Yesterday I fired up MAME on the Oculus Rift DK2

[Drachenherz]

Okay, that was a nice surprise yesterday evening...

I tried a nifty little program for the Oculus Rift DK2 VR-headset, it's called "Virtual Desktop". It basically clones your Windows-desktop so you can see it like a large screen floating in front of your face in a virtual space.

Well, out of curiosity I fired up MAME, and waddayaknow? It worked! I played about 5 mins of Gunbird 2 on a huge virtual 2D-screen in front of my face, and it was almost surreal. Controls actually *felt* good, but I cannot actually say whether there was lag or not - it didn't *feel* like there was or much at all.

I also tried a MD-emu, which also worked (albeit only in windowed mode - fullscreen was displayed on my main physical screen). And just for shitsngiggles I tried Volgarr the viking, and that worked too in windowed mode.

Amazing stuff!

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

So you can now play games lying on your back in your bed? That's pretty sweet.

[Drachenherz]

Jup, that's possible now. Finally. The one single thing we all had been waiting for.

But unfortunately my bed isn't next to my work-/gameplace, but downstairs, so I'm stuck with good ol' cross-legged sitting.

And no lying down watching porn either. Wait, did I just say porn? I meant movies! And shows!

[PC Engine Fan X!]

Whenever Oculus Rift is released at retail stores, that'll be the day. Again, a set/definite MSRP still hasn't been decided.

I'd imagine playing those Sega Super Scaler arcade game title roms like Galaxy Force II, Rad Racer & Power Drift on the ol' Oculus Rift pack quite a visual punch, indeed.

PC Engine Fan X! ^_~

[emphatic]

TATE or bust.

[cicada88]

TATE or bust.

Occulus Rift is one of the most TATEable displays ever—just tilt your head to the side

[ChurchOfSolipsism]

lying down watching porn

[Drachenherz]

[mastermx]

I wonder if it's possible to design a shmup specifically for oculus rift, and to use its features as game mechanics.

[Drachenherz]

I wonder if it's possible to design a shmup specifically for oculus rift, and to use its features as game mechanics.

Well, there is a touhou-clone that is displayed in stereoscopic 3d where you have some control of the camera by headtracking. Quit fun actually. It's calleded suwako-chan cubic or something like that.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=-6-hvzPchL8

[Teufel_in_Blau]

How about strategy or tactic games? Did you tried out something like Homeworld? I would imagine playing that game in 3D would be a blast. Also, if an old shmup is playable in that thing, would be a game like Distant Worlds or Crusader Kings also be playable? Is it possible to read text from such games via OR?

There is so many questions I have but it seems that all the people with an OR are "playing" is roller coasters.

[mastermx]

@Drachenherz
That actually looks quite interesting. Always trust touhou to innovate.

[brentsg]

I want a Tempest collection on OR..

[MadSteelDarkness]

I wanna play Rez on OR.

[Skykid]

Finally Namco have a reason to port Attack of the Zolgear!

TBH if I could get my hands on an OR port of Atari's Star Wars arcade original with a decent replication of the yoke control, it would be a day one thing.

[RaidenViper]

Imagine playing Space Giraffe on this thing. Awesome.

[Drachenherz]

Finally Namco have a reason to port Attack of the Zolgear!

TBH if I could get my hands on an OR port of Atari's Star Wars arcade original with a decent replication of the yoke control, it would be a day one thing.

Well, it's not quite Ataris star wars...

But maybe close enough?

http://www.theriftarcade.com/destroy-th ... ulus-rift/

[Drachenherz]

@Skykid:

BTW, if you want to fly in space, Elite:Dangerous is quite the revelation, especially in the rift. I splurged hard for an incredible experiencd, but it was so worth it to experience this is the rift, especially with a throttle/joystick setup. I let pictures speak for themselves:

View of the cockpit in elite, throttle:


View of the elite cockpit joystick:


The whole cockpit with view:


My setup to play elite and racing games in the rift:


The feeling of "being there" in the cockpit is hard to describe if at all... When you look down at your virtual body, grasping the virtual controls, which corresponds with your actual hamds grasping the real stick and throttle... And being to look and LEAN around in the cockpit... It's truly something and so powerful, even on the not-quite-there-yet hardware of the DK2. And yes, even with the shortcomings of the DK2 it is fully playable already, even for prolonges sessions of play (>2 hours).

[Stealthlurker]

Yep the 'Rift is totally bad ass. No one ever believes me until I let them try it. It's always fun to see them react while using it.... especially big "tough guys" and chics haha.

Is the DK2 worth the upgrade at this point? I've got 2 of the DK1s (1 at home and 1 at work). I told myself I'd wait for the retail... but who knows when that'll drop.


.

[Skykid]

Shit, that looks incredible. I'm having visions of a new X-Wing game. If they bring the graphics up to current gen spec it will be as good as being there!

When you quit after prolonged play, it it totally weird to remove the visor and be back in your room?

[brentsg]

Shit, that looks incredible. I'm having visions of a new X-Wing game. If they bring the graphics up to current gen spec it will be as good as being there!

When you quit after prolonged play, it it totally weird to remove the visor and be back in your room?

Look around your room.. "FUCK, I'm still here.."

[Drachenherz]

@Stealthlurker:

I'd say the improvements from DK1 are significant, but the rift isn't quite "there" yet. Screendoor-effect is still visible, albeit not as pronounced as on DK1. The resolution is way better than DK1, but still not enough. Text is readable though, and with the added positional headtracking, you can lean in to better read text. Ah, and positional tracking in and itself is phenomenal - it truly makes the experience so much more believable. Not only because it reduces simulator sickness (it's still there, especially when "walking" with the stick/keys), but because your small body movements are translated into the simulation, which makes everything more "natural" on a subconscious level. The FOV is a little bit smaller than on DK1, it's quite like looking through a scuba mask.
And the whole setup does need some fiddling around, it definitely isn't consumer-ready plug and play. And you need a VERY beefy system to enjoy a judder-free experience running at a STEADY 75 fps - then, the "low persistence" delivers a blur-free and smooth experience that is truly mind-blowing. And of course there aren't that many full games yet. But if a game/app is well made, I quickly forget about all the shortcomings.

As there is still no ETA for the final consumer-release, I just couldn't wait and caved in and got the Dk2. I am willing and able to deal with it's shortcomings, as I am very enthusiastic about VR. So, if you don't mind the mentioned drawbacks, it's a great upgrade from DK1. But if you want a "perfect" VR-experience, it's better waiting for the consumer-version.

@Skykid:
Yeah, after a longer session, I sometimes have to re-orientate. For example, after racing for 1 1/2 hours in "live for speed", I found myself thinking after taking off the rift: "aw shit, whre am I? Ah, still sitting at my desk, ah, yeah..." But I had no problems with my view, no troubles addapting my sight to reality. It was more like being transported back to reality after being very immersed in the game/simulation. Similar like when a very good movie is finished that was really immersing you in its story, and then the lights go back on in the cinema.
And yeah, when the big-budget titles start coming out, we will be truly in for something special. But I noticed that photorealistic graphics aren't the most important aspect to really "suck you in". A stable framerate, believable animations and especially the scale of the world are much more important to make your lizard-brain think that you're really "there".

By the way, Oculus VR has partnered with Samsung, and the both are releasing "Gear VR" im october. A combination of the new Samsung Galaxy Note 4 with a Headset where you plug in the note 4 as the screen. It's a mobile, cable free solution with the technical know-how from Oculus VR to make sure headtracking is lag free. John Carmack himself worked for a year in cooperation with samsung to deliver a very good mobile experience. Although graphics are naturally way less powerful on a mobile device compared to a beefy pc, the experience is more than good enough to show the possibilities of virtual reality. Especially for apps like a cinema, where you can watch movies (even 3D movies) on a huge ass virtual screen.

Yeah, I think we're really in for quite a ride - it really feels that the future is here, and it IS true: you really HAVE to experience VR for yourself to truly grasp the impact and potential of it. Neither words nor videos can do it justice. If anybody ever has the chance to try VR, be it with a DK1, DK2 or the upcoming Samsung Gear VR: go for it, you probably won't regret it. (If it doesn't make you sick, that is, and even then... )

[Stealthlurker]

Thanks for the feedback Drachenherz! Appreciate it Now for the wait on the consumer version....