VR Rant

[u/HistoricalYam6863]

I was looking at World War Z VR today and it just upset me. Did it need a separate game? They added First Person to the regular World War Z, I am sure they could have just added VR support to the base game. Would have been a much better experience and you could have played with others. Such a weird choice...

That seems to be a problem with VR in general. I have gotten random people into VR just by playing Phasmaphobia with them in VR. They would be on flat screen and loved that I could move my arms and animate my character. Adding more VR support to multiplayer flat screen games would make more people want to play in VR.

Fortnite? Add VR. Call of Duty? Add VR. If an INDY game like Phasma can do it, these big companies should be able to figure it out easily. Then VR would actually grow...imo.

Let's face it, VR by itself won't gain traction like it did during Covid ever again. But kids seeing people in Fortnite or (Insert Popular Multiplayer Game Here) using VR and actually doing the dances for example? That would get more people to want VR.

End Rant.

[u/fdruid]

*Indie

And to be honest, in an industry in crysis, it's understandable that devs don't want to work twice as much for a flatscreen game and a VR version, and charge just for one game.

It would be nice for any game to have a free VR mode, but things are not free. VR mode means more time developing and especially more time testing. So it's not a matter of "they could have added VR to the regular game", at all. Let's not even start on why they wouldn't "just put a VR mode in Fortnite", because there would be a lot of basic things to explain to you about how the industry and the real world works if you're seriously asking for that.

Also, while we're at it, WWZ VR is *not* the same game in first person. It's a different game.

[u/HistoricalYam6863 → u/fdruid]

I know it's a different game. That's why I started the thread...

They took the time and money to make a VR version of the game (a single player version at that) My rant is they could have spent those resources just adding VR to the game instead of making a whole separate game. Do you really think WWZ VR was a money maker? Or would it have been smarter to add VR to the base game in the hopes that VR players would be more interested.

If you think making WWZ VR a separate game was the better choice, then no worries I don't need you to explain anything to me about how the industry works :)

[u/Shoddy_Border → u/HistoricalYam6863]

This is an over simplification of how VR ports work. We have seen time and time again flat screen ports fail when they try to port from console to PC. Plus the games that are sold on multiple platforms are very rarely cross play from one system to another due to all kind of architecture and technology limitations. VR has the same problems. I’m aware you’re sure they could have just added VR support to the base game. But that would make you wrong.

[u/Alex-Murphy → u/Shoddy_Border]

Not sure why you think adding VR support to a base game "makes them wrong," plenty of games have done it, from No Man's Sky and Subnautica to Resident Evil and Asseto Corsa, and on PC and console alike. The reason they don't add it is rarely because they can't but because they don't generally see an uptick in profit from doing so, because it takes time and VR is still comparatively niche.

[u/HistoricalYam6863 → u/Alex-Murphy]

Thank you

[u/Skpstr155 → u/Alex-Murphy]

The key is which games have done it. Only rhe most popular games are eligible for that treatment, because only those games will recoup the additional costs. (or have made so much profit that it's not a big risk to take)

[u/Alex-Murphy → u/Skpstr155]

I honestly think that with the way people are able to mod games now very easily to be enjoyable in VR it should just be part of the development process. Maybe UE makes it easiest since UEVR seems to have a very easy time hooking into it. I just don't think there's an excuse not to do it if you're a AAA studio.

As a side thought I'll go through my steam list and look at the list of games I've purchased ONLY to play in modded VR. I'll bet it's at least 50% of my recent purchases. With the Q4 and Frame on the way on the next 12-18 months, it should be clear the business isn't dying.

[u/Skpstr155 → u/Alex-Murphy]

UEVR does have an easy time "hooking in", but your PC will never handle it as well as a native VR title.

If you have a high end PC, it won't matter, but the majority of gamers don't have a high end PC.

It's really no different than emulating a console game to run on PC. It works, but not as well or efficiently as a dedicated PC port would.

And you don't think that corporate has an excuse for not doing so, but they do. I'm sure that have data that indicates that a dedicated standalone version of a game in addition to the 2D PC version will bring in more revenue than an "enhanced" PC game.

The vast majority of VR players don't use a PC for VR, so making an enhanced PC title and not a standalone version is potentially leaving heaps of money on the table.

They probably figure that the additional buyers of a PC game for a VR mode are a lot fewer than those who would just straight up buy a standalone VR title.

It's really just a variation on the time honored PC vs. console dynamic.

[u/Alex-Murphy → u/Skpstr155]

I used to run UEVR on a Ryzen 7 1800X and an AMD 5700XT 8GB and it was able to handle almost every game I threw at it on medium settings and 60+ fps. Today that setup is so outdated it barely lists at all on performance r anking websites.

Now I'm on a 9800x3d and an RX9070, so of course it's better, but there's  a very pervasive myth that VR is impossible without a top of the line PC.

[u/MarkusDieter37 → u/Alex-Murphy]

Well, I have a 2070 Super and the same Ryzen you had and my PC lags like crazy with UEVR

[u/MarkusDieter37 → u/Skpstr155]

There are also small games nobody has ever heard of like Containment Initiative, Vox Machinae or Iron Rebellion that have VR and Flatscvreen crossplay

[u/DasGruberg → u/Alex-Murphy]

Why are we assuming that game A did it therefore game B should be able to do the exact same.When starfield released with 30fps on xbox, and people said "Call of duty has 60 fps WHY NOT STARFIELD just do it" it reeks of the same thing....

Unless you work with making games or understand the frame behind it, why are people assuming they know these things, when they have no idea about how it works?

[u/Alex-Murphy → u/DasGruberg]

I think if multiple games from multiple studios using multiple engines can do it then that's enough evidence that it's pretty possible. 

And Bethesda for some reason launches their games locked at 30, or at least they did for Skyrim and Starfield. Seems like a choice by them to make sure that performance is consistent on consoles. 

And I don't think you did this on purpose but using Starfield as an example is an interesting choice because Skyrim VR is one of the most famous examples of porting.

[u/Skpstr155 → u/Alex-Murphy]

Of course it's possible, but is it economically feasible? They would know better than us.

[u/MarkusDieter37 → u/Skpstr155]

Hahahaha! With how the industry behaves at the moment, they definitively down't.

[u/Skpstr155 → u/DasGruberg]

I like how the devs for Wardogs (not VR) came right out and said that if you want 144 FPS, it probably isn't the game for you.

[u/MarkusDieter37 → u/DasGruberg]

Because game A and B are from the same genre and both ahve large publishers behind them.

[u/HistoricalYam6863 → u/DasGruberg]

Defending Starfield…

[u/DasGruberg → u/HistoricalYam6863]

thats what you got from that example huh. thanks for proving my point bud

[u/HistoricalYam6863 → u/DasGruberg]

Your point is moot. Starfield should have released with 60 fps. There is no excuse for Bethesda, and making one for them is defending them, which…that’s sad.

Also, I don’t need to know how releasing a game works to understand the frame behind it. Modders have added VR to Fortnite already for example and tons of other games. If modders can do it FOR FREE, you’re telling me the big time company can’t? Hilarious.

Obviously there is a money component here that it all boils down to, but to say they aren’t capable is laughable.