With the launch of Oculus Quest 2 (I have the original Quest), I was wondering if anyone had any favorite games they could recommend.
I’ve been having a lot of fun with Tetris Effect somewhat recently. However, I’ve been getting a lot of migraines and have tried to avoid VR the past couple of weeks. I really thing Covid time is just getting to me and my poor sleep habits.
Adam (the son you met in NY) ordered us a Quest 2 and it should arriving any day now. He just got his and he says it is awesome. I'll let you know what we find out.
So how you doin'?
If I were to setup a VR rig I'd look at Half-Life: Alyx. YouTube where a teacher used it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3g9jrqjOZs
Not sure if you can pick and choose your experience there but hey, looks great.
So my fiancé really enjoyed Red Matter. He felt it was more of a puzzle game. And let me tell you ... the graphics for it are really out of this world. I do believe he also played Half Life but I could be mistaken.
VZFit from VirZOOM - I just finished a virtual bike ride through the Italian Alps on my stationary bike.
Do you find it too sweaty and uncomfortable to exercise with such a heavy headset on?
Jim, did you get the Quest yet? First impressions?
Got it Friday afternoon. My first impressions were disappointment that it essentially came with no instructions. I had to do a search on Youtube and wade through unofficial videos. Fortunately, my older son (in the UK) had had his for a week or so and filled me in. The disappointment quickly faded.
This was my first experience with VR and it was incredible. So far we are doing the freebies and will likely continue that way for a while. I'm looking forward to more 360 nature videos.
I'm already addicted to Beat Saber even though I'm only doing the demo. After a dozen times through I discovered:
After learning the second point I really started workng up a sweat. Good cardio and perfect for someone with less than perfect knees.
We also got the elite headstrap which is much more comfortable and much better if multiple people will be using it. The linked video shows how to swap it with the default straps.
I didn't like that it requires a Facebook account. I'm philosophically opposed to Facebook. However, many years ago I set up a Facebook account using an alias (this was before they tightened the rules) to access some Facebook only content and the account. I hadn't logged on in years but it was still active.
I also didn't like that you needed a smart phone. I retired in 2008 and swore I would never be tethered to another device (on call 24/7) but I ended up caving a couple of years ago because I wanted a phone for emergencies (it's a long highway drive to the cottage). It took more hours to figure out how to free up space on my phone for the app (again, no instructions for Android phones). I had to delete something useful so I could install Google Files so I could move folders to my 32 gig card so I could install the Oculus app. This wouldn't have been a problem if I had installed the memory card properly in the first place (but there were no instructions).
My family room TV has a Chromecast plugged into it and I was easily able to cast to it. If you do this you can disable the red dot in the display by enabling the experimental features. There is also an option in the experimental setting that allows you to toggle in/out of pass through mode by double tapping the Oculus. I recommend turning this on.
I'd like to stream content from my laptop to the Oculus but I haven't figured this out yet. Apparently I could copy files directly onto the device but I first need to get a USB-3 to USB-C adapter (on order). There are instructions available (badly written ones) for setting up a Plex server on my laptop and a Plex client on my phone. I fought with those for a few hours then just gave up. There is an app I could buy for around $25 that is supposed to work but that can wait for a while.
What would be absolutely super, since the Oculus comes with external camers (for pass through mode) would be the option to record VR video from the external camers. I would love to do a walk through of our cottage property so we could save it for when we no longer go there.
Summary - awesome!
PS. The cat's annoyed because my lap isn't as available as it used to be. The dog doesn't care as long as he gets walks and cookies.
Beat Saber is one of my fiancé’s favorite games. We bought this rubber-like covering for the headset that makes it more comfortable when you’re working up a sweat.
We also splurged on a standalone 360 degree / 3D camera. We’ve used it so far to record our 2019 trip to Disney World, 2019 Thanksgiving with my mom and grandma, and it was whipped out when we got engaged as well. It’s amazing to relive the memories just as if you were there all over again.
In our case, the 360deg 3D cameras were just too expensive for what we wanted to spend, so we bought a camera that does either 360deg 2D or 180deg 3D. I highly highly highly recommend the 3D functionality.
Check out the video for "Raja Ampat Ecosphere". It's the one that's 15:07 long. It's a 180 coral reef video that is awesome. It's as good as our dive at the reefs in Belize years ago.
Got the full version of Beat Saber (sic). It is worth every penny. My arms ached for two days but have since adapted to the frantic flailing. Warning - you really need to make sure you are out of arm's rach of any walls or furniture. I'm finding the "hard" setting just too challenging enough. If you pick party mode you can keep high scores for multiple people. You'll definitely be needing the wrist straps to keep the controllers from flying across the room. If we ever get enough snow to go cross country skiing my arms will be ready.
With the UK once again in serious lock down, Adam is feeling the isolation so he suggested I buy Eleven Table Tennis. I looked it up, read the reviews, then bought it. You can play at various skill levels with the AI, or another Oculus player anywhere in the world. The haptic feedback makes you feel that you are actually hitting the ball. And you don't have to chase it when it rolls under the furniture. Adam wasn't able to make it home for Christmas so it is great to be able to play table tennis with him even though we are 6000 km apart.
For anyone who has enabled the "hand gestures" Oculus feature, unfortunately this game does not support that feature. The other game I bought is Beat Saber (see above) and this also does not support hand gestures, however, there is a proof of concept miniature Beat Saber that is playable from a sitting position with either single light sabres (index fingers) or multiple light sabres (all fingers). One can only hope this is offered as an update soon.
FYI - there is an upgrade available for the Oculus Quest 2 system software. This upgrade adds an experimental feature. If you have enabled experimental features you may already be aware of the "double tap" feature which allows you to toggle between immersive and pass-through modes by double tapping the side of the head set. The new feature is called Couch mode
When you enable couch mode you will be asked to draw a rectangle that delimits the position of your couch (or a chair, if you prefer). If you are currently using a room boundary (like I do when playing ELven Table Tennis or Beat Sabre), and you move outside the defined boundary, the couch will be shown with the defined rectangle. If you sit in this area you will be asked to switch to couch mode. Handy to prevent having to redraw your boundary.
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