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10% Of 'Resident Evil 7' Players Are Wearing VR Headsets (digitaltrends.com)
Released five days ago, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard already has over 800,000 players -- and 84,036 of them are using a PlayStation VR headset. An anonymous reader quotes Digital Trends:
These numbers show that VR might have some real legs if compelling software is made... The numbers are also being updated live, so expect them to go up in the coming weeks. Earlier this week, numbers were in the 60-thousand range, meaning that positive buzz is driving gamers to pick up the game along with a VR headset.
Unfortunately for many gamers, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard is a PSVR exclusive, meaning PC gamers that own an HTC Vive or Oculus Rift are unable to experience the game in VR... Luckily, patient PC gamers will be able to experience the game in VR next year, when Sony and Capcom's PSVR exclusivity deal expires.
It's the first Resident Evil game using the first-person point-of-view. Are there any Slashdot readers who have already tried gaming with a VR headset?
It's the first Resident Evil game using the first-person point-of-view. Are there any Slashdot readers who have already tried gaming with a VR headset?
Nope.
Ask Paul Simon... I beleive he made a study of it
Time for bed, said Zebedee - boing
The big challenge for "alternative" ways of playing video games has always been "can you play a proper game that way". We've seen supposedly revolutionary new technologies come along before and then falter when it turns out that all they are good for is playing casual or party-games.
The Wii's motion control sold a hell of a lot of consoles on the basis of Wii Sports. However, before too long, it dawned on people that Wii Sports was pretty much the limit of the device's capabilities. Similarly the Kinect had a lot of early success on the basis of some party games, but every attempt to integrate it into a proper game was either irrelevant or disastrous (Steel Battalion says hi). It's becoming increasingly clear that if any of these new technologies are going to "stick", then they need to be something you could realistically use to play a major AAA title; a Dragon Age or a Call of Duty (not that I'm a big fan of either of those).
VR had looked like it was headed in the same direction as the Wii/Kinect; an initial burst of hype, then growing disillusionment. It generated a load of pretty but thin tech demos, a handful of novelty party games and, until recently, not much else. RE7 is interesting because it's an attempt to do a major release, from a well-known franchise, via VR, without diluting the thing beyond recognition. I've held off from buying a VR set myself so far; even if it takes off, the number of mutually-incompatible offerings on the market at the moment makes it a bit too likely I'd end up on the Betamax side of the divide. But I'd like to see it succeed and it's good that serious efforts are being made to adopt it in major games.
I also find it interesting that it seems to be Sony that is spearheading this effort via PSVR (RE7 isn't even their first attempt; there were some "proper" games, even if not of the same profile, among the PSVR launch titles). While technically superior, the Oculus and Vive still seem to be mostly pushing minigames and tech demos so far.
And we'll talk.
VR is mostly a novelty that wears off VERY fast.
--a VIVE owner of 3 months who didn't put it on for the past 2 months.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
The headline got truncated. There should be " - and nothing else" at the end.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
What VR parties games? A VR headset really gets in the way of any sort of group experience. It seems fundamentally incongruous. The only thing I see VR really kicking off with is the pornographic industry.
Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
I have an Oculus Rift and had a DK2, and to be honest I was skeptical of gaming in VR at the current iteration of the technology as it gets tiring in the long run and a lot of the games are more tech demos than real games.
But then I played Elite:Dangerous (space sim) and later The Unspoken (fireball-tossing wizard duels in multiplayer). These are games where that sense of presence that VR offers is used to mind-blowing effect. Especially in E:D, as VR allows a real sense of *scale*. I never thought about this before I tried E:D, but flying into a space station that is over a km long really gives you a "holy crap that this is huge"-feeling. And you really feel that you are sitting *inside* of your ship, which is oddly pleasing.
The same for The Unspoken. Using Oculus touch controllers you really feel that the hands you see in-game are your own, and the first time I saw my right hand burst into flame as I was charging up a fireball was another of those "holy crap" moments.
Once developers get a better handle on how to make VR games it's going to become a serious segment of gaming. We see early signs of this already, as E:D and Unspoken demonstrates, but there is still some way to go (and possible a couple of HW iterations) before it becomes a serious platform in terms of users and revenue. And I'm not ruling out another short-term crash/flop if the next iteration takes too long, or developers can't come up with better experiences before users' patience runs out. We're not there yet, but VR is just too much fun to go away permanently.
I have a PSVR. Seriously this will become a massive revolution in gaming. VR is a complete overhaul of the space, racing and flight sim genres. If people haven't tried it yet I highly recommend playing the Star Wars Battlefront VR mission. This thing is insane, you're in an X-Wing cockpit, all the controls/buttons activate. You can even turn the targetting computer on/off just like in the movies! Turn around and your R2 is in the back working away. There is no gaming experience like it. In my 25 years of space gaming nothing comes close to it. 6 months ago I would have said that VR is a nice to have and that Star Citizen shouldn't focus on it too much. Now I'd argue that it's 100% essential. VR should be a core design component of any game where you sit for extended periods inside a vehicle.The realism is completely unmatched by any other medium.
Just logged in to respond to this, I usually just graze on comments.
Resident Evil 7 in VR is jaw dropping - Capcom have made a lot of effort with the options for VR, and the effort really shows. This isn't a small bolt on extra mission - its the real deal.
Moving round the house, the feeling of presence is immense - the graphics and 3d audio, coupled with the ability to quickly glance round a corner, or behind you. It is just brilliant.
Check out the reddit comments on various threads including this one.
https://www.reddit.com/r/PSVR/...
Also, if you like Star Wars - the free battlefront X-Wing VR mission is a great 10 minutes.
I'm a Vive owner and I must say it's absolutely incredible. I've owned it for months and still play it almost every day.
I would say that for me, the room-scale integration and motion tracking is key to enjoyment. Having the headset is a nice novelty, but being able to really "be" there, standing in a virtual space, is what's incredible.
I play a lot of Minecraft (there's a free Vive VR plugin for it) and during the nighttime (in-game) I'll climb up on top of my little virtual house, sit down on the "roof" (i.e. my office floor) and just simply enjoy the view while I have a little snack, both in game and in real life. Not to mention actually looking around and mining/placing blocks that are as big as you are, and actually swinging your sword and actually shooting your bow at mobs. I've never had a comparable game experience in my life. And I can play in the same game as people using non-VR minecraft, so there's no restrictions.
Onward, which is sort of VR Counter Strike, is another game that is incredible (but I suck really, really bad). You can peek around corners, duck behind things, crouch, go prone, and "really" reload your gun and throw grenades.
Content is a bit of an issue, but there are plenty more great room-scale games other than Minecraft and Onward... Legend of Luca is one of my favorites, it's like VR meets classic NES Legend of Zelda. Holoball is VR pong and great fun, and you can really get a workout playing it. 5089 and Vanishing Realms are both excellent, immersive RPGs, Arizona Sunshine is the best zombie shooter I've ever played, Anyland is a unique building and community game that is a really different kind of experience, Out of Ammo is a fun FPS with a lot of RTS elements, and there are a few others. Perhaps it's just because Steam's catalog of Vive games lines up with my preferences, but I'm not disappointed in the selection.
Besides content, there are other cons of the Vive that are, unfortunately, pretty bad The huge cable and the bulkiness are the biggest. I do know there is a wireless kit available that has been getting good reviews, but that's another $200 bucks for first-gen hardware. The cable is strange because although it never really gets in your way, you *feel* like it's going to get in your way, which is almost as bad. The headset being wireless would solve a lot of problems, however it's still very bulky and not easy to wear for long sessions (more than 45 minutes, say). It's sweaty, and it feels, for a lack of a better word, claustrophobic. Having two monitors about half an inch from your eyes is not comfortable either, and after long play sessions I feel... unusual. Not nauseous or sick or fatigued, exactly, but unusual. And keep in mind you need a really beefy PC to be able to run this stuff, so that drives up the price tag even more. Also, local multiplayer is basically non-existent because each person needs their own computer and their own 5 x 6 meter space to play in, although the games that have internet play function as good as you'd want them to be.
It bears mentioning that I got a touch of motion sickness with some of the games that don't use teleportation, but you get used to it after about a half hour (and forevermore after that). And that's saying a lot, because I get motion sickness in vehicles very easily. But, your mileage may vary.
With all that being said, do I think it's worth the roughly $900 (if you already have a nice PC)? Absolutely! And I'd buy another one if mine broke. Although the cons are easiest to put into words, the pros are not - it's an experience like no other. VR is not gimmicky like I thought it was going to be. However, I probably wouldn't be saying this if I didn't have the Vive with its motion tracking. Simply having the headset alone would be a bit of a novelty that would wear off fast.
I'd recommend that if you've already got the money and the desire to buy something like a new TV or a surround-sound system or something, spend it on the Vive instead. Way more bang for your buck. It's a professional product and doesn't feel like a prototype, although if you want to wait for the 2nd generation I can only imagine how much better that will be.
I like my women how I like my sugar.. granulated.