General VR Catch-All

*Legion* wrote:
JC wrote:

I have no idea why this should make a difference... Installing the Geforce experience removed all the stuttering I was experiencing. Buttery smooth now.

Maybe something to do with the NVIDIA overlay? Did you possibly have GFE installed before?

Nope- never had it installed, even weirder is that I don't even have GFE running, I just installed it and then disabled it from startup. *shrug*

edit- spoke too soon. Started up today and it's a horrid mess. Which is odd because I changed nothing between last night and today...

edit2- solved- EVGA precision X1 keeps resetting card power to 25%.

I have an odd issue with the new Reverb, I've exhausted all troubleshooting scenarios as far as I can tell. Time to see how their 30-day return/replace policy is. Example vid is in the WMR home space, but this is visible in every game only in the left eye.

https://youtube.com/shorts/r9oVBAH_U2E

JC wrote:

edit2- solved- EVGA precision X1 keeps resetting card power to 25%.

Ha, I had something like this happen with MSI Afterburner. Some saved profile would downclock the card hard for no discernible reason. Once I figured out what was happening and used a different saved profile, no more problem.

For anyone on a Reverb G2.. Microsoft just dropped a patch (via windows update) to fix the holographic shell stutter bug.

You can now officially pair and use the Quest Pro controllers with a Quest 2 (after latest update) and apparently they work really well. They cost $300 just for the controllers so it nearly doubles your investment in VR.

I'm good with the originals myself. I haven't been using my Quest 2 for anything except exercise for quite a while but it is still pretty good at that.

Hah exercise is my primary use for it too.

What exercise things do you use on the quest? I don't use the quest much for exercise but Beat Saber is pretty good as Creed.

EvilHomer3k wrote:

What exercise things do you use on the quest? I don't use the quest much for exercise but Beat Saber is pretty good as Creed.

Pistol Whip, Thrill of the Fight, and Beat Saber. I did use Supernatural for a while and keep meaning to subscribe again one day. I have to take the advice of others here and try some Beat Saber exercise mods.

Powerbeats VR is my favorite fitness game. More intense cardio than Beat Saber

Supernatural is my go to. Love the variety.

I would agree with Carmack. They're going in the wrong direction. No chance I am buying the new headset with that price. I also have no desire to be in the metaverse. I want to play games and maybe watch movies.

That stinks. I have no faith in Meta without Carmack. He is right and I hope he continues to work on VR elsewhere.

Are there any juicy deals in the Steam Winter sale I should be aware of? I've not played much VR over the last 4-6 months but it doesn't look like anything particularly groundbreaking has released in that time.

I'll throw in a few quick recommendations myself, avoiding the typical stuff. Keen to hear of any little hidden gems or stuff that's steeply discounted. Prices in AUD so they'll look a bit higher than they are for folks in the US etc.

Walkabout Minigolf $13 - 40% off

My vote for best VR title. Perfect mix of silly arcade minigolf and realistic physics. Simple, clean, easy to dip into and sink a few holes. It's a great title for some casual chats with friends or just relaxing. I particularly love the Jim Henson's Labyrinth DLC which was made with a lot of attention to detail. You can feel the dev's love in this one.

Into the Radius $30 - 30% off

Nails that "Stalker but in VR" feel. Lovely attention to detail and atmosphere. Not played a lot of it, but was very impressed from the little time I did spend here.

Kayak VR:Mirage $23 - 30% off

Granted, I've only played the demo but WOW. Shockingly realistic, gorgeous visuals and the paddling feels wonderful. Only reason I haven't picked it up in this sale is that I'm waiting until I can afford a better PC because I want to crank those graphics way up!

BoomBox $6 - 80% off!

Doesn't have the "cool factor" of Beat Saber, but it is an incredible indie alternative. Similar idea, but you're hitting drums. It's also not owned by Facebook which is a huge plus in my mind! Boombox has a fantastic variety of songs, free updates, and a strong community aspect with countless custom songs to download (no modding needed).

A plus for those using VR to keep active, it's a little more strenous than Beat Saber as it requires some more twisting and less flicks

A_Unicycle wrote:

Are there any juicy deals in the Steam Winter sale I should be aware of? I've not played much VR over the last 4-6 months but it doesn't look like anything particularly groundbreaking has released in that time.

I'll throw in a few quick recommendations myself, avoiding the typical stuff. Keen to hear of any little hidden gems or stuff that's steeply discounted. Prices in AUD so they'll look a bit higher than they are for folks in the US etc.

Walkabout Minigolf $13 - 40% off

My vote for best VR title. Perfect mix of silly arcade minigolf and realistic physics. Simple, clean, easy to dip into and sink a few holes. It's a great title for some casual chats with friends or just relaxing. I particularly love the Jim Henson's Labyrinth DLC which was made with a lot of attention to detail. You can feel the dev's love in this one.

Into the Radius $30 - 30% off

Nails that "Stalker but in VR" feel. Lovely attention to detail and atmosphere. Not played a lot of it, but was very impressed from the little time I did spend here.

Kayak VR:Mirage $23 - 30% off

Granted, I've only played the demo but WOW. Shockingly realistic, gorgeous visuals and the paddling feels wonderful. Only reason I haven't picked it up in this sale is that I'm waiting until I can afford a better PC because I want to crank those graphics way up!

BoomBox $6 - 80% off!

Doesn't have the "cool factor" of Beat Saber, but it is an incredible indie alternative. Similar idea, but you're hitting drums. It's also not owned by Facebook which is a huge plus in my mind! Boombox has a fantastic variety of songs, free updates, and a strong community aspect with countless custom songs to download (no modding needed).

A plus for those using VR to keep active, it's a little more strenous than Beat Saber as it requires some more twisting and less flicks

Kayak VR looks gorgeous in videos but I worry it will be degraded too much when streamed to my Quest 2.

I ended up picking up PowerBeatsVR and Ragnarock on sale on Quest.

A Fisherman's tale is magical. Short, but magical. at $3.89 (74% off) definitely worth it.

Sairento VR- seems like it could be fun. Haven't had a chance to get into it yet. $15 (50% off)

I expect you to die (both 1 and 2) are on sale. $15.99 (36%) and $15.99 (32%) off respectively. Good "Get Smart" vibes (I'm old). Lots of fun but not a lot of replay-ability. Great game to show to people who haven't experienced VR before.

Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners $19.99 (50%). Looks like good zombie fun. Have only played about 10 minutes but was impressed.

If anyone has a VR headset and a copy of Resident Evil 2/3/5/7/8.... Try out the VR mod by PrayDog

Clunky with RE 2 and 3, I'll come back to them at some point.... Then I loaded up Resident Evil Village.... Just amazing how well it works.

Wanted to drop my Steam review for Into the Radius here, I'm absolutely LOVING this game now that I'm getting my VR legs good and proper.

IMAGE(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1059604464333500527/1062474012405530677/VirtualDesktop.Android-20230110-192727.jpg?width=676&height=676)

This is what VR is all about. Despite some slightly clunky controls at times, Into The Radius succeeds in transporting you to a post-apocalyptic radiation-filled death zone. Part survival game, part horror, part military simulator; being tasked with surviving against anomalous entities (both sentient and not). The fact you are IN the game world just elevates all of this into an absolutely incredible experience.

Guns will degrade over time, requiring maintenance both on and off the field. You have a limited capacity for resources on your excursions into the Zone, so you'll have to balance ammo, food, repair equipment and task-specific supplies. Manually reloading, not just your guns, but the magazines makes you care for every little resource you can pick up - don't toss those magazines when they're done! Make sure you eject them safely and store them to refill later. None of this is easy when shambling entities are surrounding you, and you're trying your best to listen for the creatures that phase in and out of the visible light spectrum. So many times have I dropped important gear in fright or panic, or failed to realise an enemy was nearby as I rummaged through my backpack for a flashlight.

While my initial impressions were simply "cool, STALKER but in VR", I feel Into the Radius is something more than that, definitely more than the sum of its parts. It's the first VR game where I've felt truly transported into another world, one where I can slowly build up resources and play with agency. While so many VR games today provide smaller, more direct (and perhaps amazing, but narrow) experiences, Into the Radius feels like a large sandbox with incredibly opportunities for exploration.

Pros:
+ Fantastic detail in gunplay, as close to realistic I'd want from a game.
+ No HUD, you must manually check ammo and resources. Love this!
+ Freedom to explore, take on missions, or just build up resources in your base.
+ IMMERSION
+ Numerous ways to customise difficulty (show player on map, damage sliders, hunger sliders, enemy frequency etc.)
+ Amazing feeling of progression as you slowly take on more difficult missions to earn more money, which allows you to buy more protective gear and better guns
+ It's a fully fleshed out game in VR. Sadly something we are still lacking going into 2023.

Cons:
- Hands/arms/held items can occasionally get stuck in objects
- Some oddities with chest pouches sometimes rotating/not rotating with your head direction
- While art direction is interesting, the game can often look washed out and a little bland
- Enemy variety is lacking. This is thematic, but could be more interesting
- Movement vignettes for motion sickness are too harsh and immediately flash in when the joystick is pushed. I find these too distracting to use.

Overall I highly recommend Into the Radius. This is a game for people who like difficult, scary experiences, who are okay with taking things slow and working for rewards. However, if you are somebody who prefers more direct, power-fantasy style games (HL:Alyx, Resident Evil 4 etc.), you may not find that here.

Never before have I felt so attached to my equipment in a game. Here's a pistol I saved up money for, which took me a while since I am a horrid shot (right handed, left eye dominant...doesn't make things easy in VR!). Finally having enough money to upgrade to a larger magazine helps SO much because I don't have to fumble with reloading in the middle of being ambushed by zone creatures. Last night I upgraded to a supressor and subsonic ammo so I wouldn't draw the attention of everything in the goddamn zone when I panic fired, and the cherry on top is the red dot sight which helps a lot with my aiming problems.

IMAGE(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1059604464333500527/1062474240512765963/VirtualDesktop.Android-20230110-200226.jpg?width=676&height=676)

My baby <3

While not as polished as my favourite, Walkabout Minigolf, Into the Radius is starting to rival it for my favourite VR experience.

Have you tried Half Life: Alyx yet?

All this time I thought the name meant it was a VR battle royale.

WizKid wrote:

Have you tried Half Life: Alyx yet?

I've put a few hours into it, but stopped because I couldn't maintain a steady framerate on my PC. I've got an upgrade being shipped to me this week so I'll play Alyx to completion soon! I'm really looking forward to cranking up the graphics and trying some mods.

I did enjoy what I played but found it was a little more on the exploration and narrative side whereas Into the Radius is a large semi-open world in which you can go/do what/where you please.

I certainly appreciate the spectacle of HL:Alyx, but found it a little bit of a letdown in terms of raw gameplay. Understandably considering what they are trying to do with VR, but I definitely lean more into "gamier" games.

All this time I thought the name meant it was a VR battle royale.

Couldn't be further from a Battle Royale! Though I see why you might think that

Can Into the Radius be played while sitting down, or do you absolutely have to be standing the entire time?

d4m0 wrote:

Can Into the Radius be played while sitting down, or do you absolutely have to be standing the entire time?

My feet were too sore from a long session yesterday so I tried the seated mode and it worked just fine

I bumped the seat trying to reach for my holster and ammo pockets a few times, but nothing a bit of height adjustment wouldn't fix.

Perfect! I think I'll be trying the game out this weekend, thanks for the recommendation Uni.

My daughter tried the trial of The Climb on Quest 2 and was really impressed so I grabbed the full version for her. I only recently tried it myself and it’s a lot more intense than expected. Sweaty hands. Uncomfortable feeling when I make the mistake of looking down. Feeling of speed when I zip line. Feeling like I have to carefully balance when I’m standing on a small platform. I haven’t done any real rock climbing in decades and I never climbed anything remotely like these.

Yeah similar experience here! I thought for sure that it would be a pretty weak experience, but I was pleasantly surprised by the demo. Grip fatigue, vaulting, managing chalk etc. all go a long way to make it feel like a pretty robust game.

Not something I'd purchase at full price, but I'd be pretty interested if I spotted it on sale.

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I had a really great experience with Demeo yesterday. I have a good friend who lives overseas so it's often hard to find games we can play together due to the high ping. Playing Demeo together was like a nice chill boardgame/X-com hybrid where we could just chat and throw some dice around.

We later discovered the hangout rooms and spent an hour just chatting and painting virtual miniatures.

IMAGE(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FmjNcWtaAAAEydb?format=jpg&name=small)

That's so cool! I'm sure it's not super sophisticated but I love that it doesn't just exist but it's a social thing.

I think I'm finally getting my VR legs! Last year, I was only playing Beat Saber, Pistol Whip, and other stationary games for exercise. Any foray into smooth locomotion had me sick very quickly so I got frustrated and stopped playing those games. I've been adamant lately, that I'd do my best to overcome it, and the effort is paying off. It wasn't easy accepting I'd feel sick most days, but enough shorter sessions, ginger chews (the best!), and breaks ever 10-15 minutes have been helping. I've been playing for 1-2 hours at a time now and been mostly fine. Faster shooters (such as Compound) still make me woozy, but I seem totally fine with Into the Radius.

https://twitter.com/UnicyclesWill/st...

Speaking of ITR, here's some footage I was able to record using Virtual Desktop (worth the price of admission just for easy video recording!).

It's not going to be everybody's cup of tea, but Into the Radius is climbing up the ranks to be a potential all-timer for me. Here, I didn't keep track of time and ended up stuck in the swamps at night. These enemies vary in visibility, so I was mostly working from audio; their already transparent bodies are difficult to spot in the dark. Having to, not only, manually reload - but keep track of bullets in magazines (and not drop them, they are expensive!) makes for an incredibly intense experience. I only barely made it out of here alive.

Once I finish the main game, I'm excited to work on an ironman playthrough. There's an achievement for that, and it sounds like the perfect game for that sort of thing.

Has anyone tried Hitman 3 VR's version?

Puzzling Places is a great game to play while listening to an audiobook.