The future of VR in Elite:Dangerous

[dayrth]

...Is this the 3.4 update of yesterday?...

Yes. I noticed this after yesterday's update. Didn't see anything about it in the patch notes, but graphics were definitely better. I asked another VR user if they had noticed, in case it was just me, but they said the same.

Shouldn't make any difference, but we are both using the Rift.

 

[VR Mr Teatime]

These are the VR changes in the patch notes for information, but there could also be other performance tweaks not listed:
VR

• Ensure the mist at Thargoid sites displays correctly in both eyes
• Fixed light flares from stars flickering in the right eye display

I don't think Frontier are going to drop VR support any time soon for at least the flying part, as VR in Elite Dangerous has become a bit of a halo/prestige product. I would suspect that if legs is part of the 2020 update then that is likely to be accessible to those who don't get VR sickness as well. I can't see a different locomotion method being implemented as it will double effort for legs development, when a single movement system mappable to controllers would be preferable and more cost effective. There are FPSs in VR that don't rely on the grenade toss/teleport method and either use WASD or analogue stick to "walk" about...its just a case of getting used to it and for zero G, the Lone Echo movement system works well.

 

[Ian Skippy]

These are the VR changes in the patch notes for information, but there could also be other performance tweaks not listed:
VR

• Ensure the mist at Thargoid sites displays correctly in both eyes
• Fixed light flares from stars flickering in the right eye display

I don't think Frontier are going to drop VR support any time soon for at least the flying part, as VR in Elite Dangerous has become a bit of a halo/prestige product. I would suspect that if legs is part of the 2020 update then that is likely to be accessible to those who don't get VR sickness as well. I can't see a different locomotion method being implemented as it will double effort for legs development, when a single movement system mappable to controllers would be preferable and more cost effective. There are FPSs in VR that don't rely on the grenade toss/teleport method and either use WASD or analogue stick to "walk" about...its just a case of getting used to it and for zero G, the Lone Echo movement system works well.

Sapce lends itself very well to VR FPS as you can in many places replace walking with floating.

 

[Rat Catcher]

Apart from being a stuttery mess immediately after the update for me in VR, which was actually user error, once I'd sorted out the doubling of SS...
I'll agree, since the update text does appear clearer (Rift) and graphics smooth

From the start of the topic, VR sickness, I can play for around an hour in CQC and only have to stop for a break because it is a bit warm inside the HMD... But that said, it took playing Lone Echo (brilliant - but so short!) to actually gain my 'VR legs', coming in to ED in VR was easy following that game!

Hopefully we'll continue to see VR flourish in ED, after the concerns post-3.3 (for me) release, which appears to be pretty much solved and improved upon, future updates will continue to make this 'niche' even better.

 

[Darkfyre99]

Yes. I noticed this after yesterday's update. Didn't see anything about it in the patch notes, but graphics were definitely better. I asked another VR user if they had noticed, in case it was just me, but they said the same.

Shouldn't make any difference, but we are both using the Rift.

When I got a chance to log in last night, I noticed a definite improvement. HTC Vive, in my case.

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

Hi all – I’ve had a nagging concern for the future of VR support in ED for a while. It started with David’s rather discouraging but not entirely inaccurate comments regarding VR generally, and was only exacerbated by some of the recent updates in which VR felt like something of an afterthought.

I know that any supposed leaks should be taken with a pinch of salt, but spacelegs has always felt like an obvious development ambition and I wonder how it could be achieved with VR best practices in mind. Personally, I’ve never had an issue with traditional first-person movement in VR, but a lot of people do.

Also, I noticed that the current iteration of the website appears to make no mention of VR (as far as I can see), whereas previously it was highlighted prominently as one of the game’s core features (“built for VR from the ground up”).

Am I worrying unnecessarily?

I hope that FD don’t follow Unknown Worlds in throwing their VR users under the bus. It’s one of the best VR experiences out there (if not the best), and I’d have no interest in playing the game in pancake mode.

Reassure me, please.

Here is the offical reply:

Hey guys, nothing to worry about! We simply slimmed down some of the headers and footers of the website and as such the VR logos are no longer there. This doesn't have any bearing on our support for the game

 

[The Lawful]

Here is the offical reply:

Yes, but it was not just about the logos, but the complete removal of VR as a feature from the new website as well. Before that, it was a key topic and had it's own top menu ("Made for VR") even. Now, you cannot find that the game even supports VR anywhere. Somewhere in the aforementioned thread I posted screenshots of how the site looked before, like this one

Spoiler

Ok, nothing to worry about? VR support was removed from the new site and who knows what will happen to the game.

O7,

 

[-VR- Max Factor]

Yes, but it was not just about the logos, but the complete removal of VR as a feature from the new website as well. Before that, it was a key topic and had it's own top menu ("Made for VR") even. Now, you cannot find that the game even supports VR anywhere. Somewhere in the aforementioned thread I posted screenshots of how the site looked before, like this one

Spoiler

Ok, nothing to worry about? VR support was removed from the new site and who knows what will happen to the game.

O7,

I don't think VR is going anywhere in ED at the moment. If it does, it won't be until the 2020 update so at least we will get another 18 months of VR gaming from ED. If the worst happens I can always play other VR games.

 

[Slowfiddler]

Yes, that lack of VR reference on the website is a bit disconcerting. The day they stop supporting VR is the day I am out. It would be completely pointless playing ED on a flat monitor.

 

[tarelen]

After getting my Rift headset a while back it has been so long since I played Elite flat (pancake mode ) that I forgot it worked like that! I suggest we all get friendly in RL with 3 or 4 flat elite players. Let them try Elite in VR and cause a viral switch in the usage demographics! VR is niche, but Elite is the best game I've seen in VR. Long may it last!

 

[Junky Juke]

I don't think they are going to give up VR anytime in future. The next gen playstation will improve their HMD's. If the consoles are going to keep up with PC is very likely we will see even more improvements and optimizations in Elite because of less technical limits.
I confirm that the quality of graphics and performance in ED is better today than one year ago. At 1.5 HMD supersampling the text is very crisp and the god rays are far less present than before. Station internals have less flickering and SC has way less stuttering than before. They also got rid of some strange texture behaviour near landable planets (do you remember of the missing textures around the edges of the screen in VR?) so they are definitely improving the performance.
The only concern I have about virtual reality in Elite is UI design. The two FSS and ADS screens are clearly not made for VR, together with the 3rd person view of turrets in multicrew. This sucks and shows the engine's limits. My hope is they will work on a new version of the engine that will allow for multiple layers of rendering (or something like that) so that they can integrate the FSS and ADS in the chockpit first person view. It would be another step ahead in VR integration.

Side note, I don't consider ED the best game ever seen in VR. There are at least a couple flight simulators that offer more integrated experience. And the lack of touch/wand controllers interaction will always be an handicap for ED. But who cares? xD

 

[Slowfiddler]

My hope is they will work on a new version of the engine ...

Oh god no. The bugs man, the bugs!

 

[Junky Juke]

Oh god no. The bugs man, the bugs!

Ok Ok the bugs first! xD

 

[Cmdr Delmonte[VR]]

Ok opposite to the Rift uses, since the update my Samsung Oddesy is stuttering, things are worse and yet my CPU and GPU have more overhead than usual???
Also in terms of throwing "Vr under the bus" its more like, "VR is stagnant" Still no OSD for keyboard, several of the screens do not wrap around so you cant see text (Ie galaxy map) no option to enlarge text, Lens flare caused by overambitious cockpit lighting you cannot control (Imperial ships are the worst) and the very worst of ALL is we still can't change the UI colour !!!!! VR needs this ability more than anything else.....
.
Just my 10 cents and all IMO
.
o7

 

[Slowfiddler]

I have no problem reading any of the text in ED using Oculus Rift. I have supersampling set to 1.6. Can you do the same for the Samsung?

 

[Cmdr Delmonte[VR]]

Hi, Text is fine Image is far better in the SO than other VR rigs due to very little SDE and higher resolution. My issue is now the game "Freezes" for maybe half second then carries on. After every update, I have to spend time fiddling with settings to resolve new issues. Being able to adjust the OSD will still benefit though. I use cutom colour settings. Basically desaturate the orange by 25% so the text is not too "In your face"

 

[rhiz]

I don't think VR is going anywhere in ED at the moment. If it does, it won't be until the 2020 update so at least we will get another 18 months of VR gaming from ED. If the worst happens I can always play other VR games.

Yeah, that was my concern really. As I said, I'm probably worrying for nothing - it's just that after my experience with Subnautica I was unsettled by the fact that VR was originally highlighted as a core feature, and now appears to have been quietly eradicated from the website. That and David's rather discouraging comments about VR. I guess we'll see.

 

[Slowfiddler]

That and David's rather discouraging comments about VR.

Which would those be?

 

[rhiz]

Side note, I don't consider ED the best game ever seen in VR. There are at least a couple flight simulators that offer more integrated experience. And the lack of touch/wand controllers interaction will always be an handicap for ED. But who cares? xD

I don't know about flight simulators, but there are very few what I'd consider to be fully fledged games in VR. Certainly few that you can lose yourself in like ED. Lone Echo is great but it's short and linear with only modest replay value. Subnautica had a lot of potential but has been abandoned by the developers (essentially). Most of the made-for-VR "experiences" feel like little more than tech demos. As much as I love VR, I just wish that a developer would fully commit to the creative potential of the medium, regardless of the fact that the market remains rather niche. It just seems like a vicious circle at the moment (not enough compelling, ambitious content = slow uptake, slow uptake = little financial incentive to make compelling, ambitious content).

 

[rhiz]

Which would those be?

I'm not saying that his comments aren't accurate, but this is hardly unbridled enthusiasm :

“I have never believed [VR] would take off. Right from day one, I said it would be niche,” he noted. “And it's a great niche, but it's still quite niche. We were, I think, the first people to support [VR] with a AAA game, with Elite: Dangerous in December 2013. It's a wonderful experience, it is really wonderful. But it puts quite a high bar on the hardware, so my personal view is you can't run any slower than about 90 frames a second, and the resolution you really want to be 4K per eye. [Currently] it is a bit blurry, it's quite hard on the eyes for a long time. And the other problem is, trying to use it in a family environment, it's really divisive. Because no one can see or hear what you're seeing.”

https://gamedaily.biz/article/194/david-braben-why-the-industry-needs-the-return-of-the-publisher