Week 4: Chapter 4

“Design things with a computer that would not be possible without!”

       I really, really love this line. As I have worked with Unity and virtual reality the last few months, I have found that the best experiences I have had and the best experiences I have attempt to create are those that are surreal. When have found that virtual reality, though realistic to an extent, is not nearly as fun as real life. Playing soccer, baseball, or any other sport in real life is far more exciting than doing it in virtual reality (or any gaming platform really). Games like FIFA, Madden, NBA2K are only fun because you get to play from a different perspective, one that you never experience in real life. You get to control the whole team of elite athletes, rather than just play as an individual. Virtual reality generally works best in first person view though. This presents a hurdle that I have found makes many VR experiences less then exciting. A game such as VRStars Poker may be fun and offer an experience that you can't get everyday, but it is not exciting because it is nothing new. The only VR games that are truly enjoyable for me are ones that are based in mystical or surreal elements. Examples for this include SuperHot, a game where time only moves when you do. Likewise, Beatsaber offers an experience unique to VR. Instead of trying to mimic a real life activity, they create a completely different activity.