Community Question | Who Here Uses VR, And Why?

[Paul Jeffrey]

Sim racing is far more than just the simulations themselves - a long, wide and varied array of hardware can be used to enhance your experience, and one such device is VR - but who here uses it on a regular basis?

VR - otherwise known as Virtual Reality, brings with it the ability to place a driver right into the heart of a virtual racing cockpit. Adding an immersive 3D experience to the driving aspect of sim racing, the technology and immersion are no doubt impressive - but can come with a cost - namely loss of visual performance, high PC horsepower demand and the (potential) discomfort of wearing a headset for prolonged periods of time.

As with much in life, one has to weigh up the pros and cons and VR is no different. With that said, I'd love to know how many of us here at RaceDepartment regularly use their VR headsets when sim racing, and the reasons why they prefer it (or not) over traditional screens.

Fire away in the comments section and poll!

 

[Des Pearce]

As often as I can I use VR and with my recent upgrade to a 3080 I'll use the reverb g2 even more.

I find it much easier to be consistent, catch slides earlier and can race closer without worrying about bumping people. Along with the extra immersion it makes monitor gaming feel like a poor relation.

 

[Stogie]

I cant believe how many people haven't tried it. Thats why we cant get it in Formula One games. For me If the title doesn't support it I wont buy it. Its that simple. I'll even buy it if the support turns out to be crap like ACC....I dont even like GT3 cars or pre ordering games but I still did as soon as they added VR support for ACC.

 

[Deleted member 1234936]

Note to VR Manufactures, Put this VR tech inside an actual helmet, the visor becomes the screen (Still flips up/down), speakers built in for audio, adjustable opaqueness so you can use button box's etc, Vibratee stuff for imersion, silent fans in the rear to remove the heat, wireless if possible.

Cheers

J

 

[Two Hands]

That's wrong IMO - I personally never experienced anything remotely vomit inducing, even from the first time I tried it. I honestly think that those who experience some form of motion sickness from VR are in the minority and, like you say, most can overcome it with exposure.

Same here. I never experienced any motion sickness. First time in vr, I booted up assetto corsa on a nordschleife track day server in the rx7 and stayed on there the whole evening, only stopping briefly to change cars a couple times.

 

[ImWilde]

For me VR is so immersive.. Instead of 'playing' the game on screen you are at the venue in the car.

 

[bworthen23]

There is one choice missing --> I tried but no i can`t because of motion sickness

Seriosly i tried but after about 30 seconds i almost vomit on the floor

Totally get that this is real. I too had trouble to start. Just curious, but have you checked all settings to make sure there isn't something wrong? What is your set up? I have been using VR since Oculus DK1 and I would get super sick in that, but as I learned that some apps were better experiences than others (and also built up a tolerance by IMMIDIATELY removing the device and waiting until I felt 100% better until I tried again) I was able to overcome it and then had DK2, CV1 and now Rift S. iRacing and AC are incredible. ACC is a nightmare.

 

[DirkW]

There is one choice missing --> I tried but no i can`t because of motion sickness

Seriosly i tried but after about 30 seconds i almost vomit on the floor

I would recommend starting with Nascar, not so many curves and easier to handle. And put a fan in front of your face, helps!

 

[bworthen23]

100% VR use + buttkicker. Realy magic!! I cannot go back to screen use.

What set up do you use? I'm considering diving in to buttkicker world...

 

[Duke55]

No, never tried it. Though it appears that will change come Christmas day. Apparently Santa will be dropping off a Oculus Quest 2 (plus the extra bits to go with it).

 

[blekenbleu]

I use my Odyssey+ except when fighting software and configuration issues, so rarely.

 

[Hotdogxx60]

I use a rift and I've now find it hard to race a car without it. It sits you in the seat where you should be.
I did try triples for a very short time and although it was more comfortable not wearing the headset and you could easily find the buttons on the wheel and button box it didn't give the same experience.
Next year I hope to go down the Nvidia 30 series and a HP G2.

 

[TShrimp]

I have an Oculus, but don't use it. It is difficult to navigate with the head unit/visor when using the mouse/keyboard, so having lift it up and down all the time is a pain. Once racing it is fine. One of the other issues for me...I have never been able to adjust to the motion sickness caused by VR. I am actually okay with that as I prefer a monitor (34" Ultrawide) anyway. I feel for those who get motion sickness from it, but like it better than using monitors.

Edit: For those who are interested in VR I would suggest trying it before you buy if possible. Nothing like spending $400+ and realizing you can't get past the motion sickness.

 

[Terje Helle]

I ONLY use VR. Came from 3 screen setup. But I can’t go back. The immersion is on another level. After 3 years in VR, I still get excited about getting in VR.

 

[Terje Helle]

There is one choice missing --> I tried but no i can`t because of motion sickness

Seriosly i tried but after about 30 seconds i almost vomit on the floor

I couldn’t drive the car for 2 meters. Then I had to stop. Now I can be in VR for weeks, up side down. It took more than a month to finish a 5 minute race against AI. And then I had to close my eyes if I had a crash, or reverse.

 

[Tim Meuris]

Note to VR Manufactures, Put this VR tech inside an actual helmet, the visor becomes the screen (Still flips up/down), speakers built in for audio, adjustable opaqueness so you can use button box's etc, Vibratee stuff for imersion, silent fans in the rear to remove the heat, wireless if possible.

Cheers

J

Exactly, you are the first I hear talking about it. When vr came out I immediately thought: put this in a helmet!

 

[Deleted member 197115]

Wearing a helmet for a few hours is not terribly comfortable (not sure if you've tried it), add extra weight that will be added by all the optics and electronics and it will be a torture device.

 

[schrep1964]

Exactly, you are the first I hear talking about it. When vr came out I immediately thought: put this in a helmet!

like this e.g:

Oculus rift inside a motorcycle helmet, cool and hot at the same time!

 

[Scratch Face]

I've used the Rift CV1 with a 1070 card since it came out. It has been an absolute game changer as a practice tool for track prep. You simply cannot get the same feeling of speed and elevation change on a monitor. The quality is no where near my 4k 120hz monitor but the immersion is unmatched. The monitor is pretty but I can't wait for the G2 now that I've upgraded to a 3090!!

The biggest eye opener for me was putting on the headset and driving the Ring. I never fully realized how narrow it was and the insane elevation changes. I could feel it in my stomach! 5 years ago I went on my honeymoon and visited the ring with my wife. My first few laps were in the rain of all things but I had so much confidence from my seat time that we were able to pass 911's in a track rental FT86. Racing is all about seat time and for someone who drives as poorly as me to be able to get that seat time without constantly having to risk bending up my own cars is huge.

If anyone here has not used VR because of budget I'd be happy to give you my Rift when the G2 arrives. I'm in SoCal.

 

[Wilko Jones]

Stupid question, but what are the inexpensive options for VR? Im looking at below $400USD.

 

[Cote Dazur]

Question for VR users. How you press buttons on your real steering wheel during racing? Adjusting pit strategy?

With our fingers.