ;))
Graphics & Vibe: 4+
Gameplay: 2_5
---
Mythos of the World Axis
https://i.imgur.com/ZM1mtuE.png
^^Terribly stretched mirror image in the wrong aspect ratio - the demo looks a bit scrubby, but not that scrubby!^^
Bonus shout out to this great little proof of concept. Best example I've seen of a 'living diorama', where you really feel like you're guiding a tiny hero through legitimate scenery. The magic spells and the physics of the barrels are nice touches. The super-sampling is crazy low, so it's fairly pixely, and it's super super short, like just some walkways in a cavern. But well worth the download.
4
Golgot
11-13-17, 11:37 AM
Vivecraft
http://i1.wp.com/www.vivecraft.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/wesYwME.png?w=650
All the Right Moves:
In theory simply a mod that adds VR to the original Minecraft, this thing is actually so comprehensive that it completely destroys the official Minecraft VR version. It's not just the insane spread of locomotion customisations, allowing for numerous novelty propulsions and nausea-free spelunkings. It's the enthusiastic and intuitive use of hand tracking that really seals the deal here, making you feel like you're totally there adventuring amongst these endless blocky worlds... :)
Want to swim by swimming? Knock yourself out. Fancy clambering up blocks, or pulling back your bow for added damage? To swing your sword for a killer blow, or reach into your backpack to grab a favoured tool? Go for it! Want to mine by hacking away manually? Don't be a fool! (But you can totally do that too :D)
And because it's using the Java version you can combine it with other mods, if you want to get complicated. One day I will totally investigate the dynamic light source mod that makes holding a torch up in a cavern that much more Indiana Jones...
Modulate your Expectations:
Despite being completely painless to install as a mod, it does involve some faff if you really want to get the best out of it. Luckily I found a friendly server that allowed myself and a non-VR mate to play together, but usually that would involve all kinds of high end mod-juggling to ensure compatibility. And it's playing with mates online that still provides ongoing intrigue for me with Minecraft, so I expect to fire fight further problems just to keep this giant Indiana Jones ball rolling...
Big Blocky Summary:
There is something hilarious about having quick demonstrative hands (http://i1.wp.com/www.vivecraft.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/ezgif.com-839689d05b.gif?w=840) in this world. Something continually startling about the enemies suddenly being '2 metres tall'. (Hell, even being mobbed by a cows as you feed them is strangely endearing. And also a tiiiiny bit terrifying... :D). Something wonderful about fighting vertigo to construct a giant folly, and then admiring it towering over yourself and the landscape.
This game is thoroughly ludicrous, but in VR I'm loving the damn thing all over again :D
4_5
Golgot
11-13-17, 04:43 PM
** VIRTUAL REALITY REVIEW - 3 MONTHS IN **
Wordier 1 month review here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1775730#post1775730), which essentially still holds true. I tried to do a TLDR this time, and failed :D
---
Two sentence review:
The upsides are totally triumphing over the downsides :). But the downsides are still significant...
---
BREATHLESS POSITIVES:
Immersion: Is just fricking hard to overstate. Games that invite you to get lost in their environments benefit the most, for sure. But everything from racing sims to twitchy arcaders can have their atmospheres improved, and then their game aspects amped up too, thanks to the instinctive reactions and depth perceptions that the tech brings into play. When done right this 'presence' business is the secret sauce. It can convince your body it's inside a different functioning reality, and it's no exaggeration to say that **** can be a game changer... (apologies ;))
Hand control is great: Having them right in the game for fine control, for exploring physics, for shooting guns etc makes for a novel and badass new interface. Both reliable and intuitive, it feels like there are solid new gaming norms already established here, and flexible possibilities waiting to be explored too. The Rift controllers are neatly ergonomic and generally grand to use, to the point that you often forget they're there. (Having your hands 'in the game' also draws your body in that much more, doubling down on the immersion aspect. Add in responsive environments that reward naturalistic tinkering and there are a lot of positive feedback loops going on here...)
PROS & CONS:
Indie Experimentation: Can be a lot of fun :). It's the Wild West right now as everyone figures out what works and where the edges are. This means dross abounds, but it also means little leaps of genius get more attention in the sparser market, and passionate devs can then breath life into their little worlds sustained by the increased airtime as they go. It's not ideal, it's often Early Access, but it's delivering some rough diamonds along the way...
VERY PRESENT NEGATIVES:
The gaming ecosystem & bang for buck still aren't in the best place, compared to what we're used to. A fair amount of shopping around is required (unless you're loaded), there are far fewer AAAs launched that you can delve into for ages, and a lot more reliance on indie & AA output to fill the gaps (with all the quality issues that implies).
Graphics are a downgrade from what we're used to on a flat screen, as the 90fps-per-eye requirement is pretty hight. (It may help that I've been brought up on far worse, or that I'm used to juggling graphics about to get the best out of them on PC, but this is still rarely bothering me much. The 'being there' boon takes the edge off massively. It is definitely more enjoyable when you get the classics in place like decent aliasing, textures and lighting though, which isn't always the case.)
The stupid cable & accidentally hitting things both occasionally cause bother, although are mainly manageable and don't impinge. Before the year is out I will have punched my glass light fittings though... :/
Doing standard non-gaming things, like switching to surfing the net, or doing it in parallel, are much harder in the Rift at the moment. (Although Minority-Report style in-game app windows etc are due in December). Writing anything of substance is currently slowwww. Chatting with people in the room is totally possible (the in-built headphones are very good for this), but not entirely ideal.
---
GRATUITOUS SUMMARY:
It says something that I'm still hyped about VR despite those downsides. It is properly cool :D. It's just also a bit less accessible than the current gaming world, requiring you to put a bit more energy in to get your bonus fun out right now. Will be interesting to see if the AAA revamps launching this December help it get close to a place where you can just buy a game, plug and play, and go revel in it for a prolonged period. As it is currently I'm pretty cool with jumping between genres, and riding on indie output to get my daily gaming fixes. But I am definitely desirous of classic AAA having its day too ;)
Golgot
11-15-17, 06:32 PM
A fella got his Skyrim PSVR copy early...
https://youtu.be/bMMkGANS4CA
https://youtu.be/CF1NtEMSJcg
Fave moments, amongst the earnest fumbling, were him nailing a bee's nest shot on a whim (end of first vid), and being moved to chuck his ghost dog under the chin ;) (first third of second vid).
It is odd to see this ancient game touted as a flagship launch, but as he says, it's kinda like playing it at PS3+ levels, but just you're 'in' the game. (That's kinda how I feel about Elite, a game I had prior to VR. It's like playing it back on my old GPU's settings, but I'm in the pilot's seat ;). The payoff has felt worth it in those cases so far).
Menus look a bit clunky with the Move controllers, and he has some tracking issues. But once he got out on that classic opening trail I was thinking: Yeah, this could work :). (And that Dogmeat in F4 is gonna be sweet ;))
Melee still looks pretty flimsy, but hey, no difference there ;). (Guess it'll depend on block tracking and AI dynamics ultimately for sword and board. Not expecting that bit to be much more than flappy n scrappy though ;))
Golgot
11-18-17, 10:48 AM
Lost in Minecraft ...
https://i.imgur.com/uxF62VS.png^^^I know this looks awful, but making 'giant things' is great :D. This is an entirely unnecassary bio-dome for growing cactuses... which are required to make more bio-domes ;)^^^
I have got the bug bad again :|. Playing on a Vivecraft server with my mate (https://imgur.com/a/V3U5X) on normal PC has been pretty monumental :D
Having this huge, totally malleable, eccentrically 'alive' playground in VR is a treat. (Partially because those experiences are in short supply in VR, but partially because it's also genuinely a good fit :)). Biggest downsides are when I can't voice-chat (which is often). The virtual keyboard is slow enough when it works, but as this is a mod, half the time it's less biddable than a wolf puppy, disappearing and flitting all over the place :|
---
Skyrim Fever?
Damn, the Reddit responses (https://www.reddit.com/r/PSVR/comments/7d57di/skyrim_vr_official_discussion_thread/?sort=new&st=ja5d2zh3&sh=41ad1e64) to Skyrim VR are solid. Lots of caveats in there about the distance view being fuzzy (making clocking foe behaviour tricky, and lessening outdoors awe despite the scale), various control idiosyncrasies, and various bugs naturally (players being shrunk to dwarf size being an amusing one ;)). But... mainly a stream of positives so far, and from the same users discussing the downsides :D
Some fun themes. Definitely the sort of thing I was hoping to hear on what VR could add if done right:
NPCs being a bit more impactful:
NPCs feel more like real people than before. I find myself stopping and listening to random conversations more than I usually do. I felt pretty freaking rotten after getting a minor character killed during a mission. The emotional immersion is upped too!
EDIT: (https://www.reddit.com/r/PSVR/comments/7dmr40/skyrim_vr_impressions_ill_keep_it_real_and_tell/?st=ja5lo48t&sh=346c0bf2) Interacting with NPCs in VR feels amazing. The lip movements when speaking are actually done pretty well, and definitely adds to the immersion. Walking among the townsfolk feels great, and gives the the game a depth it never had before. NPCs will look at you when you walk past them, and you can size them up as well. It definitely adds a connection with the world that the game never had outside of VR.
Rummage and roam zen factors:
I've always like Skyrim, so I'm probably biased, but as a previous commenter had already said, it's the little differences. I notice more, I'm actually stopping to read all the books and don't feel rushed to push on. The first time I came out of the starting caverns was night time and seeing Secunda and Masser hanging in the air behind clouds was surprising and exhilarating because I had always come out in daylight before. That told me I'd spent more time just staring at things. I also realised how much I'd missed, noticing chests and areas that I completely bypassed. Bleakfalls barrow felt completely new. At the end of four hours I stepped into Dragonsreach. I stood there just taking it in. It also felt like such a different space and they nailed why the Nords would revere it so much.
I never bothered with horse riding in the original, I cant get enough of it in VR. Just laid back and enjoying the landscape.
Combat works also pretty well from the horse, though I hit my table several times while axing some wolves down.
More intense 'in the moment' stuff:
Using the move controllers and playing on expert, I feel like I just went through it for the first time. I was mentally exhausted afterwards, and breathed a sigh of relief when I exited.
Seriously...I feel like im there. By the way....Wielding torches is INSANELY cool!
...And that first arrow that whipped past my face as I charged a bandit archer....what a rush!
EDIT: And of course, spiders (https://clips.twitch.tv/ColorfulSlipperyAlfalfaPrimeMe) :D
Magic wielding & bows being cool:
...the first time I dual-casted the flame spell was amazing. A real blast of sound, and wow, the visual was really nice. As an archer, the aiming is spot-on, although you do have to raise your angle to compensate for distance (ala the original Skyrim). VERY accurate...if you have played the archer in Ancient Amuletor and found it to be frustrating...so did I. I feel like a Khajit Legolas in Skyrim.
...spells is where its at. Conjured a familiar last night, and man, just awesome (looks like a damn dire wolf).
I am sooooooo in love with Move-magic-casting. Im burning baddies down with one hand while daring them to get close enough to use my axe in the other.
EDIT: (https://www.reddit.com/r/PSVR/comments/7dycnw/my_skyrim_psvr_ok_im_in_love_moment/?utm_content=title&utm_medium=hot&utm_source=reddit&utm_name=PSVR)
Then, I used my Ritual Stone power of resurrecting the dead around me while entering Bleak Falls - and FWOOSH! This gorgeous green and bright light surrounds me, fills the whole dungeon, and one by one dead bandits and skeevers rise up as reanimated corpses around me, their bodies glowing in the dark room. The depth and scale of the power, the bodies rising up, and the sound and visuals completely around me sold me on the idea that yes, this is going to be an awesome ride once again
EDIT: Sword and board might be fun?:
I assumed this would be slight, as it's very easy to make it feel that way in the VR melee I've tried, if the feedback is poor and the AI wooden. (Which it was in the original). Possibly they've taken the chance to up their game here though?
Q: Can you block with a sword only?
A: Only a long sword, as far as I'm aware.. It doesn't seem as effective as a shield and I couldn't get along with it, whereas the shield is fantastic IMO I literally hold it up in a panic sometimes, iv caught arrows in it lol then removed and kept for myself hehe
"The biggest strength of this game is the combat."
... something I never thought I'd hear about an Elder Scrolls game. But I don't disagree! The Moves make it so fun!
(source) (https://www.reddit.com/r/PSVR/comments/7dt0v3/skyrim_disappointment_to_awe_give_it_a_chance/?st=ja5tt9zt&sh=852555ae)
Still wait and see on this, but seems functional at least :)
EDIT: Novel physics fun:
So of course you can dump bowls on NPCs heads (https://i.imgur.com/r7yDuig.gifv) with more elan with your hands, but it seems novel options are afoot...
Someone balanced a bear trap on his sword and bamboozled the bandits, many interesting things here boys!
Not to mention the new game of googly eyes using the Move controllers ;)
https://i.imgur.com/PvbUJjM.jpg
---
Some pure negative nuggests in there too, from guys who felt their $60 is a bust (mainly VR heads so far who feel it's a compromise too far / doesn't hit the quality of more compact games like the recent RES 7 etc). And I suspect melee stuff is still ultimately pretty light and spammy. But generally, promising :). And good to hear lots of Skrim vets finding the experience fresh. I am genuinely worried about the potential timesink this represents if it hits PC :D
Golgot
11-18-17, 04:51 PM
A Moment of XING Zen...
Found this footage from the puzzle game XING (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1818427#post1818427) that I grabbed and thought it worth an upload. The water reflections on the rock arc had transfixed me for a moment. Think it gets across the super chilled vibe and pacing of the environments and the puzzle zones:
https://youtu.be/kEo9gyrK2gE
First Look: From Other Suns
Haven't had a chance to get further than the 10 jumps that the Beta offered yet, but have seen some new scenarios, and finding all the fundamentals that were good about it still in place. Loving the look of the environments (if saddened still that they're not interactive, as the poker chips in the mess hall beg to be flung about...).
https://i.imgur.com/2YFDRJs.png
The 'grab that weird gun and see what it does' mechanic of survival on station raids is fun, and they've added 'controller-led' locomotion, which is great :).
The crew management and ship upgrades are lite but functional so far. I'm seeing more minor flux from aspects like random crew joining you after a successful mission and chance offers from NPCs. It seems that the long-term loop is that you can gain permanent unlocks in the form of improved starter ships etc. Now to see if I can survive my way to earth...
https://i.imgur.com/J14Xe19.png
Golgot
11-21-17, 01:06 PM
While blundering around looking at LA Noire previews, I stumbled on this cool Father and son bond over game (http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2012-10-09-night-and-the-city) piece from Eurogamer.
Well worth a read! But the short story is, it lauds the detail they put into the world recreation (essentially flagging it as the most personable aspect of the game, which is probably true). And it also shines a light on some genuine 'angel and sinner' behaviour of the cops at the time, due to the writer's granddad being on the force, and his dad, who's reminiscing with him, having grown up during that period.
The dad's summation of the experience is cool:
"Viewing L.A. Noire was an exciting and thoughtful experience. For a few hours I was able to re-explore the L.A. I knew in the late forties and early fifties with my son. The city was dark, but even with the period's dim street lighting and within the slightly truncated map of the city, we were able to find our way around. The prizes for me were the Richfield Building, Angels Flight (located where it belonged next to the 3rd Street tunnel - it has since been relocated one block south) and the wonderful cars of the era. I was able to remember exactly how to get around from both the towering City Hall and the slightly uncomfortable space of Pershing Square. This seemed a refreshingly thoughtful-almost intellectual-scenario that I would not have expected in something called a game.
"The accuracy with which the city structures and roadways are recreated is really astounding, and the details were almost perfect! Minor faults would not be evident to most who did not live in the city at that time. For sure this was a real as well as a virtual return for me to that complex and dark city at that time.
"To be able to experience it again with my son who was born 20 years after I first left the city was, I think, wonderful for us both."
Puts me in mind of that time Peter Bradshaw met Red Dead Redemption (https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2010/may/23/red-dead-redemption-game-panel) :)
Reason I'm putting it here is because that's an aspect I've got high hopes for in the VR version. Having an expansive, well realised 40s world will be cool, even if it is primarily as a backdrop.
Golgot
11-30-17, 12:19 PM
I Expect You To Die:
https://youtu.be/vedFA8yXr2Y
The launch trailer communicates everything that's great about this seated physics puzzler...
They've nailed the tongue-in-cheek 60s Bond tone. For some reason wearing a trilby and smoking a cigar really does make puzzling better. Who knew? (Possibly it's the fact that you can accidentally set fire to your hat with the cigar that makes it... And then use the hat to set fire to a stuffed killer bear by throwing it onto its head. It's probably that ;))
https://i.imgur.com/8hnqNHY.png
Right from the lavish indulgence of the Saul Bass style introduction (https://imgur.com/a/CEroh) (an excellent use of the VR, as the twirling cartoon batons and stylised symbols twirl and extend around you), to the louche and lush settings, they capture the vibe and don't let it go.
Where the game lets itself down, unfortunately, is in the limited amount of content, and the reliance on repetition. With progression designed around circumnavigating a series of death-traps, there's an inevitable amount of repetition as you re-do the opening challenges to take on the greater death which claimed you. This is actually fairly well executed in the main, and flipping through the tasks with elan is somewhat enjoyable. The problem comes when your progress is reset by a fairly cruel or unpredictable design or interface, which although not that frequent, is doubly frustrating when it occurs. And triply frustrating if it then takes a few goes to fully understand and execute the desired action.
https://i.imgur.com/1t3zYcp.png
For the most part joy washed over these concerns, thanks to the stylings, broad interactivity, and ludicrous scenarios. (The stand out was probably the submersible, but all of the settings were neat and had their highlights). Ultimately well worth £11 in a sale, but the odd design blips and the slim pickings on the map front (only 6 locations, 4 hours play for me) mean I can't really rate it higher than:
3_5+++
EDIT: I also enjoyed the two bonus DLC scenarios that have dropped since launch, set on a lavish Indian train and in a classic villain's lair.
The added dev commentary is also decent at points, offering some insight into the specific trials of designing for VR (changing the reticule size in a stepped manner to stop perceptual doubling / angling a window so you can be both close to it and not smooshed up against it etc). Also reveals how you can slide into making a Saul Bass intro when on a slender budget ;)
Golgot
12-07-17, 04:40 AM
So the 'Minority Report' beta is out. People's first use? To put things into Elite Dangerous to keep them amused ;)
https://youtu.be/xy7MSd-vOj4
Looks neat. I'll probably let everyone knock the rough edges off first, but being able to access desktop stuff from in-game is going to be a big step up :)
---
EDIT: Oh I kinda like this (https://www.oculus.com/blog/rift-core-dev-diary-1-the-next-chapter-for-rift/). I'm not hugely bothered about the home locations and all the cosmetic stuff, but the possibility of slinging a home-made statue in there is strangely appealing:
Well be adding tons of new content throughout the year, including new items and decorations built by the community. Well also make it easy to bring your own content, like Medium sculptures, into Home in 2018.
Supposedly you'll be able to invite people over to your home location, play mini-games etc down the line. If that's functional eventually, all cool. (Altho also doubtless part of long-term Facebook master plans to own all personal data evaaaaa...)
Golgot
12-07-17, 09:33 AM
I'm stealthily tracking this Early Access 'Thief 2 in VR' game: UnKnightly
https://youtu.be/oKp1I-TmXpw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlmjGNif5BY
Despite me having a really poor track record with enjoying stealth games since... well, since Thief 2 :D
They do seem to have the core mechanics down here (key swipes, guards with torches messing with your cover, throwing distractions, physically dumping bodies, yadda yadda). The current £10 sale is tempting. But until I'm sure I can clonk someone with a terrible British accent over the head during a pacifist run, I'm not in...
(Damnn, water arrows with limited ammo loadouts, as of old, would be a perfect VR fit too. He should totally rip off their whole spiel ;))
[Other stealth games that I'm perplexingly tracking: here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&highlight=stealth&p=1771039#post1771039)]
___
EDIT: Ok **** I just bought it... And asked the Dev to add water arrows. And terrible British accents :D
Golgot
12-07-17, 11:30 AM
Oh. Sh*t. Son.... (https://bethesda.net/en/article/53ztTpcdK8CKSmG8migYsU/fallout-4-vr-launch-details)
FALLOUT 4 spex...
MINIMUM:
OS: Windows 7/8.1/10 (64-bit versions)
Processor: CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 or AMD FX 8350 or better
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 / AMD RX Vega 56 or better
Storage: 30 GB available space
Well I'm boned :D
Can only hope that the official conversion to Oculus, when it comes, will sprinkle some of their proprietary 'Asynchronous Space Warp' goop onto affairs and reduce that down to... Like a 980 at least? C'monnnnn.
EDIT: Aha, it seems (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/7i6z7j/fallout_4_vr_launch_details/dqwm8dv/) ASW works even prior to official support being coded into the game. That's something... means the min rec for Rifts is probably more like a 1060 I'd guess...
Oculus' confirmation: https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/5bpxj9/needed_in_elite_dangerous_vr_a_dashboard_screen/d9rrhiv/
Valve's confirmation:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/250820/discussions/0/305510202679681031/
And you can easily load up a SteamVR game where you can change the supersampling, crank it up to extreme values and enjoy ASW artifacts as confirmation :D
---
https://youtu.be/cQC1xNIc8TY
Zotis
12-07-17, 11:56 AM
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/1eE-9vS6PR0/maxresdefault.jpg
I played Arizona Sunshine at a VR cafe with some friends, and for the first time I am craving VR. The movement was good without motion disphoria. And I loved how you could throw things. I juggled with tennis balls, played catch, and got irritated with how bad the employee was at explaining things.
He said press the side button and bring your hand to your waist to reload. So I tried that and it dropped the ammo clip on the ground. He didn't tell me to hold down the button. And then he was trying to explain how to look down the sights, a mechanic I already knew from other shooting games. But once we started getting the hang of it things were pretty interesting. We spent more time exploring than killing zombies. But when my friends died they were asking why they couldn't start the next round and asking me if I was ready, but I was still alive. I survived for a while. It was really fun having two guns and shooting zombies on either side and reloading both at the sametime. I felt like Bruce Willis in Last Man Standing.
My friend shot a zombie in the leg and then threw a can at it which broke its leg off.
It was the first time I felt amazed by a VR experience. I could get addicted to that.
Golgot
12-07-17, 12:06 PM
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/1eE-9vS6PR0/maxresdefault.jpg
I played Arizona Sunshine at a VR cafe with some friends, and for the first time I am craving VR. The movement was good without motion disphoria. And I loved how you could throw things. I juggled with tennis balls, played catch, and got irritated with how bad the employee was at explaining things.
He said press the side button and bring your hand to your waist to reload. So I tried that and it dropped the ammo clip on the ground. He didn't tell me to hold down the button. And then he was trying to explain how to look down the sights, a mechanic I already knew from other shooting games. But once we started getting the hang of it things were pretty interesting. We spent more time exploring than killing zombies. But when my friends died they were asking why they couldn't start the next round and asking me if I was ready, but I was still alive. I survived for a while. It was really fun having two guns and shooting zombies on either side and reloading both at the sametime. I felt like Bruce Willis in Last Man Standing.
My friend shot a zombie in the leg and then threw a can at it which broke its leg off.
It was the first time I felt amazed by a VR experience. I could get addicted to that.
Oo nice one, yeah I still haven't tried Arizona but have heard good things. It's definitely one of the newer generation releases where they'd nailed most of the mechanical stuff, and got a cinematic vibe going to boot.
When the gaming and the experiential stuff combine that's when you really start to get a hankering for more eh ;)
(If it helps, there's still a limited amount of glorious content out there on both fronts ;). Maybe arcades are the best way to access this stuff for now?)
Given I'm locked out of Fallout 4 due to my GPU lacking oomph I sure ain't sitting on a bazillion hours of quality gaming right now... (Although weirdly Minecraft is serving really well
on that front as filler :D)
Zotis
12-07-17, 02:06 PM
They have a deal at the VR cafe on Thursdays, buy one beer get 20 minutes free. So we'll see how that goes.
I also want to try a racing game.
Do you have a favorite game Golgot?
Golgot
12-07-17, 02:31 PM
They have a deal at the VR cafe on Thursdays, buy one beer get 20 minutes free. So we'll see how that goes.
I also want to try a racing game.
Do you have a favorite game Golgot?
Got a ton, but partially coz none of them are the kinda length or depth that we're used to ;)
Anything that scores a 4 here is worth a look:
REVIEWS: HERE (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1784221#post1784221)
For racing definitely ask if they've got Dirt Rally. It's tough and merciless (better to start with a slower car, like the Mini...) but surviving your way around an 8-minute long course can be properly epic when it plays out right :)
Right now Minecraft is my mainstay (the Vivecraft mod, not the official version). It just ticks a ton of boxes: Deep content, playable online with my friend (who isn't on VR), open world, solid motion controller mechanics (using bows etc).
I'm definitely hankering after a higher fidelity open world though. Pretty bummed that F4 looks like a stretch for my machine. Crossing my fingers the LA Noire will play nice when it drops...
Zotis
12-07-17, 02:35 PM
I don't know if the place I'm going has Dirt Rally, but I'll ask.
Zotis
12-07-17, 09:53 PM
I just played Arizona Sunrise for an hour and a half. I was finally feeling comfortable in the virtual reality.
When I was going home though... It felt like the real world wasn't real. Now, I am a Christian. I believe in God and the afterlife; heaven and hell. This really made me think about how this world, this universe, is just a small part of reality we are trapped in and know very little about. Imagine if we had been born in a virtual reality. To us it would be the real world since it would be all we knew. It was a really interesting Matrix-esque experience. I was touching random objects, like a guard rail, as if I was interacting with them for the first time, and as if they weren't real. I still feel a little tripped out. But actually, rather than disconnected from reality, I feel more in touch with reality.
I kind of want to save up and buy a VR set... but if I do... I'll probably have no life...
Golgot
12-08-17, 05:25 AM
I just played Arizona Sunrise for an hour and a half. I was finally feeling comfortable in the virtual reality.
When I was going home though... It felt like the real world wasn't real. Now, I am a Christian. I believe in God and the afterlife; heaven and hell. This really made me think about how this world, this universe, is just a small part of reality we are trapped in and know very little about. Imagine if we had been born in a virtual reality. To us it would be the real world since it would be all we knew. It was a really interesting Matrix-esque experience. I was touching random objects, like a guard rail, as if I was interacting with them for the first time, and as if they weren't real. I still feel a little tripped out. But actually, rather than disconnected from reality, I feel more in touch with reality.
I kind of want to save up and buy a VR set... but if I do... I'll probably have no life...
Oh hell yeah, the fact that our perceptual world is essentially a construct is really highlighted by this tech. You pretty much observe your brain recalibrating as it tries to re-establish a baseline for what is real ;)
The trippy stage after intense sessions is fairly short lived though (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1755004#post1755004). A few crazy dreams aside, your brain pretty quickly adopts a 'Helmet on head = altered norms' routine.
(It's that level of plasticity that makes me hesitate about exposing my kid to it just yet. Would rather he gets the 'rules of the game' down from exposure to the world's classic norms first, before being told he can be 6ft tall if he wants, or a bird ;))
So yeah, we adapt surprisingly quickly, but the philosophical and practical considerations remain ;)
Zotis
12-08-17, 07:37 AM
Do you experience it often?
Golgot
12-08-17, 07:42 AM
Do you experience it often?
Nah, not since the first week really, just those two days of oddness. My brain seems to completely accept now that once the helmet's on normal parameters may change, but what's learned in there stays in there. (Whereas before it was trying to apply those new rules about body shape / physics / mobility etc to the world outside ;))
Zotis
12-08-17, 07:53 AM
Hmm, that makes sense. My brain was trying to apply the VR rules in the real world. In the VR I was starting to get comfortable with using both hands simultaneously and crouching to walk through tight spaces. If the zombies got too close rather than turn around and click to teleport I was gettimg the hang of teleportimg backwards a short distance while shooting ahead. I guess I was getting comfortable in the VR, so my brain was starting to accept it.
I love that line from the Animatrix, "To an artificial mind all reality is virtual."
Golgot
12-11-17, 07:12 AM
Platform Envy:
Aww damnnn...
https://twitter.com/PlayStation/status/939347949984681984
Bit scrubby, and only a 20min demo, but still, having that feather beastie at scale for puzzles could be pretty badass :). (Shadow of the Colossus would just be... immense :D)
That and they're getting a free Wipeout...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StUMAuqkWXQ
(I mean honestly that might be a vom-fest, but still jealous ;))
---
Fallout 4 Foolhardy Flutters of Hope....
On the good news front...
It seems that Doom VFR was also given a min spec of GTX 1070, and has been running fine on lesser things like 970s :). At a guess Beth are idealising their min spec to dodge any moans about visuals / performance. That said F4 is a much more demanding game, and I reckon I'm gonna be reliant on mods to get it anywhere near pretty. (Will be joining many Redditor plans to just stalk the wilds for the first few months, building up satellite bases, before arming ourselves with mods and heading to the city.... ;))
Another plus is it seems ([1] (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/7iwsn5/just_played_fo4_vr_at_a_prerelease_event/?st=jb23ldtx&sh=6ff04b8c), [2] (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/7iwsn5/just_played_fo4_vr_at_a_prerelease_event/dr2ql4e/?st=jb23m2yh&sh=13a10041)) they may be bundling in some or all of the DLC after all. (This happened with Skyrim VR, and would certainly be a good sweetener when re-buying an old franchise :))
EDIT: Nice, and confirmed to work on Rift (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/7j25bi/why_yes_fallout_4_vr_does_work_on_rift_just_tried/?st=jb2a4ajq&sh=5dbfe9d1), if with expected teething issues. Also running on that guy's R9 390, which pretty damn comparable to my GTX 970, so woot on that too :)
Golgot
12-12-17, 06:43 AM
Flurry of Further First-Day Fallout 4 Fulminations...
It's gonna be a while until I get a run at this, with my unsupported Rift. In the meantime, the internet reports...
PROS
Yep, it's Fallout 4 in VR :)
http://michaelwhalen.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/virtual-fallout.gif (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/7j6qy7/omg_im_in_fallout_this_is_awesome/dr4kdxx/)
^^^old ludicrous gif...^^^
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8WZfQmUhpU
^^^YT hot take, featuring the launch blur bug, and the word 'guys' used as punctuation^^^
Mods seems to be working already :) (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/7j6b56/mods_apparently_work_in_fallout_4_vr/?st=jb3ffph1&sh=fda3f250)
So maybe the dynamic shadows mod (https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/1822/?) will work for a sweet performance boost? Fingers crossed... (And hey, in the meantime you can tweak the INI to become a giant ;) (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/7j8kp0/adjusting_player_size_in_fallout_4_vr/dr4i7xl/?st=jb3hu4ke&sh=68cbe019))
Tons of reports of GTX 970s and comparable running it fine. (Suggesting the 1070 Min Spec is pretty excessive).
CONS
Oculus joysticks are doing eccentric things in the menu when read as Vive trackpads, making the Pipboy etc frustrating. Some have found deadzone tricks in the interim. Others have done this...
https://i.redd.it/lsz74p6gjf301.jpg
Sniper scopes aren't working yet :/ (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/7j6nhm/scopes_do_not_work_in_fallout_4_vr/?st=jb3cevwr&sh=9f3b5201). Supposedly planned for later patch.
Various expected bugs and deprivations, including the Vive version running on the wrong aspect ratio and console commands being required to mess with the anti-aliasing. The 'personal space' buffer that prevents close proximity also sounds very annoying. C'est la vie post-apocalyptic.... ;)
TLDR:
It works unofficially on the Rift, more or less, and is immersive (if you don't mind the smudgier distances, old school 'point and click' mechanisms for some of the 'hands on' gaming, and assorted bugs). The core seems to work, it could just do with a round of patches, mods and tinkers all told. Such surprise :D
---
EDITED ERRATA:
Oh for heaven's sake :D
Friendly note, you are able to reach into the display case holding the cryolator, and in theory any other display case or wall (Grognaks axe?). I thought I would give it a try for shiggles and it worked instantly.
Oh this (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/7jatiz/you_can_play_far_harbour_and_nuka_world_in_vr/dr5asl4/) better be true... (having my old giant themed bases back as counter-point to a fresh-noob start would be great :))
Also, PSA, old pancake saves work perfectly fine, just need to copy them over.
List of functioning Mods (& partially-working DLC):
Comprehensive Mod List (https://www.reddit.com/r/fo4vr/comments/7jciyv/fallout_4_vr_comprehensive_mod_list_looking_for/?st=jb4ykxah&sh=a21293d3)
Oo, config tool. That was quick :)
Fallout 4 (VR) Configuration Tool Now available for testing (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/7jf1hb/fallout_4_vr_configuration_tool_now_available_for/?st=jb560hcb&sh=48269076)
Oh sweet, the 'personal space' bounce-back default can be wound back. Dogmeat petting ahoy...
With this ini fix, not only can you lean against walls, you can scratch dogmeat and he will react! (https://www.reddit.com/r/fo4vr/comments/7jqvhi/with_this_ini_fix_not_only_can_you_lean_against/?st=jb6jvo71&sh=00e0a930)
Golgot
12-13-17, 02:51 PM
Liking this simple long play. Nothing spectacular happens, but they're playing it the 'right way'. (Locomotion not teleportation, with no silly visual dampening on turning. Just them and the wastes :))
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yz_Woxl_CuI
Nice simple explainer vid here too on some of the basic options:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkIj545xhFE
General impression I'm getting across the board is that: They've turned up the VR conversion to a solid 7. Everything functions, and so you're happily there in VR (which takes the experience up beyond a '7/10' I suspects...). So as much as picking stuff up with actual 'hands' would be way cooler, and opening doors, and doing the lockpicking 'by hand', and hey, putting hats on your head... As much as that would all start getting it dialled up to 11, they didn't go quite that full fat.
Can't blame them though. They saved on those polygons and R&D intricacies and just got a functioning 90FPSx2 Fallout out the door. (I suspect there will be more from them, and mods too, if sales are as comfortable as they appear to be... [1.4k 'mostly positive' Steam reviews is a healthy 24hr+ picture for a VR game])
It's good news. It's about where I hoped they'd be at launch :)
Golgot
12-14-17, 05:05 PM
LA NOIRE VR MIN SPEC...
Oh for heaven's sake :D
Minimum:
OS: Windows 8.1 64 Bit, Windows 10 64 Bit
Processor: Intel Core i7-4790K @ 3.60 GHz
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 8 GB
Also using AMD kit in conjunction will cause the world to explode.
They ain't making it easy...
Golgot
12-14-17, 08:44 PM
Fallout 4 VR: First Look...
https://i.imgur.com/6KjyvHL.png
Ok so I've altered a ton of .ini files, raised eyebrows at NPCs and dogs, stared at some paint for an embarrassing amount of time, been freaked out by giant cockroaches approaching at eye level (why did I stick my head over the top of the stairs?). I've also accidentally turned myself into a giant with tiny hands, realised the stars in this build look closer than the buildings, and had several epic fights with a control system that is simply not made for my controllers...
But. Damn, this could be good :D
https://i.imgur.com/XITmhkm.png
Loads more caveats though. Clearly this isn't PC VR's killer app. It's barely plug and play for the niche slice of humanity who have the kit to officially run it. On my lesser kit I've had to: Remove the TAA, alter a ton of grass and shadow distance parameters, and find other ways to inch the ultimate 'Render Target Multiplyer' to 1.2, so things don't look abysmally ****, or judder like I'm inside a washing machine. I've also opted to: trim the 'personal safety zone' that stops you getting too close to items, and manually made myself the correct height. Items also disappear in my periphery, I get periodic white flashes, and I reckon the cities will destroy my current pretty settings...
And this is day one :D
More pix here (https://imgur.com/a/2R5n8). I'm going to bed. Intriguing though :)
EDIT:
Day 2 has involved me drawing the shadows in to my ankles, for performance's sake, and having a whale of a time just taking the satellite dish on 'really crazy easy mode'. Which in VR it isn't, but does make you feel classier when you land deadly pistol shots ;).
Prior to it crashing it was enjoyably intense :)
Zotis
12-14-17, 11:33 PM
I played Run of Mydan's pvp with a friend, and it was really fun. You fly around, cycle through weapons, have shields, and try to blow each other up. I won 9-2. My friend didn't realise you go faster by holding the movement buttons down on both controllers and not just one.
https://u.kanobu.ru/screenshots/40/3234c335-daed-4196-93d3-b4d7b8ea2024.jpg
Golgot
12-15-17, 12:55 PM
I played Run of Mydan's pvp with a friend, and it was really fun. You fly around, cycle through weapons, have shields, and try to blow each other up. I won 9-2. My friend didn't realise you go faster by holding the movement buttons down on both controllers and not just one.
https://u.kanobu.ru/screenshots/40/3234c335-daed-4196-93d3-b4d7b8ea2024.jpg
Nice, can imagine it being more enjoyable with a mate. I haven't really spent any time with the online maps but the offline ones felt like they really needed more objects to juke around. The single player campaign was totally bizarre, in a good way ;)
---
F4 non-update: I'm still flipping INI switches, trying to maintain the level of pretty that I find immersive while in even the undemanding environs of Concord. Will definitely be keeping to the outskirts for a long while, waiting for performance mods & further tips...
Golgot
12-15-17, 08:31 PM
LA Noire: First Look
https://i.imgur.com/EXVABVn.png
Holy crap, LA Noire is both the most amazing thing, and the hokiest game ever, all at once :D
I've only just finished off the tutorials, but seeing the face-capture as 'live action' happening around you is pretty wonderful! Even with distances a mushy fuzz due to my underpowered machine, the city is alive with striking caricatures (the cussed look I got from an old man in overalls as he bustled past literally made me crack up :D). Seeing them watching the world go by from a bus as you steer passed them erratically (using your hands to drive your weighty cop cruiser about :)) is bizarrely involving.
https://i.imgur.com/XKk0f4S.png
All of that immersive stuff is grand, especially the efforts they've put into novel hand interactions with the world. What I've seen of the investigation side suggests it's mainly going to gel together well too. Where it's letting itself down is in not overcoming some of VR's more obvious foibles though. For locomotion they've opted for 'arm swinger'. Like, you literally have to swing your arms to move... :|. It's fine as a niche and silly input to include as a laugh, but having it as the main alternative to teleportation is completely daft. (Ok, I'll just move 1ft to the left to investigate that lighter. *Jogjogjogjogjog* :D)
Then there's the various bugs and erratic bits. The NPCs who keep yelling at you to stop looking at them, when you're not. The pencil that draws over your notebook menu every time you select an option. The way the notebook sometimes just refuses to close. Rockstar always get forgiven some jank, but that stuff could use some love ;)
There's also just a slight jarring feeling that events are all segregated and discrete, despite the impressive way they've allowed access to the full open world by car and foot. Aspects like teleporting up stairs (even if you're using the free-roam style) are a pity.
Overall impression though is that it's already stonkingly worth the £25. And that's just for the strange interactions with 1950s pedestrians :D
Load of pix here. (https://imgur.com/a/pf9B6)
Golgot
12-16-17, 02:09 PM
Something about this really tickled me. Think it's the way he made it sound like he was chilling on his morning porch ;)
https://twitter.com/floatharr/status/941625694391586816
Golgot
12-18-17, 11:06 AM
Fallout 4: Some More
So I've somehow played 14 hours of FO4 even though I'm miles under spec and the menus barely work for my unsupported Rift. (I literally can't cure my radiation right now because Radaway is too far down the alphabet :D)
But I feel compelled to make a list of:
Mainly Entirely Positive Things (which probably explain why I'm playing uphill):
The naturalistic gunplay works well, despite the poor accuracy early on (due to stats & starter ironsights) and poor accuracy at range generally (low resolution for me, and scopes are currently non-functional). Mid-range punts and close-range chaos are great though. The ability to shoot wildly around your hips as you dodge away from a Molerat erupting next to you is just grand :D
Worth a point on its own: That ghoul sprint. The moment when they accelerate over the last few yards, and you desperately go for the headshot with your wildly unreliable weapon, is heart stoppingly cool :D.
Gun mods look great in your hand - it really feels like you've changed the form and heft of the weapon. (Even though the lack of dual and two-handed wielding is a shame).
Companions are great 'writ large'. Dogmeat just calls to have his head ruffled, and the way he knocks British soldiers *above* your ears like skittles is hilarious ;). (Codsworth is the same wonderful metal bastard, just the same size as you ;))
There's so much I still haven't explored. I cant believe I just found another base a stone's throw from Sanctuary that I never noticed during my previous 80hr playthrough :D. Just stumbled onto it because I was enjoying rambling in a straight line :)
Despite the jaggies it's still a pretty place to tromp about. These pix communicate both aspects I think... (NB that the 'screen door effect' actually makes my game look even worse than this at these resolutions :/, although motion & depth makes up for a lot...)
https://i.imgur.com/Yplqww3.png
https://i.imgur.com/SORQGxk.png
https://i.imgur.com/w4my0y3.png
https://i.imgur.com/GEYHb9b.png
It's not a revolutionary use of VR (LA Noire is closer to that), or a revolutionary re-imagining of FO4. It's a mainly functional merger of the two, and a solid use of both in the process.
You do need a beast of a machine though. I'm right on the cusp of unplayable performance and horrendous aesthetics even with my respectable 970/i5 set up. Yet somehow I'm still playing :D
TLDR: Dammit this game is addictive. Lots of issues in attendance though. This is not currently an endorsement ;)
Golgot
12-27-17, 06:56 AM
Just a quick round up of some peripheral stuff from from before my Xmas AAA glut :)
Edge of Nowhere
http://www.realmentevirtual.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Edge-Of-Nowhere-5.jpg
This really wouldn't have been my speed normally, but it was slashed to £4 so I jumped in. I'm not really a fan of linear 3rd person adventure fare. You know, the stuff where you trog onwards, knowing that occasionally various bits of landmass will drop from beneath you in cinematic fashion. It just feels too on rails. And so it is here.
But. Where the game raises the bar is in adding a Cthulian strand of hallucination and storytelling as you push onwards through the increasingly horrific icy wastes, merging fever dreams of exotic locales and narrative doubt into your mortal struggles. (A nice line in Noir Jazz also underpins the 30s/40s flashbacks and mental drifts, while 80s adventure music drives the cheesier main action).
The actual game mechanics of avoiding the (decently unsettling) lifeforms you discover are pretty rote. Throw this rock, creep around the other side of this crevasse, conserve your ammunition, make a dash for it etc. The ice pick mechanic for traversing walls is also repetitive (although descents are a lot more fun than ascents, as you drop from crumbling surfaces or between perils). But again they've got a few neat tricks up their sleeve, the most notable being the use of scale. Moments where mighty beasts make their presence felt are solidly and effectively executed. And the flora and fauna are all very effective in their otherlyness...
I didn't actually finish it, because games that are more my thing came online, but for anyone into either linear adventures and horror, this is definitely worth a shot.
3_5 (+)
http://image.jeuxvideo.com/medias-md/146780/1467795018-7407-capture-d-ecran.jpg
(Disclaimer: These are found pics, I daftly deleted my own, which is a shame as they showed off some more of the variety in locations and blended narrative scenes)
Golgot
12-27-17, 08:42 AM
Shorts:
Easter Rising: Voice of a Rebel
https://i.imgur.com/vNpQYm9.png
This is the closest I've felt to a 'future TV' experience. It's just 12 minutes of one man's reminiscences from the day, but has splashes of detail that speak to the wider facts and the feel of the times. Some lovely semi-static art paints and connects the various subjective scenes around you in a seated experience. The pseudo-balanced BBC meta narrator is a bit annoying, but in fairness the topic is too huge for anything but a toe dip in the timeframe available.
https://i.imgur.com/BnXOQzN.png
*More Pix* (https://imgur.com/a/5GwRp)
3_5(++)
---
Pearl
https://www.gamecrate.com/sites/default/files/field/image/pearl-vr-oscar-nominee.jpg
Part of Google's Spotlight series, I'll give this one a hat tip for being the first to get my eyes moist. (Although with the caveat that since I've become a dad any story tied to kid care can tease the tears out with ease ;). Also films about bears, loss, love, & the inner-workings of the rotisserie industry. I don't know why this is :D).
The format is pretty simple: Sit in the passenger seat throughout the life of a family car, as a father and daughter go from the Spring to the Autumn of their relationship. It's kinda hokey, but technically solid.
3_5
---
Dear Angelica
https://i.imgur.com/AjVTdLp.png
Another painterly affair (developed with and alongside the 3D paint package Quill), this one shows off some cinematic sensitivities, partially with its narrative of a daughter lost in dreams without her famous mother, and partially in its voice works from Geena Davis. It doesn't take off completely, but the melancholy traces of reveries and daily debris work with the audio for sure.
3_5
---
Golgot
12-28-17, 10:35 AM
Fallout 4: Still Going Forth
Loops of Loot:
Ok, 38 hours in, and I'm playing exactly the same way as in flatland. I'm pursuing the same build instinctively (Charisma for communities, Gun Mods for satisfying survival, Picking/Hacking etc for loot). I'm still luring Mirelurks onto mines, still giggling at Codsworth as he sallies forth, still jumbling junk into defensive walls...
What Fresh Apocalypse Is This?:
So why is it different? Because I can blindfire around a doorframe and take out a pesky turret trap? Because Mirelurks are actually 6ft-tall shelled bastards who scare the bejesus out of me, despite my well laid plans? Because the infrastructure and communities I'm creating slowly build and exist around me in a far more 'physical' way? Hell yes, because of things like that :D
Here are some 2D pix of my left eye's view which entirely fail to get any of this across :D
https://i.imgur.com/IkIkVhF.png
https://i.imgur.com/OyX8ySV.png
https://i.imgur.com/KOx5wHL.png
Janking and Tanking:
Is this my review? Nah. I'm still too petrified to head to Diamond City purely on performance grounds, and until I do that I can't sign off on it at all. And when I do it'll be with a thousand Bethesda-style caveats...
But despite the near constant 'reprojection' stutter, the unique bugs they've introduced to VR, the periodic crashes, the fact that I had to fix the sky in the ini files (THE SKY BETHESDA :D), and the rustic 'lets just plonk VR into this world' approach they've taken... I am having an absolute blast :)
https://i.imgur.com/mSQ4u5P.png
^^^All perk magazines are displayed like this :/^^^
Golgot
12-29-17, 09:04 AM
Oo intriguing, it seems the Pixar's VR experiment has led to them using it as an internal tool. IE: (https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/coco-vr-made-pixar-a-believer-in-virtual-reality/)
“As we were building the experience, we were actually collaborating inside of VR, together,” said Henning. “You would have Pixar’s creatives and project leads walking around as skeletons with our creatives and project leads, all together, actually in the experience — them in Emeryville and us in Los Angeles — exploring the space together and making decisions natively in the medium, as opposed to just doing a video conference or a phone call.”
“We model it, then we drop the filmmakers in those spaces to get a feel for scale, design, and to start finding some of their camera shots that they might want to achieve,” said Sondheimer. “That’s new, for us, but it’s also very exciting, for sure.”
“I know that it’s something that they’re using now in our filmmaking — you get a production designer, a director, and the head of our camera department all in, doing a walkthrough of a space together, virtually,” added Sondheimer. “Coco VR unlocked that door, at least in three dimensions.”
Golgot
01-02-18, 03:02 PM
Fallout 4: Riding Shotgun
---
Shotguns are Fantastic :D
I've blazed through almost all my ammo heading East from Sanctuary (and discovering loads of stuff I've never seen before :)) and getting vaguely out of my depth. When things get close and personal though my two-shot blunderbuss is keeping me alive in wonderous last-ditch fashion. Dealing with 3 Supermutants and their pet in quick succession when they surprise-flanked me, desperately sliding amongst their bulky forms and pulling off free-aim headshots, was super intense. (It would have been in flatmode too, but something about the hand aiming and being amongst them was just great :D).
I've had similar fun desperately dealing with triple-surprise-ghouls with the last of my pistol ammo, strategically throwing 'nades around doorways and other natural hand-controlled hijinks. Hands definitely add :)
Plans on Foot:
The terrible day has arrived, and I've run out of steel for deranged building projects. The Slog is safely walled in corrugated iron (complete with cheery nautical picture theme... Whyyy :D). But Greygarden has only half of its sky huts built... So I can't push my caravans on just yet. Which slows down my plan of maxing out my Minuteman buddy with survivor missions and moving on to some full on roving with Piper (to get her exploration XP perk).
But it's totally cool. I can't believe I missed the Raider boat base under one of the bridges leading to Diamond City. I'm going to clear that thing (using my hunting rifle, which is doing fine as a non-scoped sniper), use the Power Armour I saw clumping around it to heft steel to the Grey Farm, recruit some human robots (I have their outfit all prepped :/), link up the more advanced land claim and... get distracted by something else :D
INI for The Win
Successfully made VATs update every 1 second instead of 0.1, so the manually highlighted limbs don't flit back and forth ridiculously.
To Do:
Invert the magazine setting by 180 degrees. (Yes this is literally why they display upside down :/)
Rearrange Power Armour UI so it displays as if near face rather than chest :/
Golgot
01-03-18, 08:18 AM
Got loads done in FO4, and had some rootin-tootin fun along the way. But Diamond City was a judder-fest at the end, and I fancied something slicker this morning. So...
Lone Echo
https://i.imgur.com/0b2qyXb.png
Damn have they nailed the vibe here. Properly delicious presentation, with apposite mechanics, and a well realised NPC companion. (She's a bit dead-eyed, but otherwise well voiced and animated). Despite my jaggy shadows (I'm below reco spec) I was straight into this floating zero-G world. (Poss helps that I've got the locomotion down in Echo Arena, but it's pretty intuitive).
It does seem that the core gameplay is going to be pretty much go-here / pull-that-lever, but I can go along with it purely for the escapism I reckon. Looking forward to scooting around outside the ship :)
https://i.imgur.com/0jT6P0K.png
**More pix here** (https://imgur.com/a/5kOz6)
Golgot
01-16-18, 11:04 AM
When I get to play, it's this that I'm playing...
https://youtu.be/IoaiWhqdUBA
It's a cover shooting, grenade chucking, base building, den diving, world exploring, radiant rescuing, tangent tangling joy so it is :). Glitchy as **** with it of course though :D. (A fair example would be: Today I stopped playing because, yet again, the game decided to crash while picking a lock. This was a good thing though, because I was about to carry on looting, shooting, and tying up narrative ends of my own making interminably, and therefore be very very late for work. Pros and cons like ;))
I could probably wear myself out with it, as I did with the flat version (trying to build up too many sanctuaries too fast, and getting annoyed at the pillaging required). But for now, out in the high-FPS wilds at least, it feels like pure fun and freedom :)
Gonna dash into Diamond, nab Piper, and go on that giant explore I promised myself. There's so much of this map I haven't seen...
Golgot
01-17-18, 10:36 AM
Simple pleasures ;)
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/SecondaryCoarseKiskadee-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/SecondaryCoarseKiskadee)
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/VastSomberElephant-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/VastSomberElephant)
Golgot
01-26-18, 10:51 AM
Fallout 4: Explosive Action and Quiet Repose
https://i.imgur.com/p2nNqJi.png
I think I just want to say that I'm getting all my favourite gaming flavours out of FO4VR.
BOOM-BASTIC:
Last night I literally hollered 'HOLY ****' as a final surprise ghoul rasped through a doorway I'd turned away from. The sheer apparent viscera of its accelerating approach, and the reactive moment as I fired my auto-shotty across my body, then defensively in front of me as juked back from its slashes, was just a total shot of adrenaline. Like the best side of vid-game excitement, writ bizarrely impactful in that moment. (These guys can barely dent me in game now, but for that split moment in time it really was like an event that was happening and needed to be escaped from. Ideally with style, but desperate measures would do too ;))
Lord knows my girlfriend is being amazingly accommodating of things like this happening in our living room ;). (But on the plus side she gets the comedy of me fathoming the underwater swimming controls as well :D)
ZONING OUT:
On the flip side of the action there's all the escapism, world building, and world-impacting to enjoy. A lot of these things are also elevated in more subtle ways by having yourself 'in the scene'. I found myself just hanging out in GoodNeighbour for a long while, just staring at the security goons pacing and muttering in the rain against the neon grunge. Just little touches like Piper wondering off to quiz people on the location gain a certain something in these moments. (You're more attached to your companion as it is, they're a bit more of a presence, so having them wonder off and blend into the background story-fying is strangely pleasing, mixed with a bit of 'oi, don't disappear completely!').
The building interface is as comparably cludgy as the mouse version, but still leading to pleasingly ramshackle designs and improvisations for all that. Coming 'home' to a location playing Diamond Radio as your survivors down tools under long shadows and gather for an evening beer is grand.
I definitely find the main loops interact pleasingly on the whole (explore / adventure-kill / build), so long as the grind doesn't stack too high. More so than the original on each front (with perhaps the exception of fine-grained & hacked building being more of a pain currently).
DOWWWWN TOWWWWN:
The only downside is still performance. There are places I can't go. That military research lab with the green gas? Unplayable. That giant tower whose guts are open to the world? Judderfest.
And of course I'm mainly dodging the main storyline, on account of it being a bit pants. I'm happily probing around the edges of it though. And taking my time saving the wilds, one janky outpost at a time...
https://i.imgur.com/MDovVc7.png
Yoda
01-26-18, 01:24 PM
Appreciate the update. You're really selling me on this. :laugh: It's largely become a question of "when" rather than "if." Re: the ghoul thing. Yeah, the ghouls were one of the few things that scared me through my initial run, and now they're the only thing that scare me even when I'm running around totally overpowered. I do feel that ridiculous closing speed they have is manufacturing the reaction a little cheaply, though.
Golgot
02-08-18, 11:56 AM
Appreciate the update. You're really selling me on this. :laugh: It's largely become a question of "when" rather than "if." Re: the ghoul thing. Yeah, the ghouls were one of the few things that scared me through my initial run, and now they're the only thing that scare me even when I'm running around totally overpowered. I do feel that ridiculous closing speed they have is manufacturing the reaction a little cheaply, though.
Hey, missed this!
Yeah, it is a cheap trick, but god it's effective :D. (Kinda fair-to-fuzzy in a gamey way tho. Like the audio of all the ghouls shaking themselves off in the other room was pretty telegraphed. It was just me that interpreted the sounds as 3 ghouls that needed taking care of, not 4 :D).
Cool, yeah, keep your powder dry, but I do reckon you'd love it ;). A patch is just dropping that fixes things like scopes (well, they put you into a thrifty 'black background with zoomed centre' compromise mode apparently), but in the mid-term performance should be the main braking effect. Getting this thing to run even on mid-range kit is still something of a nightmare.
That said, I've just had a ton of fun in my last sessions ;)
https://i.imgur.com/VN7bjWO.png (https://imgur.com/a/RYDHr)
^^Click for Imgur tales of derring do. And carpentry.^^
Golgot
02-09-18, 09:36 PM
Eleven Table Tennis
Snagged this for £7 on a deal. Got sucked into playing it for 3 hours, once I'd got the bat orientated right. A dead straightforward use of VR but some very tight execution on show. The AI was decent, but online seems very robust, and there were enough noobs about for me to get some decently daft matches. When I found someone willing to communicate through daftness, like Sir Leinad here, then so much the better :)
https://youtu.be/HtwLfkg2SUg
Golgot
02-13-18, 09:06 AM
FO4: Projections
I have so many FO4 projects it's untrue. I kinda love how I'll set out to accrue materials for one build, end up with some junk that would totally fit another base, and then get lost strapping some mad new architecture to that locale instead :D
Currently working on things like:
Graygarden:
Supporting the giant metal floating market with concrete struts (arg what am I doing?). The further, bulbous, Airstream-style living 'city' planned for the second floor will have to wait...
The Slog:
I idly noticed a small indent in the corner of the undulating terrain could actually be built on. Somehow a two-story clinic is now sprouting there, with grand plans to arch three stories over to the main living block...
Oberland Station:
https://i.imgur.com/Wy9RH9r.png
(Now with physics-abiding struts)
Has a mini-market that overhangs the low walls, and I'm strangely proud of it's jutting improbability. Many little burrows and homely workplaces now adhere to the walls and hold up structures (https://i.imgur.com/Pyskg3k.png). The piece-de-resistance is going to be a bar on the roof made of those giant hollowed airplane wing things. Hopefully lit to be seen for miles around...
Egret Tours Marina:
https://i.imgur.com/KuJNgmK.png
Has a cool 'bunkbed' living quarters in the slipway building, and a bonus shack on the new improvised roof. But it's begging for a floating bedroom over one of the waterways, with walkways spidering over to the main building, so I can free up the leaky boatshed for more shops...
Tenpines Bluff:
Is a tough nugget of a place, and they can make do with their boxy wooden flats, friendly bone doctor, & a fancy television for now. I will be giving them an arms dealer on the roof, housed under a giant missile tower though...
Sanctuary:
Has a grand folly rising at its centre. A metallic marketplace of multiple tiers, and expected unexpected bulges. And nothing but the finest retailers, o'course. (Currently all staffed by vault dwelling types).
Starlight Drive-In:
Can sod off. I know what a time sink the place is ;)
(Totally will build a market under the 'wings' of the cafe at some point though :D)
Golgot
02-14-18, 01:27 PM
Fallout 4: Big Little Things
Just had a fun session that I expected to be really rote. All I was gonna do was plunge into yet another old factory, to clear out a local cult encampment near The Slog...
Colour that brought the experience to life:
https://i.imgur.com/raZHCuc.png
Plank walkways falling apart beneath your feet. (I made it across oblivious, but Nick took a two story plunge ;))
This is classic F4, but the background narratives discovered through hacked computers, then reinforced by unique builds and character dialogue, were all solid, and darkly comic at points too. For a randomly entered location this stuff is grand. The fact that some diary entries explained the spontaneous high-tech firefight nearby, spied from the rooftops, was even better ;). And then picking up an optional side mission at the end, to bring resolution to one of the tragic aspects, capped the 'organic adventure' thing off...
Nick spontaneously picked up a flamer and helped me boss the final boss battle when I was in dire need. I had no idea that could happen!
I got a picket fence magazine that lets me build statues. And that made me happy ******** :D
On my short amble back, totally overloaded with cage armour duds for The Slog crew, I stopped to wall-up a vulnerable wire-mesh corner of the base. The walls refused to join up, dropping frustratingly low. But then I realised they actually formed nice high windows for the clinic instead, and I rumbled on, a happy road warrior ;)
Bonus little thing from a previous session:
Dust falls from each footstep above on rickety floors, helping you track the enemy you're sneak-avoiding
How have I never noticed this before? (Possibly because we look up less in flatland as a rule?). Super creepy when sneaking around the old rickety house of a serial killer...
---
TLDR: Partially because the VR ecosystem lacks this kinda gaming depth, and partially because all these little touches seem to add even more colour and vibe when you're placed amongst them, I was loving what shoulda just been a trip to the shops :D
Golgot
02-22-18, 08:44 AM
Forgetting the Fourth Wall:
'It's in the Game'...:
I'm a first-person guy given the choice. Hell I strip out the UI too if the game world supports it. It's all about getting lost amongst the action, feeling like you're a participant in these alien / transporting / pseudo-heroic worlds.
Which has led to this deeply trite realisation. VR is 'first person'. I mean, ****ing duh :D. But it's only just struck me that way. This is my favourite game-mode writ real, leaving classical flat gaming as the old discarded '3rd person'. Perhaps this explains my deep dive into it. It definitely tallies with my preferences.
Thirded:
I will doubtless be back playing flatscreen games, next time some innovation and execution really combine to capture my fancy, and particularly in the 3rd person realm, or something that leverages high online numbers, or emphasises super quick drop-in / drop-out play. Something along Rocket League lines essentially. (I still haven't felt the call as yet though, 8 months+ into being a VR head).
VR may also pick up some speed on the 3rd person front. There is a certain pleasure, and even wonder, to some of the living dioramas they've experimented with to date. I can see some fun gameplay permutations here, from peering around a scene to discern clues, to interacting via finger pinches, prods etc. How cool would a Last Guardian be seen like this? Pretty damn cool I suspect ;). (And honestly, the only impasse to drop-in / drop-out I'm feeling right now are aspects like online numbers for online formats. The actual physical aspect of putting the headset on/off is damn close to slipping a cap on and off. No real biggie.)
I honestly can't see myself going back to a first person game though. The core game innovation would have to be obscene, to make up for having that dour screen flattening and imprisoning all the action once more ;)
TLDR:
VR is first person. That is all :D
Golgot
03-16-18, 09:38 AM
Weee, Payday 2 VR now added free to the main game (http://steamcommunity.com/games/218620/announcements/detail/1669019670888919416) :)
This is the stuff, full fat cross-platform co-op. A few more of these and it could really give VR online a shot in the arm. (Plus it's a fun tease for what VR's like, showing some of head / hand / body animations in-game I believe).
http://www.overkillsoftware.com/ovk-media/2018/03/pd2-scope-canted1.gif
https://i.imgur.com/69balV2.gif
As much as it's a brutal place to spend a lot of time, I do like PD2's world a lot. There's something about setting out to pull off a proper sneaky heist that's very cool. And you're always guaranteed some kind of exciting pay off. Either you'll painstakingly pull off every step without a hitch, despite many close calls, ....ORRRR (FAR MORE LIKELY), fail in a terrible blaze of glory, because some guy called Chumpy604 just had to chainsaw the main safe / teabag in front of a live camera for 10 seconds straight...
EDIT:
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/934933661259644252/BEA65883E7DB0AC559D5D77DDEAFF1FDD4C7491D/
Got my old account going. It's the same game, IE a potently focused mix of tensely stealthy, loudly chaotic, wildly uneven co-op :D
Really glad to see 'controller led locomotion' made it as a late addition. The port seems very slick in general. Pretty much a joy to zoom around the game, and the adjustable item 'belt' is sweetly implemented. Some of the bespoke interactions do seem a bit off. (I had to point like 2 foot away from a keybad interger to select it :|).
Dealing with waves of semi-mutated cops gets kinda deranged in VR. But on the plus side I can pick locks / drill security gates while looking around for trouble and laying down covering fire. It's the little things...
---
Also Skyrim VR heading to PC in April.
So long as ranged builds are valid I'll be up for this too for sure. (I just don't trust myself to use melee in my small flat :D)
EDIT: And woot, I make the min spec this time :D
MINIMUM: OS: Windows 7/8.1/10 (64-bit versions) Processor: Intel Core i5-6600K or AMD Ryzen 5 1400 or better Memory: 8 GB RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 / AMD RX 480 8GB or better Storage: 15 GB available space
RECOMMENDED: OS: Windows 10 (64-bit) Processor: Intel Core i7-4790 or AMD Ryzen 5 1500X Memory: 8 GB RAM Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 8GB / AMD RX Vega 56 8GB Storage: 15 GB available space
Golgot
03-16-18, 01:34 PM
Ok dammit I just bought this for £5. (60% off + £10 off because Oculus took all their headsets off line by mistake due to a security certificate **** up :D)
https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t_original/q59lb714h0mfrvnqt6nk.gif
And like all of the PD2 DLC I didn't already own.
And I'm not going to touch any of it because I've realised my VR mod works on the official Minecraft servers and I've built a musical smelter. And because Fallout 4. And because I'm making a stupidly involved video pitching to change a major game mechanic in Elite.
Aside from that it was a wise choice :D
Golgot
03-16-18, 02:26 PM
OKkk, this 'lightfield' location recording is starting to get somewhere. This is Google's take (https://www.blog.google/products/google-vr/experimenting-light-fields/) on it, and although there's not a huggeee amount of head motion accomadated before it starts whiting out and losing the image, it's definitely a step on...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUU2yGHgPQY
Can really see the potential for virtual tourism and storytelling starting to inch their way in. Steam freebie here (http://store.steampowered.com/app/771310/Welcome_to_Light_Fields/).
Golgot
03-17-18, 10:47 PM
Welcome to Light Fields
Recorded some footage from the Google Lightfields freebie. It's intriguing:
https://youtu.be/ySj4CFbJLWM
The thing I found most charming was the way people had to pose for 30 seconds+ to appear in a shot. It had something of the stiff awkwardness of a 19th Century pose routine (with the bonus oddness that you could move in and out of their line of sight and be seemingly stared at). Where it became effective was in these charming wee moments with this artist couple in their Venice garden.
The limitations are pretty clear (like literally, you can see the white lines of the globular limits as I approach, and then complete blackness if I stray beyond them), but stuff like the way it displays the reflections and light levels as you observe the scene from different angles is pretty neat.
Baby steps, but even as a way of experiencing another location or remembering individuals and places, this is pretty cool.
EDIT: Purely for the fact that I now feel like I've been to their mosaic tile house in Venice, even a year+ later: 3_5(++). [Free]
Here's a link on the tech (https://www.blog.google/products/google-ar-vr/experimenting-light-fields/).
Golgot
04-29-18, 05:18 PM
Fallout 4 Beta
I'm super pleased to report that the latest Beta has snuck in Rift support! No more menu torture! (Performance also seems better, although haven't tested rigorously).
They've also got scopes working well now. The way you get enveloped in darkness is kinda odd, but it's functional and I'm glad they're in :)
(DISCLAIMER: I spent most of my time trying to figure out if the gunshot indents in the ground are actual mesh deformations or some particularly evocative bump maps. They look crazy 3D gorramit! :D.)
---
All Air Roads Lead to Blade Runner
I haven't played the prequel to this, as supposedly it's more of a steam punk walking sim / museum than a game. This though... this needs to be added to my Blade Runner-in-VR collection :D
https://twitter.com/Anticleric/status/990121183449247744
(Loving the hand control, and apparent gunplay. Aircar is sublimely gorgeous, and cued up to get the same, but this guy just nosed in front :D)
---
EDIT:
Portal Stories
Arg, so cruel! I tried playing this free, endorsed, 3rd party demo, based in the Portal 2 world, which has rave reviews. Unfortunately it only worked in 2 modes for me: 'In the floor mode' or 'black visuals' mode :|
That was enough to hear and see a promising tongue in cheek intro though.
Thankfully it's still got lingering support, and they're updating to newer Unity build at some point, which should sort it. Fingers crossed! Looks like it could be a wee gem as they say, although it riffs on the teleport mechanic (very cute when that was the core locomotion technique), rather than using actual portals apparently.
---
The Forest Flourishes!
I'm actually a wee bit excited about this! Not only has The Forest actually left Early Access (ok I'm not that excited, but I bought it when it was cheap ;)), it's also going to add VR support on May 22nd (https://steamcommunity.com/games/242760/announcements/detail/1647632012691535057).
Given it's an online deranged crafting survival horror... yeah I'm still not super excited (:D), but it is looking odds on to be cross-play, I would think. Which would be an excellent addition to the list of 'maybe I can play online with people some more in VR list' :)
I did enjoy aspects of the early beta too. Will be interesting to see how the VR port fairs. (It was fairly demanding on the graphics as I recall).
Golgot
05-03-18, 03:45 PM
Watching the Oculus Pimp Show:
Day 1:
-The 'super mobile' Oculus Go is like fine, but not exciting. Gateway drug for kiddies. Yada yada ;). Sure it's cool, and good for show and tell, but not my bag right now.
- The 140 degree 'varifocal' skunkwork headset (https://www.roadtovr.com/facebook-oculus-half-dome-prototype-vr-headset-140-degree-varifocal-f8/) was intriguing, but only that for now. Lenses should be useful down the line. Motorised lenses? That sounds like a recipe for disaster...
Day 2:
-Hand Tracking: (https://www.roadtovr.com/oculus-claims-breakthrough-in-hand-tracking-accuracy/)
https://youtu.be/y1DmFKiQCvk
Yeah so it's probably all a bit Kinect. The only metric they gave at the show is it's more accurate than undisclosed rivals.
https://roadtovrlive-5ea0.kxcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/oculus-hand-tracking-success-rate.jpg
But potentially fun. What it lacks though is feedback. (And honestly, I find the current controllers cool enough that I forget I'm holding anything, plus you get the basic haptic buzzes, & all the control benefits)
And all told, this, which has monster haptics, looks ridiculous...
Gotta Hand It To Them...?
https://i.imgur.com/jkQmBQA.png
https://youtu.be/OK2y4Z5IkZ0
:D
But...
It does seem to work. Intriguing. (Doubtless haemorrhagingly expensive and bulky for now. And to be deployed on hideous ways that are best kept to bedrooms. But definitely intriguing...)
EDIT: Holy crap, they use waterflow to mimic the heat transfer properties of different objects (https://bit.ly/2HQTB4Q). So like how metal & wood feel different temperatures even at the same room temperature, because the metal draws more heat out of your fingers etc.
No wonder the guy was impressed by the demo. There's not just physical resistance and touch stimulation in there. Some neat tricks (No wonder it's so fricking bulky too :D)
Golgot
05-04-18, 05:06 PM
Holy crap, VR really doesn't help itself sometimes...
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/FluffyGrizzledBluemorphobutterfly-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/FluffyGrizzledBluemorphobutterfly)
So this seems to be the latest bid for Second Life 2.0... NeosVR... (https://store.steampowered.com/app/740250/NeosVR/)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUBaZQNn3UY
I... look... there... well....
Who knows. Maybe there's something there. I'm not judging it on appearances just yet. Which is probably for the best ;)
Golgot
05-25-18, 10:00 AM
This experience felt 3x as good thanks to VR :D
When ED is good it's good :)
https://vignette.wikia.nocookie.net/elite-dangerous/images/0/03/Thargoid-and-Diamondback-Ships.png/revision/latest?cb=20170613202118
Just had a blast taking on a Thargoid in a variety of ill-advised ways :)
It's weirdly visceral zooming passed its damaged 'petals' in VR, as you line up a sneaky triple rocket salvo on its flank. Then warning shots fly past your canopy, and you look left to see the defensive swarm turning on you like an enraged school of fish, its spread-out shots grazing just behind your desperate escape manoeuvrer....
Fricking space dreams :D
Add in an array of tactical choices that you can experiment with, and your mate barrelling in to rescue you, or you running a last ditch distraction to allow him to regroup, and this is proper gaming fun. (To the extent that some of the outrageous grind that you did to get the some of the weapons melts away. A bit... ;))
Details details...
So in the end we only managed to get it to its most enraged state, and knock out one heart, but we're getting better. Given my friend rocked up in a FAS (a medium ship with the thinnest shields imaginable), and I'm in a tiny fast 'distraction' Courier that can pop at a moment's notice.... could have been worse ;)
Our main strategy was mobility, but with most of the weapons being 'fixed' that made for some real conundrums for choosing your shots, and meant we had to buy each other time to use the new hull-healing limpets.
My healing beam proved pretty useless as his shields went down under one swarm salvo, although I did spend one assault purely chasing down the swarm itself and picking them off. There's a technique in there somewhere...
We probably need to man up and risk a bigger ship, but trying different ways to survive and cause carnage was fun in itself :)
Golgot
05-31-18, 10:09 AM
---CHEAP THRILLS---
---
Virtual Reality Football Club [VRFC]:
https://youtu.be/v05QAGG0JB8
Pros:
This is surprisingly engaging now I've figured out the controls. The core aspects of controlling your runs via 'arm jogging' & controlling your feet via your hands are... surprisingly effective! When it clicks I kinda feel like I'm there pelting around a real game, and attempting ill-advised backheels. Quite realistic ;). (I've also managed to chip the ball onto my own head, which I'm taking as a plus point....)
The bots are just serviceable, the online realms nearly empty, and some of the lacks fairly glaring, but I've been having a blast on the whole with it :)
Cons:
The things I'd love to see them add are: Collision detection, more audio cues from opponents, ball control from above (to redirect the ball, drag it back etc). And most of all, the 'Press Y to look around' design to get ironed out - as it's a fairly horrible kludge. (It seems they're struggling (https://steamcommunity.com/app/752520/discussions/1/1696045708664370312/) to program a 'run where you're facing / look where you want' input model, which would be the ideal!)
Unfortunately I think it might be dead already... Despite some promising recent updates, their Twitter suggests cashflow problems (https://bit.ly/2J3Qmb4), and they've currently dropped off the Steam store. Doesn't look good :/. EDIT:Phew, they're just changing name to Football Nation VR (https://steamcommunity.com/app/752520/discussions/0/1696048879939450529/).
Early Access Rating: 3_5+ [Worth it's £10 asking price, if you're looking for a minor workout]
---
Archangel Hellfire:
https://youtu.be/ZbipMvgSzHI
From the ashes of a dull rail shooter, comes a 2v2 Mech Multiplayer that feels worth the £15 to date. Again horribly bereft of players, but the delivery is actually surprisingly slick.
Pros:
Looks purty
Hand controlled interfaces & power balancings are a fun mini-management aspect.
Destruction is cool, and slightly tactical
The jump pack vs energy pay off is decent.
The 3 mechs are all enjoyable in their own right.
Cons:
The main issues I see it facing are:
Player counts are crazy low & there's no offline variant
The 'stand on a health spot and alternate shields and guns' meta can get a bit silly in 1vs1
The aficionados I've encountered are already bemoaning the lack of maps...
Early Access Rating: 3_5 [Streamlined but involving Mech play with some simple tricks up its sleeves. I'm not regreting my £15 at the mo, but might if the community vaporises.]
---
Rec Room: Rec Royale
https://youtu.be/v_oJmbyV5Ac
No need for many words here. It's Groundhog Royale, just in cartoon VR mode. The main innovation is simply that they've added a a 'walking' option in what was once a den of tedious teleporting. Suits the game mode's stalkerish survivalism well. Still very Beta though.
Early Access Rating: 3_5 [Simple freebie beta hijinks]
Golgot
06-04-18, 07:48 AM
This is pretty cute. Full hand-control hacked into Elite:
https://youtu.be/FJbsES-mfEc
This would be epic in-game if they ever actually got 'Legs' out. Being able to segue from seat to foot would be excellent.
I suspect HOTAS will always have the edge in terms of 'commands in one place'. (I can't see how I'd cram all 6DOF plus targeting shortcuts etc onto the controllers, even using shift keys etc and with Oculus sticks to help. My past experiments with the Xbox controller always led to too much overlap for quick simultaneous use.)
But for sheer 'Pilot in space' / 'Pilot running around zapping' / 'Pilot zero-G-ing some repairs' consistency & coolness, this stuff could be class :)
Golgot
06-07-18, 06:02 PM
Due to a continued fear that Fallout 4 could eat my life, I've been playing more enjoyable indie tat...
QUELL 4D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qforc8cdPpc
A cutesy use of 'revolving' old school bitmap enemies, ace music, quick fire gunplay and tongue-in-cheek story stuff all kept me interested here. Although I did seem to be able to dodge all bullets by circle strafing the top enemies to date :|
---
FOOTBALL NATION VR (previously VRFC)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlMyAEXJLD0
It's gone all World Cup. Bigger teams and a few bits of QoL have added to it. I like it. Even though it's ludicrous ;)
---
BRIDGE CREW
(I got this for a fiver, and it's Sci Fi, so I'm treating as indie, even though it's an AA Ubisoft number...)
The tutorial was fairly dull, but I can see why, as each station has some depth. I'm primed to fail with style now though. (This game screams chaos over competence in the fun stakes ;))
My initial offline venture did not go too swimmingly...
https://i.imgur.com/FUwDrFK.png
Never destroy a damaged ship while 300 metres away :|
Somehow I then smoked the Kobayashi Maru test straight after... (Maybe it's unloseable instead now?)
Golgot
06-07-18, 07:14 PM
Noice, a shooty variant of sporty Ender's Game (Echo Arena) hits open beta in June :)
https://youtu.be/E6XjoGlGzvA
Golgot
06-24-18, 02:48 PM
I've hit some minor motherlodes with my cheapy Summer Steam purchases, but of the super slight ones I could burn through in one sitting:
Kismet
http://nerdist.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/screenshot_kismet_003.png
Is just an odd proof of concept thing. Lovely visuals and voice work connect three daft pastimes. The cards for the Tarot are fun, with their 3D depth, & being transported to space for your astrology reading is very fitting. The actress lays on the Barnum Statements with seamless aplomb. (Which speaks volumes for the real practices. The first Turing's Box should read minds ;))
The only actual game is a rather charming precursor to Backgammon called the Royal Game of Ur, which I ended up playing several rounds of. This is the one time I really felt the pain of hand controllers not being supported for Rift (Xbox controller only). If there's one thing that'd improve playing a mystical masked lady at an ancient game in the deserts of Mesopotamia, it'd be being able to flip your winning chip into place with sarcastic aplomb ;)
On the grounds that I got this for £1.49, and might actually play another round of Ur...
3_5+(+)
---
Echo Combat (Beta)
This is promising :). Think I'm going to prefer it to the sporty disc variant Echo Arena. (Less opportunities for flinging a limb into something structural in real life ;))
The classic Echo motion system & presentation works well with addition of FPS mechanics. Gliding through the air landing shots in the practice room felt great, and the actual map felt like it has lots of potential for team strategies and desperate last stands. It probably needs more rocks 'n scissors down the line (the auto-pistol, shotty & sniper choices may prove limiting over time - haven't tried all the specials yet), but it's definitely a good start :)
Here I fail to booby-trap a swan...
https://youtu.be/1rg3zs9zl3M
Golgot
07-08-18, 02:44 PM
Oh ****, has someone made Battlefield in VR? Because that would be tasty...
https://youtu.be/VKUruU8uIcA
Not normally a gun snob, but those sound effects were pretty pants. Other than that, this teaser has teased me...
---
EDIT: Also on the generic games I might like to play front, this AA co-op survival bug shooter (Seeking Dawn (https://store.steampowered.com/app/859340/Seeking_Dawn/)) might be intriguing. Not sure yet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XOryqcdqlA
Golgot
07-08-18, 04:20 PM
Oh this is a sweet little snippet. They rendered the proposed sets for Ready Player One so that Spielberg could 'walk around them' & alter them in VR. Skip to 50 seconds... (https://bit.ly/2u4UHFr)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=trUexo_Tvkg&t=0m50s
Alongside Pixar (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1845278#post1845278) that's some interesting movie production uptake :)
Golgot
07-08-18, 05:58 PM
THEY'VE INVENTED A TARDIS!
Well ok not quite, but if you're a lucky enough soul to have 12.25 m2, this canny system from Nvidia could make it seem like you're in an 'infinite' space..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEdrBMZx53w
PAPER HERE (http://research.nvidia.com/publication/2018-08_Towards-Virtual-Reality)
They even reckon they can get you to move around other players in the same space without realising. Clearly you'd still need to move with caution, and can't see that working with cables for 'multiplayer' right now... but still, pretty nifty!
This seems to be similar to the 'redirected turning' system (https://www.wired.com/2016/04/magic-leap-vr/) used in even bigger spaces, but instead makes more alterations during the 'temporary blindness' of the highly frequent eye saccades (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saccade).
Obviously requires eye tracking, but if that becomes part of the standard tech as hoped, this could indeed be a very neat trick :)
Golgot
07-12-18, 06:54 AM
CLOTHES MAKE THE HUMAN... [AVATAR AFFECTS ON BEHAVIOUR]
Some of this is slight, but it intrigues: Virtually Being Einstein Results in an Improvement in Cognitive Task Performance and a Decrease in Age Bias (https://www.reddit.com/r/virtualreality/comments/8y7qhv/virtually_being_einstein_results_in_an/?st=jji91f3p&sh=026b91a6)
Some interesting other experiments referenced at the start as well, such as child-like forms leading to self categorising with child-like attributes (http://www.pnas.org/content/110/31/12846) and mimicking partners of the same virtual skin colour more readily (http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0174965) etc. Kinda amazed this level of fidelity can really inspire an inner-lab-coat effect though :D
https://www.frontiersin.org/files/Articles/368309/fpsyg-09-00917-HTML/image_m/fpsyg-09-00917-g001.jpg
Makes you wonder about applications here. The roleplay and game applications are obviously intriguing. (Could you help a player solve a puzzle by giving them a lab coat if they're struggling? :D)
The general 'plasticity' involved in self-perception is intriguing too though. Will people in the future spend an hour a day as the President in some form of esteem-isolation-tank? Curious days ;)
Golgot
07-17-18, 11:12 AM
Oh no, people are turning into Gang Beasts! This was bound to happen...
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/ScaryDirtyHylaeosaurus-max-14mb.gif
Reddit (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/8zka8a/almost_finished_playing_the_forest_with_a_friend/?st=jjprycxz&sh=d408b35a)
Golgot
07-17-18, 11:27 AM
I've long suspected the VR must be a trip for the guys who actually make game assets. Here's (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/8zenn5/interview_with_aircar_developer_theres_gonna_be/?st=jjps3pqk&sh=a0c009fe) the first quote I've seen confirming it though:
Mark Benko: As an artist working on 2D games it really makes every bit of work you do in 3D pay off even more. You get a whole new perspective on what you just built in VR. I can build a cockpit and then look at it from all these different angles. There's nothing else like that. Even spinning a model in a 2D viewport doesn't give you anything like that.
(That doesn't really get across why it's cool, y'all will just have to try out a headset ;))
There's also some cool stuff on the creative process in there more generally. I like the way his very hypnotic concept demo (Aircar) stems from a desire to replicate a specific feeling, rather than game mechanics per se. (In this case the feeling of arriving at a station in Elite with the music peaking. He drilled down into it and realised it was raising hairs in the same way a helicopter ride he'd had did. But it was a helicopter ride near a 'parallaxing' panorama of smoking volcano seen through rain-striped cockpit ;))
Tacitus
07-18-18, 06:33 AM
I bought a VR headset! :D
A £3.99 Home Bargains Google Cardboard-alike special, mind you. And it clamps my phone right where the volume rocker is so the thing's useless.
Baby steps, eh?
Golgot
07-18-18, 07:32 AM
I bought a VR headset! :D
A £3.99 Home Bargains Google Cardboard-alike special, mind you. And it clamps my phone right where the volume rocker is so the thing's useless.
Baby steps, eh?
Hah, to be fair the mobile ones are like being a pinned myopic butterfly, not nearly as a fun. I was almost glad when my cardboard's magnet interfered with near every working function of my HTC ;).
(There's some kinda cute docu-animated stuff the Guardian put out, and other artsy & 360 photo uses, but without being able to move your head amongst the imagery the magic brain trickery doesn't really kick in. Only impactful one I ever saw was some 360 helicopter doorway footage where it felt natural to be unable to move in any direction.)
Worth trying in ED though I guess just to look around the station? Music's fine at maximum there ;)
---
I still flipflop on whether you should snag a PSVR. Still thinking the con of limited software spread is the main blocker.
But as a counter-con, I think the right earphone may be going in my Rift. (Which is a known issue with it. Wiring in the stretchy band can go on the right. Still well within 2 year EU warranty, but annoying if so.... I took them on and off again and they work again, but I'm still eyeing them suspiciously....)
Golgot
07-24-18, 07:00 PM
Oh damn, dropped back in on a speculative EA purchase, and they're doing it. They're unashamedly ripping off Thief 2 in VR :D
https://youtu.be/CWLDJu0iLh8
Water arrows etc have joined plummy accents in recent patches. Hand climbing is a fine sub for rope arrow exploration, and proper positional audio a cool touch that not many VR indies get to. All it needs now is a cosh I swear :D
Still just messing around with the tutorial, but I like the way they're going :)
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/991240521123741896/D7A061FFCBA72DF3639FE707CD42F7E507F22FED/
Golgot
07-25-18, 07:20 PM
Moriarty: Endgame VR
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/991240521128204277/01256845AFB9FC6B6E6A40E7BBFADD2CB5D1F512/
Definitely an intriguing take on a graphic novel / VR mix. Voicework and plot are all solid, although it is just a 10-minute intro. The use of panels as more vibrant overlays on 3D scenery works as a focal point (even if it doesn't exploit the degrees of freedom much more than that). Ultimately visually it's just 'comic panel' + setting, but with an evocative setting that does feel additive. They throw a couple of neat touches in for some of the transitions. A touch disappointing that the inlaid figures didn't extend fully beyond the frames as you moved about. Cool experience for the price all told though.
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/991240521128203570/5AC9D0F8ED7D8323F797B61242053FFE19FA3643/
3(+) experience for a £1
Golgot
08-03-18, 11:45 AM
FALLING BACK IN
Got back into F4 to try out the official Rift support properly :)
https://i.imgur.com/wGVTzb5.png
Having proper snipe scopes has actually proved really welcome. I mean they're really weird, they kinda envelope your head with an imaginary cowl of darkness as you pull them up, (and kinda inveigle everything with shade like a sudden eclipse if you swing your weapon too jauntily near you face). But... Spotting the guy with the rocket launcher on the roof of the minor Raider encampment, before one-shotting him with your night-vision ray gun... Yep ok, I forgot how much fun that added to sneaking in the wilds :D
Also good was confirming from a church roof that, yep, that's a second Deathclaw over there, and it's Legendary. That explains all the dead Supermutants about the place... (Then tormenting it to death using 70% hand lobbed grenades, and 30% running around screaming between some church pews :D)
All the little touches keep elevating it above VR launch games. Nick's wry dialogue 'At least the Mirelurks don't have a housing problem', as you look down at some high rise that's collapsed into a lake. The little bits of colour in the quiet moments really do make these great treks to set out on :)
And on the plus side, taking a break has meant I've got my base tinkering bug back. (Prior to that I fled because 'I can't leave this perfect base location without making it a 50s Rockabilly hold-out. And I can't be bothered to do that...' :D)
But anyways, here's a blurry look at what I'm doing to the marina place.
(Yes, everyone has sailor's caps... :|)
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/964220916271462638/40DCC068A1EE6579CBFEAFDD2B524DC2E90E40E9/
It's all floating markets on compacted trash and highly needless inter-connecting wooden walkways. This probably isn't apparent. But I like it :D
---
EDIT: ****ing damn, Assaultron death throe behaviours + forgotten slow mo perks = fricking ace :D. (Laser beams searing the air as you heart-pound your way back from your rousing nemesis, praying your next hit will be the final blow, until a slow mo explosion billows out, threatening to envelope you both. Damn :D)
I think what happened is: I failed to take out its legs, it lifted me into the air with some melee electro stun as I turned to run, everything slowed to treacle as I dropped to 10% health, and then the grenade I'd dropped behind him staggered him and sent his beam arcing off towards the sky :D. Everything else was slow-mo laser wild west ;)
Golgot
08-16-18, 02:40 PM
This is the first look at the Magic Leap AR that has made it look in any way exciting...
https://youtu.be/n0uhkLa5lBg
Graphics occluded by real life objects, bare hand tracking, eye tracking, reasonable frame rate & head tracking etc. Still limited re FOV, darkened lenses when not using, and like crazy 2k price tag. Early days. (And a longgggg way from the pseudo-realistic whales of their hype vids of the past ;)). But intriguing.
EDIT: That said, Abovitz's chat (http://gamasutra.com/view/news/323455/Inside_Magic_Leap_How_it_works_and_what_it_means_for_game_devs.php) on their tech still sounds like a mix of woo and bollocks in equal measure.
I'm still intrigued by his claims that they're somehow tapping into the brain's perceptual system in some way with their display. But the stuff about their technique avoiding motion sickness in a way stereoscopic tech doesn't is clearly PR BS. There aren't any triggers for motion sickness in AR. You have points of reference in reality, you move amongst things using your personal locomotion. There's non of the 'No actually you're doing 100kph sideways on an inflatable unicorn over Manhattan' stuff that can trigger those issues :D
---
BEST BUDGET VR HEADSET?
On a more practical, budget, VR front, it's worth noting at the Lenovo Windows headset went as low as $100 recently (https://www.pcgamer.com/lenovos-vr-headset-is-just-dollar100-right-now/) without controllers. Then sold out straight away :D
I haven't looked back into them enough, but it seems like a fair take from a distance is:
WINDOWS HEADSETS:
PROS:
They can go a lot cheaper than the Rift in sales (standard UK pricing on most is comparable when not on sale though :|)
No external sensor set up. All dealt with via in-headset sensors. (Minor tracking issues as a result, both hands and head, but that's the payoff. Much more portable.)
Their screen quality is better. (Pixel density / reduced screen door effect).
Flip-up visor looks useful
CONS:
Controllers aren't as ergonomic, robust or fun to use as the Rift's, going by reviews.
Although they should work with almost any game, their control layout is directly supported less often (going by the Steam icons for supported HMDs under recent releases)
No built-in headphones in most models.
?Performance? The gaming min spec (https://www.pcworld.com/article/3223202/virtual-reality/htc-vive-vs-oculus-rift-vs-windows-mixed-reality.html) is a GTX 970 for GPU, same as the Rift, but slightly higher on the CPU. I suspect whatever frame-filling tech they're using for lower spec rigs isn't quite as slick as the Rift's 'async' tech, so may put the more demanding games out of reach.
Lenses have a smaller visual sweet spot, can be an issue for active play if headset model not the comfiest fit.
Anyways, I suspect on balance one of these, with controllers, in a sale on of the WMR sets is def the best budget route in at the moment :). (But I'm still happy with my Rift ;). Despite a wonky right headphone, which I have to fix at start up via yoga moves :/)
EDIT: Bonus interesting little discussion of Rift vs the various WMRs (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/9ef3xc/anyone_gone_from_wmr_to_rift/?st=jlw50ija&sh=9685e643). Lots of variables in the mix.
EDIT 2: A RIFT WARNING: Worth noting that my Rift is out on repairs currently because the right earphone went. And I only got a freebie fix because I got a 2 year warranty in the EU rather than one. This is a structural issue that's hitting a lot of people, only really avoidable by taping something up and not sharing your headset around (booo). I'd still take it over a WMR set currently, but I may change my mind if it fails again in the next two years ;). (It's not totally killer, you can just use normal earphones then like almost all other HMDs. Bit annoying though :D)
Golgot
08-19-18, 04:15 PM
An even better 'hand control' mod for Elite...
https://youtu.be/bCRBfDAD-qk
From about 6.30 on you can see how the in-game stick animations work as a guide once you 'grab' it. Plus like Minority Report screens, and 'buttons on the ceiling' for your lights and landing gear and stuff. Ideal :)
In theory he's going to expand it for other games.
I don't see myself giving up the hotas just yet, but this a cool path. Hopefully they'll do an official version...
Golgot
09-08-18, 10:16 AM
FALLOUT 4: REVIEW
https://i.imgur.com/p2nNqJi.png
To keep this simple. I rate it like this: 4_5(+) :)
Here are some chronological excerpts about why even the crazy downsides can't stop this from being absolutely immense fricking fun :D
---
Bleeding Edges Tech:
Clearly this isn't PC VR's killer app. It's barely plug and play for the niche slice of humanity who have the kit to officially run it. On my lesser kit I've had to: Remove the TAA, alter a ton of grass and shadow distance parameters, and find other ways to inch the ultimate 'Render Target Multiplyer' to 1.2, so things don't look abysmally ****, or judder like I'm inside a washing machine. I've also opted to: trim the 'personal safety zone' that stops you getting too close to items, and manually made myself the correct height. Items also disappear in my periphery, I get periodic white flashes, and I reckon the cities will destroy my current pretty settings...
---
Some Mainly Entirely Positive Things (which probably explain why I played through the early tech strife) (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1840783#post1840783)
---
What Fresh Apocalypse Is This?:
So why is it different? Because I can blindfire around a doorframe and take out a pesky turret trap? Because Mirelurks are actually 6ft-tall shelled bastards who scare the bejesus out of me, despite my well laid plans? Because the infrastructure and communities I'm creating slowly build and exist around me in a far more 'physical' way? Hell yes, because of things like that :D
I try and express some of that in this here vid:
https://youtu.be/IoaiWhqdUBA
---
Gaming Flavours to Savour:
BOOM-BASTIC:
Last night I literally hollered 'HOLY ****' as a final surprise ghoul rasped through a doorway I'd turned away from. The sheer apparent viscera of its accelerating approach, and the reactive moment as I fired my auto-shotty across my body, then defensively in front of me as juked back from its slashes, was just a total shot of adrenaline. Like the best side of vid-game excitement, writ bizarrely impactful in that moment.
ZONING OUT:
On the flip side of the action there's all the escapism, world building, and world-impacting to enjoy. A lot of these things are also elevated in more subtle ways by having yourself 'in the scene'. I found myself just hanging out in GoodNeighbour for a long while, just staring at the security goons pacing and muttering in the rain against the neon grunge. Just little touches like Piper wondering off to quiz people on the location gain a certain something in these moments...
I definitely find the main loops interact pleasingly on the whole (explore / adventure-kill / build), so long as the grind doesn't stack too high. More so than the original on each front (with perhaps the exception of fine-grained & hacked building being more of a pain currently). [EDIT: But on the plus side, walking about the evolving and completed structures is much more satisfying]
---
So I could say a ton more on how I've had more fun here as a compulsive builder (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1867212#post1867212), why shotguns are more shotgunny (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1847296#post1847296), companions more chummy. I tell you, stupid shadow draw-distances aside, the sun really is sunnier in FO4VR :D
I will add that the official Rift support (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1929983#post1929983) added sniper fun and smoothed out a lot of the less classical Bethesda bugs.
And I'll also say, if there's any way you can play this on an even half-compliant machine, definitely do it :)
EDIT: More post-script here (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=2017133#post2017133). Worth noting I'm on a 1080 GPU now, so enjoying a smoother ride.
Golgot
09-08-18, 11:09 AM
Just a build blog, because I'm still finding it strangely beguiling to make places you then inhabit. The practicalities and aesthetics kinda hit home more when you move about them like this (even if the screengrabs look like they have two day's facial growth all over them ;))
The Castle:
https://i.imgur.com/xzOBLFi.png
I've mainly just slammed the walls up in metal with a 'gate house' and added four of these rocket / laser towers. My only concern is whether they can actually shoot out of their cursive 'domes'. (I've noticed NPCs don't like pathing through them. Got a terrible feeling my defences are gonna blow themselves up the first time they fire :D)
Country Crossing:
I had zero intention to build up CC. I was almost annoyed at it for existing. (Having just finished being annoyed at Finch Farm for existing so close to The Slog just up the road, before enjoying building a spiral structure up to the bridge that towers over it).
I just dallied long enough to build something up from the shattered house frame and... Now it's becoming one of my favourite hodge-podge retreats :D
https://i.imgur.com/GHYd5nh.png
https://i.imgur.com/ywinb85.png
Golgot
09-13-18, 11:32 AM
*** VIRTUAL REALITY - A ONE YEAR REVIEW! ***
https://j.gifs.com/AnjBvl.gif
THE BIG PROS & CONS
Early impressions are holding true :). Here's a shortened recap:
Two sentence review:
The upsides are totally triumphing over the downsides :). But the downsides are still significant...
BREATHLESS POSITIVES:
Immersion: Is just fricking hard to overstate.
Hand control is great: Having them right in the game for fine control, for exploring physics, for shooting guns etc makes for a novel and badass new interface.
PROS & CONS:
Indie Experimentation: Is sketchy and uneven, but can be a lot of fun :). It's the Wild West right now as everyone figures out what works and where the edges are.
VERY PRESENT NEGATIVES:
The gaming ecosystem & bang for buck still aren't in the best place.
Graphics are a downgrade from what we're used to on a flat screen.
The stupid cable & accidentally hitting things both occasionally cause bother.
Doing standard non-gaming things, like switching to surfing the net, or doing it in parallel, are much harder in the Rift at the moment.
---
GRATUITOUS SUMMARY:
It says something that I'm still hyped about VR despite those downsides. It is properly cool :D
Here are some deeper dives into the core issues:
On Nausea:
It's a thing. Only about 20% of people seem to have major long-term issues. Dev designs are helping to overcome some of the broader issues (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1740389#post1740389)
The Gaming Ecosphere:
New launches are still frequently over-priced for the amount of content & the multitude of indie options are experimental but sketchy (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1805679#post1805679). Some full game ports have proved excellent though (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1947404) ;)
The Best 'Budget' 6doF Headsets:
With the Windows Mixed Reality' sets (https://www.vrandfun.com/holiday-season-might-define-outcome-vr-industry/) on the market there are some decent if tricky choices out there (skip to bottom) (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1936753#post1936753).
It's Hard to Communicate How Cool It Can Be:
Mixed Reality filming of geeky hijinks (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1787577#post1787577), and maybe hand-waving within familiar games (https://bit.ly/2NBUgxr), are perhaps the best we've got.
FINAL THOUGHTS:
I could blab on forever about this really. And I have :D. With grandiose titles like In Space Things Are Big (but you are always the same size) (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1762153#post1762153) and Forgetting the Fourth Wall (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1871034#post1871034).
But I think the main take away should be: This happened... and I'm not sure where else it could :D
A hologram of Buzz Aldrin just tried to convince me to 'cycle' to Mars. And then he exploded.
https://i.imgur.com/zKodova.png
Golgot
09-27-18, 09:40 AM
Oculus Connect 5:
So they're launching a vamped up stand-alone 'console' headset, the Quest. Same price as the Rift, 6doF, no PC required, but lower quality graphics / performance etc with just inbuilt processing. 50 game titles at launch (like Robo Recall, The Climb, Dead and Buried, Superhot etc)
https://i.imgur.com/wtEYpW0.png
Futurology:
A cool summary here (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/9jawnl/abrashs_new_oc5_predictions_compiled_and/?st=jmkjm22i&sh=7e5af814). Which can be summarised as:
Within 3 years or already possible:
4k x 4k per eye displays (eye tracking useful for this) [2]
140 degree FOV (eye tracking useful) [2]
varifocal with Deep Focus (eye tracking needed) [2][3]
good audio propagation algorithms [11]
truly accurate HRTF (possibly) [12]
good hand/finger tracking [14]
Within 4 years:
foveated rendering with AI filling in missing pixels [9]
eye tracking that works across the population [10]
high quality mixed reality [15]
life-like avatars (possibly) [16]
Which means no major step changes from Oculus in their next high end release I'd wager. Foveated rendering (drastically reduced computing requirements) still looks like the game-changer in the wings. Everything else is going to be more QoL - screen resolution, wireless etc.
Golgot
10-05-18, 06:02 PM
Researchers put a VR tail on 32 people (https://vr.cs.ucl.ac.uk/portfolio-item/human-tails/). Half of them 'owned' it and were able to perform tasks.
https://youtu.be/gzcSgSNg-0s
Report from the oddlands ends :D
Golgot
11-04-18, 08:26 PM
HOLD THE WORLD
https://i.imgur.com/NeLLRyz.png
This is a shot in the arm for educational VR. The venerable David Attenborough sits you down in the Natural History Museum and talks you through some exhibits, laying on information or hints as you turn over and expand the scanned items, before the museum fades out, skeletons coalesce, and they enact some arcane behaviour in their natural scale.
Having the don of natural history presentation there in both photogrammetic and narrative form is a massive plus. (And it's a bonus that the gent is now preserved like this, and not in aspic). It's not the full 360 view (of either him or the museum), but you can shift about in your seat a fair bit before they say you're out of bounds, making for a convivial history lesson over the desk. There are some artefacts to the scanning technique, so It's a bit like having an LA Noire recreation of him in front of you, just with full body capture and bonus flapping blue shirt.
It's short, I haven't finished it yet, and it could have fancier interactions. But damn, seeing a whale skeleton glide past doing its thing, followed by a Pterosaur showing off its imagined launch and glide, was properly grand :)
4--
https://youtu.be/nr3l98Omm-0
Golgot
11-25-18, 01:22 PM
Rogue Indie: Tea For God
This (https://www.reddit.com/r/Vive/comments/a03eq3/tea_for_god_impossible_spaces_non_euclidean/?st=jox596j5&sh=dd7ce9ed) is an intriguing indie offering. A proc-gen rogue-like that adapts to your available playspace, allowing you to use your own locomotion to move about the 'non euclydian' world. (Read tiny physics-defying corridors with the odd window onto boss fights and the occasional lift, going by the WIP vid ;)). Works with as little as 1.5m x 1.8m though, which has me intrigued.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8Ns7A4djn0
Quite like the style and variety of techno-punk beasts. Could be fun ¯\(ツ)/¯
Golgot
12-05-18, 09:29 AM
More VR = Cyberpunk + Blade Runner:
Devs can't leave Blade Runner alone. And I don't want them too :D. Here's a demo of a WIP game called Low-Fi...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=194&v=0SPxsc2P3pc
Golgot
12-09-18, 05:47 AM
LA NOIRE: REVIEW
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/961979263538726709/147E09B52F6F281CE27D6C708BD4311EC71246F7/
It's great that Rockstar made this port, and obviously had fun experimenting with appropriate VR interactions. Unfortunately its experimental roots and hefty tech requirements have impeded what is otherwise a tantalisingly great experience.
Thankfully, what is great about it is still great:
Holy crap, LA Noire is both the most amazing thing, and the hokiest game ever, all at once :D
I've only just finished off the tutorials, but seeing the face-capture as 'live action' happening around you is pretty wonderful! Even with distances a mushy fuzz due to my underpowered machine, the city is alive with striking caricatures (the cussed look I got from an old man in overalls as he bustled past literally made me crack up :D). Seeing them watching the world go by from a bus as you steer past them erratically (using your hands to drive your weighty cop cruiser about :)) is bizarrely involving.
https://i.imgur.com/XKk0f4S.png
All of that immersive stuff is grand, especially the efforts they've put into novel hand interactions with the world.
So yeah they've got you feeding cartridges into pump-action shotguns to take on bank robbers, and scribbling in notebooks, and boxing with wrong'uns. Some of it's shonky but the intent is great. (And they've sensibly allowed for 'long reach' accessibility, not going for some un-gamey 1:1 uber-realism). Hunkering down over clues works far better in the light of all this, and the action segments also work well (even if the enforced 'teleport to cover' stuff is pretty meh).
The first real downers come under this same design umbrella though, with gameplay stunted by regular nannying attempts to head off potential nausea (from the ludicrous locomotion techniques of launch, to the almost unforgiveable 'switch to third person' bookends to locations, even though the open world very clearly doesn't need them as load screens).
EDIT: My joystick was messing with the game. Due to the very slim post-launch support had to figure this out via the community :/
But then we hit the real deal breaker. Bugs. Nasty, game-breaking bugs.
An infuriating glitch means I can't cruise to locations, as it's autoskipping every driving section. It's also pulling out my notebook every time a car drives near me, and making me sit in nigh every seat I pass at random. And there's no reliable workaround, or word of it ever getting fixed.
That's it. Game, broken.
After various challenges, I can finally just free-drive my car around between the destinations, strut straight into the waiting house environs, and giggle at the pedestrians in between. And at those moments this is a wonderful bit of escapism that elevates all that's good about the original, and glides over much that made it stilted. Despite the many technical challenges and flakey aspects that have got in the way, ultimately I've enjoyed dipping into the narrative growsing over a bar top one moment, and slamming the door on a requisitioned 50s clunker the next. As the car radio plays and you tip your hat to the world going by, as the bar tender sends you on your way with a believably jowly 'sheesh', it's pretty damn sweet :D.
https://i.imgur.com/zaKHrqn.png
3_5++
(More pix here) (https://imgur.com/a/oXBfWD1)
EDIT: Bonus vids :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-I84IQGwxE
https://youtu.be/ga36-pIhBv8
Golgot
12-09-18, 07:10 AM
PAYDAY 2: REVIEW
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/934933661259644252/BEA65883E7DB0AC559D5D77DDEAFF1FDD4C7491D/
Best stealth experience since bopping heads in the Thief demo as a fully immersed teen! :D
The great thing here is that they've spent proper time making sure the core experience just works, from gunning to sneaking to interacting. There's loads that's fun and functional, from the bespoke VR lobby, to the 'point to tag' function, to the simple two-hand toting of guns if desired. And it keeps going, with working scopes, a customisible toolbelt menu, the handy status touchscreen on your wrist etc. There's a load of solid dev crammed in here, and some of it's even notably slick.
Add in the spread of locomotion options and it's pretty much a joy to play :)
The fact that your head is tracked really adds to the stealthing, making crouching behind a sofa on a luxury cruise liner (while security patrol the borders of a political fund raiser) properly tense. Equally peeping out from behind a stainless-steel fridge in the kitchen, or occasionally, trying vainly to hide behind some patriotic balloons :D
Some purists decry the lack of complete hand interaction, but they've added excessive bonus stuff like manual reloading if you fancy it. And honestly just placing your hand over the right interaction option on an object and holding 'grab' to enact works just fine, and is particularly robust in the heat of the moment. In that context (and given I have a low ceiling) I'm also cool with the grenades being 'fired' with an artificial arc, rather than flung with real actions ;)
Despite the Heat-style combat being robust and satisfying if a job goes all wave-shooter, the real gem here is the co-op stealth. Ultimately the hilarity comes from playing with mates (flatscreen or VR), so you do need to cobble together at least 3 others to get the full experience, but damn is it worth it when it works! (And also when it doesn't :D)
4++
Golgot
12-09-18, 09:07 AM
DEISIM
There's really little to say about this god sim, other than it's utterly utterly chill. The main draw is somehow the simple mechanic of lazily flinging biome seeds around you to fill out the world, increasing your civilisations, and gaining more mana and godly benevolence and banes along the way. Your main aims seem to be making sure there's enough empty plain to build on, forest to chop, stone to quarry, and water to gain succour from. (At least that's all I'm doing, I'm a pretty simple god ;))
https://thumbs.gfycat.com//UntriedBlackandwhiteApatosaur-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/UntriedBlackandwhiteApatosaur)
Another charming godly pleasure is the act of picking up followers to inspect them, or enemies to fling them entirely off the map ;). This doubles up when you lift a house to get at the sneaky enemy prophet who's dashed inside to hide :D
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/961979263538721754/D1B3170A435085AE4A2E4B92E3D7BFA45DCB2E21/
So things do get more upbeat as you find yourself teleport-dashing over larger real estate to manage your flock and push back the red tide of wrong-believers. It definitely gets to a point where you don't know everything that's going on in your dominion, despite handy icons for bigger events like fires and plagues.
It's still early access, so I've never really played a 'full game' through, or even unlocked all of the powers I don't think. I couldn't say if the mechanics are ultimately deep to any degree. I've noticed more has been added (certainly trees didn't seem to die off at the same rate before, or plague strike so readily, and I do wonder if there are underlying aspects of biome placement or charachter behaviour that I'm missing).
Ultimately though: Making it rain to save your people, and having them do a rain dance to celebrate; seeing villages grow and prosper thanks to your aid and pruning; poking around the micro and the macro. These are all classic god game tropes that work pleasingly in this indie title. it's just a properly zen way to spend half an hour or so :)
Early Access Review: 3_5(+)
Golgot
12-31-18, 10:41 AM
Managed to grab some Winter sales and gaming time. Have been mainly doing this...
BallisticNG
https://youtu.be/EzWpLaxUGPo
This is a great retro blast. Good to play a game with all its mechanics and modes fleshed out in VR (because, like, it's essentially Wipeout :D). More on the flat-out arcade fun end of things, as your view doesn't tilt with the craft, so you just get the sense of speed more than the sense of banging down the lanes in your futuristic jet-shell. Weirdly crashes and velocity don't feel like a problem in VR at all. The 'constantly escalating speed' mode is nuts :D. The combat races feel on the right knife edge between fair and chaotic :)
For the asking price I can forgive a lot of gritty pixels :D
4(-)
---
VR Sports Challenge
Basketball and Gridiron are the standouts here. Each sport is more a jumble of mini-games than a full match, but they kinda flow, and the feeling of being a slow-mo sports hero when it pans out is pretty spot on :)
The idea is that you try and hit mini-challenges each game to unlock further phases or aspects to the game. So defenders now try and block and tackle me in basketball for example, but the big selling point was definitely unlocking the slow-mo dunks :D
https://youtu.be/uvc3MqJl4Fc
Footy is just again attack-focused, and ultimately just a set of mini-games (throw, catch, dodge), but the inclusion of the tactics wrist band adds to the 'full game' vibe, even if you're just playing Quarterback.
https://youtu.be/zPPJG4PRw38
Get it in a deal and I'd say there's genuinely a solid slice of sporting dream fulfillment here :)
3_5(++)
---
PREVIEW: Apex Construct
Been messing around with the first few levels of this walking-sim-meets-bow-and-arrow adventure. The art style is lovely...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/959729787150287969/B0496C299B9B33BFA58A0AFA4ECDAA754F1EBDF0/
I think I may be more impressed with the technical competence than the actual game at the moment (it's very cool that they've updated the control schemes since launch, and included full item interaction and plenty of QoL - everything felt very slick and fun to use).
Will be interesting to see if either the story or action aspects really ramp up (and there's been a lot of typing into dos prompts on giant keyboards). I'm not feeling completely called to jump back in, but in theory I'm down with all of the audio-breadcrumb and action/adventure aspects.
Golgot
12-31-18, 02:11 PM
Puppet Fever
https://i.imgur.com/QUz6ynp.jpg
Super-cute little sofa co-op concept. It's essentially just charades via puppetry, with some handy computer magic sprinkled on top. Adding dress-up and emotions to your little protagonists in the 90 second limit is all good, and then bouncing them around a set or dancing a handy prop is all suitably daft too. There seem to be a decent amount of interactions between the entities (I accidentally blew up my 'car advert' with what I thought would just be a cinematic explosion).
All of the game functionality (awarding points, handing over) is pretty slick, although it could probably do with even more manipulations within the scene itself (changing item / clothing colours etc). But I suspect given how cheaply I got this, and with the last update being in June, that dev has probably stopped now :|
3_5
Golgot
01-02-19, 05:21 PM
Project Cars 2
Honestly, I was won over from day one. The minute I found this mode:
https://youtu.be/dfdOTFiWsoQ
These tin cans powered by madly revving motors totally do it for me. Collisions, sweeping corners of gravel expressionism, and the occasional Dukes of Hazard leap. That's it. Sold :D
The offroad stuff is both better and worse than Dirt's. The roads don't really have the same characterful level of internal dips and ruts, but the surface changes like puddling water and treacherous mud accruing as the rain settles in are great. The sensation of changing surfaces is flat out comical in PC2 (with the controller buzzing like an enraged wasps' nest every time you venture over rough ground), but the actual change in purchase all feel fitting enough.
The AI are widely variable, but this is probably in part due to the crazy spread of tracks and cars available. On the plus side it seems to mean I actually have a chance in some of the races, as opposed to the unrelenting professional zeal of Dirt's rallycross mode.
If I was to TLDR where PC2 excels for me though, it's: Playfulness, and variable weather. There's nothing quite like hurtling around amongst eccentric AI competitors as the fog slowly covers the landmarks you were using to gauge your braking distance...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/961979645579470688/FC6EA22534B4175B717EEA1E728F8E2ED24872EA/?imw=1024&imh=576&ima=fit&impolicy=Letterbox&imcolor=%23000000&letterbox=true
I like that the other stuff is there too. The careers, the serious, silly and sleek car options, the lengthy practice laps and helpful race manager in your ear. But honestly I'm not a track day guy. I lack the discipline. You'll mainly find me on one of the 8 or so dirt tracks. Possibly in a retro Lotus :D
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/961979645579470008/4884E56EEABB800CE1C99AF95DA17FAC5230C52B/
4(+)
Golgot
01-04-19, 06:18 PM
HIGHLY IMPORTANT INDUSTRY NEWS:
Woot... (https://uploadvr.com/vr-steam-grew-2018/)
PC VR has almost doubled on Steam in 2018 with 0.8% of Steam users now having a VR headset — roughly as many as run Linux.
Take that Linux :D
To celebrate, this can be my new avatar. NASA's 1985 VIVED VR headset, made from a motorcycle helmet :D
https://i.imgur.com/RYgmAhg.jpg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAuytnYU6JQ
Golgot
01-08-19, 04:19 PM
TECH NEWS: WE'RE GOING TO NEED A SMALLER COMPUTER...
Vive's Q2 2019 headset is boasting foveated rendering. (IE using eye-tracking to only render smaller bits of the screen at high detail, saving lots of lovely computing cycles).
Which, if it pans out, should mean that VR computer requirements dial down a fair whack about 2 years after launch. (Well, at launch really, but the asking price will doubtless be nuts initially ;))
Skip to about 2 mins in...
https://youtu.be/lxsLOnY9Yg4
https://thumbs.gfycat.com//YearlyGargantuanAsianporcupine-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/YearlyGargantuanAsianporcupine)
Golgot
01-13-19, 06:23 AM
Just In Time - First Look
Enjoying this ridiculous indie offering. Despite a clunky teleport system, and simple stylings, the slow-mo 'save the victim' scenarios are pretty fun on balance. Some are mainly 'pluck the bullet out of there air' action exercises, while others go for a 'pick your favourite ridiculous solution' playpen, or a more classic 'figure out the one solution'.
I suspect it won't be a long game, but the core conceits are fun :)
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/959730634695392087/1D388493086B602955C03295291FE3C7D6CEC5D4/
Altho Noob-Neo here can sod off. Guy has shot me in the back so many times....
Golgot
01-15-19, 09:30 AM
Just In Time Review
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/959730634695390898/8CC02F90A8CFA55A4B2028B75CAC188C069247A2/
This is a fun, if slight, little action-puzzler. The core conceit is: Prevent a death in slow motion. The core mechanic is: Plucking bullets from mid-air. And at its best it is indeed classic VR fun :)
It's a mixed bag though, and so short on content you could complete it in an afternoon session. Rather than scale up further mechanics, they seem to have focused their energies on building the different scenarios, some of which are genuinely cute little playpens or evolving scenes of carnage, others of which just feel like rehashes or missed beats. (The best ones riff on other franchises, from the Matrix to Laura Croft).
More on the 'action wish-fulfilment' end than the puzzle one, they still throw in the odd single-solution conundrum, with some heavy hints. If you can snag it on a sale it's def a cute indie dabble. (Can't believe they tried to charge £20 for this initially :/). The only real annoyances are the 'post death' restarts and the limitations of the teleport locomotion.
3_5(+)
Golgot
01-16-19, 05:17 AM
Finally teleported through the Skyrim door...
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/959731270394421161/457A0D646BCCBA92FEC8273554531AC745F7B1F1/
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/959731270394422097/AC64E5C40D06873754FE14A60C30BFF9166A0405/
Not sure why Steam images have squished like that. Initial graphics settings actually looking OK, although I'm going to have a heavy play with it. I could see happily out to the mountain ranges on my slow (totally encumbered ;)) waddle down from the barracks though, which was a pleasant surprise.
There are some nice little bespoke VR touches in here, the map being a vista you swoop over in particular :D. Although my strangely static Khajit hands are more like having bits of taxidermy stuck to me than evocative of hands inserted into the world :D
(And god there's no point posting screenies, but things like this mounted fish just look bizarrely compelling in 'real 3D'. It really doesn't come across though (https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/959731270394423420/0DB0E0FBF3314CE39B876CC5D296266222931E71/) :D).
Need to massage the hell out of it (like taking the crosshairs from my flame on (https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/959731270394422748/D680E2E821C88FAEA6F519BAB04C1CA2CD3A60BD/) for a start, fun as that is (https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/959731270394423104/8D7971F2D1B5C17983F07ACC171031A7F699112C/) :D), but thankfully I've forgotten almost everything about my last playthrough at this point so I'm happily browsing enormous books and going through the standard early adventure stuff. Hunting (snagging a rabbit on my first shot with a hand bow was grand - still missing the deer and eagles though ;)), spamming spells, putting things on top of things...
But there'll be time for all that. Got to bed too late as it was :D
---
EDIT:
---
Grabbed some Skyrim VR footage:
https://youtu.be/Lpcd8yyng7o
It's just me bumbling around the first cavern (and pressing the wrong buttons, and doing far too much looting ;)), but it might show a bit of what VR hands etc bring to the party :)
---
EDIT: Yeah ok it was on the starter 'Adept' level. Wayyyy too easy.
It's weird being back in Skyrim. I'm already grimacing at the encumberance waddle, and lord some of the locations haven't aged particularly well. But then others are still fairly startling or transporting. (Emerging into the widening cave where you get your first shout, edging past silent tombs, while bats scattered and traced the roof up, was a neat set piece this time round. Also just the simple act of swaying-tree-shadow covering some seemingly-ferny ground can still works it charm in the wilds).
The thundering sky-voice of the ole Greybeards (as I encumberanced my way back from the first dragon kill) was also a neat moment, with more of a feeling of being in a wide expanse suddenly, ringed by mountains.
I'm a bit torn. I've played the damn game so many times. And the melee is poop. But I just peeked at the spells available at Whiterun, and I want them alllll. And a house.
Plus having a guy run up to my face and excitedly exclaim 'Fire!', due to my casually burning hands, was just fricking hilarious :D
Guess I'll keep playing ;)
Golgot
01-23-19, 05:09 AM
Indie Dev Experimentation:
This is just a cute example of an indie dev playing around with gameplay and input norms. Not hugely out there, but his toying with classic controls augmented by motions in real life is intriguing. (IE for example, pushing the stick to get a slow motion going, then rocking gently on your feet to get up to faster walking speed, and arm sprinting for bursts. With bonus leans for jumps. Looks like it could work, but still within limited spaces etc).
https://youtu.be/9DzzrAoc4so
And then there just that classic obsessing about getting hand-interaction physics working nicely.
(One thing I've found a minor immersion-negative in Skyrim is the lack of physics on the weapons. It's a silly thing, but being able to tap and push things with a wielded 'tool' adds loads. Just being able to tap out a beat on a bar top with your sword during some dialogue adds a real bonus feeling of being 'connected to' the environment, and more within it).
---
The Price of Newness
Looking forward to this launch hitting a price drop:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJBp-YhcxBg
Looks like a really fun puzzle conceit, if pitched on the easy end. Pass stuff up and down to your giant or tiny mirror self. Can def see this working well the natural 'human scale' that VR provides. Unfortunately £15 for what's apparently 1hr+ of fun, ain't happening...
Golgot
01-24-19, 08:32 PM
Skyrim: I'm Late, I'm Late...
https://i.imgur.com/czzucGq.png
Oh damn, I'm falling down the Skyrim rabbit hole.
It's obviously dated in many places, and some of the VR implementations do feel slender. (Even if they're totally parallel to F4. I guess I just really want to tap things with a sword the way I don't with a gun :D)
But... I'm giggling like a fool when a new fireball one-shots a bandit down a hill. And loving having a complete open world game in VR again, with daft dialogue everywhere, and huge hills to crest. This could get dangerous...
(As a minor aside on a fun thing, I was a bit disappointed by the 2D sprites they used for the flame spell. I've realised the others are a lot more '3D' though :))
https://i.imgur.com/kdborQ3.png
Plus I'm going to post another 3D thing that will just look totally unimpressively 2D, but is in fact, impressively 3D. When seen in 3D...
https://i.imgur.com/JquQamC.png
Golgot
01-26-19, 09:40 AM
Skyrim: Video Reality
Put a better vid together, just grabbing some of the fun bits from a 2hr session:
https://youtu.be/VqvoLGA2wAI
Playing on the middle difficulty level now, so the combat isn't a complete walkover. (I'm usings Sedai's 'don't pause and use potions mid-battle' philosophy, which made the early Hagraven fun!)
Mainly going mage/archer. Although lord I suck with the bow :D. (And although they've tried to update the perks, the reticule they replaced the zoom with seems totally useless to me. Gonna ini-file it out and just unlock the slow-mo perk that goes with it.)
The age of the engine is showing itself in various ways (and weirdly the object manipulation is wayyyyy jankier than in FO4), but the art efforts still manage to rise to the top at times. There's something about being able to appreciate a 3D space's arrangements, lighting and higher-poly assets by 'moving amongst them' that really does elevate even these older school efforts :)
Golgot
01-29-19, 05:54 AM
Skyrim: Dungeon Delving & 'Depth'
It doesn't really come across in these fuzzy pix, but it's fun to stumble onto the more 'set piece' dungeon antics in Skyrim again. Both of these ones were familiar locales...
https://i.imgur.com/7BPjU11.png
But rounding a corner to hear booming incantations, while the blue magic swirled 'high' above, was nicely striking, despite this being like the fourth time I've encountered these guys trying to summon a Wolf Queen. The bonus feeling of height/scale as you wind your way up, and the swirl of the magic effects, all gained a bit. (Plus the general ducking and diving and exchanging of bow shots on stairwells ;))
https://i.imgur.com/9L8CElI.png
The light-path dungeon seems to have a weirdly volumetric effect to its creepy dark mist effect. I'm pretty sure it's just layered sprites, with a bit of fade as you move amongst them, but it kinda works, seemingly holding their scale correctly as you move through them, but kinda otherwordly in their cartoon oddness.
Devilish Sprites & The Search for the 3rd D...
I've got form for being tricked by this stuff, and found these Elite steam sprites (https://bit.ly/2UqCcWv) strangely 'volumetric' when flying amongst them in VR. (I think almost purely due to 'bump map' illusions, and the effect when they're overlayed and in various states of fade-out).
There are some really obvious flat effects which look properly meh in VR. The god that flings you up in the air at one point just being a flat disc, being a good example ;)
But then I was walking around the Greybeards and the magical effects as they imbue you with Shouts really did seem to be modelled strands of 'magic' in 3D that emerged from their back and passed over their shoulders.
And dammit I'm still trying to fathom whether this Stoneflesh spell (https://i.imgur.com/kdborQ3.png) is a flat image of a 3D animation that stays facing you at all times, occluded by the hand, or a 3D model in motion. I've literally spent minutes watching it intersect with the hand model trying to figure it out :D (I thinnkkkk it genuinely might be a model. But yeah, I've been fooled before. It looks cool either way ;))
It's kinda fun, amongst getting lost in the silliness and the action, to poke around the cool 3D / lighting work that gets elevated by VR, and the other shortcuts that get horribly exposed ;)
Golgot
01-30-19, 05:51 AM
Futurescape!
https://i.imgur.com/NFKaWgl.gif (https://i.imgur.com/NFKaWgl.mp4)
I think this is someone playing Runescape, dressed in custom gear, while mainly playing Beat Saber.
I think...
Golgot
01-31-19, 06:07 AM
The Daft & The Graph:
https://i.imgur.com/VJBk1Q4.gif (https://i.imgur.com/VJBk1Q4.gifv)
---
Monthly Connected VR Headsets on Steam Have Grown Exponentially (https://www.roadtovr.com/monthly-connected-vr-headsets-on-steam-have-grown-exponentially-analysis/)
https://roadtovrlive-5ea0.kxcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Monthly-Connected-Headsets-on-Steam-by-number-of-headsets-hq-1-640x408.png
A fun little snapshot, now that they've balanced it for steam population growth. (Still like only around 0.8% of the Steam userbase doubtless, and doesn't cover a load of non-steam uses and non-PC headsets, but still. Kinda healthy ;))
Golgot
02-06-19, 08:29 PM
Ultrawings: First Look
Liking this. 'Handheld' controls, gamey challenges, but flight skills required. I'm using the arcade mode, rather than the pure sim, but it's still got plenty of challenge and stall-turn fun in there.
Slightly annoying early on when you have to trek to different islands in your starter microlite to unlock new missions, which takes like 5 minutes. But the unlocks keep coming, and I'm enjoying the second plane.... a classic glider, with an experimental rocket on the back, and very little fuel :D
https://youtu.be/mk-sKUDMl54
Well worth a fiver at the mo :)
(And ideal chill seated VR gaming when you've got a cold ;))
Golgot
03-22-19, 08:10 AM
TECH TREADS WATER:
https://cdn.uploadvr.com/wp-content/uploads/bfi_thumb/Oculus-Rift-S-Headset-Controllers-Hero-1000x563-o53wq8f9wm4d54msn3arqs20nyk3ksm507qq1ob9by.png
So the new Oculus is a side-grade (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/b3d1g8/oculus_rift_s_is_official_1440p_lcd_better_lenses/?st=jtjxkpzc&sh=813ffab1) (easier set-up, slightly less screen-door effect, slightly cheaper screen & audio, lower launch price).
So the hardcore are pouty (see link above) as it's not a shiny new toy. But it kinda signals a slight step towards accessibility (the starting $400 price will drop down readily enough I suspect) and ongoing support for PCVR.
Can't say I blame Oculus/Facebook etc. They could push the tech on, and meet costs from a small whale fanbase & industrial applications, but with the software side still a bit soft, and the tech still essentially at the enthusiast level, they've just opted to nurse both along in the meantime.
---
BARGAIN BASEMENT FUN:
Got some amusing stuff for a couple of quid in a bundle:
TOWNSMEN VR
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXyUlYHUYIo
This is a slick little God game, really making good use of various VR aspects (https://bit.ly/2uiTeec).
Definitely still Early Access, and with scant replayability at the moment, but what they do have is lovely and promising, even if it's essentially just a glorified tutorial.
Seems to be on the 'poke things' silliness end of the scale (https://bit.ly/2N6UMEG), with lots of interaction possibilities and physics fun tucked away in there.
(It doesn't come across in the vid, but the 'shrink yourself down' aspect is really striking in the headset. I think they may be using the 'change the distance between the virtual eyes' trick to really give that feeling of scale change).
They haven't added anything for a very long time, but they do claim to be still working on it (https://steamcommunity.com/games/749960/announcements/detail/1719709266062132247) behind the scenes.
Fingers crossed that they do get the new maps etc up and running. No review for now though, as it's not really a game yet... :/
---
THE TEAR
https://youtu.be/k5HFp-DD-ec
This 'prelude' is more of an experience than a puzzle game, but honestly well worth the 2 quid purely for the oddness. Was glad it worked painlessly on my Rift, even though it says it's Vive-only.
This is a play through of one 'path', although the other path just seems to involve doing one thing differently. So, here be spoilers essentially.
Worth sitting on the floor of your flat surrounded by inter-dimensional oddities for ultimately ;)
3 ( + + ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ + + )
Golgot
03-25-19, 04:08 PM
The stealth project, Espire 1, looks like it's got a bit more gun-slingy, and I'm liking it. Who doesn't like slow-mo? ;)
https://youtu.be/8S9kgIrJZ_Y
Still seems to have (https://uploadvr.com/gdc-espire-1-vr-operative/) the neat little attention-to-detail bits from the early builds, like some decent physics interactions (tapping things with your rifle making a noise, or being used for a cudgel blow etc).
They're obviously taking their time with it, which has me intrigued.
Golgot
05-18-19, 12:03 PM
The Red Stare
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/807745661112864700/438A05D417B5E1145C86C099356F9DB22CDD714F/
This is a very cute freebie indie. The simple premise is that you're on a 1950s stake out for scurrilous Commies, with not much more than a phone, fax, camera, and a window view.
There are lots of rough edges. Your phone contact sounds notably British. The 'intense' communist meetings that play out before you are more like clockwork bumper car incidents between the NPCs. But the little touches are great. Stare at the clock to make time speed forward. Array polaroids of your suspects on the handy chalkboard expanse. Realise that the radio isn't overly fuzzy, you just haven't tuned it properly.
Not a lot of meat on the bone, but definitely fun to prod for a bit. (And more enjoyable on a higher end rig now, so that I can actually discern what the hell's going on ;))
Golgot
05-24-19, 04:31 PM
New Rift S engages Holodeck mode... (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/bshefz/passthrough_mode_has_brought_us_the_holodeck_irl/?st=jw2h3uiw&sh=44812d72)
https://i.imgur.com/kozrS3h.gif (https://v.redd.it/g4rd7cdn26031/DASH_480)
Golgot
05-24-19, 10:27 PM
Fallout 4: Full Game Experience
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/807744928405892480/18A0DDDD1A8A822EFC0EC6789F9839BEE511F542/
It's still mainly a comment on the rest of the ecosystem, but a great thing about F4 is stumbling on all the 'late game' & game breadth stuff.
I'd never run across this gamma weapon before. The electricity arcs over its nobbly surface really ground it as a lump of novelty in your hand. And its fun expanding shot was amusingly alarming when it first crashed all around me :D
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/808872167649710206/D1F5167A0EB2FA7AD1898213D75625768AD92A3C/
I really can't exaggerate how big this Mirelurk Queen looked as it towered down an apocalyptic night time road towards me. (To the extent that I was measuring her claws (https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/808872167649711094/290B2D3A6468D45F81F37D892E001E632D4A1B22/) like a gleeful game hunter by the end ;)). I'd never stumbled on one in the wild, and it was something else.
(Only downside was my gf being less than amused at me suddenly shouting 'holy ****' like I'd been transported inside Them the movie, while apparently desperately shooting the ceiling ;))
Golgot
06-09-19, 08:08 AM
Fallout: Eeeeeee
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/797614364653510434/78B8A524A25AA549AC36A7F994EB68DCD5125F77/
I know this image doesn't look that compelling, but it capped off a great run of Fallout fun. Getting a lift in the bird over the city, 'one handing' a mini-gun out the window to clear out the mutant welcome committee. Watching Cait, highlighted in Power-Armour red, leap like a janky idiot into the sea, for no particularly good reason. And then on to some old ultra-violence amongst the latest corridor twists, all of it a kinetic counterpoint to the lore-soaking on the floating ship just before.
Honestly, I can just get lost in this for ages again, now I've wrestled myself out of the 'Must Build Another Base Populated By Bowler-Hatted Assassins' thing. I'd never done the Brotherhood of Steel line, so visiting the corners of their ship was all great. And feeling a load of storylines and set pieces overlapping out there in the middle-distance, waiting for me to elect them, is increasingly grand. No single aspect is superlative in F4, for sure, but together some of it really does take wing in VR. Partially it's the way Beth tries to fill in the space between engagements that's really getting me though. The whirly-bird that gets taken down overhead and flings shrapnel straight past your face. The sudden roaming monster that's 3x your size hoving into view. The wry comment from your companion that fits the local mood.
Some of this is good just because there's not enough of it about in VR gaming. But to paraphrase the song, it's also because, in VR: "The birds are the birdiest, the people the peopliest...". Umm. It's because all these elements are more 'present', that bit more 'real'. The crows look daft close up, but damn does a flock of them startling past you, or brooding noisily on a house top, add a lot to the game. Dammit if these silly characters don't feel more memorable for the fact that they barge you out of the way, clanking noisely as they pass, or just say something apposite behind your right ear while you're out in the ruins.
TLDR: I'm loving this again. In part it's because of giant 3D explosions, lore-infused environments, and its delicious tradition of functional jank. But also because made-for-VR games just aren't replete like this. Not one of them has a hidden perk for running around naked (https://i.imgur.com/V00KEME.png). Not one...
Golgot
06-15-19, 04:47 AM
VECTOR 36: PREVIEW
So this has a some decent potential. A pod racer sim. You get the most traction from your engines when you're near the ground, but the more you clip along the more likely the undulating, fractured surface of Mars will heft you up into the air. The game becomes about timing overheating bursts of speed, assessing terrain as you curve back down from air peaks, and skimming yourself as close to the ground as possible without smacking into dunes or outcrops. Also features much power-sliding around corners :)
And then it gets proper geeky. You realise you can not just buy new components (like say the main thruster at the back, or the 4 lift thrusters) but also alter their position and orientation. And there's no obvious sliding scale of excellence for them, they sit on a weight / heat / power nexus of tricksy decisions.
In line with my normal 'change the acceleration bands' efforts in driving games, my second build inexplicably tilted backwards alarmingly and saw me fly 45 degrees upwards above the track :D
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/795363460498582973/6BC7FDE95F04BF27D8A0533B3B02FB75E000EB39/
I'm pretty sure I know what went wrong though. Pretty sure...
Golgot
06-19-19, 04:15 AM
The Spy Who Shrunk Me: First Look
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/795363460515973458/F54DA2543750E1EEC9038208B7C280239B2DAF43/
Another VR/flat title. Definitely on the basic end, but it's been a fun-enough cartoon sneaker through the early levels. Shrinking down is definitely a fun touch in VR, if not as strikingly done as the scale transitions in the likes of Townsmen VR (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?p=1998310#post1998310). The basic graphics also suffer somewhat from being observed and interacted with at both scales. Definitely on the rustic end, but will be interesting to see where the puzzles go.
All of the VR locomotion stuff has been ported pretty solidly. You can scurry around easily and adjust most aspects like the toolbelt etc. (I did find that if I made myself the same height as the NPCs I couldn't pick anything up off the floor though ;))
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/795363460515972812/CBCD780AF1D449887954974C07098410B10BDE82/
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/795363460515973887/D6CA1479137166E8BB86A59524AF982330101E8E/
Golgot
06-20-19, 07:49 PM
Yeah, Spy Who Shrunk Me is picking up actually :)
Managed to capture some non-glitched footage:
https://youtu.be/2wApQYppWBw
It's not the giddiest run through (most of the others fell foul of a playback glitch on the mirror screen), but once it gets going there's a flavour of the fun in there :)
Golgot
06-23-19, 11:25 AM
In lieu of any stonking AAA releases at the moment, most of the interest lies in the indie sphere... (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/comments/c3rw00/i_am_working_on_earth_bending_in_vr_it_feels/?st=jx91jtt3&sh=997bfaaf)
https://i.imgur.com/hwL5K8j.gif (https://v.redd.it/tff5gf6gsx531/DASH_480)
And, like, pure rip-offs ;)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Im3MmJPrxAQ
---
Picking up quite a few decent titles for £10 a go at the moment in fairness though. The last few mentioned avove in the thread, and will be grabbing 'Virtual Virtual Reality' & 'Fisherman's Tale' soonish I reckon. Short but silky / playful experiences going by reports.
Austruck
06-23-19, 03:12 PM
Hey, Golgot ! Wanted you to know that, although I don't really post in this thread, I'm reading it. I'm still just wading very slowly into VR with my Oculus Rift. Just haven't had time to really delve in. It's not like regular PC gaming where I can dip a toe in for a a few spare minutes here or there. I seem to need to wait till I have enough time to really get into it... which happens too rarely. I'm going to try to be better about *making* time to explore the VR stuff I already have.
But in the meantime, I enjoy your posts and hope I can enjoy my VR as much as you are already!
Golgot
06-23-19, 04:00 PM
Hey, Golgot ! Wanted you to know that, although I don't really post in this thread, I'm reading it. I'm still just wading very slowly into VR with my Oculus Rift. Just haven't had time to really delve in. It's not like regular PC gaming where I can dip a toe in for a a few spare minutes here or there. I seem to need to wait till I have enough time to really get into it... which happens too rarely. I'm going to try to be better about *making* time to explore the VR stuff I already have.
But in the meantime, I enjoy your posts and hope I can enjoy my VR as much as you are already!
Cool, glad the thread's useful :)
Yeah VR does feel like it needs at least a half hour session to warrant shoving stuff out the way. On the plus side I find a half hour session is normally more intriguing / impactful than a flat-screen one, so it's kinda working well with my squeezed parenting schedule ;)
It def helps if you can get your gamespace hassle-free. I pretty much just have to move a chair depending on the game type now. And sticking the headset on just becomes like flipping a cap on and off :)
Golgot
06-25-19, 02:42 PM
Indie-schism
I've been struggling uphill a bit with my latest indie purchases. In ways that are kinda telling about the VR game-o-sphere...
Vector 36
I knew this sim was going to have a heavy learning curve. That's why I held off buying it. And dear lord have I slammed belly first into its perpendicular planes.
I'm still kinda liking it, but it's the type of liking that requires concerted sweaty effort to gain the fleeting refreshing breezes of success. As you approach the next giant wall at speed...
A good example would be that time I bought some cooling fins:
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/BoringJauntyAvocet-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/BoringJauntyAvocet.gif)
I could afford them. They were flimsier but way better. I used the pod-building garage to slap them in the only slots they'd fit, way back on its spine. I flew my ship. It could boost for ages! While spinning in lazy concentric circles...
And this is all good. I should have noticed those fins were much longer, and that they dangled well over the back of the ship. I started to notice. I tilted them into new and pleasing shapes...
I raced. I raced better. In that I no-longer flew only in circles. I had essentially destroyed the handling of my ship with my new toys, making it oversteer like a bastard, but eager boosting was keeping me just about on track. Until my boost over-heated, and I realised my ship preferred to fly down at a 30 degree angle when not encouraged onwards by rocket fuel...
Back to the drawing board. Where I moved some more weight to the centre. Adjusted the back jet for more lift. Got it to shudder with something closer to very-noisy-grace over the surface of Mars. Hit a pillar at high speed. Lost all my money...
As someone with an instinctive ability to 'detune' cars when given the opportunity, I knew all of this would happen. Essentially I've managed to make my pimped-out starter chariot a fair bit worse than the starter build. But I think I know where I went wrong. And I'm still game to try more...
It's just I suspect, long-term, it's not going to be quite my game. And I only chose to jet up this hill because more ditzy options weren't available :/
---
The Spy Who Shrunk Me
https://www.gamespark.jp/imgs/ogp_f/251959.jpg
This cartoon stealther is daft broad-brush fun :). It doesn't feel like it's going to broaden its gameplay palette hugely, or stack its surprises, but something about scampering between chair legs and teleporting onto table-tops is still cute and amusing with the 'realistic' VR scaling.
It's still fun to find out that a tiny miniaturised banana will trip up a giant security guard. Slightly more worrisome to find that picking up a tiny security guard while miniaturised yourself turns him into a giant spaghettified mess. Which then explodes. (Possibly the cheekiest example of 'bug as feature' that I've seen ;))
Unfortunately I've just hit a level where I've fallen through gaps in the scenery, and out of the world, 4 times now. While otherwise nailing a perfect run. (Or in one case, nailing 'running away screaming from a hail of bullets'...)
Meh. And it's out of early access and everything ;)
Golgot
06-27-19, 11:28 AM
I've got my Vector on.
Started from scratch, stuck some stubby, sturdy heat sinks next to the existing ones, and now I can boost for ages without barrel-rolling madly. I still plummet like a giant iron duck whenever the boost finally maxes out, but I can use the emergency cushioning jets and still brute-force myself back into the game.
It's not graceful, but it's working :D
---
Also the steam sale is evil and I've bought yet more indie offerings. Despite having a massive back-catalogue of ported walking sims that I'm sitting on. (Partially waiting for the devs to improve the VR controls, as they all tend to promise...)
* Downward Spiral (space stations antics)
* Fisherman's Tale (self-puppetry puzzler)
Austruck
06-27-19, 11:53 AM
I've got my Vector on.
Started from scratch, stuck some stubby, sturdy heat sinks next to the existing ones, and now I can boost for ages without barrel-rolling madly. I still plummet like a giant iron duck whenever the boost finally maxes out, but I can use the emergency cushioning jets and still brute-force myself back into the game.
It's not graceful, but it's working :D
---
Also the steam sale is evil and I've bought yet more indie offerings. Despite having a massive back-catalogue of ported walking sims that I'm sitting on. (Partially waiting for the devs to improve the VR controls, as they all tend to promise...)
* Downward Spiral (space stations antics)
* Fisherman's Tale (self-puppetry puzzler)
I've had Fisherman's Tale on my wishlist for a little while. Let me know how it is. :)
Golgot
06-27-19, 12:36 PM
I've had Fisherman's Tale on my wishlist for a little while. Let me know how it is. :)
Cool will do!
Looks like it's a pretty short one, kinda a £4 an hour job. (I'd avoid the trailers too, as they seem a bit spoilery to me, if the content is that light).
Golgot
06-27-19, 08:00 PM
First impressions are good Aus :)
I'd say if you'd pay £9 for a short but slick puzzle game normally, then go for it.
Here's a very quick vibe take. One game mechanism shown but wouldn't really call it spoilery.
https://youtu.be/OdCEtYEoZ7Y
Loving the general tactile physics, and the trippy inter-scale flips. The puzzles have been easy to date (turn off hints, the V/O will give you plenty of pointers anyway), but still strangely satisfying.
It kinda makes a rod for its own back in that you expect to be able to solve puzzles with any object, if used cunningly enough, even though it's much more prescribed than that. But trying can be kinda amusing anyway ;)
Golgot
06-28-19, 05:08 AM
Oh sweet, the 15 year old kid who made a great budget-HL2 oddity adventure, and then disappeared into the bowels of Valve, is making a sequel...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQtSWyKWdd0
I kinda doubt that it can capture the sheer effervescent silly-seriousness of the original, but reckon I'm gonna find out :D
Golgot
06-28-19, 05:16 AM
Also Aus, get used to this look...
https://i.imgur.com/0hJ9bCR.gif
:D
Golgot
06-28-19, 06:10 AM
Gah, more Steam temptation. Still sticking to the indie end of the scale:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGxvHLPV18w
Transpose looks a bit rough, but I'm liking the core game conceit. Chain 'recordings' of yourself to pass the cube to its destination, as gravity goes increasingly wonky :D
Also snagged the budget online shooter Pavlov, because I've learned they've implemented a locomotion system I can get along with, and it's known for having a big population. Plus they've instigated the ludicrous game-mode from Garrys Mod called 'Trouble in Terrorist Town' (which is as much a psychological, playful troll-fest as it is a shooter).
Doubt I'll get much chatty-time to actually play it in my little living room, but it's good to know there's a multiplayer I can drop into for bursts :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpYfwRmNTw4
EDIT: Gah ok, one more. It seems £9 is my threshhold for short AAA offerings :D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tp8gepLiRKQ
The Gallery - Ep 2. More like 4 hours gameplay here hopefully. I did enjoy the prior one (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1772995#post1772995).
EDITEDIT:
Gah ok, apparently £13.49 for a full game port is my new threshold :D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqlFK1KcoS8
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice is 3rd person, so I've resisted buying it for ages as it's not my preferred VR format. Full-game, psychological-cinematics had been gnawing at me for a while as plus points though. And for some reason this was the bit that tipped me over:
That experimental thing (where you can scale down the whole world from options) is amazing,
basically you get 2 VR games in one ( in this mode Senua turns into Alice from Wonderland).
It probably shouldn't be a selling point, and will just be a novelty aspect, but seeing 'living dioramas' in VR can be pretty cool.
Golgot
06-28-19, 06:17 PM
Well, damn, be warned Aus. I got through Fisherman's Tale in an hour and a half. It feels worth the outlay, because it was very slickly done for what it was. But definitely on the 'experience' end of things over the 'puzzle game' end ultimately. Some nice little narrative dabs towards the end too, even if it was mainly about figuring out the set-pieces.
Will write up a proper review at some point.
Golgot
06-28-19, 07:45 PM
Messed around with the experimental view modes in Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice...
https://youtu.be/c_a1VUB8zlU
The 'Tabletop' view really has that diorama vibe, with the main character almost looking like a figurine. Not so sold on 'Giant' view, and the standard view is probably the best way to experience the narrative (being down low in the water in the last bit of footage was pretty cool). But think I'll def mess around with the more distanced tabletop take too.
An added point in favour of the default view is that the story kinda casts you as one of the voices that hang around her generally (and the illusion is aided by some audio-positioning tricks, which VR games should def use more ;))
Austruck
06-28-19, 10:38 PM
Well, damn, be warned Aus. I got through Fisherman's Tale in an hour and a half. It feels worth the outlay, because it was very slickly done for what it was. But definitely on the 'experience' end of things over the 'puzzle game' end ultimately. Some nice little narrative dabs towards the end too, even if it was mainly about figuring out the set-pieces.
Will write up a proper review at some point.
It's on sale at Steam for under ten bucks, so I grabbed it. The Oculus site doesn't have it on sale--I would have preferred buying it directly from Oculus. I seem to have fewer load issues/glitches if I open a game directly through the Oculus site app. But I'll deal with any issues to save five bucks. :D
Golgot
06-29-19, 04:41 AM
It's on sale at Steam for under ten bucks, so I grabbed it. The Oculus site doesn't have it on sale--I would have preferred buying it directly from Oculus. I seem to have fewer load issues/glitches if I open a game directly through the Oculus site app. But I'll deal with any issues to save five bucks. :D
Yeah the performance can vary widely via Steam. Essentially if the game's launching SteamVR as well as the Oculus App then you're gonna take a performance hit. Devs are getting better at auto-supporting the right launcher now though, and if there's a Rift symbol on the Steam page you're normally good to go. (There are some workarounds for older games (https://www.reddit.com/r/oculus/wiki/steamgameswithnativesupport)). Some games like Skyrim / FO4 are a pain to sort out though.
I still prefer to buy from them in general though because it's definitely DRM free and a purchase for life, whereas Oculus lean much more towards exclusivity. Plus they do more sales ;)
Golgot
06-30-19, 08:06 PM
I do like The Spy Who Shrunk Me, but damn if it isn't riddled by indie bugs.
I managed to ace the section where I kept falling through the map by freezing time and running full-size up the problematic stairs and halls.
But I had to do the last half with giant hands :D
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/IdenticalVillainousHamadryad-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/identicalvillainoushamadryad)
That lab worker ignores you completely incidentally. Which is by design. They also all push up the glasses on their noses. Even though they don't have glasses....
I'm beginning to think it's a miracle they have noses :D
---
On the plus side I just beat the next level which was an enormous open-plan faux-Soviet library (complete with propaganda-launching rockets), and enjoyed it a lot :)
On the down side I couldn't burn some autobiographies as directed, and I have no idea why. And they reallllly need to vary the guard chat. If I hear about their coupons one more time...
Supposedly there are some branching impacts from decisions, so I guess I'll see if anything changes. And if I did right to fire a spy rocket at Washington rather than London...
Austruck
07-01-19, 11:43 AM
Since I have a huge VR backlog already, I think I'll wait for a few patches for The Spy Who Shrunk Me, then. :D
Golgot
07-01-19, 12:51 PM
Since I have a huge VR backlog already, I think I'll wait for a few patches for The Spy Who Shrunk Me, then. :D
Honestly, I think this might be it for it. The devs have a reputation for hitting their deadline then moving to the next project.
I'm kinda glad they did the port though. It is fun when it works. Just, yeah, rustic when it doesn't...
It's probably one to try once you've got your VR Legs anyway Aus. Although the movement system is a friendly one, the movement itself is on the fast end, which might make you feel a bit 'woo' in the early days.
Golgot
07-01-19, 06:36 PM
Downward Spiral: Prologue
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/793113174010991337/2626C47CCD0F3D4071E9692FDD2C17ECC801264C/
Just played this (https://store.steampowered.com/app/574940/) super-cheap intro to the main game. And it was grand :). It's yet another 'Abandoned 2001-Style Interiors' space game, but a pretty slick one. Mainly about the lever-pulling 'puzzle' advancement and the vibe. I really appreciated the little touches that accompanied the reveal and feel of the final room, and the switch-flicking finale.
Ultimately it's just a glorified training level, but definitely worth the 63 pence :D
(Aus if you're tempted by this, I suspect you could get along with the first person locomotion fine, and probably enjoy the vibe. It does require shooting as it progress though.)
Golgot
07-01-19, 08:11 PM
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice: More Looks
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/793113174011277460/B8E350480C7F35B3F162C651F9DC7BDF580872D7/
The Pretty:
Damn, I am liking my 1080 right now. This is definitely the prettiest 'classic' game I've played. Think it must be light on the CPU, because that's where I'm weak. Having magical runes float around you in the air, pervaded by purple fogs or what have you, cushioning and heightening tone shifts as you enter different zones, is very cool.
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/793113174011280436/02D3D9011188F409EE23AD83A69E8834E7589F78/
The Ugly:
It's a weird mixed bag. There are some really swish deployments of VR. At one point they had the character, lit up by ethereal light and staring at you like an apparition that's startled her, eye-tracking as you try and duck back and say 'Hey, I'm not the goddess tormenting you...'
For other cut-scenes they transition to a curved screen instead. And I can see why. It's because they used captured actor images for them - and those things just ain't 3D. Those bits still work as narrative sections, but they show the cobbled together, not-made-for-VR aspects.
Another sore point is finding the ideal 'ghostly voice on her shoulder' camera position. Currently I'm having to 45-degree snap-rotate the camera around her. Which would be fine. If I wasn't essentially the camera ;)
The 'tilt shift' style view is still fascinatingly cool. But it does feel to wrong and distancing to use it, given all the other 'on her shoulder' sound effects and environmental jump scares etc.
The Bad:
Ultimately this is still the type of rote 3-button combat storymode gaming that I've never been hugely into :D. And I'm into gore-leanings even less. Also not hugely sold on the 'spot the environmental rune' puzzle loops already. What's saving it is the narrative, and the use of the schizophrenic soundscape has been kinda decent so far. In a Celtic-guys-relate-Scandie-mythology kinda way ;)
https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/793113174011279185/CA3C968108191A2C04BFD4FAC047D0F83B2FEA05/
Golgot
07-02-19, 07:32 AM
Gah, now the Oculus store sale is on :D
The first thing kinda tempting me is Chronos. The comparisons to Zelda will do that ;)
A good video here on the pros and cons (NB some swears):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=877s9dVJGIc
The TLDR would seem to be:
PROS:
It's a charming game, in art-style, story and vibe.
It's a charming 20-hour long game.
The combat is fair, if bedevilled by HP-sponge enemies occasionally
CONS:
There's really no reason for it to be in VR, it doesn't exploit VR at all, and if anything you encounter more 'camera issues'. Which is quite a big con.
It sounds in essence like their Oculus Freebie 'Herobound', but with more Zelda-esque loveliness. (I did enjoy Herobound (https://www.movieforums.com/community/showthread.php?anchor=1&p=1815658#post1815658), although the 'VR adds nothing here' frustration was real. I really wanted to be peeking around the 'sets' to solve puzzles, or be involved in some way beyond headlook aiming).
Given that classic 3rd person games still aren't really doing it for me, think I might splurge on... the non-classic 3rd person Moss (https://www.oculus.com/experiences/rift/1942343732456615) instead :D
EDIT:
Damn if there isn't a lot of tat on Oc Store too though :D. Almost as bad as Steam for creaking early proofs of concepts, pre-emptively launched early access attempts, and just... oddness.
That said Aus I'd reco Deisim on either Steam or Oc. Super cheap, super indie, super not-finished, but super chill with it all. A painless way to get into 'standing in the game' gaming too.
Austruck
07-02-19, 04:27 PM
I got Deisim already. I am delighted with how inexpensive many VR games are. I guess I had this impression that they'd be really pricey, for some reason. They're not! Granted, some are kinda silly (see picture below), but I'm still very much in the early learning curve, so at least there are things I can toy around with that don't involve FPS games where people could now sneak up behind me. That will probably never be on my playlist. I can't even handle that stuff on a PC. :D
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=55466&stc=1&d=1562095629
Golgot
07-02-19, 06:35 PM
I got Deisim already. I am delighted with how inexpensive many VR games are. I guess I had this impression that they'd be really pricey, for some reason. They're not! Granted, some are kinda silly (see picture below), but I'm still very much in the early learning curve, so at least there are things I can toy around with that don't involve FPS games where people could now sneak up behind me. That will probably never be on my playlist. I can't even handle that stuff on a PC. :D
https://www.movieforums.com/community/attachment.php?attachmentid=55466&stc=1&d=1562095629
Hah yeah, just be aware there is a lot of shovelware out there. (Actually I think you've found some there :D). There is something to be said for mixing it up between the bargain basement oddities (with their weird control systems and giant hands...) and some slick-but-short AA+ stuff.
Definitely does helps that a lot of the launch titles have dropped from their insane early pricing though for sure!
Golgot
07-03-19, 10:43 AM
Oh I think you may have this lined up already Aus, but No Man's Sky is on 50% (as low as I've seen it go), and could be a good fit. The next big update is a proper VR port. The peaceful / creative modes could be good for you - just free roaming MC style to see what weird beastie lies over the next hill etc.
It's a bit of a punt as you haven't tried 'walking in the game' stuff though. Might be worth getting your 'Legs' first, and seeing what locomotion types they opt for.
Austruck
07-03-19, 01:58 PM
Oh I think you may have this lined up already Aus, but No Man's Sky is on 50% (as low as I've seen it go), and could be a good fit. The next big update is a proper VR port. The peaceful / creative modes could be good for you - just free roaming MC style to see what weird beastie lies over the next hill etc.
It's a bit of a punt as you haven't tried 'walking in the game' stuff though. Might be worth getting your 'Legs' first, and seeing what locomotion types they opt for.
Do they really have a peaceful mode where I won't get shot at/blown up/stabbed/killed all the time? :D
Golgot
07-03-19, 03:06 PM
Do they really have a peaceful mode where I won't get shot at/blown up/stabbed/killed all the time? :D
See creative mode here (https://nomanssky.gamepedia.com/Game_mode) :)
Austruck
07-03-19, 05:57 PM
See creative mode here (https://nomanssky.gamepedia.com/Game_mode) :)
Ooooh, it's like Minecraft creative mode, but all roundy and in space! :D
Golgot
07-03-19, 06:02 PM
Ooooh, it's like Minecraft creative mode, but all roundy and in space! :D
Yep pretty much :D. You get to gambol with the animals and build whatever you want. The crafting/building is nowhere near MC, but the base-building is pretty slick.
Golgot
07-09-19, 12:40 PM
BEAT SABER: REVIEW
https://i2.wp.com/cdn.uploadvr.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/beat-saber_4.gif?w=1170&ssl=1
This game delights in raising the difficulty to seemingly impossible levels every time you advance. It felt like a negative that not even its branching advancement paths could resolve. And logging back in to the sheer slope that last defeated me still gives me pause for thought now. But... this crucible of fire has finally set me alight, and currently I'm fricking loving it :D
The difficulty steps have a pragmatic purpose, forcing you to improve a subset of skills each time. But it's the sheer tricksiness of the tasks which also forces you into a zen zone of perpetual motion, as you react strategically to the flow of cues in an almost subconscious fashion. And that's where the joy is :)
That and the fact that you really have to swing those sabres like a swashbuckling pirate in full on flourish mode :D. (You're rewarded for cutting through the blocks not just at the correct angle, but for entering and exiting them with long flow. Which leads to you curling and swirling your blades in a rhythmical sweep of continuous curves, trying to retain momentum while shaping your body for the next Tetris-flurry coming your way....)
In a strange way the game puppets you into enjoying it, leaving you with no choice but to move to its bigger beats to survive. (Despite some of the tracks being all kinds of modern-8-bit glam-pop woeful ;)). But it's the freeform finishes you can put on things, and mind-clearing 'in the moment' flow which it engenders, which feel somehow liberating, and complement each other very sweetly indeed :)
PROS:
The skill ceiling requires you to go in strategically but enact your plan intuitively. An intriguing mix.
Being compelled by the game to execute fancy, flowing Hollywood sabre flurries is great.
Pushes you to the edge of your abilities in a way that rewards
Rhythmic, anaerobic, zen...
CONS:
The actual music is all kinda twee-electro-RnB meh a lot of the time. (But it does the job)
I don't always fancy joining at the last steep slope that defeated me.
Longevity is unclear (although there is an active Workshop scene for famous tunes)
4(---)
Golgot
07-09-19, 02:00 PM
Lone Echo: Review
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/OccasionalCooperativeDanishswedishfarmdog-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/occasionalcooperativedanishswedishfarmdog)
It took me two goes to get into this, as it suffers a bit from style over substance, with the puzzles being far less stimulating than the spacey setting. But now it's clicked I can see why it's heralded.
For being the first game to successfully combine bespoke gameplay mechanics with lavish AAA gloss, this is close to a must-play. The feeling of cruising around tinkering with an ailing space station is great early on, and when it leans more towards 'environmental puzzle' exploration it's just enough to ring the changes, while still being in-keeping with its 'walking sim' leanings.
Or should I say floating sim? The zero-G motion really is a joy. They're not the first to do it by any means, but the execution is excellent, with 'inverse kinematic' arms, and a multitude of things and places to fling yourself off and around.
Even though the 'tasks' are somewhat rote, the sensation of saving lives and surviving against the odds is strangely elevated by the 'raise that electrical charge here' so you can 'cut your way through that malfunctioning conduit there' pragmatics.
I also warmed to their radiation scanning technique, which allowed for a more free-form feeling puzzle-pathing approach to navigation.
It's all tied together well by the pleasing narrative hook, centred on the NPC human companion to your player automaton. It's all very neat, with you respawning into new shells as you deal with hazards, while she shows obvious attachment to your persistent personality (expressed, simply enough, through dialogue choices & lots of canned chat). The actress has a strong presence, which is accentuated by the astro-animations that see her free-float around the place convincingly, and is only undercut by a certain deadness around the eyes. The broader narrative, while not afraid of some clunking tropes, is an enjoyable sci-fi backdrop to that relationship.
CONS
* Massive initial load time, even with SSD
* Very high specs (I still had to run it on low even with a 1080 for the outside stuff)
* Puzzles are very much on the simple end
PROS
* Environments are pretty great, with the odd grand set piece
* The characterisation, acting and plot are all pretty effective. (Aside from a slight deadness to her face the Liv character really feels like someone you've had an adventure with by the end).
4 (---)
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/BountifulHarshDuckling-max-14mb.gif (https://gfycat.com/bountifulharshduckling)
Austruck
07-09-19, 02:21 PM
BEAT SABER: REVIEW
https://i2.wp.com/cdn.uploadvr.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/beat-saber_4.gif?w=1170&ssl=1
This game delights in raising the difficulty to seemingly impossible levels every time you advance. It felt like a negative that not even its branching advancement paths could resolve. And logging back in to the sheer slope that last defeated me still gives me pause for thought now. But... this crucible of fire has finally set me alight, and currently I'm fricking loving it :D
The difficulty steps have a pragmatic purpose, forcing you to improve a subset of skills each time. But it's the sheer tricksiness of the tasks which also forces you into a zen zone of perpetual motion, as you react strategically to the flow of cues in an almost subconscious fashion. And that's where the joy is :)
That and the fact that you really have to swing those sabres like a swashbuckling pirate in full on flourish mode :D. (You're rewarded for cutting through the blocks not just at the correct angle, but for entering and exiting them with long flow. Which leads to you curling and swirling your blades in a rhythmical sweep of continuous curves, trying to retain momentum, and shaping your body for the structured Tetris-flurry coming your way....)
In a strange way the game puppets you into enjoying it, leaving you with no choice but to move to its bigger beats to survive. (Despite some of the tracks being all kinds of modern-8-bit glam-pop woeful ;)). But it's the freeform finishes you can put on things, and mind-clearing 'in the moment' flow which it engenders, which feel somehow liberating, and complement each other very sweetly indeed :)
PROS:
The skill ceiling requires you to go in strategically but enact your plan intuitively. An intriguing mix.
Being compelled by the game to execute fancy, flowing Hollywood sabre flurries is great.
Pushes you to the edge in of your abilities in a way that rewards
Rhythmic, anaerobic, zen...
CONS:
The actual music is all kinda twee-electro-RnB meh a lot of the time. (But it does the job)
I don't always fancy joining at the last steep slope that defeated me.
Longevity is unclear (although there is an active Workshop scene for famous tunes)
4(---)
This game is what I was first exposed to in VR at my friends' house in Houston in April. They're a young married couple (three young kids). He's a wedding/event videographer. When the kids go to bed they play this game in VR every night. You can get different music for it. They record themselves playing the game (both first person and third person). There's one video of him BEATING an 10-minute song (medley) that is ridiculously fierce, fast, and complicated. When I watch that video I think, "Is this guy even HUMAN?" Granted, they'll practice the same songs a lot in order to do well, but he literally did not get ONE beat wrong in the whole eight frazzled minutes. It was insane.
I think this link might work. It gets really intense at about 4:30...
https://www.facebook.com/jimmy.monroe.9/videos/vb.500823521/10157424779343522/?type=3
Golgot
07-09-19, 03:25 PM
This game is what I was first exposed to in VR at my friends' house in Houston in April. They're a young married couple (three young kids). He's a wedding/event videographer. When the kids go to bed they play this game in VR every night. You can get different music for it. They record themselves playing the game (both first person and third person). There's one video of him BEATING an 10-minute song (medley) that is ridiculously fierce, fast, and complicated. When I watch that video I think, "Is this guy even HUMAN?" Granted, they'll practice the same songs a lot in order to do well, but he literally did not get ONE beat wrong in the whole eight frazzled minutes. It was insane.
I think this link might work. It gets really intense at about 4:30...
https://www.facebook.com/jimmy.monroe.9/videos/vb.500823521/10157424779343522/?type=3
Haha, that is insane :D
I'm not sure I'll ever get to that level. (And that's where I wonder about longevity for the game and that).
Part of me feels some of the memorised sections are kinda cheaty, because there's something so satisfying about acting on near adaptive instinct. (At the moment I seem to be fixing my eyes on the furthest blocks, so that I can start adapting what I've just done to flow into what I'm about to do)
When the blocks come in a wodge like that, completely obscuring about half of the arrows, I'm guessing you have to execute a learnt move.
That said I am already doing babby-step versions of the above to get through some tough sections I suspect, and being fine with it ;)
Yeah I definitely intend to get some fave tracks downloaded at some point. Although a lot of what's been mapped out to date isn't really my scene ;). (I've got Daft Punk's Harder Faster lined up, but after that it's like... disco, Michael Jackson and Uptown Funk :D)
vBulletin® v3.8.0, Copyright ©2000-2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.