Disclaimer - I am 100% a math and science guy. My grammar is generally awful. If that is going to bother you skip this review.
Updated Controller section after a few months with Touch
I realize as someone that owns both the Vive/Rift and brother owns the PS VR I am in a rare situation to have ample time with all three VR’s to give more than a 20 min test comparison. I have spent 40 + hours with both Vive/Rift individually. I have spent a shorter time with the PS VR but all of that time came after I was very use to and comfortable with VR. So there was no “wow this is VR” time and it was all spent comparing and looking for the differences and advantages with the unit. I also realize that I would need to give all this information to 15 friends with interests in VR so much easier just to put it on paper.
I would like to state I do not think any of the VR’s is a bad buy. I simply would like after using them to show strengths and weaknesses of them because I think they all fit in with different buyers better.
Graphics
Resolution - This is one of the obvious advantages of the current Vive/Rift over the PS VR. The overall resolution is noticeably higher in both the PC based. This I do not think is a surprise and simply an advantage of being powered by the high end PC (although comes with cost)
Text Clarity - This is one of the places I think the Vive falters. The Vive text in the center of where you are looking is clear. However, if you don’t turn your head and turn your eyes a bit to read (as I do normally) the text on the side of your eyes is readable but becomes a bit blurry. This happens much less in both Rift/PS VR. I will say with the Vive you do get use to it and simply turn your head and center text to read. However it is something that could annoy some people if you want to play heavy text games.
Frame Rate/Smoothness - In normal gaming I am one of those people that can instantly tell difference between 30 and 60 FPS. However, I can not generally tell difference much above 60.. This is one place I certainly think PS VR did a good job. Only in one place did I ever notice PS VR FR to drop. This is probably why the lower resolution but they have done a good job of requiring 60 FPS. Now on Vive/Rift most games I do get around 90 FPS (I am using a Nvidia 1080). However, I only think the lower frame rate will become an issue on games where you are first person and not in vehicle. Games like Battlezone seemed very smooth regardless with no ill effects. PS will probably design around this so I do not see it being a huge weakness in current generation.
Distortion- I personally have not gotten the distortion effect on any of the headsets that others have. Usually this distortion is scene/felt during heavy movement. So note this is something some people have an issue with on the Rift/PSVR.
FOV - The Vive has a bit of a taller view. The rift has a bit of a wider view. The PS VR is a bit smaller than both it seems. However, with all three I have noticed that once you play for 5 or 10 minutes you only really notice the black or FOV during loading or slow parts. Obviously each person is different but this does not impact my decision at all.
Overall Graphics - I would give the best edge to the Rift. It really is either on the top or tied to the top in all categories. I do think though that other than resolution the PS VR held up better than expected. Even beating Vive in text clarity.
Comfort/Fit
First let me say I do not find any of them high uncomfortable. I have used them all for 2 + hours and most of the feeling of having them on goes away after 20 min. This is the category that I think the PS VR really shines. The overall comfort of the PS VR I think is by far the best. It sits on your head more of a baseball cap and then you pull it towards. It makes the feeling around your head feel much less like you have a scuba mask glued to your eye’s. If I was going to play a long period of a normal type game for 2-3 hours this is a certain advantage. Next for that I would say the Rift is a bit above the Vive just on how it sits on your head is a bit more comfortable. The Vive is strapped a bit tightly to your head and this does make initial comfort and sweating a bit worse. However, this method has one very large advantage if you are planning on games where a lot of fierce movement. Games like “Thrill of the Fight” where you are shadow boxing moving around rapidly. As much as the initial is a bit more uncomfortable the Vive is much more secure on your head. Playing something like Holoball I would certainly prefer the security of Vive over comfort of others.
So for standard gaming I would recommend PS Vr with rift a close second, for active gaming I would recommend Vive comfort. However, I think all 3 are comfortable enough.
Controllers
This is probably the biggest weakness of the PS VR. The move controllers are pretty much 7 year old (guessing) technology. I do not see any noticeable improvement in the move controllers. They do track fine but they do not give you the extension of the arm like the others do. Now between the Rift/Vive I will say the Rift felt better than the Vive for comfort. They are lighter and just feels less like you are holding a controller. That being said the Vive controllers still very much give you the ability to do all kinds of things very smoothly. The touch pad on the Vive is also something that works very well and is certainly an advantage. The Rift Touch controllers though really work much better in games where you have to grab items or pick things up. They really are designed so you feel like you are gripping or pushing things. The balance of the Touch controllers are also near perfect.
Room Scale
Both the room scale for Rift/Vive work pretty much equally as good. I more wanted to discuss my thoughts after playing a bunch on “Room Scale”. Room Scale is one of the most shocking and cool experiences when you try early VR. I was enamored with it early on. I used Vive more than Rift for first month because of it. However, that does go away some. It will always be what I use to show to new people or at a party. Some game types I think will be able to use Room Scale very well (current gen room scale ) puzzle games, exploration, walking sims, and arcade type shooters. However, for normal every day gaming the tech I think is just not quite there to give you as in depth games as we are use to. I do not see you playing games like Destiny, Witcher, Civilization, etc. room scale anytime soon. Those games I think will be done in sitting/standing maybe but more single location. In my 100 ish hours in VR I would say I spent 20 - 30 of my first 40 hours in room scale things. I have probably only spent 10 out of my last 60 hours since in room scale. So I would not call it a Novelty but it is also not the end all yet. I do hope with both game design and game hardware this will change in the coming years.
I do not consider the PSVR as having Room Scale. Yes you can move a couple feet but you can not turn around and the movement is very limited. You can both sit/stand but not really use full room experience.
It is important to note you still need a fair amount of space for the PSVR so you can stretch/swing arms in all directions without hitting anything.
Multiplayer/Watcher
PS VR certainly has an advantage on couch co-op and multiplayer games. Much easier to have games with 1 person in VR and 3 others playing on the screen. On the computer the games show up in different sizes, not always easily viewable. PC is far worse for spectating.. The only place I think the PC is improved here is games like “Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes” This because you really only want 1 person seeing the screen.
Setup
The only difficult part about any of the setups is room scale sensors. It is not hard to setup just requires mounting the sensors (or putting on tripods). I would not take this into consideration in deciding in anyway you can always get a friend to come help you setup. I would like to note that Rift room scale setup is easier than the Vive because both sensors are in front.
After this point it really gets into more of my opinions on where things are going than just hardware itself. So feel free to stop reading here if you only want the cold hard facts.
Games
With methods most games on the Rift/Vive can be played on both or will be once you get touch controllers. So really I am going to compare the current PS vs PC on this and my opinion on future after research. I think all three headsets will get most AAA big releases in future. I am sure VIve or PC studios will make one or two and there will be a few PS exclusives but I think this will balance out. So if these are the games you are looking for I think PS is not weak in anyways. I do not think “most” of these games will have early Room scale abilities.
However, the places that room scale and that type of VR will really see it’s hits is in the Indie games market. It will allow much more freedom and cool mechanics. Indie, Puzzle, Walking simulator games I think with thrive much more on PC variants in the future. 100% because of Room scale and controllers. So if these are things you care about I highly.
Advantages of Buying 3 systems IMO
PS VR
Price. If you have will normally have multiple people watching/playing. Mainly only looking for larger games in future.
Rift/Vive (over PS VR)
Can afford it. If you want to keep up with Indie and cool mechanic games. Resolution. Room Scale.
Vive or Rift
Honestly, in most cases I would lend to the Rift (not knowing about exclusives in the future). This is for three main reasons (none of the life altering). It is a bit more comfortable for longer sessions, the text clarity is better, and the just feel more natural. The one big place I would chose the Vive is if you plan to play a lot of games with very high activity (not just walking around room) but jumping, diving, moving etc.
This is a fantastic write up and very helpful. Thanks for all the effort
"When you find yourself on the side of the majority it's time to pause and reflect" - Mark Twain
Steam , Xbox, PSN: RooksGambit
Yeah, thanks for that. I'm still trying to weigh my options when it comes to future VR investments, so this kind of comparison is nice.
I need an "I'm with Dyni" t-shirt. -- Localgod54
Agreed. Well written. I own a Rift, and haven't been able to try the other 2 headsets yet, but your consensus seems to be similar to others who have tried all 3 headsets.
I definitely want to try room scale VR, but likely won't do it in my own one bedroom apartment. I'm perfectly fine with sitting and standing games, and am looking forward to the Touch controllers leveling the field for Rift and Vive.
Nice write up. I will say for me personally room scale makes everything else seem less impressive. I've put quite a bit of time into some cockpit games (ED and HotDS), but hundreds of hours into room scale games (almost 50 into Onward alone). When it comes to controller games I've put maybe 3-4 hours into Lucky's Tale and a few others but that's it. To me room scale is the completely new medium, whereas seated experiences are more of an evolution of the 3D monitor.
My time with PSVR has been fun. Definitely the most comfortable of the headsets though they all are fine. Graphics are hugely downgraded from a beefy PC but still enjoyable, and the optics and SDE are definitely better than the Rift or Vive.
One thing you didnt mention is that the distortion when you turn your head is very noticeable on the Rift and PSVR and completely absent on the Vive. That is a HUGE deal to people who notice that kind of thing.
In the end I actually sold my Rift and play my Vive every single day. However I still want PSVR. Just another perspective.
PSN / Steam / Wii U: Warriorpoet897
Switch: SW-6350-0100-9262
Now Playing: Octopath Traveler, The Last Guardian, Fallout 4 VR, Legend of Zelda, Vagrant Story, Bard’s Tale 3.
escher77, thank you very much for the writeup. I was really looking for a GWJer perspective to break it down and this post was exactly that.
One question I have: In the section on "Room Scale" you didn't mention PSVR at all. Then in the concluding remarks you mentioned room scale as an advantage of Rift/Vive over PSVR.
But I thought that with a PS camera, the PSVR is also a room scale experience. In fact, from other places I'm reading that the PSVR is better than the Rift at tracking the back of your head. Was your experience with the PSVR + PS camera so bad that you'd say that there's no comparison?
Steam Id: Yoyoson | Amoebic: after climbing up BurningManCraft's leg, I was a little too close to the subject matter and I lost my sense of scale. I didn't realize the thing was bigger than his arm.
My other question is about immersion. Some reviewers have said that you can see out the bottom of the PSVR, which can be somewhat immersion-breaking.
I'm primarily interested in VR for its ability to provide immersive experiences that are unmatched by an LCD screen. I'm looking for that moment that reviewers say that they're just there.. out among the stars or deep beneath the ocean, and not sitting in an office chair in an air-conditioned room. Which of the 3 would you say gets you closest to that?
Steam Id: Yoyoson | Amoebic: after climbing up BurningManCraft's leg, I was a little too close to the subject matter and I lost my sense of scale. I didn't realize the thing was bigger than his arm.
I had issues with this, but it's a very fixable issue with PSVR. I mainly had this issue a bit initially when putting on the headset just as they said. Essentially, if you pull the headband on the back of your head all the way down like many pictures show, you will definitely get a lot of light in the bottom. All you have to do is leave the headband up a bit on the back of your head and also pull the mask a bit down on your face to make sure it's focused. Leaving the headband up a bit also makes room for large earcups on headphones if you happen to have nice, big headphones.
It probably varies by head/face, but I'm probably a worse case scenario given my perfect, comfortable solution deviates a bit from the guide.
Tuffalo buffalo Tuffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Tuffalo buffalo.
SW-0326-3336-1619
I would not consider what PSVR can do as full "room scale" yes the sensor tracks your movement some. However, with only one sensor it is very little. If you move your controllers behind you it loses them so other than some glances behind you it is more of a seated/standing but in one central location. There is some slight movement but not on the scale of Vive/Rift. Tracking on Vive is near perfect imo (unless issues of low batteries) however I have heard other having some issues. Occulus I have had no tracking issues but again limited time in room scale where they might pop up. PS VR tracking I did not have many issues but it does use the Camrea which is older technology so another part where I may see issues if they tried to do full room scale (which i've heard of no plans).
PS VR certainly has the smallest FOV. Somewhere I think Vive reigns supreme. However, at least from my experience all three after a 10 minutes in it I stop to notice these. Of course each person could be different.
I have also used very little "controller" games with Vive. When I say non room scale I still use vive a fair amount with controllers just more in a stable location (usually standing because of my Vive setup).
As far as the distortion. I have heard of this but at least of now it is not something I have come across with the Rift. That being said I have limited time with Rift touch controllers which might encourage more quicker movement and hsow more.
I will add both the Immersion level/distortion to post in next day or so.
Contact me elsewhere.
Tuffalobuffalo, Escher77, thanks for the replies!
Steam Id: Yoyoson | Amoebic: after climbing up BurningManCraft's leg, I was a little too close to the subject matter and I lost my sense of scale. I didn't realize the thing was bigger than his arm.
PSVR is not room scale. The valid area for the camera is quite small, only a couple of feet in each direction based on my experience. Certainly meant for sitting or standing with a small amount of movement. As mentioned the Move controllers don't work full 360 either due to the visual required for the camera.
Thanks for the write up! I have PSVR and have spent some time with a friends Vive setup. Room scale is really neat but I don't think it's very practical for the average consumer. I also really think you need a wireless headset for the room scale experience to work; cables really do interfere.
I'm glad there's now three dedicated VR options out there as I'm hoping it gains enough traction and gets enough developer support. I was very skeptical going into VR and now think it really has the potential to be the future of games and entertainment in general. I suspect the next revisions of VR hardware will be truly impressive.
Principal Software Engineer at Playstation.
The views expressed in this post are my own. They have not been reviewed or approved by any Sony entity.
Just poppin in to say Escher77 is the man and will always be the man. Great info!
'N'yo for life!
"The first requisite of a good citizen in this republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his own weight." -Blitzcrank Roosevelt
Damn, now I'm thinking about taking the plunge over the holidays.
Do the Oculus headphones easily twist out of the way so I can use my regular speakers? Headphones combined with a full eye covering would be a big no-no in my household, as my wife will inevitably mess with me every time I play if I can't hear or see her approach.
I'm rather tempted by PSVR because it's not only cheap (I already own a PS4), but seems to be the simplest option to go with. However, what I'm most interested in VR for (sims like racing games and EVE Valkyrie and the like) doesn't sound like it's really implemented all that well in PSVR yet. Complaints about Driveclub in particular are quite discouraging.
Switch: SW-5816-4534-9106
Not using headphones will really diminish the experience to be honest. You can still use open headphones that let in all the ambient noise if you're concerned about getting surprised or about having conversations with people in a normal voice where you can easily hear yourself and them.
Tuffalo buffalo Tuffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Tuffalo buffalo.
SW-0326-3336-1619
Headphones are integral to VR. Some of the best moments in VR games comes from positional audio that only headphones can create, plus ambient noise is an immersion killer.
PSN / Steam / Wii U: Warriorpoet897
Switch: SW-6350-0100-9262
Now Playing: Octopath Traveler, The Last Guardian, Fallout 4 VR, Legend of Zelda, Vagrant Story, Bard’s Tale 3.
I suspect that falls on Driveclub and not necessarily the capabilities of PSVR. They clearly slapped VR on a game that wasn't designed for it. My guess is future VR racing games will fare better but we'll see.
Principal Software Engineer at Playstation.
The views expressed in this post are my own. They have not been reviewed or approved by any Sony entity.
One of the nice things about the Vive is its front camera. You can access it at any time by double tapping the system button on one of the controllers. You could pretend to be immersed in VR and when your wife goes in for the attack, you counter-attack. The key is to make it look like a total accident.
Oh yeah, I picked up a Vive! Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread, and to escher77 for creating it, and to all other VR-related posts I've read on these forums.
I will say this, I've had many problems to address, and on a few nights I've burned my one hour of freetime on just troubleshooting problems. The very first night was like that, and it was quite disheartening. But it got better. But at times it makes me think if I had just gotten the PSVR, I would spend less time fixing and more time playing.
Steam Id: Yoyoson | Amoebic: after climbing up BurningManCraft's leg, I was a little too close to the subject matter and I lost my sense of scale. I didn't realize the thing was bigger than his arm.
Once you get everything working smoothly and you can just pop it on and head in you'll be glad you went with the Vive. The experience really is worlds ahead of anything you can achieve with PSVR even though PSVR is good for what it is.
PSN / Steam / Wii U: Warriorpoet897
Switch: SW-6350-0100-9262
Now Playing: Octopath Traveler, The Last Guardian, Fallout 4 VR, Legend of Zelda, Vagrant Story, Bard’s Tale 3.
Good write up esch!
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-NSMike