The Vive discussion Thread

That's what I was thinking. Not sure about official but considering there was no mention of ED when Oculus presented the (pre-release) CV1 maybe FD have jumped ship on thinking the CV1 is the go to VR unit. Vive does "sound" a lot better regarding resolution and from reviews I've read where people have experienced it they sound blown away compared to the pre-release Oculus.

The res of the release Oculus isn't much better than Dk2 and only software will help to hide those pixels. It does seem odd they've had so much time to develop and with so much of a money injection from Facebook it just doesn't really make a lot of sense why they seem to have stalled at the last hurdle.

I'm only basing my views on reactions from people that have used the pre-release versions (or as near as at this stage) and from what I've seen on video presentations from Oculus etc. I guess time will tell !

I'm sure both headsets will see support in ED. Wouldn't make sense not to. Its no different then allowing different support for various HOTAS, etc. Its an accessory.

That being said, I am eagerly awaiting the consumer version of the Vive, as it will fulfill both the seated experience, as well as the standing experience and do both exceptionally well. I think their lighthouse system is just a better tracking system.

I don't think Oculus has necessarily stalled. They had different design decisions (seated experience only) that might have limited them to some degree, versus Valve started with a bigger picture in mind. Plus Valves partnership with HTC was not based on money, but on what both companies could do for each other. You have a gaming company, which owns THE hub for PC digital games (Steam), partnering up with a hardware manufacturing company. That is a very smart partnership. Oculus however went with a company with big pockets, but is neither a gaming company/distributor or a hardware manufacturer. I think this is one reason Valve is beating Oculus to market. So Oculus needs to step up their game. I think they DEFINITELY need to release their CV1 with the Oculus Touch.

Those reactions we see with Vive, I think tie in quite a bit to the accuracy of the tracking, and also the hand controllers. Its the one thing we've seen since the beginning of the Oculus, where people would look around, and then reach out and realize they can't see their hands. If you close your eyes, your brain still knows the location of your hands/body, right down to your fingertips. So when your hands location is finally represented in a virtual environment, that is one more element added that further ties us to that other reality. That's why a lot of those coming from those Vive experiences are in awe, because that sense of presence is now far more prevalent. Our brain is now seeing a visual representation of a part of our body that matches up with its positional information.
 
Both the Oculus and the Vive promise the only things I really want out of a VR headset after the DK2: lighter, better fit, and stability & accuracy improvements to the headtracking devices (the camera or the laser pyramids).

man who knew in 2016 we would be using laser pyramids to track our VR headsets. Even Back to the Future didn't predict that one
 
The res of the release Oculus isn't much better than Dk2 and only software will help to hide those pixels.!

CV1 and VIVE both use the same spec screens AFAIK, and they both use Fresnel lenses (blessing and a curse)

The difference between the 2 is mostly how they do tracking. Rift uses 1 or 2 cameras VIVE uses 1 or 2 light house base units which transmit light that the HMD picks up.

my understanding is that VIVE using 2 light houses has much better tracking than rift using 1 camera, however I have also read that like for like with both HMDs using 2 tracking devices there is not meant to be much in it.

Jury still out for me as to which will be best. Hopefully ultimately both will be fully supported and it wont be a winner or a loser, and both will be fully supported and it just be a personal preference think (sony or panasonic TV choice for instance)
 
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Crystal Balls

Reading between the lines of various things going on regarding the history between Oculus and Valve then add in stuff like SteamVR then to be quite honest i am 99.9% sure Elite will be on Vive. Possibly official partner ;)

Okay! I'm going to have a stab at predicting the future here. Frontier have made an Apple version of the game, and so there is a good likelihood a Unix version will follow. Valve have SteamOS, and they also want to promote their VIVE headset. It is conceivable that a special SteamOS version of Elite: Dangerous that works with their VR system will be released.

And Half Life Three is coming to the Elite: Dangerous galaxy as well.
 
From all the talks on youtube and the articles I have seen. Some people think the Vive is a little better with the screen. The only thing that I can think of is just that HTC is producing a better quality for the eye candy. Also I have heard that the Vive's tracking is Awesome, people have said that you can turn the positioning on and off for a seated or standing. So if you are seated you don't have to do the pre-height settings. As the Vive uses initial placing everything on the ground and hit the set button. then you can put the HMD on the pick the controllers up and everything is set to the exact positions for the standing experience. where the Oculus uses the config like the DK2.
 

indeed, so when push comes to shove, chances are there will be a matter of weeks rather than months between the 2 devices. exciting times for VR. whilst they are not for all games, when they work well they will revolutionise gaming imo.

My DK2 has been one of the best gadget purchases i have ever made :) even 14 months on it still manages to wow me like nothing else has since i was a kid to be honest.
 

Okay! I'm going to have a stab at predicting the future here. Frontier have made an Apple version of the game, and so there is a good likelihood a Unix version will follow. Valve have SteamOS, and they also want to promote their VIVE headset. It is conceivable that a special SteamOS version of Elite: Dangerous that works with their VR system will be released.

And Half Life Three is coming to the Elite: Dangerous galaxy as well.

..and Gordon Freeman, head of the Illuminati, turns out to be the force behind The Dark Wheel? <tinfoil.jog> ;)

Meanwhile, we'll all watch the skies, to see how good this unit is. If it's better than the consumer Rift, a lot of current DK2 users will probably jump ship- at least the ones who aren't wan, creepy brand advocates.

Hopefully this has served to focus Oculus a bit, and force them to "p*ss or get off the pot" (as the delightful expression goes). I suspect that without a competent competitor snapping at their heels, Oculus would noodle around forever before actually shipping a consumer version.

Whoever comes out on top, nerds who like cool gadgets win. Hopefully after a little near inevitable 3DFX-style API wars, it will all settle down behind a layer of abstraction, and any reasonable device which fulfils a laundry list of capabilities will be usable in most VR-friendly titles.
 
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indeed, so when push comes to shove, chances are there will be a matter of weeks rather than months between the 2 devices. exciting times for VR. whilst they are not for all games, when they work well they will revolutionise gaming imo.

My DK2 has been one of the best gadget purchases i have ever made :) even 14 months on it still manages to wow me like nothing else has since i was a kid to be honest.

Right there with you on that i'm 41 but feel like a kid again when i jump in cockpit on ED in the rift, I've had mine since Sept 2014 wouldn't part with it now:D
 
Question about the Vive and Glasses

I was wondering since it was mentioned that the Occulus would be considering those of us with glasses did anyone at EGX who tried the Vive wear glasses while doing so? I'm wondering if the Vive is going to be compatible with my face (XD) due to wearing glasses.
 
Had the chance to live 10mn in the Vive with Elite Dangerous in the recent Paris Games Week show. And it was amazing.

I have no comparison point as it was my first VR experience, but it was comfortable, seamless, immediate and seasick-free. Headtracking is awesome and I got my bearings in a couple of seconds. Though the sense of volumes, 3D wasn't as marked as I imagined (maybe it was due to settings not calbrated perfectly for me, IPD?) and the screendoor effect was a little noticeable.

skimming between asteroids in a Vulture, destroying a huge T9 while and keeping track of the 2 Cobras remaining in the enemy wing felt natural, yet was one of the most thrilling experience of my life.
 
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I have been thinking about all the people saying the vive is higher spec that the rift and I must say I do not see it. (I have not tried either tho)
I will be interested between a price comparison between vive and oculus WITH the touch controllers

The way I see it at that point
Both oculus and vive has 2 tracking devices (touch pack comes with 2nd camera)
Both oculus and vive have full VR controller devices

However
Imo the ergonomics of the rift blow vive out of the water
Rift also will have Xbox 1 pad
Rift has 2 games (of course maybe vive may comes with games of its own)

The last unknown are exclusives however IF rift is fully compatible with steam vr it may well be that all games work on the rift.... But will the rift exclusives ever make it on the vive?.....

There are still unknowns but my money is on the rift. ...but of course all the above goes out of the window if ED does not work on the rift!. There is still time to cancel my preorder

The only plus point for sure on the vive is the camera.... For me whilst it is a plus point no doubt it is not a deal maker or breaker end of the day both will do the job just fine imo
 
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The only plus point for sure on the vive is the camera.... For me whilst it is a plus point no doubt it is not a deal maker or breaker end of the day both will do the job just fine imo

Agree with you. I think they will both be pretty similar and the differences minimal for the v 1 devices.
I have ordered a cv1 and feel happy enough with that. But will change my mind if proved wrong once released
 
Rift has 2 games (of course maybe vive may comes with games of its own)

Bear in mind, Eve: Valkyrie is only included for pre-order customers, and both games are being paid for by VC, rather than adding to the cost of the headset. It's also my understanding that while the games may be exclusive to the Oculus store, they aren't prohibiting them from supporting other headsets.

The important thing is that Vive needs to make HTC money (their cell phone business is collapsing and they need a new income generator fast), while Oculus can sell the Rift at a subsidized price and reap their profits several generations from now. I'm willing to bet that as an overall package, Rift will be better value for the money for most users. People who value Lighthouse and/or the front facing camera will get more value from the Vive, but it sounds like there's a compromise on optics and screens.
 
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