The Vive discussion Thread

[Oheck]

Can you see the lighthouse lasers shining on things in the dark?

I'm curious to know.

I have a medium size room, with a desk and other obstacles around the periphery of my play area. If I could see where the lasers hit things, it would help position the base stations to maximise the coverage and avoid any potential shadow spots.

You could take a look at this vid. Shows the pattern that the lighthouses scan a room. Based on that you can figure out what might be an obstruction. Seems a pretty thorough scan area though.

[video=youtube_share;oqPaaMR4kY4]https://youtu.be/oqPaaMR4kY4[/video]

 

[Sanderson]

So hard to wait......must.....resist.....

Patience is a virtue I rarely posses but, must be strong.

 

[gamer101]

Thanks for the video link.

re: looking for shadow or null zones. Walking around the edges of my room high and low, pointing a torch at the mounting point is what I've come up with so far.

Or perhaps taking photos from the mounting point angled at the center of the room.

Then again, maybe I'm over engineering this ;-)

 

[tsh]

Looking at that video, some small translational vibration is unlikely to have much impact on the accuracy - it will map directly to motion of the resolved location. IF the mounting twists because of vibrations, the effect would be bigger (but that should be less likely). I'm guessing the lighthouse is used for low frequency tracking, gyro/acceleration are probably used for fast motion - with the results blended together.

 

[wstephenson]

Wondering how long the Vive will be in transit for when it has been shipped. Do you guys think they will be shipped to the UK before being sent to UK customers,so delivery will be just a day or two, or they will be shipped from abroad? In which case delivery may take a week or two?
i feel like a kid waiting for Christmas!

Digital River are handling the fulfilment and I'm sure the UK is one of their 65 distributed warehouse locations (http://www.digitalriver.com/solutions/commerce/physical-and-digital-fulfillment/), so it's possible. How HTC and DR are doing the actual fulfilment is going to remain opaque. But even if they are shipping UK orders from Ireland, door to door will be a matter of a day or two rather than measured in weeks.

 

[Jake Savage]

Digital River are handling the fulfilment and I'm sure the UK is one of their 65 distributed warehouse locations (http://www.digitalriver.com/solutions/commerce/physical-and-digital-fulfillment/), so it's possible. How HTC and DR are doing the actual fulfilment is going to remain opaque. But even if they are shipping UK orders from Ireland, door to door will be a matter of a day or two rather than measured in weeks.

Thank you for the info Wstephenson.

 

[Soda Popinski]

Might want to tune into this video, "SteamVR Dev Round Table." Walsh from Frontier is on the panel.

[video=youtube;P8D3eoMII-w]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8D3eoMII-w[/video]

 

[Gray Lensman]

Mind want to tune into this video, "SteamVR Dev Round Table." Walsh from Frontier is on the panel.

VERY interesting, thanks for that. Mr Walsh said very little and there was virtually (no pun intended) no mention of ED as a VR experience BUT the closing comments when the chairperson states that he's looking forward to the public seeing the newly released games in the Vive is perhaps a signal that ED is fully supported ... maybe.

 

[Caspar]

QQ ... One of the issues I have with the DK2 is the limited head tracking. You can move in / out and look around but it doesn't take much for that to drop out (i.e. when you turn your head to have a look at the cockpit).

I'm guessing that the Vive, using the lighthouse system, will have no problems with this. Has the tracking on the Rift CV1 improved?

Even though it costs a fortune, I may well get the Vive as it stands. Especially if ED caters for it.

 

[Adam Lusardi]

QQ ... One of the issues I have with the DK2 is the limited head tracking. You can move in / out and look around but it doesn't take much for that to drop out (i.e. when you turn your head to have a look at the cockpit).

I'm guessing that the Vive, using the lighthouse system, will have no problems with this. Has the tracking on the Rift CV1 improved?

Even though it costs a fortune, I may well get the Vive as it stands. Especially if ED caters for it.

I have read somewhere OR tracking has been improved (two cameras may help (impact more CPU overhead, extra USB port needed, delay and increased cost)) but I'm hoping Vive is somewhat better at this as its my one major pain with the DK2.

 

[Frank]

I've still no idea which headset I should buy <sigh>

Might want to tune into this video, "SteamVR Dev Round Table." Walsh from Frontier is on the panel.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8D3eoMII-w

Thanks Mr Popinski. It was great to see Dave Walsh there, but that video really did highlight the difference between games that were lucky enough to be a good match for VR and games that were built for the VR experience from the bottom up. It actually makes me feel that the CV1 would be better for Elite Dangerous as it is more of a halfway house between the two different types of gaming.

But the problem for me is that "Budget Cuts" sounds like an absolutely fantastic game. I don't know if it will be a VIVE exclusive, but it certainly looks that way. It might be a good idea to compromise the VR experience of Elite Dangerous so that I can have the full room experience of the other games.

That comment about how this is the start of a new chapter in gaming and that it's a good time to get on board when there are no established players, I wonder if Frontier Developments have any VR-only games in the pipeline.

 

[Sanderson]

Thanks Mr Popinski. It was great to see Dave Walsh there, but that video really did highlight the difference between games that were lucky enough to be a good match for VR and games that were built for the VR experience from the bottom up. It actually makes me feel that the CV1 would be better for Elite Dangerous as it is more of a halfway house between the two different types of gaming.

But the problem for me is that "Budget Cuts" sounds like an absolutely fantastic game. I don't know if it will be a VIVE exclusive, but it certainly looks that way. It might be a good idea to compromise the VR experience of Elite Dangerous so that I can have the full room experience of the other games.

That comment about how this is the start of a new chapter in gaming and that it's a good time to get on board when there are no established players, I wonder if Frontier Developments have any VR-only games in the pipeline.

I was disappointed with the silence from FD's man. Maybe he needed a queue to know when to speak? (humor) Perhaps because VR audio doesn't get the attention it deserves? IDK what the reason was for being a bump on a log but, I'd sure like to hear a lot more about VR audio. Would have been a great opportunity to shed light on the importance of audio in VR.

 

[wstephenson]

I was disappointed with the silence from FD's man. Maybe he needed a queue to know when to speak? (humor) Perhaps because VR audio doesn't get the attention it deserves? IDK what the reason was for being a bump on a log but, I'd sure like to hear a lot more about VR audio. Would have been a great opportunity to shed light on the importance of audio in VR.

I was talking with an audio codec developer recently, and VR audio will indeed be a thing. Not simply surround, but spatial surround, so an object's distance from you in 3D space does more than just change its audio volume, and environmental effects (EAX, remember) will be applied spacially.

 

[sutex]

I was talking with an audio codec developer recently, and VR audio will indeed be a thing. Not simply surround, but spatial surround, so an object's distance from you in 3D space does more than just change its audio volume, and environmental effects (EAX, remember) will be applied spacially.

VR is such a fundamental game changer ... Can you operate a keyboard in VR , or mouse in VR , or interact with your VR screens ? , a force feedback system between the VR game and your PC

Voice attack another piece of software around for years , is fast becoming indispensable with any VR setup where you need to operate something other than a controller

 

[Sanderson]

I was talking with an audio codec developer recently, and VR audio will indeed be a thing. Not simply surround, but spatial surround, so an object's distance from you in 3D space does more than just change its audio volume, and environmental effects (EAX, remember) will be applied spacially.

Oculus released an audio SDK a couple months ago, I've read a bit about it but, there's not a lot out there on it.

 

[Raptoyd]

I am looking forward to experiencing that as it should add a lot to the experience.

 

[Soda Popinski]

But the problem for me is that "Budget Cuts" sounds like an absolutely fantastic game. I don't know if it will be a VIVE exclusive, but it certainly looks that way. It might be a good idea to compromise the VR experience of Elite Dangerous so that I can have the full room experience of the other games.

I recall seeing an interview where they mentioned they plan Oculus Touch support, but were having some problems with reaching for knives on the floor. It wasn't working so well with the Touch controllers, and may have to do with the sensor placement. There was mention of having a magnetic attraction to grab things too low. Of course, we won't see that until the end of the year.

 

[Frank]

Making things worse by trying to make them better

I recall seeing an interview where they mentioned they plan Oculus Touch support, but were having some problems with reaching for knives on the floor. It wasn't working so well with the Touch controllers, and may have to do with the sensor placement. There was mention of having a magnetic attraction to grab things too low. Of course, we won't see that until the end of the year.

I'm not sure I could resist waiting a day nevermind a whole year <grin>

I was disappointed with the silence from FD's man. Maybe he needed a queue to know when to speak? (humor) Perhaps because VR audio doesn't get the attention it deserves? IDK what the reason was for being a bump on a log but, I'd sure like to hear a lot more about VR audio. Would have been a great opportunity to shed light on the importance of audio in VR.

There were a lot of clever and articulate people in the room who were all excited by the idea of developing the best VR experiences. It must've been difficult to respond to a comment without it sound too much like a "me too" statement. I would've also hoped that Dave Walsh could have added more to the conversation. Not just to promote Elite: Dangerous. There is something he brought to the table that none of the other developers had.. us, a very large user base of actual customers who are currently enjoying a commercially released VR game.

The comment that Dave Walsh made was an important one. Audio is a key component of VR. It is also one of the things that draws me towards the CV1. Oculus themselves have stated the importance of audio. Their inclusion of a fairly good quality headset as an integral component means that the software developers have a better idea of how the noises they synthesize are going to sound right where your earholes are. I know there are audiophiles here who say that their headphones are much more expensive and better quality, but I have this feeling that anything that deviates from the sounds the developers expect to be produced at your ears will sound further away from the virtual location that's the headset's emulating.

Like I said before, both headset might seem like they are very similar, but both have their strengths and weaknesses... I wish I could afford both <sigh>

 

[wstephenson]

Being put around a table with a bunch of confident, expressive startup kids who are talking about the chance to upset the industry and displace all the incumbents, when you've been a business guy at the same place for the last 14 years is just tough. I hope that Dave gets some coaching how to deal with this situation for the next time he presents FD and ED. He looked pretty uncomfortable when he was on camera.

 

[Frank]

Being put around a table with a bunch of confident, expressive startup kids who are talking about the chance to upset the industry and displace all the incumbents, when you've been a business guy at the same place for the last 14 years is just tough. I hope that Dave gets some coaching how to deal with this situation for the next time he presents FD and ED. He looked pretty uncomfortable when he was on camera.

I can see it now... <harp music>..

You've enjoyed Rollercoaster Tycoon
You've enjoyed Zoo Tycoon
Now play our latest game... Business Tycoon, a VR exclusive.

Don your headset and thrill at the immersion of being placed around a table of up-and-coming whipper snappers who are all bright as a button and have the tongues to match. Points are awarded each time you can interject a salient point first. Bonus points if you can promote your company at the same time.