VR?

[BallPtPenTheif]

One major obstacle I see with VR, is the negative health issue.

found an interesting article on that topic here http://www.webmed.com/i-med/mi/safety.html

my favorite part, "VR applications are potential fomites [an object able to harbor pathogenic organisms and thus may serve as an agent of transmission of an infection] because the equipment is used by multiple individuals. Airborne pathogens and skin flora thrive in environments similar to those of head mounted devices (HMD) and hand controllers."

 

[nightfish]

Hasn't the 360 and PS3 combined outsold Wii?

VR is a crock to me. Even if it works it will cost way too much.

not really, if you could see what a good VR machine could do...

 

[Jamash]

One major obstacle I see with VR, is the negative health issue.

found an interesting article on that topic here http://www.webmed.com/i-med/mi/safety.html

my favorite part, "VR applications are potential fomites [an object able to harbor pathogenic organisms and thus may serve as an agent of transmission of an infection] because the equipment is used by multiple individuals. Airborne pathogens and skin flora thrive in environments similar to those of head mounted devices (HMD) and hand controllers."

That's pretty interesting reading. It mentioned lots of things I haven't even considered.
I suppose that part about formites could apply to pre-owned controllers & popular arcade machines & in-store display consoles too. That's pretty unnerving.

My favourite part of that article is under Cybersickness, "The physiologic signs of cybersickness are changes in......gastrointestinal ('dumping'),"

Is dumping a scientific term for shitting yourself? I've often used the term "taking a dump", but I didn't realise I was being scientific.

 

[Arachon]

Considering current/"near future" (yes, the place where CoD4 is set in) technology, I'd say V.R in the sense of having a set of googles looking like that black guy from Star Trek, would only be viable for say, flight simulators, where (perhaps in combination with TrackIR), it could prove to be quite an immersion boost.

However, for FPS's we would have to include more factors than looking about, and wiggling a joystick.

But then the question arises, HOW immersive do we want games to be? Do we want to crawl around sweating on a battlefield? I doubt it...

 

[BallPtPenTheif]

But then the question arises, HOW immersive do we want games to be? Do we want to crawl around sweating on a battlefield? I doubt it...

well, that question is important even for something basic as walking. do you march in place, or is movement still controlled from the controller?

having you're head in a VR set, any sort of body movement would be potentially dangerous. it would be like playing the Wii with a blindfold on.. which is sort of like swinging at a Pinata with your fist... and i remember a lot of accidents due to Pinatas.

 

[Arachon]

Another aspect in it, what if we create a super-immersive V.R FPS, I think it could bring about some severe consequences, firstmost (and I think absolutley worst): Jack Thompspn would never shut up, but in that case, perhaps he would have a point... with a super-immersive videogame, we could provoke stronger human feelings, if it all seems more real... Perhaps it would mess about with peoples heads...

And in this hypothetical super-immersive game (from space), how would we feel about being put in an enviroment, resembling a battlefield, that actually was realistic, very realistic, would it feel good? Would it bring about the same feeling we strive for when playing FPS's? Or would we shrink down, subject to the stress, the nervosity that affects real soldiers? Perhaps not in the same degree, but it's not just (presumably) the fear of getting killed that affects a soldier, be it sounds, what things look like, heck even the smell of a battlefield.

(Disclaimer: I'm basing these thoughts on... err.. thoughts... and presumptions, not real fact or my own experiences)

[...] i remember a lot of accidents due to Pinatas.

I lol'd

 

[BallPtPenTheif]

Another aspect in it, what if we create a super-immersive V.R FPS, I think it could bring about some severe consequences, firstmost (and I think absolutley worst): Jack Thompspn would never shut up, but in that case, perhaps he would have a point... with a super-immersive videogame, we could provoke stronger human feelings, if it all seems more real... Perhaps it would mess about with peoples heads...

i think for that to happen, it would require a game with sensory incentives greater than what the real world could provide. it would also require far more photo realism in order to bridge the gap between analogues action/gesturing and tactile familiarity.

MMO's form of long term investment towards a reward comes close to providing incentive that rivals the real world, so that in itself is scarry.

 

[Arachon]

True, it would not be possible with todays tech, but in the sense of photo realism, I think it is possible with motion capture, sure, it's perhaps not commonly avaliable today (for a reasonable price), but might be in the oh-so glorious future

 

[BallPtPenTheif]

True, it would not be possible with todays tech, but in the sense of photo realism, I think it is possible with motion capture, sure, it's perhaps not commonly avaliable today (for a reasonable price), but might be in the oh-so glorious future

like i said before though, personally i like the abstraction and psychological seperation. i like being able to kill a town of videogame people without any guilt. so give me the detachement of an LCD screen and a Dualshock

 

[BallPtPenTheif]

oh... and in the end, aren't we just talking about a new way to watch TV? i don't really see how this is an innovation for videogames.

i mean you're just asking for a new way to play Halo.

 

[mwhite67]

There are already video headsets available with head tracking capabilities and consoles can already display 2 screens (right and left eye). The Wii and PS3 already have motion sensitive controllers so I think it is entirely possible that we see some sort of VR late in this generation of consoles or early next generation. I would be happy with just 3d visuals and head tracking in a FPS using a regular controller or something similar to a wiimote. You can already do that on a PC.

 

[Jamash]

I think ultra-realistic/immersive VR games could be quite dangerous if they were so immersive your brain couldn't differenteriate between the game world & reality.

Have you heard of the phenomeomen where people who fall from a great height actually die before they hit the ground? Apparently they die due to the stress/shock of their impeding doom, or maybe it's a natural defence against the horrible, albeit momentary, pain of impact.
What if a VR game was so immersive it tricked your brain into believing impeding doom was imminent & it just shut off?

Also what about phobias in an immersive game world? It would be terrible if you were arachnophobic & playing a VR RPG, then suddenly you opened a treasure chest & were swarmed with spiders. Also I think vertigo, claustrophobia, agorophobia & pyrophobia could be real dangers in a immersive VR game, especially if you weren't aware you were a sufferer until it left you a shaking, piss soaked mess on the floor of your local VR arcade. There's probably a phobia for every aspect featured in video games.

Or what if you're character was hypnotised in a VR game? I know TV programmes aren't allowed to broadcast actual hypnosis because it can affect the viewers, I'm sure it would be even more of a danger in a immersive VR game, especially a MMORPG which could potentially be hacked by malicious Cyber-Hypnotists.

All in all, I think VR has lots of issues to address & safeguards to be implemented before it will be available for the mass market.

 

[SeaCalMaster]

With the wii showing that hype and the name "nintendo" will outsell anything, is the development of VR the way forward for console gaming?

fixed that for you.

On topic: I greatly doubt we will get vr anytime soon. Most of the "alpha" versions consist of an even more cumbersome mouseglove then the wiimote already is and the screen strapped to a helmet. Which is not vr but a great way to ruin your eyes.

See: Nintendo 64
See: Nintendo Gamecube
Although I'd probably rather have an Xbox 360, the Wii is making its sales legitimately, mostly because it's less nerdy than typical consoles.
As for VR, I think it has the potential to take off, but the technology isn't here yet. Most gamers place a fairly high emphasis on graphics, and since, in VR, it would be extremely difficult with modern technology to recreate the level of graphical excellence to which we've all become accustomed, VR units probably wouldn't sell that well.

 

[Alex_P]

Or what if you're character was hypnotised in a VR game?

Well, what if you are hypnotized by a vanilla video game? How are 3-D glasses and surround sound actually supposed to make hypnosis that much more effective, anyway?

-- Alex

 

[Jamash]

Or what if you're character was hypnotised in a VR game?

Well, what if you are hypnotized by a vanilla video game? How are 3-D glasses and surround sound actually supposed to make hypnosis that much more effective, anyway?

-- Alex

I was thinking because of the VR headsets & the immersive nature of the game, it would be harder to look away from the source. In a normal video game, if this was happening, you could get distracted by someone coming into your room, or something external coming into your field of vision.
If your TV is in front of the window then a flash car driving past or hot chick walking by can distract you (I've crshed many times playing Gran Turismo during the summer for this reason), but with VR there would be no external distractions.

 

[Alex_P]

I was thinking because of the VR headsets & the immersive nature of the game, it would be harder to look away from the source.

Hypnosis doesn't really work like that.

-- Alex

 

[Jamash]

I was thinking because of the VR headsets & the immersive nature of the game, it would be harder to look away from the source.

Hypnosis doesn't really work like that.

-- Alex

I know it doesn't really work like that (my Mum's a qualified hypnotherapist), but still, TV companies aren't allowed to broadcast full hypnosis techniques, just in case it does affect the viewer, so there's some truth in what I'm trying to say.
When I (mis)use the term hypnosis, I'm also thinking of subliminal messaging/conditioning, kind of like how Bison makes Blanka in Street Fighter: The Movie. God, I wish I could think of a better example to illustrate what I'm getting at!