The Modern VR Experience – Pt 1 – Early Experiences

The Modern VR Experience – Pt 1 – Early Experiences

In studying Adobe products, cryptocurrencies/blockchain, the direction of social media and modern tech in general, it became very clear that a big part of the future is AR (Augmented Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality). While I have limited exposure to AR, I did manage to pick up a Meta Quest 2 (formally Oculus) VR headset last December(2021). This post and those that follow will document in detail my experiences and thoughts on modern VR and where I can see it going in the real world, from entertainment to education, business use-cases to art, and everything in between.

I did not plan or expect myself to get a VR headset, but at the same time that all of my reading into modern tech pointed to it, the headset was discounted because of the holiday and I had a promotion for an Amazon Credit Card(which I was going to get anyway). All said, the headset would cost me about $150 so when I did the math, it was ultimately a no brainer to put my order in. I had considered I may not use it much and it may sit around some but at that price it was worth having around just in case I was wrong. Boy was I wrong.

My original intention with it was to use it as a workspace as it has multi screen functionality and some of the work or learning that I do requires me to run a video while I use a certain program. In addition, I like to have the stock and crypto markets running in the background so I could have an additional screen showing whichever chart I preferred. The intention was to streamline my workflow and give me another option outside of my desktop and laptop. The truth is, I only set this up a few times but really haven’t found myself using it in this manner. I am not convinced I won’t utilize it in this respect but some 8 months into owning the headset it isn’t something I do much at all. But there are two reasons for this: One, what I am doing for work has changed as well as my needs, and secondly, I use the headset for other things. 

Working out in VR?!?

Early on, much to my surprise, I used the headset as a sort of home gym/exercise set up. I would have never in a million years guessed that this would be the case or that I would find the workouts sufficient, but I guess this is a lesson in having an open mind and a willingness to try new things. I got a free trial of this app called Supernatural, which is essentially a boxing app, and the first time I tried it I absolutely fell in love. Basically, you’re doing organized boxing routines to a decent soundtrack. What is particularly nice about the app is the atmosphere. Instead of being in a gym, they put you in some of the coolest places on earth. Imagine working out next to the pyramids or the Great Wall of China. Outside of the workouts, the locations alone are awe inspiring. But the workouts themselves are pretty awesome and you kind of grow addicted to doing them. The app keeps track of your workout progress so its easy to fall in a cycle of bettering your best. As I stated, I got the headset in December. This is when the world was still uncertain about opening back up and a bit past the beginning of winter, when outdoor exercise is more challenging. All things considered, I really loved my experience with the app. The headset wasn’t as clunky as one would think for this sort of thing, and it put the idea in my head that working out in VR is a very reasonable approach to getting fit. Sure, nothing beats the real thing but this is truly a reasonable alternative! That said, what I didn’t love is the monthly subscription and so, while I miss these particular workouts, I dropped it very quickly. 

Art

In my early experimentation with the headset in terms of what It could do, I tried everything it had to offer. While some apps are subscription based, some titles can be bought outright. But not everything comes with a price tag. One of the neatest apps you can get on the headset, as far as I can tell, is Gravity sketch. It is ultimately the VR equivalent of Microsoft Paint(though not as basic) and, at least when I got it, was completely free! Not only can you create amazing art in VR, but what you make are 3D objects in a 360 world. The controls have a slight learning curve but are incredibly intuitive after a bit of playing around and in no time flat you feel like you can actually do something more than just screw around. Most interesting about this app, which I will elaborate on in a future post, is that not only can you make 3D art to be appreciated in the virtual world but that you can export 3D objects in a format that you can print on a 3D printer! Real world objects and art, made in the virtual realm that you can then print and have in the physical form. That within itself is incredible and is reason enough, if you are an artist or into tech, to get a headset. 

Internet Browsing, Streaming Services and YouTube

You can also do all basic internet functionality through the Firefox VR browser. Pretty much everything from checking/sending emails, social media, news, sports…you name it. YouTube is a whole new experience as they have 360 degree videos where you can find yourself on a gondola in Venice or out in space, inches from the sun. While some of the 360 experiences could use some work, they are all awe-inspiring and an experience within themselves. For your basic (non 360) YouTube videos, what makes the experience greater is you can watch them on what essentially is your own home movie screen. While I don’t like to sit there with the headset on for hours, what it does do is help you truly get absorbed into what you are watching.

I’ve watched a few episodes of Rome (the Showtime series) as well as a live NFL game in my own movie theater, both in browser, and it was incredible. In addition to YouTube, The Meta Quest 2 presently offers apps for Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video, among others.

As someone who has focus issues at times, being in VR for these experiences was very helpful for me to pay my best attention to the media. While you can connect your phone to your headset, thus far I have not and so that was one major distraction out of the way for watching movies. One of the bigger faults of this experience is it’s pretty hard to drink and eat food with the headset on. Until they make a headset that feeds you too, this will be a major pitiful of prolonged watching experiences….but it certainly is not a deal breaker. I am kind of being funny when I say that, however, it is a small reality that eating and drinking is difficult while watching your film with a device covering your eyes. 

Social Media

The Meta Quest 2 also offers a new way to experience social media. You can connect to your accounts via apps or the Firefox browser for a more intimate viewing experience. The free Instagram (beta) VR app gives you a much larger viewing surface to appreciate you or your friends posts and photos! Many people spend their couch time staring into their phone keeping up with their social media accounts. The VR experience is simply the next level, distraction free way to truly soak in the posts and interactions! I am not entirely sure what socials are available outside of the Meta owned Instagram and Facebook(meta) apps, however, with the Firefox Browser you can access anything you normally could on your phone via the specific socials websites.

Gaming

One of the biggest reasons Meta purchased Oculus was to get into the massive gaming industry while being on the forefront in the future of gaming. While console gaming will always have a massive following, the headset is the sort of futuristic gaming technology that the Nintendo Wii once was, where instead of simply holding a controller and relying solely on your hands to control your play, it tracks your movements for a more immersive feel. While the Nintendo Wii was a pioneer in this regard (Wii Bowling/golf anyone?), the Meta Quest 2 and other VR headsets take the movement tracking concept to the next level, making crouching, jumping, spinning and more (sometimes) a large part of the game play. Such movements are critical in games like first person shooters and sports games, making the gameplay feel much more realistic and essentially putting you IN the game.

I have tried my hand at gaming with the Meta Quest 2 a bit, and I honestly only have great things to say in that realm. The VR Ping Pong is as close to the real thing as you can get and this is coming from a guy who has decades of playing on a real table under his belt. Apparently the same can be said for the mini-golf, though I have yet to try it. My roommate, whom I convinced to get his own headset, enjoys the Walking Dead game. While it’s not high on my list of titles I want to be actively playing, it was enjoyable the few times that I tried it out. The shooting aspect was very neat and felt realistic, and while the graphics weren’t mind blowing, the experience was very real and one might find themselves getting spooked and screaming out in horror when you happen upon a “surprise” zombie. The Star Wars games were somewhat disappointing but it was cool to feel like you were in the movie’s universe. There are some arcade titles that are pretty fun and apparently some of the more serious first person shooter titles are pretty well loved. It is worth mentioning that there are some neat random titles that take advantage of the VR technology and make gaming much more of an experience than just entertainment. All things considered, while VR has a LOT to offer the gamer, it is very clear that we are still only at the beginning of things. As more developers start moving over, as well as large companies investing in both games and the gear, things will no doubt only get better. 

ECHO ARENA / eSports

So what do I actually do with the headset? Presently, about the only thing I do with the headset is an esports game called Echo Arena. It is basically a hockey/ultimate frisbee hybrid in zero gravity. You have thrusters on your hands and back, and your movement is a combo of that and grabbing and pulling objects, your teammates and your opponents. The experience is so incredible that for the first week or two I would absolutely get motion sickness from playing.  It is the closest thing, so far, I have done in VR that makes me 100% have an out of body experience where I feel like I am somewhere else completely. While the game itself is fun, there are organized leagues that you can join where there are more competitive players. It is esports in its truest form, and I would easily go on the record to say it is a sport in general as I get an incredible workout in playing and it does take some physical skills to play well, especially the higher you rank in the competitive leagues. I have played eSports on PC and console games in the past, but it always felt cheap calling it a sport. But I would argue endlessly with anyone who would challenge Echo Arena being defined as such. As a person who doesn’t sweat a lot, I end each session pouring sweat and need to constantly clean my headset and controllers much like you would a piece of gym equipment! There is a punching dynamic to the game, where you stun your opponent as you race them for the disc. While most players don’t do it excessively, it is abundantly clear I have a punching problem. I am actually making a name for myself in the league as one of the better bruisers, the name they have for the punch happy players. Ironically, the punching aspect has done a good job of replacing the Supernatural app I spoke of above and my arms get a great workout. Since I have joined the league, I have gained a small bit of definition/tone to my arms, I feel more flexible in general, and I have even shed 12lbs since December without much change to my diet or real world routines.

I am also incredibly competitive and the league fully fulfills that part of me. Also, being in my late 30’s, I had been in the mindset that I would never get the experience I got from playing youth sports (soccer) ever again in my life. I mean it when I say that I was truly depressed about that until VR came along. While I can tell that someday I won’t be able to play at a high level, I am confident that I will be able to do so for some years to come barring any major injury. Some of the friends I made in the game are in the same boat as far as age and moving on from real world sports leagues. Others are disabled but this gives them an opportunity to compete and a more level playing field (while you do use your legs to spin and crouch, you can be competitive without and you are able to play seated in a computer chair provided it can spin). I met a retired Marine Sergeant who was born again in being able to both compete/play but more importantly, lead a team and bark orders(nicely enough) at his players. Of course there are a ton of idiot kids in this sport as well who clearly don’t have good parental guidance in their lives, but in the competitive leagues it’s not so bad. And in the defense of the younger players, who are usually the more talented ones because they have full mobility that us older folks lose over time, some of them are incredibly nice and tolerable at worst. 

I definitely did not expect to get the headset to join an esports team but that is exactly what happened. What is more, I OWN a team (named Zone Echo) that is competitive, presently ranked in the top 150 (out of over 1000) teams in North America. Outside of the gameplay and the friendship I share with my teammates, I get valuable experience in managing eSports that will be relevant for many years to come, even after I am unable to play at a high level because of age/physical constraints, especially when you consider that schools have eSports teams, colleges have eSports management courses and that sponsors are moving their way into this and related sports. In fact, RED BULL just jumped on board to sponsor the Top Tier players in Echo. And while this is now the 6th season of the competitive league(called VRML), any current player would likely still be considered an early adopter. I have been building a name and reputation for myself, my team has begun to make a name for itself, and quietly I have been building a dynasty in the making. Every Christmas holiday there is an influx of new players who get headsets as gifts, and thus each year the games player-base grow. Eventually, as VR becomes more commonplace, this sport will surely dominate the eSports realm. Even if it doesn’t dominate, It has a very loyal following so it promises to be around for quite some time.  I am incredibly happy to have found it. I could probably go on for days about this particular title but I will stop myself here. Suffice it to say that I have fallen in love and it was completely unexpected, completely by accident. 

While Echo Arena dominates all the time I have for VR presently, I do aspire to dig deeper into the art side of things, particularly Gravity Sketch. My roommate has a 3d printer and we would both love to experience creating a virtual piece of art then bringing it into the physical world by way of printing. I think for artists/graphic designers, VR has a lot to offer. Especially when you consider the concept of Metaverses becoming a reality. I also think there is a lot to offer for a musician who doesn’t mind the idea of digital performances. As with most things, the real life experience is probably the better experience, however, that doesn’t mean you can enjoy both. And for some people, experiencing such things in VR is the prime choice!

VR for Business?

Outside of multi-screen functionality, there are a number of business applications for a VR headset. One such example is a global corporation with staff in different countries. Rather than having to fly members into one central location, the team could meet in the virtual world. I know you might be thinking that this sounds stupid, but consider that we already do it with Zoom and related software. The difference is that with VR we would be able to interact more. There are meeting apps that exist where you can load in charts for presentations, video, etc. But more interestingly is there are apps that exist where a team of engineers can meet and build/display a 3D virtual rendering of an idea/product, from very basic workings to extremely complex depending on your team’s skills and imagination. One of the pitfalls of business utilization, specifically for meetings, is that currently you would only appear as an avatar.  But Meta has already created a professional headset, due in the fall, that has technology to take your real life expressions, from eye movements to your smile, and display them on your avatar, thus giving a bigger degree of realism. I would suppose eventually there will be technology that creates a true 3D rendering of your actual real-life appearance so it doesn’t feel like a video game when you are trying to talk business. But don’t be surprised if your boss still shows up with his/her bunny avatar anyway. A little fun never hurt anyone!

Education & Instruction

Of course, in the same vein of business utilization, so too can VR be used in the classroom. One obvious aspect is if we ever have to do from-home schooling again (or if some students choose not to go back for whatever reason), they can still attend in some form. I know this concept terrifies some people, but for some students, in person learning is terrifying at this juncture (especially if you have a physical or mental disability that makes being in class in person near impossible). But beyond that, one thing I always tell people about when we talk about VR in the classroom is the difference between watching instructional films on screens, about space for example, as opposed to putting on a headset and BEING in space. Same can be said for the pyramids and so on. The same can be said for all of history and all of the locations in the world. Not that I think classrooms should be students sitting around with a VR headset on all day, but consider just how immersed the technology can allow one to get in their subject of study! VR headsets can allow for students to experience their lessons on a level never before realized. All of this of course can apply on the collegiate level as well. 

Teaching/Instruction

I also believe that it has incredible potential for an instructor/teacher. For example, I have a friend who makes a very specific and unique class of dental appliances . He draws a great deal of interest from people all over the globe who want to learn his art. If he were to instruct on his work, he would have to go digital given the diversity of regions of which his pupils would reside. While VR wouldn’t be the only option, it would be quite a viable option. Surely if you can export 3D printable files, you can also IMPORT said files. So you could take an existing client’s print (3D scan of their mouth/teeth in digital form) and show, at least, the basics of how the appliances are made and explain the how’s and why’s along the way. And because it is in this virtual setting, the pupils can have a 3D view of the work being done and can even try their hand at it as well. Of course, until there is a dental specific app for this application you might have to be dealing only in the very basics, but even that is something. While some give instruction over streaming/conferencing apps, they can be combined with VR instruction to take the learning experience to the next level.  And surely, with all the money flowing around in dental realms, if there is a need soon follows the specifically made app. 

Of course, teaching in a virtual world wouldn’t just be limited to dental work; any kind of verbal/visual instruction would work. Again, the benefit being the more intimate, hands-on capabilities that VR would offer over Zoom/video conferencing and the streaming software presently in use. 

Travel

In some respect, the concept of VR Travel is a bit of a reach but not entirely too crazy. From a personal perspective, I very well may never afford to be able to see the places we dream about when we were kids, such as The Great Wall of China, The Eiffel Tower/Paris, or the Great Pyramids of Giza. There are also places that are breathtaking but possibly dangerous to visit that would otherwise be a dream to “experience”. While, once again, there is nothing like the real thing, perhaps second best would be these virtual experiences. If you have ever been to Disney World you might have seen that some rides, like Spaceship Earth in Epcot for example, have a way to take you to different places and different times without leaving Orlando. While the smells and feels of places might be lacking (at least for now) in VR, the visual experience is already quite possible and I am certain the quality, while already good, will only get better with time. And surely I am not the only person on this planet who would love to travel but may never be able to afford to do so.

Consider also someone who is in the twilight of their years who never got their chance to see these places who feels they are too old to travel. While one would want to be careful given that some experiences can be scary(like heights) or dizzying in their realness, I certainly could see a VR headset being a hit with the capable elderly and in retirement homes. The same could be said with those with disabilities where it isn’t realistic to travel. Especially for those with such a disposition that they can’t even leave their homes. As I stated above, some of the experiences I have had make it feel like I have gone somewhere else and there are times, after a VR session, where I take the headset off and have a quick moment of “oh yeah, I’m in my room”. In this regard, a VR headset is certainly an easy sell and it opens up many opportunities that may otherwise have not existed for individuals at a “disadvantage”. 

One thing that is absolutely true is this is not the VR we had in the Nineties. Some experiences are so realistic that you truly feel like you are in the game or the objects you see in VR exist in real life (note: don’t lean on any VR walls).  My personal experiences have been excellent thus far, and yet there is SO MUCH I have yet to try. I am absolutely going to push for more time on the art side of things but I also sit on a backlog of games and apps I’ve acquired but haven’t yet found the time to try. While the price of the headset has since increased, I still feel that it is a worthwhile investment if you are an avid gamer, an artist, someone who watches movies/shows and desires a better more intimate experience, a tech nerd who likes to play with new and exciting toys or someone who wants to have a more immersive educational experience. And if you are someone like me, who has an interest in just about everything, the Meta Quest 2’s offerings are quite varied and numerous. While I haven’t gotten around to all the things I desire to do with my headset, it has more than paid for itself at this juncture.

There is no doubt in my mind that this is the future of gaming and social media. And as outlined above, if nothing else, it is also an incredible enhancement to learning, streaming services, business use and much more. As with any new technology, it will take time for people to come around on its true value but I do firmly believe in the inevitability of most homes having a VR headset in the near future. It simply offers too much to deny it. In the past society was reluctant to adopt the internet, social media and smartphones as well but it didn’t stop them from taking a hold and becoming a part of our everyday lives.

In conversation, some of my peers suggested they feared it to be a way for people to exit the real world and forget about real life, but in my eyes it is no more a commitment than we currently make. We already sit on computers and use our phones throughout the day, VR is just the next step that puts us IN the computer, so to speak. While worlds exist in VR and some people will get carried away with just how much time they spend in it, I can speak from experience when I say I spend 99% of my time out of the VR headset despite having the ability to use it to my hearts content. This issue really comes down to the individual and habits they already have. After all, some people already spend most of their lives in games or on the internet, living alternative lives in their choice escape.

In closing, I just want to say one very important thing. No amount of talking up the technology or showing photos from in game/app experiences can do the experience true justice. You simply have to try it to truly understand for yourself. While I did a lot of research when I was looking to purchase the headset, it wasn’t until I put it on for the first time that I could really see it for what it was. And very quickly my mind was blown by the technology. I am very thankful I made the decision to get one and am extremely excited to see what the future holds for virtual reality!