VR: Is it Really the Future?

Paul Jeffrey

Premium
VR Article.jpg

Virtual Reality is fast becoming a mainstream alternative to the traditional ways we view our gaming experiences, but is it a long term solution for sim racers? RaceDepartment has a think on the subject...

In the not too distant past Virtual Reality (or VR for short) was the lone possession of a select few arcade machines simulating anything from first person shooters to Battle of Britain style fighter pilot games, yours for a few minutes of gaming pleasure in exchange for a healthy handful of loose change and presented in a strictly controlled environment. In fact I can clearly recall my first VR experience back in the mid to late 1990's at a local arcade in the north of England, strapping on a bulky headset and piloting the guns of a 'Red Barron' style double winged aircraft as enemy planes (actually more like pixelated dots at the time) flew above me and I gasped in awe at the realism of it all. Of course with the steady march of technological progression over the years that game would be laughed out of the door nowadays, but at the time the experience felt simply mind blowing.

Step in to 2017 and Virtual Reality has progressed at such a rate that the first serious VR headsets are slowing beginning to feed into the general gaming population. Back in 2012 Oculus began a Kickstarter initiative to develop their own VR headset for PC gaming, very quickly exceeding their initial funding target and in the end raising a staggering $2,437,429 across 9,522 backers - putting the wheels in motion for what has turned into a technological arms race to establish a clear lead in the quest for mainstream VR access in modern gaming. As of February 2017 Oculus (now owned by Facebook) have been joined in the VR marketplace by such industry giants as Sony with their PlayStation VR headset for console users with the HTC Vive now a genuine alternative for PC players, albeit a little more expense at around £700 in comparison to the Rift which retails around the £500 mark and the PSVR which usually comes in at a reasonable £350.

Project CARS VR.jpg


Mainstream VR technology is still very much in it's infancy, with issues surrounding the pixel density one of the main concerns from members of the public perhaps looking to upgrade from their current viewing solutions. As of today, no current VR headset can hope to match the graphics quality one can achieve with a standard monitor setup, let alone come close to the Ultra HD / 4k screens some lucky gamers have access to within their own gaming rooms. Couple this with the need to pack some serious hardware into your gaming PC in order to run the vast majority of VR ready title's at a reasonable performance level, it quickly becomes clear that VR gaming has not quite reached the stage where everyone would be willing to take up the obvious advantages, despite the many remaining pitfalls of the technology.

No doubt as the technology matures further in the coming years and more companies join the VR bandwagon these obstacles will be overcome in time, leaving open the original question posed by this post - is VR the future for racing simulations?

In order to answer that question I feel we first need to ask ourselves a series of questions to determine exactly how VR might fit into our future gaming requirements. The first question many serious sim racing enthusiasts may ask is - does running VR increase the immersion of simulation racing? Or in other words, do I feel more like I am driving a real race car when viewing the action from a headset rather than on a monitor (or three). For me the simple answer is yes, considerably so.

Using VR in a sim racing title is simply one of the most incredible things I have ever had the pleasure of experiencing during my many years playing racing games. The purity of the feeling of being strapped into a car is quite simply incomprehensible until you try it for yourself. With VR you are quite simply sitting in the car yourself, you are at one with the machinery around you and suddenly you find yourself transported from one who is playing an approximation of the real thing to someone who is physically part of the experience itself. It really is that good. Prior to trying VR myself for the first time I, like many others, watched a series of videos of people playing racing games with the headset on. I've seen countless videos of people looking around the environment inside the car, leaning forward to check the dials and generally making the most of the ability to completely experience the virtual world in which they are participating. That's all really cool. So cool in fact I decided that would be a great reason for purchasing VR and trying it out myself. This is where my mind was simply blown the first time I took the humble KTM X-Bow out around Spa in Assetto Corsa pretty much as soon as the headset arrived. It's not just the ability to look where you want in game that makes VR, after all you can achieve something similar with trackIR, it's the 3D aspect that really takes away the breath, an experience that simply cannot be captured watching YouTube videos of people playing in VR.

HTC Vive.jpg


I can't make this point enough... wearing a VR headset you are quite literally inside the cockpit of your car. The feeling and visuals you experience are simply breath taking. It really is amazing how the mind can be tricked into convincing your body you are sat inside the machine, so much so that even though at the time I'm running a big Fanatec BMW rim on my rig my brain see's the in game car wheel and convinces my body that I'm holding that specific size and shaped wheel. It's a spooky experience...

So far so good. In order to try and remain objective and keep this piece balanced, let's turn our attention to some of the immediately obvious issues one encounters when first sampling a VR headset within a sim racing environment. Namely motion sickness.

Now I am not one who easily suffers from motion sickness and I appreciate that views on this topic are subjective to how each individual reacts to the experience of wearing a VR headset for prolonged periods of time. When my Oculus first arrived I found myself only able to really drive comfortably for around 15 minutes at a time without the need for a break. After the 15 minute mark I started to feel a little bit queasy and hot under the collar due to the visual sensations received from the headset. This was using Assetto Corsa. If playing something slightly more visually taxing like DiRT Rally, then trying to complete a stage without removing the headset was basically impossible for me. This quickly became a concern. However after reading some of the considerable amounts of information on the internet my concerns gradually faded away, it is commonly acknowledged that players new to VR have to establish their "VR legs" so to speak, giving the mind and body a chance to adapt to this new experience. For me personally after around a week or so spent with the Rift I quickly overcame the initial sickness feeling and can now use my headset without issues for as long as I wish, running multiple races in one session or completing endurance stints of several hours at a time. Just because I now feel comfortable is no guarantee that everyone will share the same experience however. This factor needs to be considered before making a purchase yourself. I've heard a few people simply couldn't get on with the experience and have sold off their headset because of it.

VR In Game.jpg


So, does using VR make you faster? This is a very difficult question to answer, and the response will be different for each individual person. Taking my own experience with the Oculus Rift I would argue that I'm a quicker driver with the headset than without, and for sure my positional awareness and ability to navigate traffic is greatly improved because of VR.

The advantage of Virtual Reality over traditional monitors is most prominent when considering depth awareness. Because you are now firmly planted within a 3D environment, the curbs and track immediately in front of you are infinitely more prominent and "alive" than what is experienced on a tradition 2D screen setup. I feel using the headset I can pick out an apex much easier than before, and hit the apex on a considerably more consistent basis than was possible without the headset. The reason for this can be attributed to several factors in my opinion. Firstly the 3D environment is much closer aligned to the real world one is used to, and therefore the brain doesn't have to compensate for the lack of 3D images when picking out details of the track on a 2D screen. In a standard screen setup you have to apply a little bit of estimation between real and virtual when entering a corner as your eyes and brain are seeing something presented to you differently (i.e. in 2D) than you would experience in the real world. With VR you are in the car yourself and everything is as it would be in real life, the element of estimation has been removed. The track / corner / apex is presented to your eyes in 3D, as it would be in real life. Added to this you can see the depth of the apex and track much easier, it is quite simply a much more accurate representation of that particular piece of tarmac that you would find outside of a VR situation. For me at least this makes hitting the apex a much simpler and more natural experience, which obviously has a positive effect on overall laptimes.

Conversely because of the current lack of high resolution graphic rendering capabilities using VR, one could find it more difficult to accurately judge far off braking points using the headset, in comparison to the standard one or three monitor setup. For example when playing Assetto Corsa in the rift, despite having high in game visual settings and making VR specific adjustments to the pixel density, far off objects still remain considerably less clear than they ideally could be. This impacts the ability of the player to look up the road and make an accurate judgement of a far off braking zone and can even cause the eye to miss potential track blockages that would otherwise have been obvious to a monitor user. Over time one develops the ability to shut out this issue and compensate subconsciously for the lack of long draw distance quality, but it must be taken into account when considering the laptime advantages offered by using the rift or not. Personally I find this distraction to be of secondary importance compared to the additional immersion offered by the headset and improvements in the ability to pick out an apex and better understand depth perception within a game. This may not be the same result for other users and should be taken into account when considering purchasing a virtual headset device.


If truth be told it's still very early days in the world of Virtual Reality gaming and current VR headsets such as the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive have quite a way to go until they are capable of matching the visual fidelity of mid to high range monitor setups. Even with that taken into consideration I firmly believe (aside from the invention of FFB wheels) Virtual Reality is the single most impressive enhancement to a sim racers experience in the last dozen years. If you can afford to spend a not inconsequential amount of money on a device, and you are willing to overlook the drawbacks of the lower resolution produced by current units, then Virtual Reality isn't really the future of sim racing - it's the present day, right here, right now.

Will the technology improve over time? Yes I expect it will get considerably better over the next five years or so, but to be perfectly honest what we have available right here today is an outstanding piece of kit that will help take many sim racers above and beyond the levels of immersion they ever thought possible. It's tomorrow's technology, available and working on today's simulations. I love it.

Current racing / driving sims that support VR headsets include: American Truck Simulator, European Truck Simulator 2, Assetto Corsa, iRacing.com, Project CARS, RaceRoom Racing Experience, Live for Speed and DiRT Rally.

If sim racing equipment is your thing or you just want some advice before making a purchase, head on over to our Sim Racing Hardware sub forum here at RaceDepartment and engage with the often knowledgeable, and always helpful community members on a wide range of sim racing related equipment.

Do you think Virtual Reality is mature enough to become a "must have" piece of tech in sim racing? Do you expect the technology to improve in time? Have you tried VR yourself and what do you think? If you don't have a VR set, what is the main think that keeps you away? Let us know in the comments section below!
 
Last edited:
The question was if NOW VR is a good thing?
The reply is NO...
In the future maybe but not now...
With the costs of a machine to play VR sim you could afford a real car...

And don't forget that these kind of visors are around since 20 years now and still most people like better to play on a flat screen...

Cost of machine, I understand you mean to say PC, is the same as a PC for 3 screen so not a valid point, now if you prefer to buy a used car with that money, presumably because you do not have one already, having a real used car might be a better idea in your case.
Rift and Vive have not been around for 20 years, last I checked.
Try it you might realize it is better than you thought, meanwhile you might want to read the post from people who actually have experience with both and learn something.

Allright, I get that. I'm not into flight sims, it was just a thought, a wrong one as it seems ;)
I see no point in VR for racing. Looking around does not bring much in a race car. You use peripheral vision and mirrors (on triples) and if you would turn your head, you'd see the head protection of the seat,
TrackIR for racing does not work for me either btw.

Looking around does not bring much in a race car, really, that is a good one. my suggestion to you is go try it, then we might be a little more interested in what you think and prefer.
You sound like someone who has never see the Ocean telling us being on a lake shore is exactly the same as being next to the Ocean.
 
Upvote 0
Got a projector setup and a uw 34" setup. The projector was /is used most. Is great with the 1:1 display.
Ordered a HDK2 on Cyber Monday for $299.
Had a couple of frustrating days getting it to work.
My preferred sim is GTR2 got it to run in VR with Reshade.
Several times I have unconscious checked if my seat belt was on! newer happen on the monitor or projector.
Sure the screen res could be higher but it takes about 20 seconds to forget that.
Enjoy it with Flight Sims too.
Both AC and Pcars could use some VR/3D optimizing.

It does get too hot with the headset on and it is very unsocial.

When I am testing and fiddling with mods I use the Monitor or the projector when racing I use the headset!
When people are over for hot lapping we use the Projector. The headset is too unsocial.
 
Upvote 0
Cost of machine, I understand you mean to say PC, is the same as a PC for 3 screen so not a valid point, now if you prefer to buy a used car with that money, presumably because you do not have one already, having a real used car might be a better idea in your case.
Rift and Vive have not been around for 20 years, last I checked.
Try it you might realize it is better than you thought, meanwhile you might want to read the post from people who actually have experience with both and learn something.

Looking around does not bring much in a race car, really, that is a good one. my suggestion to you is go try it, then we might be a little more interested in what you think and prefer.
You sound like someone who has never see the Ocean telling us being on a lake shore is exactly the same as being next to the Ocean.
Passive aggressive behaviour is not making me changing my opinion that VR headsets are NOW toys for people willing to spend more money than necessary for this kind of experience...

To play a sim you DON'T have to have a triple screen or 1,000$ monitors at 4K resolution or VR headsets paired with a PC with 2/3 1080GTX, i/6700K with 16 GB ram with 4 SSD driving on a gold plated rig with the most costy Fanatec system...
You can have the same fun with a i5 with a single 24" 1080p screen and driving with a DFGT attached to your computer desk...

And do yourself a favour... Try to be less arrogant when replying to other peiople...
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
Why to play a sim you should get such a onitor that has

Passive aggressive behaviour is not making me changing my opinion that VR headsets are NOW toys for people willing to spend more money than necessary for this kind of experience...

To play a sim you DON'T have to have a triple screen or 1,000$ monitors at 4K resolution or VR headsets paired with a PC with 2/3 1080GTX, i/6700K with 16 GB ram with 4 SSD driving on a gold plated rig with the most costy Fanatec system...
You can have the same fun with a i5 with a single 24" 1080p screen and driving with a DFGT attached to your computer desk...

And do yourself a favour... Try to be less arrogant when replying to other peiople...
PEOPLE are just asking you to try a VR headset .then you might understand what we are talking about ..i for one am not asking you to change your mind about VR .BUT unless you try i think it is unfair to give a negative opinion:)have a happy day
 
Upvote 0
PEOPLE are just asking you to try a VR headset .then you might understand what we are talking about ..i for one am not asking you to change your mind about VR .BUT unless you try i think it is unfair to give a negative opinion:)have a happy day
I tried it... At a gaming fair...
There was a PC on display with VR and with few € you could try pCars for 5 minutes with VR on a rig...
Yes... VR is fun... but surprise i have the same amount of FUN with my good old i3 (gonna change it with a i5 soon cause it's really ageing after 6 years of service) with 8GB ram and 960GTX... And yes... i have a normal 20" screen and a poor old G27 too...
Yes my driving experience is bad considering i didn't had spent 5000€ on my equipment...
LOL... :D
 
Upvote 0
I was instantly converted from my Tripple screen Swift ROG, 3-way Titan and Track IR set up once I'd hooked up a new Titan X and Rift.

After previously waiting for some games to update for correct tripple screen configuration, it was even more welcome to have their VR offering.

No going back for me. I'm firmly in the VR camp, and welcome new recent updates in the field like R3E joining the pack (especially when their tripple screen configuration remains absent).

Whilst acknowledging the inferior graghics, the immersion simply surpasses this in droves. Add a 'Thumper' to your seat and you just can't stay away.

A great time for SIM racing.
 
Upvote 0
I tried it... At a gaming fair...
There was a PC on display with VR and with few € you could try pCars for 5 minutes with VR on a rig...
Yes... VR is fun... but surprise i have the same amount of FUN with my good old i3 (gonna change it with a i5 soon cause it's really ageing after 6 years of service) with 8GB ram and 960GTX... And yes... i have a normal 20" screen and a poor old G27 too...
Yes my driving experience is bad considering i didn't had spent 5000€ on my equipment...
LOL... :D
Well that is the most important thing IMO..HAVING FUN :D
 
Upvote 0
Looking around does not bring much in a race car, really, that is a good one. my suggestion to you is go try it, then we might be a little more interested in what you think and prefer.
You sound like someone who has never see the Ocean telling us being on a lake shore is exactly the same as being next to the Ocean.
Never cared for your opinion, or your arrogance for that matter. Let's leave it there shall we...
 
Upvote 0
Would you mind elaborating on eye-tracking? I think it might be one of the most helpful emerging technologies so far, but I'm not sure how it is relevant to racing sims and VR.

Every aspect which is not perfectly matched with the reality provides motion sickness.
For example the delay, missing g-forces, the resolution, everything.
One thing is the eye tracking. In real live you would just look left or right with your eyeballs but with the actual VR Headsets you have to turn your head. If that´s eliminated we are a step further for sure.
 
Upvote 0
I bought a dk2 in 2015. Initially I was a little deflated by the resolution, once I'd accepted it and tweaked a few things I was blown away by the experience. Any hint of nausea soon went away, apart from in alien isolation!! That made me sweat too. :roflmao: I now have a cv1 and like some others have said, I just can't play on a monitor anymore. The level of immersion and all that vr brings is fantastic.
 
Upvote 0
I answered "Yes" to the question, even though I recently sold my Oculus Rift CV1 and went back to triple screens. I bought the CV1 last Spring and have a gaming computer with plenty of power to run it (i7 6700k CPU & Nvidia 1080 GPU). I used the CV1 for several months as my preferred method for sim racing, including in iRacing, Project CARS, Dirt Rally and Assetto Corsa. I also played plenty of non-racing games including Chronos, Edge of Nowhere and Eve Valkyrie. I enjoy VR, but the CV1 was tough to wear for long periods of time and I would get headaches. The pressure on my face was just too much. Also, I missed the resolution of my monitors. I recently purchased triple 27 inch Dell Gsync monitors and they look amazing. I decided that I will take pretty graphics over the enhanced immersion that VR offers over triples.

That being said, I now have a Playstation VR headset and absolutely love it. It is MUCH more comfortable than the Rift. I can wear my glasses and it does not hurt my head at all. Moreover, the selection of non-racing games is better. My favorites to this point are Resident Evil 7, Star Wars Battlefront VR mission, Batman and Robinson the Journey. As to VR racing games, there is only one right now, Driveclub VR, which is good fun. I will take the VR version over a single screen console game any day. Dirt Rally Playstation VR releases this Friday and so I might buy that as well.

In summary, if I could get the comfort of the Playstation VR headset with the power of the Rift, I might use that over my triple screens. Accordingly, that is why I believe VR is here to stay and is a viable alternative to monitors in sim racing.
 
Upvote 0
Really would appreciate a follow-up article some time Paul.

Already half written :) Will try and get it up tomorrow but it's a bit more of a technical piece than the usual sitting down on the sofa with the laptop and just typing like I usually do, so it may slip a day or so :) Either way it will be out before the end of the week for sure.

Some interesting comments so far with this article, I wasn't too sure if it would get much response but it looks like we have one or two more VR converts or VR curious people here than I expected! Excellent.

Right must crack on, got to go do some surfing for news and continue to pester a certain developer on Skype to get some juicy info for you all ;) :D
 
Upvote 0
Every aspect which is not perfectly matched with the reality provides motion sickness.
For example the delay, missing g-forces, the resolution, everything.
One thing is the eye tracking. In real live you would just look left or right with your eyeballs but with the actual VR Headsets you have to turn your head. If that´s eliminated we are a step further for sure.
I understand that the new FOVE hmd has eye tracking .. but only runs at 60 htz and you need 90 htz for sims and 70fps..so i am told .. maybe check the web site for FOVE HMD.. google is your friend ... as they are now taking pre orders
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
Tried OR for 3 months, ended up going back to single 37" 144hz monitor and track IR.

Graphical resolution/clarity was an issue, however my biggest gripe was the feeling of being disconnected from my surroundings. Also being brutally honest it was a hassle being a glasses wearer of lifting the headset on and off.

No, VR is not the be all and end all, and it certainly isn't for everyone, no matter what the cultists tell you, no matter how many "OMG VR is amazeballz!!" threads I've read - no.

I'll skip straight to the neural implants. :thumbsup:
 
Upvote 0
Tried OR for 3 months, ended up going back to single 37" 144hz monitor and track IR.

Graphical resolution/clarity was an issue, however my biggest gripe was the feeling of being disconnected from my surroundings. Also being brutally honest it was a hassle being a glasses wearer of lifting the headset on and off.

No, VR is not the be all and end all, and it certainly isn't for everyone, no matter what the cultists tell you, no matter how many "OMG VR is amazeballz!!" threads I've read - no.

I'll skip straight to the neural implants. :thumbsup:

No it is not, the end all be all, no thechnolgy ever is. It has issues, like for you, it is non user friendly, some get sick, some find it too isolating, some hate the low resolution, some cannot afford it.
I still believe, for SIM driving most find the advantages make it worth the sacrifices. We all know it is only going to improve and will gain traction.
So far from the poll, a majority are saying yes to VR future, when in the one saying no we know some have not even tried it yet, when most yes voter have probably compared the different options, this group is saying VR as a bright future.
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
Every aspect which is not perfectly matched with the reality provides motion sickness.
For example the delay, missing g-forces, the resolution, everything.
One thing is the eye tracking. In real live you would just look left or right with your eyeballs but with the actual VR Headsets you have to turn your head. If that´s eliminated we are a step further for sure.
While I agree with the first part of your post, I don't remember having any problem glancing neither left nor right with just my eyes while trying out that DK2. Maybe you meant the limited field of view? I guess they are working on that too. After all, curved and flexible screens are already a thing (what kind of an optical system one would require is another matter).

Or did you mean using eye-tracking for boosting the framerate? It highly depends on the implementation. Personally, I'm very annoyed with how LODs work in many cases, and POI-dependent level of detail techniques might make it even a greater nuisance. In theory, however, this might be the way to bring the requirements down significantly. Maybe the only way to handle 8k if coupled with adaptive resolution algorithms.

If you meant it more like a TrackIR inside a VR helmet, then no, it won't work.
 
Upvote 0
Tried OR for 3 months, ended up going back to single 37" 144hz monitor and track IR.

Graphical resolution/clarity was an issue, however my biggest gripe was the feeling of being disconnected from my surroundings. Also being brutally honest it was a hassle being a glasses wearer of lifting the headset on and off.

No, VR is not the be all and end all, and it certainly isn't for everyone, no matter what the cultists tell you, no matter how many "OMG VR is amazeballz!!" threads I've read - no.

I'll skip straight to the neural implants. :thumbsup:
That might be the best solution so far, actually. A single 37" 144 Hz monitor. Preferably 21:9. Though I wouldn't call TIR essential for racing sims. If it had gyros for the angles, then maybe.

Triple screen setups look like a crutch to me, personally, so I would too rather opt for a single ultra-wide monitor. Add a stereoscopic support to it, and there you have the ability to properly judge the distances. Might be not as immersive, but a lot more versatile than the HMDs.
 
Upvote 0

Latest News

Shifting method

  • I use whatever the car has in real life*

  • I always use paddleshift

  • I always use sequential

  • I always use H-shifter

  • Something else, please explain


Results are only viewable after voting.
Back
Top