VR headsets for Steam

[rkunati]

So, I want to play a VR game from steam called the Room VR: A Dark Matter. I have never used a VR headset before, so I don't know which one would work best. I have a Z590A-Pro motherboard with a 3070. On the steam page, it indicates I can play sitting down, which is good because my apartment is not very big. Does that mean I do not need any sensors? Also, does anyone know of a VR headset rentals in the Denver area, I don't want to have to pay full price for 1 game?

[TylerD321]

As you have never used a VR headset, I would try going to a VR Arcade in your area if you have them. The reasoning for this, is I actually purchased a VR headset a while back and ended up selling it as VR gave me a horrible headache.

[OhioYJ]

57 minutes ago, rkunati said:

Does that mean I do not need any sensors?

You still need a way to track the motion controllers. Games that say sitting, that will truely only use the headset will generally mention use of a controller as well. Here are a couple examples (just two that I could think of right away):

 

Project Cars

Titanic VR

 

 I know my office is pretty small, so I generally play standing only games. I still need to be fairly carefully, but it works. I place a mat on the floor, so I can tell where I'm at. So a small play area doesn't necessarily mean VR doesn't work.

 

I'm a fan of the Room series, and have played them all, but I can't see buying a VR system just for that title alone. You need to figure out if you actually want to play VR games, find a friend willing to let you use theirs for a moment, or find a VR arcade as mentioned.

[trufret]

I'd second seeing if you can borrow one from a friend to try before you buy one.

You can get motion sickness from moving in game when your body doesn't feel you moving in real life or headaches/eye strain if your headset lenses don't match the distance between your pupils.

 

motion sickness can be overcome by stopping when you start to feel sick and coming back when you are 100% better. trying to push through is going to be a bad time.

 

For new headsets right now

Quest 2 - cheapest but have to deal with facebook/meta, limited IPD adjustment, streaming from PC to HMD can be a bit finicky.

Reverb G2 - slight more expensive, much higher resolution, smooth IPD adjustment up to 68mm, controller tracking isn't as good but better than old WMR headsets, You need to run Windows Mixed Reality portal along with SteamVR so some performance loss there.

Valve Index - Pretty pricey, best all around kit for VR with great tracking accuracy, resolution isn't as good as Reverb G2, need to install base stations on walls or tripods in your room.

Vive 2 - Even more expensive, same accurate tracking as Index, High resolution like the G2, replacing the default wand controllers with Index controllers is almost a must and makes it even more expensive.

 

More headsets are due out in 2023 if you want to wait for a bit.

[OhioYJ]

35 minutes ago, trufret said:

replacing the default wand controllers with Index controllers is almost a must and makes it even more expensive.

Back when I was looking to replace my OG Vive I was pretty set on getting an Index but all the talk of controller issues made me shy away from it. In the end I bought a Vive 2 just because my original Vive and controllers had been so solid.  I really don't have any complaints out of the Vive controllers, perhaps it's because I haven't tried anything else?

[trufret]

20 minutes ago, OhioYJ said:

Back when I was looking to replace my OG Vive I was pretty set on getting an Index but all the talk of controller issues made me shy away from it. In the end I bought a Vive 2 just because my original Vive and controllers had been so solid.  I really don't have any complaints out of the Vive controllers, perhaps it's because I haven't tried anything else?

The wands have excellent tracking but the lack of thumbsticks, multiple face buttons, and better grip buttons make the wands kinda weird to use/rebind in games that expect that stuff.

[OhioYJ]

2 hours ago, trufret said:

The wands have excellent tracking but the lack of thumbsticks, multiple face buttons, and better grip buttons make the wands kinda weird to use/rebind in games that expect that stuff.

Fair enough. However I'll say, I have a library of roughly ~135 VR games at the moment (IIRC), and because the Vive was such a popular system, they all just natively support the VIVE controllers. I've seen more complaints (especially in it's earlier days) about index controllers than the Vive wands, but that has mostly died out, and the Index support has gotten tons better.

 

Again though, I do just play mainly standing room games, so if a game is room scale only, it's likely not in my library.