I have been playing Elite since it first came out (including the original on the C64 in the 80s). In all iterations, this series has been one of the most immersive games available. It fulfilled my childhood fantasy of being like Han Solo more than any actual Star Wars game. I play the game from that angle. I don't grind. I've been playing ED since 2014 and am not Elite an anything (close in Exploration doing no passenger missions). Only this year could I afford a Python. I have fun every time I play.
I recently got an Oculus Rift which is paired with a GTX1080. Elite was my primary reason to get it.
It takes a while to get use to and some work to get the best settings. The current technology has compromises mainly the size of pixels when they are blown up to fill your FOV. Objects in the distance don't look as sharp as on a monitor.
However the upsides completely outweigh the bad. The obvious is that you are immersed in the world. Everywhere you look you are still in the world. Instead of a desk you see your ship. Every tiny movement of your head is reflected naturally in the game. Within the limits of the cord you can walk around the cabin of your ship. My wife caught be behind my chair oddly staring at the floor. In the game I was looking down the hatch in the back of the Asp. I had never noticed it there before! It felt like I should be able to just climb down.
It also shows the size of objects accurately. I felt nervous docking the first time because of the sheer size of the station. In a RES, an authority Anaconda flashed in front of my ship and almost collided. For a tiny moment part of my brain told me I was going to die if I crashed into it. It looked that big.
VR makes some aspects of the game more cumbersome. The galaxy map and system map don't work very well. You need a lot of HOTAS buttons or the ability to find home base on the keyboard quickly. Despite this I won't go back.
Nothing has ever come remotely close to providing the feeling of piloting a ship through space. For those who play the game with that mindset, I recommend jumping in. I wish I had done so earlier. If you play the game for different reasons (competition, making money as fast as possible, exploring as efficiently as possible) then it might be better to hold off until the tech matures more. There are definitely compromises but they are worth it to me.
I recently got an Oculus Rift which is paired with a GTX1080. Elite was my primary reason to get it.
It takes a while to get use to and some work to get the best settings. The current technology has compromises mainly the size of pixels when they are blown up to fill your FOV. Objects in the distance don't look as sharp as on a monitor.
However the upsides completely outweigh the bad. The obvious is that you are immersed in the world. Everywhere you look you are still in the world. Instead of a desk you see your ship. Every tiny movement of your head is reflected naturally in the game. Within the limits of the cord you can walk around the cabin of your ship. My wife caught be behind my chair oddly staring at the floor. In the game I was looking down the hatch in the back of the Asp. I had never noticed it there before! It felt like I should be able to just climb down.
It also shows the size of objects accurately. I felt nervous docking the first time because of the sheer size of the station. In a RES, an authority Anaconda flashed in front of my ship and almost collided. For a tiny moment part of my brain told me I was going to die if I crashed into it. It looked that big.
VR makes some aspects of the game more cumbersome. The galaxy map and system map don't work very well. You need a lot of HOTAS buttons or the ability to find home base on the keyboard quickly. Despite this I won't go back.
Nothing has ever come remotely close to providing the feeling of piloting a ship through space. For those who play the game with that mindset, I recommend jumping in. I wish I had done so earlier. If you play the game for different reasons (competition, making money as fast as possible, exploring as efficiently as possible) then it might be better to hold off until the tech matures more. There are definitely compromises but they are worth it to me.
