Virtual reality headset try again

[VectorX]

Interesting; virtual reality made a pathetic attempt at gaming in the 1990s, what with at least one arcade unit (saw one at a gaming expo but it wasn't running) and it was supposed to come out for either the Genesis or Sega CD but didn't. There were a couple of other gaming units that were released over the years but it pretty much fizzled out (and kudos for Yahoo for missing those in their article, by the way).

A successful one came out through Kickstarter recently, plus they're trying it again with the PS4.

Hmmm, wonder how this will do this time around?

Yahoo stories disappear fast, but of course this will be making news everywhere soon, I'm sure.

[TrekMD]

It will certainly be interesting to see what happens with this.

[gliptitude]

I saw one at an arcade about 6 years ago that was actually pretty fun. I don't remember the name and it was probably not new at the time. It was some sort of POV shooter, I think like a Battlezone type of scenario. You stood on the ground and held on to joysticks on either side of you which were connected to the same gyroscope-like harness that the helmet/screen were connected to. .. It was a pretty straightforward game, (maybe a Desrt Storm scene?), but it was cool because you could keep turning in any direction and when the game was over you had no idea which way you were facing anymore in real life. Fun to play while a friend watched or watch while a friend played.

With this PS4 device I anticipate them incorporating their Wii-like motion controllers, which I will find very annoying.

[Luitoine]

I had the opportunity to try a prototype of the Occulus Rift header set.
Actually, I was not really convinced.
The quality of the image wasn't that great (for something that close to your eyes I mean). I couldn't keep my glasses on (I can see without them, but I was told that it was possible not to remove them, except they didn't precise they would be smashed to my face by the mask on my head ). And I felt seasickness rather rapidly...
The game I played was really simple: you are on a dragoon flying in the sky, you can move your head to move the dragoon and you have to collect some glowing orbs and to avoid some rocks (really straightforward and self-explanatory). But I think the main problem was that I had to move my head a lot (which, I think, made me sick so fast).
I think it can be really great for immersive stuff (like horror games, exploration in point-and-click/adventure games, educative softwares, virtual visits of museums, etc.), but I'm not convinced for action games where you have to move a lot.
Of course it was just a prototype, so maybe my first impression are "wrong" because I didn't try the final product!

[VectorX]

Thanks for an early opinion of it. Sounds sorta similar to what something this guy I knew from a temp job had seen on an early VR set where a pterodactyl would swoop down and grab the player's character in a game. The rig also came with a rumble pack-type deal that fit over a person's chest, so if the pterry grabbed someone, it would constrict and make the player panic as if the pterry grab was for real!

[x]

Anyone remember the Nintendo Virtual Boy?

That is why we don't use these sort of things.