Elite's VR: It's Really Great, But... My Rift Experience

[Jakester13]

I really love the sense of scale and wonder of Elite in the Rift. It's fabulous. And in a CZ or combat scenario, the game really excels and VR definitely make you amazingly spatially aware, making combat more fun and "easier".

I must admit though, I still prefer to play Elite on my big monitor. It's my go to game for relaxing, drinking beer, reading about things going on on the forums, making notes, rolling cigs, playing music and chatting to the family whenever they pop in to see if Dad/Husband is OK .

I also specifically have problems in the rift with the Galaxy Map, System Map, the menus and general "usability" and that is frustrating as hell. I've probably not got things well set up on the X52, as I have always multi-controllered: The SRV is set up like GTA for driving, with mouselook, WSAD etc. and I use keyboard shortcuts as well as the HOTAS to manage flight and systems - awkward in the rift, even with a bright blue backlit Aivia keyboard. :S

I love the rift, but some titles that I thought I would love (Serious Sam, Rick and Morty) have controller problems or my play area is too small, while I'm in love with Defense Grid 2 and can't wait for Brass Tactics, another top-down RTS. Google Earth is hands-down a gem, with astonishing 3D details in unexpected places. Horror/experiental "games" are fun too. Might try Alien: Isolation if I can get the mod working. I'm told it's really brown-trouser stuff

I would love a Shogun: Total War for VR, or Sim City. [yesnod]

You'd get spanked in Battlefield 1 - Snipers shoot a moving pixel on their 4K monitor, while in the rift you'd struggle to see as clearly or as far as a monitor user.

Anyhoo, there's some thoughts on my Summer of Rift.

o7 CMDRs!

 

[Crank Larson]

Might try Alien: Isolation if I can get the mod working. I'm told it's really brown-trouser stuff

I bought it for that reason, though so far haven't been able to get it working with the Rift. Mind you, I don't think I tried the mod method - there was another way that was meant to work by editing config files (as the game was actually written with VR support, then it was dropped before release). Editing the config files doesn't work.

For E: D, I much prefer the Rift now. I did buy a Vive when that came out, but that is nowhere near as good for E: D (the menus and text are blurred, and the screen door effect is much more noticeable). I'm keeping an eye on the 8k Primax kit that is due early next year, though.

I haven't got much of a play area at the moment either, but found Echo Arena was good fun (and also good to demonstrate VR to others). I bought Star Trek while it was on offer, but haven't played that yet (I'm just speccing up a VR machine for a friend, so I'll wait until he has it before I get to Star Trek).

Other than Star Trek and E: D, I've just stuck with the free games. As I had Vive before, I also have some games in SteamVR (Tiltbrush, The Lab) which are good fun.

I had problems with the galaxy map when I first moved to VR. I couldn't move along the tabs on the info panel. I've now bound this to the keyboard (arrow keys do that - I probably do have spare keys on my HOTAS, but can't be bothered to work out where), and that has resolved my problem. I find it is actually much easier to see where things are in the galaxy map in VR. When on a monitor, it really isn't obvious where a system is.

 

[Cliché]

That sounds like the ultimate in casual playing, so 'being there' is not at the top of the list.

 

[Jakester13]

That sounds like the ultimate in casual playing, so 'being there' is not at the top of the list.

Quite casual, maybe: However, I think relaxed is a better term. My study lighting is changeable so the screen pops out, and considering I've done Sag A* that's hardly casual .

If I want non-stop heart-pumping adrenaline, I'll play some BF or Doom. I just like the fact I can take my hands off the controls now and again, have a sip/drag, make some notes, plan my route, scan some bodies.

 

[masCh]

Yes I have had this experience, especially when you want to just laze around with family and you just want to fly here or there or check some stars out. And myself I would like to have a YouTube documentary open while I fly around. On the desktop I play on a multi monitor setup so I could have Elite on one and YouTube on the other.

On the Rift I have to carefully sip tea from a cup or use a straw!

So these days, whenever I'm in the Bubble I'm usually in the Rift. But when I go out exploring, most of the time I'd be just using the monitor.

 

[CylonSurfer]

I bought it for that reason, though so far haven't been able to get it working with the Rift. Mind you, I don't think I tried the mod method - there was another way that was meant to work by editing config files (as the game was actually written with VR support, then it was dropped before release). Editing the config files doesn't work.

The only way to get A:I working on a CV1 or Vive is by using the MotherVR mod. A:I used to work via the method you describe above but stopped working after Oculus removed extended mode support from their runtime before the release of the CV1.

 

[Temmy]

I really love the sense of scale and wonder of Elite in the Rift. It's fabulous. And in a CZ or combat scenario, the game really excels and VR definitely make you amazingly spatially aware, making combat more fun and "easier".

I must admit though, I still prefer to play Elite on my big monitor. It's my go to game for relaxing, drinking beer, reading about things going on on the forums, making notes, rolling cigs, playing music and chatting to the family whenever they pop in to see if Dad/Husband is OK .

I also specifically have problems in the rift with the Galaxy Map, System Map, the menus and general "usability" and that is frustrating as hell. I've probably not got things well set up on the X52, as I have always multi-controllered: The SRV is set up like GTA for driving, with mouselook, WSAD etc. and I use keyboard shortcuts as well as the HOTAS to manage flight and systems - awkward in the rift, even with a bright blue backlit Aivia keyboard. :S

I love the rift, but some titles that I thought I would love (Serious Sam, Rick and Morty) have controller problems or my play area is too small, while I'm in love with Defense Grid 2 and can't wait for Brass Tactics, another top-down RTS. Google Earth is hands-down a gem, with astonishing 3D details in unexpected places. Horror/experiental "games" are fun too. Might try Alien: Isolation if I can get the mod working. I'm told it's really brown-trouser stuff

I would love a Shogun: Total War for VR, or Sim City. [yesnod]

You'd get spanked in Battlefield 1 - Snipers shoot a moving pixel on their 4K monitor, while in the rift you'd struggle to see as clearly or as far as a monitor user.

Anyhoo, there's some thoughts on my Summer of Rift.

o7 CMDRs!

I think my main problem with ED and the Rift at the moment is that ED is very much a game of community exploration where a lot of information exists on forums and websites (copying in and pasting system names...etc). When you're playing on a desktop you can alt-tab between windows as much as you want, but in VR you simply can't do that. The experience would be better if there was a way of dumping text details into a file before startup, and then in game having a means or interface to view that file; something like a virtual scratch pad.

That said, it's a wider issue which is more about VR just needing some convenient ways of viewing desktops rather than game devs trying to engineer solutions.

 

[Captain N]

I think my main problem with ED and the Rift at the moment is that ED is very much a game of community exploration where a lot of information exists on forums and websites (copying in and pasting system names...etc). When you're playing on a desktop you can alt-tab between windows as much as you want, but in VR you simply can't do that. The experience would be better if there was a way of dumping text details into a file before startup, and then in game having a means or interface to view that file; something like a virtual scratch pad.

That said, it's a wider issue which is more about VR just needing some convenient ways of viewing desktops rather than game devs trying to engineer solutions.

OVRDrop.

 

[CylonSurfer]

I think my main problem with ED and the Rift at the moment is that ED is very much a game of community exploration where a lot of information exists on forums and websites (copying in and pasting system names...etc). When you're playing on a desktop you can alt-tab between windows as much as you want, but in VR you simply can't do that. The experience would be better if there was a way of dumping text details into a file before startup, and then in game having a means or interface to view that file; something like a virtual scratch pad.

That said, it's a wider issue which is more about VR just needing some convenient ways of viewing desktops rather than game devs trying to engineer solutions.

You can switch between Elite and Virtual Desktop I believe. Lots of post about it in this sub forum, sorry but I don't have any details as I don't use third party tools or websites while playing and have never found the need to. Personally I see it as being too immersion breaking and only use the tools available to me in game.

Depending on your skill level I believe it should be possible setup Voice Attack script to copy lines from a text file to your clipboard and then into the Galmap search.

OVRDrop.

OVRDrop doesn't work with the native Rift runtime, HelloV does though but has less than desirable performance hits.

 

[Captain N]

OVRDrop is better. No switching required.

 

[heretowatch]

I think my main problem with ED and the Rift at the moment is that ED is very much a game of community exploration where a lot of information exists on forums and websites (copying in and pasting system names...etc). When you're playing on a desktop you can alt-tab between windows as much as you want, but in VR you simply can't do that. The experience would be better if there was a way of dumping text details into a file before startup, and then in game having a means or interface to view that file; something like a virtual scratch pad.

That said, it's a wider issue which is more about VR just needing some convenient ways of viewing desktops rather than game devs trying to engineer solutions.

Install V and set one of the bookmarks to forums.frontier.co.uk. You won't be able to copy/paste but it'll be right there on your screen and you can just type it in galmap. Yes, VR isn't as convenient as monitor playing, but didn't we all know that when we bought into it? You buy VR because you care about immersion. Immersion specifically excludes elements of your real world in an attempt to get you sucked into your virtual world.

 

[CylonSurfer]

OVRDrop is better. No switching required.

OVRDrop doesn't work with the native Rift runtime (as per my previous post) - the user has a Rift. SteamVR does not have ASW - any Rift user would be mad to use it over the native Rift runtime.

 

[Lordxenu]

steam overlay?

 

[heretowatch]

steam overlay?

What about it? For ED, Rift users shouldn't use Steam.

 

[masCh]

What about it? For ED, Rift users shouldn't use Steam.

Why not? I'm using SteamVR with the Rift.

 

[heretowatch]

Why not? I'm using SteamVR with the Rift.

I guess if you've got it working satisfactorily, no issue. But SteamVR seems to complicate things for a lot of users. I always recommend using Oculus Home.

 

[CMDR CPT. Boris]

rolling cigs

 

[masCh]

I guess if you've got it working satisfactorily, no issue. But SteamVR seems to complicate things for a lot of users. I always recommend using Oculus Home.

Well I don't know if I've got it working. I do use SteamVR, but it initiates Oculus Home which sits in the background. I have to use SteamVR because I need to monitor my ED hours that I've played. I uninstalled ED from Oculus Home because of this reason and only use the Steam version.

 

[Wood67]

In the bubble I'll always go with the Rift. But I'm doing a long (for me at least) explore run out to Sag A*, Colonia and then home and after a few kly a switched back to 2D. The speed with which you end up in the jump/honk/fuel cycle, plus the navigation issues just slow it down too much. After a jump/scan I skim the star for fuel while popping into the system map to see if there's anything worth a detailed scan. Doing that in the Rift takes too long and gets very weary.

I did strap back in for the Black Holes. I found the Great Annihilator much more ominous - no traffic, no tourist beacon. 35kly so far and heading for Jacques - kind of wanting to get home now...

 

[heretowatch]

Well I don't know if I've got it working. I do use SteamVR, but it initiates Oculus Home which sits in the background. I have to use SteamVR because I need to monitor my ED hours that I've played. I uninstalled ED from Oculus Home because of this reason and only use the Steam version.

Well that's definitely a unique need. OH doesn't have a way to monitor hours in-game, and SteamVR will always trigger OH. So if you need that metric, I'm afraid there's not much you can do.