3 ms·

VR is not that much about stereoscopic 3D, it is more about the 360° environment. You can get most of the immersive effect of VR with a large enough 2D display.

by GuB-42 2y ago

VR is not that much about stereoscopic 3D, it is more about the 360° environment. You can get most of the immersive effect of VR with a large enough 2D display. 3D is an improvement, but not the most important one. A VR headset works by putting small displays very close to the eyes to achieve a wide field of view, which is cheaper and more convenient than using large displays further away (like in CAVE system). But for that, one needs one set of optics per eye, as our eyes can't focus that close, and since we need one set per eye, we might as well show different pictures and support stereoscopic 3D. In other words, VR headsets are a convenient way of displaying a wide field of view, and you get 3D for free.

wpietri 2y ago
I understand the argument, but I think the 360° environment came along in the era of Quake. In contrast to the 2D environment of platformers or top-down games, I think the true 3D environments of the Quake era were a big leap forward in terms of giving people a 3D experience. That it was seen through a flat monitor didn't much matter once you were in motion. I think what VR adds to that is a more natural way of experiencing that 3D environment. But I'm not convinced that makes much of a difference to gaming audiences. The hardcore gamers were always fine with learning less-natural controls. And I don't think casual gamers care much about the 3D environments; quite a lot of popular games are 2D and people seem happy with it. I also think the novelty 3D experience is more central to the gee-whiz appeal of VR than you do. It's really cool! Just like every stereoscopic 3D experience is really cool. Albeit briefly.
- seba_dos1 2y ago
  I agree. Ultimately, while being able to actually physically hide behind a cabinet in SUPERHOT VR was a really cool experience, I have quite similar memories from playing regular SUPERHOT despite of me sitting comfortably in front of a flat screen at the time. I can also vividly remember book scenes despite of only ever seeing black text on some paper in front of my eyes. The brain is quite good at abstracting the medium away.
  - wpietri 2y ago
    Oh yeah, books are a great example here. Superhot is one of the games that most impressed me in VR. And then I looked up how well it sold in non-VR versions. At first that seemed wrong to me, but the more I thought about it, them more it made sense.
    - seba_dos1 2y ago
      It was a huge hit as a non-VR game first and only later got a VR version. It doesn't feel like a VR conversion, but it's mostly because it just happened to translate into VR really well, both gameplay- and story-wise (but also because VR version is more like a standalone sequel than a port).

by GuB-42 2y ago

wpietri 2y ago

I understand the argument, but I think the 360° environment came along in the era of Quake. In contrast to the 2D environment of platformers or top-down games, I think the true 3D environments of the Quake era were a big leap forward in terms of giving people a 3D experience. That it was seen through a flat monitor didn't much matter once you were in motion. I think what VR adds to that is a more natural way of experiencing that 3D environment. But I'm not convinced that makes much of a difference to gaming audiences. The hardcore gamers were always fine with learning less-natural controls. And I don't think casual gamers care much about the 3D environments; quite a lot of popular games are 2D and people seem happy with it. I also think the novelty 3D experience is more central to the gee-whiz appeal of VR than you do. It's really cool! Just like every stereoscopic 3D experience is really cool. Albeit briefly.

seba_dos1 2y ago
I agree. Ultimately, while being able to actually physically hide behind a cabinet in SUPERHOT VR was a really cool experience, I have quite similar memories from playing regular SUPERHOT despite of me sitting comfortably in front of a flat screen at the time. I can also vividly remember book scenes despite of only ever seeing black text on some paper in front of my eyes. The brain is quite good at abstracting the medium away.
- wpietri 2y ago
  Oh yeah, books are a great example here. Superhot is one of the games that most impressed me in VR. And then I looked up how well it sold in non-VR versions. At first that seemed wrong to me, but the more I thought about it, them more it made sense.
  - seba_dos1 2y ago
    It was a huge hit as a non-VR game first and only later got a VR version. It doesn't feel like a VR conversion, but it's mostly because it just happened to translate into VR really well, both gameplay- and story-wise (but also because VR version is more like a standalone sequel than a port).