Gaming has always been at the forefront of technological progress. As we are fast approaching life-like graphics on PC, we’re equally be matched with immersive techniques that capture our sense of belief and introduce more of our physcial senses. Virtual reality is of course at the forefront of these developments and appears to be changing the landscape of gaming. Here are some of the ways that VR is revolutionsing gaming:
Mobility and immersion
Gaming has always been something you do in your bedroom or living area. Even the introduction of VR headsets didn’t change this, as the competent ones required a PC to run the games. The birth of the Oculus Quest this year has been a game-changer, though. The stand alone headset runs on a battery and is autonomous from external hardware. Games can be played wherever, perhaps when going on holiday and even in on car or train journys. The increased portability has sent demand through the roof with Facebook-owned Oculus not being able to fulfill all the orders.
A strong example of this is how online
casinos using VR is being played in any situation, rather than going to a
physical casino or sat at the desk on PC. The immersion of being on a
casino floor is crucial to the authentic experience of gambling and so
it outperforms using a PC and even going to a physical gambling floor in
some respects. VR casinos can be found at: www.bestcasino.com/us/
Accessories
Whilst a PlayStation just requires the
console and controller, VR gaming introduces different dimensions.
Currently, full-body suits are being developed and treadmills have
introduced an aspect of physical running. Generally, VR is either
Android or PC-based too, meaning there potential to apply accessories is
somewhat decentralised. We don’t have to wait around for one company,
for example Oculus, to produce accessories. This may be a trend toward
open sourced gaming and utilising more creative extensions, such as
sensor gloves or shoes for a soccer game.
Demographic
Currently, console and PC gamers are
dominated towards young males, although there are still plenty of female
gamers. The skill requirements of using a controller however is quite a
big barrier for new gamers, particularly those who were of a generation
that wasn’t brought up using them. The skills required to play VR table
tennis, for example, are fairly similar to the ones you need in real
life. This makes VR gaming much more dynamic yet accessible regarding
how to play and may widen the demographic net of gamers in the future.
To guess exactly where gaming is going would be naive. That is the true difference that VR has made. Console has remained static since its introduction, apart from growing processor and graphics power. VR is bringing gaming out of a 2D world to a 3D, immersive virtual one where the potential is endless. VR games are even making waves in mental health, as headsets can be used to treat phobias and post traumatic stress disorder.
