5 ms·

DIY Cybersickness Remedies

29 points by pseudolus 1y ago

pavel_lishin 1y ago
Really thought this was going to be about Johnny Mnemonic.
neilv 1y ago
1. Why would anyone want to give themselves motion sickness for a VR game? 2. Maybe people who are prone to motion sickness, or who have vestibular damage, would benefit from some of these tricks, even though VR game isn't their idea of fun. 3. Will people who condition themselves too well to tolerate VR entertainment also break their vestibular system, such as making themselves less likely to be able to recover from a sudden imbalance, or not automatically protect against a fall?
- paulryanrogers 1y ago
  > Why would anyone want to give themselves motion sickness for a VR game? VR is fun despite some discomfort, much like other experiences like roller coasters. I'd volunteer to participate in such a study because I'd like to do more VR than my body can naturally tolerate. > Will people who condition themselves too well to tolerate VR entertainment also break their vestibular system Definitely worth studying! From the few I've heard adapt, no, it doesn't make them significantly more likely to have balance problems.
  - elesiuta 1y ago
    I really enjoy that roller coaster feeling both in real life, and in VR games like Jet Island and Windlands. I'm pretty interested in this and would like to participate in a study as well if given the opportunity. I think one of the potential causes and solutions is it being a self-fulfilling prophecy that may be overcome with self-efficacy as described here [1] for seasickness. My only evidence is that I never knew motion sickness was a possibility when I first tried VR, and my friends with the worst motion sickness were worried about it before they even tried VR, even if they never got seasick or carsick. From the article and other comments, they also mention figure skating which I never thought of before, and I play ice hockey which is likely similar enough. For reference I've been playing VR since 2016 and never once experienced motion sickness, from any style of game/locomotion. [1] https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0021-9010.80.5.628 https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0021-9010.8...
    - paulryanrogers 1y ago
      Well I never got seasick on boats (large or small) and even took up windsurfing for a time. When I tried VR initially, naseau wasn't a widely known symptom (late 90s), but I got naseau anyway. So I don't think it's always psychosomatic.
- kelseyfrog 1y ago
  > Why would anyone want to give themselves motion sickness for a VR game? Cybersickness endurance games. The person who can make themself the most cybersick wins. Ranked competitive matches with loot box mechanics. People will do pretty much anything when competition is involved.
- dinfinity 1y ago
  > 1. Why would anyone want to give themselves motion sickness for a VR game? VR can be amazing. There is nothing on this planet that can provide the same experiences it can. That includes real life. Something like experiencing floating through space, gazing at an alien sunset and feeling like your body is actually there* without having to deal with pesky things like inventing FTL, radiation shielding, and artificial gravity and whatnot is pretty cool. * It's amazing how easily our senses are fooled, even with imperfect hardware.
  - monster_truck 1y ago
    I'm still waiting for HMDs where I can't see the pixels. I have something like 20/12.5 vision (and can also count pixels on a 27" 1080p monitor from normal sitting position)
    - esseph 1y ago
      Give it a bit, it won't last long
  - reaperducer 1y ago
    There is nothing on this planet that can provide the same experiences it can. That includes real life. There are plenty of places on this planet where you can rent a real sports car and race around a real track against real people for real. Until your VR headset emits the smell of burning fuel, rumbles your body so hard that you feel it for hours afterward, deafens you with engine and tire noise, throws so much mud on the screen that your pit crew uses tear-off sheets of plastic to clear it because wipers are useless, and provides a non-zero chance of actually being hurt or dying, your video game is just game. IRL > VR
    - paulryanrogers 1y ago
      VR doesn't have smell. Yet it can render visually things you cannot possibly see in real life. Watching a dinosaur approach and stomp overhead is quite a sight to experience in VR, even more intense than 3D glasses. The way the view tilts and moves with one's head, combined with the audio alignment, creates a surreal experience. Whether IRL is better or worse than VR is entirely subjective.
- ThrowawayR2 1y ago
  People got motion sickness from non-VR FPS games decades ago. Those who overcame it didn't "break their vestibular system" so it seems unlikely it's going to start now.
- duskwuff 1y ago
  > Will people who condition themselves too well to tolerate VR entertainment also break their vestibular system, such as making themselves less likely to be able to recover from a sudden imbalance, or not automatically protect against a fall? The sense I get from the article is that "VR balance" isn't essentially different from or opposed to ordinary balance; it's just a greater test of one's balance than one ordinarily encounters in daily life. People who have trained their balance - like figure skaters - find VR less of a challenge; performing exercises which improve one's balance - like the "flamingo stance" described in the article - makes VR experiences easier.
paulryanrogers 1y ago
Not surprising ice skaters could adapt best. Skating is a surreal feeling of gliding without as much leg movement as a runner covering the same distance. Snowboarding was very unnatural to me too, yet I persisted and adapted. Now it feels like second nature. It also involves a lot of balance in positions very distinct from the usual human movement. Sadly, it hasn't helped much with VR sickness in my case though.
mattlondon 1y ago
Honest question: is anyone using any kind of VR these days apart from a few people using it instead of monitors (which presumably don't suffer from motion sickness as the monitors won't move, right?). Surely no one is using them for games any more? Surely the headsets are all gathering dust up in the attic next to the gramaphone?
- jermaustin1 1y ago
  I use VR for games, monitors, and movies. They are great for immersion. I can wear a headset for a few hours without noticing any fatigue.
- i_am_jl 1y ago
  VR motorsport is fantastic. With a good wheel, pedals, and a rig to mount them on the immersion is intense, and the depth perception adds so much to the experience. It's not perfect. The FOV on lower-end/older headsets leave a lot to be desired, you can't use button boxes/controls since you can't see your hands, and doing any sort of long race gets exhausting.
- tlarkworthy 1y ago
  Used mine today for a workout. Super low friction compared to going to a gym.
  - daveguy 1y ago
    How does that work? I generally consider working out to be the complete opposite of VR. Was it a VR tennis-cardio type thing?
    - tlarkworthy 1y ago
      VR boxing is exhausting. Beat saber at high levels is also pretty sweaty. So yeah, cardio. I also don't play many games on it but it has stuck as a fitness option for years now.
      - 1y ago
ranger207 1y ago
My experience with VR motion sickness was that it mostly went away after a couple dozen hours. Occasionally it'll come back for me when I try a new experience, but it's usually gone after another hour or so. Not an insignificant amount of time of course, but if you're designing an experience for existing VR users, I think you can safely assume most of your users have their VR legs at this point
- paulryanrogers 1y ago
  I think this varies widely. I've spent hours in VR. But it always causes a headache, and if I'm not careful then nausea too. They say women are more likely to develop nausea because of they're able to preceive motion a bit more precisely than men.
sp332 1y ago
Here is a "Yoga for Building VR Tolerance" article from 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190209025553/http://elevr.com/yoga-for-building-vr-tolerance/ https://web.archive.org/web/20190209025553/http://elevr.com/...

29 points by pseudolus 1y ago

Really thought this was going to be about Johnny Mnemonic.

1. Why would anyone want to give themselves motion sickness for a VR game? 2. Maybe people who are prone to motion sickness, or who have vestibular damage, would benefit from some of these tricks, even though VR game isn't their idea of fun. 3. Will people who condition themselves too well to tolerate VR entertainment also break their vestibular system, such as making themselves less likely to be able to recover from a sudden imbalance, or not automatically protect against a fall?

paulryanrogers 1y ago
> Why would anyone want to give themselves motion sickness for a VR game? VR is fun despite some discomfort, much like other experiences like roller coasters. I'd volunteer to participate in such a study because I'd like to do more VR than my body can naturally tolerate. > Will people who condition themselves too well to tolerate VR entertainment also break their vestibular system Definitely worth studying! From the few I've heard adapt, no, it doesn't make them significantly more likely to have balance problems.
- elesiuta 1y ago
  I really enjoy that roller coaster feeling both in real life, and in VR games like Jet Island and Windlands. I'm pretty interested in this and would like to participate in a study as well if given the opportunity. I think one of the potential causes and solutions is it being a self-fulfilling prophecy that may be overcome with self-efficacy as described here [1] for seasickness. My only evidence is that I never knew motion sickness was a possibility when I first tried VR, and my friends with the worst motion sickness were worried about it before they even tried VR, even if they never got seasick or carsick. From the article and other comments, they also mention figure skating which I never thought of before, and I play ice hockey which is likely similar enough. For reference I've been playing VR since 2016 and never once experienced motion sickness, from any style of game/locomotion. [1] https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0021-9010.80.5.628 https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0021-9010.8...
  - paulryanrogers 1y ago
    Well I never got seasick on boats (large or small) and even took up windsurfing for a time. When I tried VR initially, naseau wasn't a widely known symptom (late 90s), but I got naseau anyway. So I don't think it's always psychosomatic.
kelseyfrog 1y ago
> Why would anyone want to give themselves motion sickness for a VR game? Cybersickness endurance games. The person who can make themself the most cybersick wins. Ranked competitive matches with loot box mechanics. People will do pretty much anything when competition is involved.
dinfinity 1y ago
> 1. Why would anyone want to give themselves motion sickness for a VR game? VR can be amazing. There is nothing on this planet that can provide the same experiences it can. That includes real life. Something like experiencing floating through space, gazing at an alien sunset and feeling like your body is actually there* without having to deal with pesky things like inventing FTL, radiation shielding, and artificial gravity and whatnot is pretty cool. * It's amazing how easily our senses are fooled, even with imperfect hardware.
- monster_truck 1y ago
  I'm still waiting for HMDs where I can't see the pixels. I have something like 20/12.5 vision (and can also count pixels on a 27" 1080p monitor from normal sitting position)
  - esseph 1y ago
    Give it a bit, it won't last long
- reaperducer 1y ago
  There is nothing on this planet that can provide the same experiences it can. That includes real life. There are plenty of places on this planet where you can rent a real sports car and race around a real track against real people for real. Until your VR headset emits the smell of burning fuel, rumbles your body so hard that you feel it for hours afterward, deafens you with engine and tire noise, throws so much mud on the screen that your pit crew uses tear-off sheets of plastic to clear it because wipers are useless, and provides a non-zero chance of actually being hurt or dying, your video game is just game. IRL > VR
  - paulryanrogers 1y ago
    VR doesn't have smell. Yet it can render visually things you cannot possibly see in real life. Watching a dinosaur approach and stomp overhead is quite a sight to experience in VR, even more intense than 3D glasses. The way the view tilts and moves with one's head, combined with the audio alignment, creates a surreal experience. Whether IRL is better or worse than VR is entirely subjective.
ThrowawayR2 1y ago
People got motion sickness from non-VR FPS games decades ago. Those who overcame it didn't "break their vestibular system" so it seems unlikely it's going to start now.
duskwuff 1y ago
> Will people who condition themselves too well to tolerate VR entertainment also break their vestibular system, such as making themselves less likely to be able to recover from a sudden imbalance, or not automatically protect against a fall? The sense I get from the article is that "VR balance" isn't essentially different from or opposed to ordinary balance; it's just a greater test of one's balance than one ordinarily encounters in daily life. People who have trained their balance - like figure skaters - find VR less of a challenge; performing exercises which improve one's balance - like the "flamingo stance" described in the article - makes VR experiences easier.

paulryanrogers 1y ago

Not surprising ice skaters could adapt best. Skating is a surreal feeling of gliding without as much leg movement as a runner covering the same distance. Snowboarding was very unnatural to me too, yet I persisted and adapted. Now it feels like second nature. It also involves a lot of balance in positions very distinct from the usual human movement. Sadly, it hasn't helped much with VR sickness in my case though.

mattlondon 1y ago

Honest question: is anyone using any kind of VR these days apart from a few people using it instead of monitors (which presumably don't suffer from motion sickness as the monitors won't move, right?). Surely no one is using them for games any more? Surely the headsets are all gathering dust up in the attic next to the gramaphone?

jermaustin1 1y ago
I use VR for games, monitors, and movies. They are great for immersion. I can wear a headset for a few hours without noticing any fatigue.
i_am_jl 1y ago
VR motorsport is fantastic. With a good wheel, pedals, and a rig to mount them on the immersion is intense, and the depth perception adds so much to the experience. It's not perfect. The FOV on lower-end/older headsets leave a lot to be desired, you can't use button boxes/controls since you can't see your hands, and doing any sort of long race gets exhausting.
tlarkworthy 1y ago
Used mine today for a workout. Super low friction compared to going to a gym.
- daveguy 1y ago
  How does that work? I generally consider working out to be the complete opposite of VR. Was it a VR tennis-cardio type thing?
  - tlarkworthy 1y ago
    VR boxing is exhausting. Beat saber at high levels is also pretty sweaty. So yeah, cardio. I also don't play many games on it but it has stuck as a fitness option for years now.
    - 1y ago

ranger207 1y ago

My experience with VR motion sickness was that it mostly went away after a couple dozen hours. Occasionally it'll come back for me when I try a new experience, but it's usually gone after another hour or so. Not an insignificant amount of time of course, but if you're designing an experience for existing VR users, I think you can safely assume most of your users have their VR legs at this point

paulryanrogers 1y ago
I think this varies widely. I've spent hours in VR. But it always causes a headache, and if I'm not careful then nausea too. They say women are more likely to develop nausea because of they're able to preceive motion a bit more precisely than men.

sp332 1y ago

Here is a "Yoga for Building VR Tolerance" article from 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190209025553/http://elevr.com/yoga-for-building-vr-tolerance/ https://web.archive.org/web/20190209025553/http://elevr.com/...