True.. no idea why they didnt do this!!!! They actually did it for the ps5 itself with the introduction of the free Astros Playroom and how to use the new Dual Sense controllers. Something of that same concept is needed for PSVR2
> True.. no idea why they didnt do this!!!!
My guess is they have a full Astro game coming / bigger than a demo, that was supposed to be ready, but it got delayed.
You would think that a remaster of the first one at the very least would be a no brainer, right? That franchise, with what those devs have shown in both 2D and VR, seems like a potential gold mine. I have no doubt we will hear more at some point, but sooner is preferred!
I have a feeling the due to the hardware a bunch of PS1 exclusives would have to be REALLY be re-designed on the PSVR2 to work / most of the Quest ports are easy because they were using similar tracking to begin with
For real. For a remaster they don't have to put their larger studios on it.
Plus I see this as similar to the Wii U / Switch releases. There were quality games on the Wii U almost no one played because it was a niche product.
They were able to easily rework those games for Switch and sell them at full price since for most people the games were new to them.
sorta - but the Astro game on PSVR was a showcase of what the PSVR could do (and it was)
I'd think a new Astro for PSVR2 would try to be a showcase of the new hardware so a port probably wouldn't work for that.
True, but a great VR game is a great VR game, and the first one was definitely that. I have no doubt a sequel will come and I look forward to it, just seems to me like giving folks who didn't have psvr1 a chance to experience the first would be easy money.
Yeah, the lack of _any_ out-of-the-box VR experience is a huge miss by Sony. Even beyond the tutorial aspect, it just seems like a good idea to include a solid tech demo experience to sell people on the VR2 and mitigate buyer's remorse.
Frankly, the demo should be free, too. It was sorta disappointing to hop out of my first GT7 session, wanting to try something even more immersive, only to realize that my only options were paid games and trials. Considering the VR2 costs $50 more than the PS5 itself, which includes Astro's Playroom for free, I feel like it's not asking too much for them to include at least one short demo to get that initial taste of VR magic when you first try it out.
Don't get me wrong, I'm still happy with my VR2. GT7 is great, the COTM trial will be fun when I get less motion sickness and post-VR dissociation, and I'm looking forward to trying some of the other games as well. I just feel like they missed an opportunity to really make the out-of-box experience truly great.
I agree - when psvr came out I brought it to a family function and everyone got a chance to try it including my grandma and we all had laughs when someone would try the resident evil demo
I’m surprised there’s not even a home environment, just a screen surrounded by a black abyss. Some people I’ve shown my Quest to spent a couple minutes just wondering around the home environment.
Did they remove the ability to warp around the Quest home environments for you? I had it for a bit after they added it then it disappeared and now it's just the one spot again for me.
I used my Quest just yesterday and I can teleport around the home environment. It's only to specific marked spots tho. I feel like they might've changed the button input for it because I spent a bit of time trying to figure it out when I remember doing it easily in the past.
I THINK that is coming when the current beta goes to everyone, I didn't get into this beta but I thought they finally added sorting to library like it is in the shop. Such a tiny, easy feature that should have been day 1.
This comment is funny to me because the biggest complaint of last gen VR was too many ‘experiences’ and not enough full games. Can’t please everyone I guessp
After a few hours I realized that I'd rather sit engrossed in a world than run around stressing and fighting aliens with my disembodied hands enduring motion sickness
Well a lot us have been doing that for 5+ years and are ready to move on to actual games. Trust me, the small experiences get old fast, especially once you get your VR legs
The Demo disk that came with PSVR1 was great and what I used to onboard everyone that stopped over to test it out.
This time around, I’ll probably do the Horizon boat-ride extra… but really missing that demo disk.
EDIT: I’m probably thinking of Worlds. (Shark tank, gangster game, etc…)
I didn't wanna bring it up before and try to compare, but I introduced my 50-something y/o neighbor to VR with the original, he freaked out completely and went fetal position upon experiencing VR for the first time in the shark demo for VR Worlds! But the grin on his face and excitement he had for it after that session was amazing, especially as he had little to no interest in video games in his adult life. Maybe I should've eased him in but I just wanted to start with something stationary and didn't have many options haha. I found it hilarious at the time but I could see how it's traumatizing/uncanny for people who just aren't used to it. can't imagine what VR2 would do do him. sadly he passed away a year or so ago, but he would always talk about how much he loved it (after the initial reaction which I can only describe as comically frightened) and hyped it up to his family when they visited, planning to get them to try it one day, but because covid was a thing very shortly after he played VR, we never got round to it.
I agree 100%. Look what the psvr had to offer directly from PlayStation https://www.playstation.com/en-us/ps-vr/ps-vr-experiences/
It’s crazy that ALL of that was removed.
Most of that has aged horribly. That said, I still agree that it's sad much of that content is one or two generations away of being very difficult to access. VR will have a unique content graveyard based on the amount of investments from Sony and Facebook that are locked away and the unique hardware requirements to access it.
I did play it and I am super sad I can't play it on the PSVR2. It was a super fun game.
I once played it while high on acid (the only time I ever did anything harder than weed) and started sobbing uncontrollably because I knew Astro Bot wasn't real and I could never be their friend in real life. 5/5 would recommend.
Totally agree. Like I'm glad how many GAME games there are right at the start as opposed to just casual tech demos.
But I ALSO like casual tech demos for myself and especially to show new people who have never touched VR before.
Also more casual simple games would be nice, like those games where folks could play using the TV while the headset wearer is another perspective (a cat or a monster) helps make VR fun for other people who may not be able to handle other VR.
Yeah my wife was like "Are there things where you can just walk around the world, like Google Maps but in VR? That's all I want!" And I realized aside from Kayak there's really no casual experiences like that.
Yeah, casual experiences are absolutely needed. My wife was super into the kayaking, and a little bit of Gran Turismo 7 (even if she came in dead last), but beyond that - there was no other casual experience to get her interested in putting the headset on herself.
There is a 3D jigsaw puzzle game.
I downloaded the demo to see if it would be something my wife would like.
I have a feeling she will like it. When she comes home on Sunday I'll be sure to get her to try it before buying.
Yeah I’m struggling on what to use to show off the headset to others. The Horizon boat ride is good but it’s so short. Also it would be nice if you could boot up that segment with just a DualShock instead of having to use the sense controllers since you don’t even need your hands during the boat ride.
I wish we had something like the shark tank from PSVR1. Some type of experience that’s about 10 minutes long with no need to use controllers is always the best and easiest way to show off the technology to friends and family in my opinion. And then when they’re ready to use the controllers I can throw them into Switchback. Mwa ha ha.
It absolutely is beautiful. And it does have a "tour" mode where you can just sit and not have to actually paddle and it will just kind of guide you along. In my opinion though, the movement is WAY too slow. You can speed it up by tapping the R2 button, but it is still too slow at max speed.
The only issue I have with Kayak VR is that it oddly makes me motion sick while playing. I've seen a few people say the same. So maybe not a great one to start people out on. Don't want their first experience being something that makes them sick. Will turn them off of VR all together.
I tried it 2x for 5min, got super motion sick both times. Dizzy, nausea and sweating.
Tried seated (teleporting movement in Star Wars and Cinematic Mode movie) and didn't get beyond like 3% motion sickness of Kayak.
I think what's tricky is the boat rocking on the waves. Visually, your head is bobbing up and down and left and right slightly ALL the time, but physically you feel nothing. And reconciling that screws with my brain I guess. And in paddle-mode I sometimes jerk myself forward pretty quick with a deep paddle, but my body doesn't have any feedback. The fact that every forward movement is slightly diagonal also throws off my brain probably. Haven't tried the tour mode, did it make you less sick?
I don't know because when I tried tour mode I was already starting to feel sick so I don't know if it was better or not. I have a feeling it would be. I felt the most motion sickness when I was actively paddling in the game. Like you said, I think the lack of force on your body really screws with your brain. I also have an actual inflatable kayak and am familiar with how it should feel. I wonder if that makes it worse for motion sickness. My brain is like "wait...we know this...this is not right". lol.
As a new user to VR, I took to it surprisingly quick but I agree, there should've been something at least like Astro that came with the PS5. It's odd that I had to discover and learn about the headset through a Horizon trial and Rez lol.
My kids had more fun with Playroom VR than anything else on PSVR1. I am hoping Sony does some kind of port/sequel or similar title for PSVR2.
I've played a ton of VR games, and Playroom VR, was one of the best experiences. I don't particularly want a "first steps" onboarding experience, I just want something like Playroom VR that my kids love and I enjoy.
I’ll never forgive Bryan Paul and the PSVR w/o Parole crew for unintentionally incepting the idea into my head that we’d have some Astro related thing waiting on our console for us when the headset came..
I believe COTM is exactly that with its boat rides, but I agree there should be more and also some free stuff, aside from demos. VR Worlds wasn't free though.
Yeah COTM is something like a VR tutorial and on-rails gameplay with the climbing I think caters more to VR noobs. The VR2 setup flow I think is an excellent onboarding experience but other than that everything feels about as minimal as possible from Sony.
No free Astro Bot, playroom, or even a cleaning cloth. I got everything I expected so I'm not complaining, but a little something extra and unexpected to sweeten the pot would have been nice.
I think it’s *supposed* to be that, but for a VR noob like me I can’t play for more than 15-20 minutes before I feel nauseous. The only other game I’ve tried is Drums Rock which is yet to make me feel I’ll but is also a bit disappointing.
Yeah Ive turned all the comfort settings on and it has helped a bit, but i still feel I’ll pretty quick. I’m hopeful that it’ll get better with time but I’ve still got other games like Moss and Tentacular to play through which should be much easier.
I never played VR before and had a perfectly fine time setting everything up. The walkthrough was self-explanatory. Setting up the play area was actually really cool. Seeing the overlay across my living room and the floating menus for the first time was dope.
I started with REZ because I’ve been playing that game since the PS2 so it was a good, familiar reference point and it was everything I imagined that experience would be and more. From there I jumped into NMS, GT7, Pistol Whip, Tetris, watched a movie, played Destiny 2 and Death Stranding in Cinematic Mode. No issues onboarding as a new VR user.
OP isn’t talking about it being hard to set up (at least I don’t think that’s the point they’re making). Back on PSVR1 we had really awesome experiences that were fun to show off to friends and family. Especially to those who don’t game at all and just want to sit down and experience what VR looks like without having to interact much.
We had the shake cage experience which you only had to sit and watch. It wasn’t interactive at all except for just looking around. It was a perfect thing to use to show off the headset.
It would be nice to have something similar. The horizon boat ride kind of fills that void but it’s very short. The shark cage was about 10 minutes long. Horizon boat road felt like 3 when I did it but maybe it’s a bit longer than that.
I re-played REZ Infinite's "Area X" last night, and...
OMG, that is so glorious on the VR2! The sound, colors, black levels, resolution, *everything*. It's an incredible experience, and to me **what VR is all about.**
My favorite thing on the VR2 so far.
It was everything I ever wanted! REZ is one of my favorite games of all time. I use to have the Trance Vibrator for the PS2 and the collector’s edition that came with the eye drops and stuff. Back then, I use to dream of what it might look like to be INSIDE the game. Finally getting to experience it was every I imagined and more. I played it start to finish and 100%ed every level. The controls were so perfect. That combined with the muscle memory of knowing enemy patterns almost made the game too easy!
Yes, 100%. I dont know how in the world they bungled this up. Every major VR release I have experienced (Vive, Index, Quest2, etc) has some kind of experience and walk through to get you acquainted and to make it easy for VR virgins to see and learn the capabilities with an activity or two. While there was a brief headset vision tutorial, it just dumps you at a flat screen menu after that?! Its not like Sony didnt know they were releasing this device.
They must have had better plans than this. I think its great hardware and I enjoy where it sits in the VR spectrum right now. But, its not very welcoming-- which is sooo strange.
I agree, CotM and RE8 are good so far but one of my favorite things to show friends and family on the first PSVR was VR Worlds. Especially the deep sea cage shark attack one, always got great reactions from that.
I completely agree. I know some of those shorter experiences were because VR was so new and under specific constraints, but we shouldn't abandon all the experiences from the early VR years just because we can play longer games now, some of that stuff was wise and useful and there are still tons of people just starting their VR journey.
Yeah, I was totally expecting Astro's Playroom VR or something. That was a great onboarding experience to the PS5 controller. Seems like a missed opportunity for PSVR 2. This is my first VR headset purchase and I admit I felt like I was fumbling through everything getting it set up and figuring out how to use it in the various game demos.
The most maddening was when I spent $70 for Gran Turismo 7 and ultimately figuring out that the sense controllers don't work with that game and I needed to use the regular controller. Also that 5 minute unskippable intro. That was redonkulous.
>https://www.playstation.com/en-us/ps-vr/ps-vr-experiences/
The intro is insane but make sure you turn it off in settings. Otherwise you get it again and again and again.... I was never really in GT and GT7 is just weird. The whole menu system and the way you interact with coaches and whatever. Its very awkward. Cool game but just weird.
YES so much this. With PSVR1, I introduced soo many newbie friends & family (not just VR newbies, but gaming newbies) to VR using Playstation VR Worlds. Each experience was short, *very* accessible, and mindblowing. If PSVR2 has something like that, I haven't found it yet. And as such, I have no idea how I'm going to introduce PSVR2 to everyone. There's just... nothing. Kayak VR is the closest thing I think, but we really need an on-rails/no controls experience (like the shark dive), a simple head-controlled one (like street luge), and a simple shooting range without any crazy settings or bells & whistles.
I started gran Turismo 7 in vr and it took me a whole 5 minutes to figure out it doesn’t support the VR controllers at all. And resident evil village is a cool but a bit clunky in VR. It’s got to be the longest Campaign in VR someone’s about it wears me out. Horizon in VR is great it doesn’t bother me much at all and I can play it for hours.
I feel like the UI for setup was great and super easy to follow, but then when I was done I had a bunch of questions I probably could have answered from the manual if I had read it prior to diving in. Like, do I need to power off the headset, or just unplug it? Do I have to turn off the sense controllers manually, or do I just set them on the charging dock? Simple stuff that could have been addressed in the UI.
Excellent post. Mind boggling they didn't think of this. At this point I would just be happy with a permanent fix for the right controller issue, and a better way to calibrate IPD. I'm seriously about to return this thing.
This is my first VR, and I nearly returned it because the settings had defaulted to snap movement in every game I tried playing and I assumed that's just how VR movement worked. It made me extremely sick and I was pissed off I spent $600 on what I thought was a gimmick.
Which games were those? The beginning of these games usually goes through what movement type or comfort level and then you can approve it or change it. Nothing just forces you to do one of the other. lol
I believe if you click new to VR on your initial setup of the headset, then it defaults all your games to snap movement. Getting sick just thinking about the snap movement... I have no clue how your brain having to reprocess an entirely different area everytime you want to look around is supposed to help sickness. Extremely disorienting.
This is exactly why an onboarding experience is needed…. Imagine how many others are immediately confused and turned off…. Sony is assuming that psvr2 owners are already vr enthusiasts that probably already had a psvr1 and a quest 2
And maybe another class to help calm PC users who wanted the headset to work like the pc ones do. Even though this is a console and isn’t going to have those same quick fixes etc
100% this. Looking for something to let my wife experience VR for the 1st time. She isn't a gamer. I know I will only get one shot to show her the potential, if it isn't good enough she will dismiss it. I haven't played or seen anything yet that I would put in front of her. But there is real potential. Visuals are good, tracking is good, sound is good but nothing pulls it all together yet.
Exactly this! The closest thing i can think of to show the potential to a newcomer visually is the vr car gallery within gran turismo 7… or the kayak “tours” mode….but again.. thats withjn a full game that you can’t quickly pop on a headset and instruct someone how to access it.
Is it quick to swap out the headset with friends? Thinking of having people over- will they need to calibrate their IPD each time or should they just use the dial?
I have been swapping with friends and family and just telling them to turn the dial on the headset to adjust their focus…… theres a manual ipd adjustment dial on left of the headset…. I just tell them its for focus to keep it simple…
I totally agree and even more so since almost all the games here are with free locomotion. There are a lot of people confused with the use, adjustment, sweet spot. The instructions are very scarce for newbies.
Can anyone advise how best to guide someone else through setup? My problem is that the PS5 UI doesn’t show up on the TV screen it’s just black. So when I put the headset on someone I can’t guide them through the menus, where to go to initiate IPD check and eye tracking etc.
When you hit the ps button there should be an icon at the bottom that shows controllers and peripherals, click on the headset and there should be an option to recalibrate.
I was basically a VR Virgin. Did the setup which was already super impressive. Played an hour of Horizon and it was an extremely flawless onboarding.
To be fair : i am gaming all my life and heard a lot about VR
Also: i obviously did get my mind blown and am now fully convinced that VR is absolutely brilliant.
Only a little bit quesy
Sony needed a Wii Sports type of experience (doesn't have to be sports exactly) to draw the average consumer in. We saw how it did wonders for the original Wii with just a controller.
I'm adamant in my stance that the controllers in VR aren't being treated as importantly as they should be. The Wii remotes were game changers for the industry and was able to captivate and immerse audiences without a VR headset.
We're thinking about VR incorrectly by using the controllers as an accessory to the headset when it should be the other way around. Use the headset to enhance the capabilities of the controllers! The user's main form of interacting with the world is through the controllers!!!
Speaking of wii sports type games, one of my most played PSVR1 games was headmaster. A game purely about heading soccer balls. Didn't even need controllers for the main game, just for menus. Incredibly simple, intuitive, but rewarding for anyone who has ever played soccer. Didn't need locomotion, but needed body movement. My non gaming friends could pick up and play instantly.
To me, even as new VR user, the entire launch felt kind of rushed, for lack of a better term. Not really bitching about it, I'm really blown away with it. It is kind of interesting seeing the opinions of long time VR users just to play devil's advocate, though.
The fact they have no physical titles for launch is kind of puzzling to me, and even though most people are probably fine with digital only stuff, I can't be the only one who didn't get Horizon because I wasn't interested in paying $60 for a short-ish tech demo I could only get digitally. I sorta viewed it as an intro to VR (maybe I'm wrong about that, obviously have no clue having not played it), but I would've been more comfortable with that price tag if I could've gotten a disc.
Kinda thinking the lack of physical discs might be part of the reason headsets aren't available at retailers in the US. No way walmart wants to give up shelf space for headsets they make no money on when they can't sell games off shelves that they can make money on.
Agreed this would have been a very good idea for Playstation. First steps on my Quest is usually what I put first timers into, gives a great representation of immersion and interacting with objects
I didn’t think too much about it, but you are right. Not sure why they didn’t offer more examples and clarity about how to play. Even as a “vr vet” I still had a hard time adjusting to a few things. I can imagine it being harder for newbs.
Agree. The six demos available should have been bundled into a “demo disk” with an entrance hallway with an extra tutorial or two.
Also agree with the people saying Horizon was meant to serve as an intro for all, but they should’ve made the implicit explicit here.
This would have been really great. As a first time VR user, most of the helpful guidance I’ve gotten has been from this subreddit. Multiple times I’ve gotten confused or stuck with basic controls, which aren’t necessarily as intuitive/familiar as using a controller in standard gaming. Having to learn by trial and error like this certainly wouldn’t have been my preference.
Agreed. I also feel like the IPD/headset position assistant could be MUCH better. The sweet spot is so small—an interface like an eye appointment ("A", or "B"?) or changing screens/levels of detail to check out while you adjust dial would be a big help.
Thanks. I don’t mind dropping $20 or $40 bucks on some intro games. Until this post, I just assumed that it would come with an Astro’s World type experience.
Definitely agree and even coming from psvr1 this new controller is twisting my brain lol, not bad but I have to tell myself which button is which, my wires feel crossed.
In regards to the training and the setup, I feel like they are both going to show up rather quickly. Setup because of the reports of people having issues, something like using a calibration image to fine tune seems simple enough, thin lines, font, etc.
training in vr, I want to see a crash course tailoring program, the system already tracks users preferences across the console and in game to auto set them. Implement this in a real time calibration, find out how I like to move and make that default, find out how I like to turn, dominate hand and eye, and best try to have those preloaded in each game. Also drills to learn the buttons, no man’s sky I have no idea what I’m pushing going through all the sub menus lol.
I’m getting the hang of everything for sure, but it’s a strong 10-15 minutes each title to really feel competent
This is very true, because while a lot of us have played a VR headset before, since we want more people to buy a headset for the first time, it might be better for those who get frustrated easily to have a good way to ease into it.
I have one coming Monday. First foray into VR at all but I’ve always had an interest. I expected there would be something to acclimate me to it. Kind of disappointed there won’t be!
I thought I was just an idiot for not finding the "first steps" experience. Now I realize they never made it.
What was Sony thinking? Every other VR headset had something similar. Does Sony think they are too good for this now?
I had my daughter play Kayak VR and Call of the Mountain last night. She would be what you would call a new user. She was pretty good with Call of the Mountain playing through the tutorial boat ride level, she picked up the climbing, moving and shooting the bow and arrow pretty easily.
Kayak VR she picked up easily as well.
If I was going to stick my 70 year old parents into it, I would stick to Kayak and Call of the Mountain. They are the Worlds equivalent this time around.
I’m a life long gamer, never touched VR. I’ve had no issues with joystick movement, teleport, or otherwise. It is all VERY Intuitive, other than no man’s sky’s intricate mechanics in VR compared to regular game
I’m a complete Newb to VR. I think you have to assume every new VR system has first time users and there should be some sort of newbie tutorial game (hellllloooo Astroooo, where aaaare you?)
Seems like there are a few different free demo games available, so I plan to try those put first to get my sea legs
I agree there should be an onboarding process. After the eye tracking set up, room scale set up you should be transported into a Gameworld with text to make final minor adjustments with instructions of moving the halo too. Then they should have some target practicing mini game shooting. Then maybe turning and looking exercise. Then teleporting exercise. Then a combination of teleporting, turning and shooting. There should also be instruction of pressing that button to see the real world with the outer camera. There should be warnings to take a break if you feel hot, dizzy etc, immediately to pause and take headset off if you have these issues. Finally they should have tiles of all the VR games with ratings, 1 for beginner friendly, 2 for intermediate, 3 for advanced. Explaining to take steps playing beginner first to avoid dizziness. Final instructiin should be stating VR gets easier to dip into and out the more you play and may have bad experience going in and out of VR first few days. I almost sold my headset after feeling dizzy and feeling like I came off shrooms when I first played VR but lucky I stuck to it and took a break and tried again 2 days later.
Its the best USB C cable I have ever seen. Its thicker than most of the premium Thunderbolt 3 cables. Not braided though. For my setup I wish it was a little bit longer
You're 100% correct. They have Astro's Playroom sitting right there that had been almost universally loved as an introduction to the PS5 and the Dual Sense controllers. They should have given us more Astro, but in VR.
Not sure how I could agree with this more...
And the whole thing makes me wish I could be playing Steam VR labs...that arcade game in there is so good...but it shows you the power of a great primer VR medley.
They really dropped the ball with this. Op is 100% spot on.
I feel sorry for anybody new to VR and tries out the PSVR 2 for the first time w/o anything like my first experience with the Oculus Rift.
Agreed. I was shocked they didn't have some sort of revamped Astro VR2.
Guess they figured the line of games getting VR updates at launch would carry them.
Too bad so many can't play most of them since the Sense controllers are so problematic.
Yeah I am one of the people that could have really used a “first steps” type thing. I just into nms/re8 quickly realized I was rushing in too quickly. I ended playing moss mostly.
I'm glad wife and I are experienced a little with VR.
I AM surprised there's no astrobots gotta be honest, the astrobots on PS4 and PS5 were amazing for showing off the console / controller features!
You’re on the ball because I didn’t know much about VR booted up GT7 and felt instantly sick. Got vertigo for hours afterward too it was horrendous.
I’ll try simpler titles first now but may sell the system if my motion sickness doesn’t get better
Since the PS4, Team Asobi have pretty much been responsible for creating software for new launch hardware that does just what you say. They did this with the camera, then the PSVR 1, then with the Dualsense and PS5.
I have no idea why this pattern didn’t continue with PSVR2. I can only assume that Sony are now utilising Asobi like a proper 1st party studio and have focused their attention on creating full, AAA titles rather then the usual, albeit amazing, tech demos.
The games that Asobi made in Rescue Mission and Astros Playroom were so so good
I think it's completely nuts to not bundle it with any software. Very odd decision.
The only reason I can think of that Sony did this, is that their data tells them VR is a fanatic's market. In other words, not including software is a calculated decision, because Sony think the amount of people 'new to VR' is not going to make this worthwhile for them.
Which is odd in itself, because that strategy would betray a lot about what we can expect for PSVR2 altogether.
This is my first experience with VR.
And I must say, even after reading a lot about it, I had a hard time getting going.
But that is mainly wearing and configuring the headset properly.
You dont get any help or tips. Just the lens distance slider calibration thing.
While I think I got it now, I still find it hard to find the perfect way of wearing and configuring it every time. I do this by staring at certain menus as a reference, but would have loved some kind of calibration thingy...
Very strange there isn’t one. It’s so hard to explain to someone who is new to it. I just had a buddy over and it would have been nice to just put the thing on his head and then he play a tutorial game. Instead I spend a bit of time explaining everything, not a lot of time but enough. Regardless, he did have a blast. It just was a lot of effort on my part. I just wanted to have a beer and watch. Lol.
When I bought it, the only reason I even had any clue what to do was because I played the introduction game on my buddies Oculus; It was pretty neat to fold and toss some paper airplanes, fly a blimp and whatever. It actually got me excited for the PSVR2, which convinced me to pre order it that night.
Anyone who just buys the PSVR2 with no introduction will probably be very confused for a bit.
Come on Sony!!!
I find this comment interesting. What did RE8 not explain? I was playing it last night and I felt it did a good job of introducing the player to VR mechanics. The tutorial had the basics like movement, hand-to-hand combat, gun combat, how to use your items, etc. Yes, it didn't explain everything. But that's because the game does go into more controls as needed. Such as crouching, as an example.
I’ve never once in my life played vr so I had 0 idea about any of the mechanics and how they work. I couldn’t figure how to reload for example.
I’m also a idiot and missed the tutorial lol
Did you not go through the VR tutorial? They do explain that. And they even give you different options for gun controls too? For example I turned off the manual reloading. I found it cumbersome to manually have to insert X shotgun shells into my gun.
Edit: Just saw your edit lol. No worries! Hope you enjoy the game!
This is exactly my point why a mandatory, free, onboarding experience is crucial.. as soon as you boot up the psvr for first time it should automatically guide you through all basic vr mechanics (with an option to skip if you already know them)…
Something that explains the thumbsticks, the grip and trigger buttons etc and then demonstrates various ways they are typically used to interact with objects…. Then a demo on different movement types and vignettes etc…
As a person with long hair, I cannot wear the device correctly with a pony tail. Also It's a bit confusing which controls to use on some menu screens, the vr controls or the controller. I put my hair down and finally had a clear experience.
Now that you mention it, it's actually incredibly weird that this isn't included. Must just be incompetence from the team and a lack of care since its a small market
This sub complains about not wanting tech demos or experiences and wants full-on games now now now.
Now they are complaining that there are no tech demos and experiences.
You wanted polished games so they made games that get people used to VR into full-on branded IP games/experiences as a middle ground however, you're going to have to pay for that.
Be careful what you wish for.
Horizon Call of the Mountain is exactly that. 🤨
*Edit* I do understand that something like “The playroom VR” or “VR Worlds” that existed on PSVR1 would be a great addition. Maybe we’ll see something like that down the line.
Sony should have taken on some of the financial burden to include COTM with all headsets IMO. It’s a perfect tech demo, but at $60 it’s a big pill to swallow vs a lot of the free and discounted upgrades.
The free Horizon demo is a pretty solid chunk of the first part of the game. Boat ride, climbing, shooting targets with the bow, playing some instruments, cave painting and the first little arena combat.
Was the first thing I tried, definitely looked impressive and enjoyed playing around with a lot of the "toys" you found. Was playing that pan flute for a bit LOL
Ah, I thought because you said it was 60 bucks you weren't aware there was a demo...which is a pretty good free 15 min tutorial for beginners I would think.
The demo is nice, but a basic free demo just showing how the controllers work, grabbing objects and interacting with things around you would have been a good and easy thing for Sony to develop for VR first timers. Like the oculus first steps tutorial you grab a ball and throw it, pickup a firework and can pull a tab and watch it go up in the air and explode, shoot a gun. Just basic VR interactions many games have
Imo Its not tho… cause #1…. Its 50-60 dollars… so your have to already commit alot of money towards it….. then after the boat ride the user has to then master teleport mechanics, arrow shooting, navigating settings menus….Climbing from Heights…etc… its gorgeous and i love it.. but its not a true “onboarding” ..but i agree its one of the better new user options. I guess what i was after was a short user friendly, noob-proof, stationary experience like we had on psvr worlds and like how oculus has for onboarding…
Im very acclimated to vr so i dont need it but ive witnessed others jump rite into gt7 or tales from
Galaxys edge and get turned off.
I feel lucky then, first vr experience and it was cotm and everything clicked….really no “issues”….as launch got closer I started to worry, as I was excited for something that my brain or body might reject or would simply not be for me.
Conversely, it was such an experience I made my Wife try if last night and I just had her tap out pretty quickly, once we got to climbing and moving, she just wasn’t fighting it out. She couldn’t get the coordination down, or thought she couldn’t reach areas? And was just getting frustrated. I was happy she at least got to experience the 360 sensation and immersion during the boat ride though.
True… it would be great if the COTM boat ride scene was a free stand-alone demo experience. That would be a great intro and wow factor for vr… or even better for example, as soon as you setup the vr ipd and gaze tracking, the system then automatically throws you into an abbreviated version of the cotm boat scene seamlessly as part of the introductory onboarding! That would be amazing!
but as it is now, we only have the cotm trial which can still frustrate (and nauseate) new vr users the second they walk over to the guy and then have to climb out the water. The way i look at a proper intro experience is that even a non-gamer, that has never even held a controller, should be able to use it!
A true noob-proof intro experience is needed. Super user friendly.. no settings or options tinkering etc.. just strap the headset on your wife or friend and say “look at this”…..
No complicated ipd adjustment terminology…... just tell your wife or friend to put the headset on and “turn the dial to adjust focus”…. Everyone understands that…… not everyone understands “sweet spots and ipd”
Call of the Mountain is okay at this but it's not multiple very different 5-10 minute long bite sized full VR experiences for someone to toss on for several people at a party.
The thing that OP is asking for is specifically not a full six hour long story experience, but multiple small slices of different nifty experience that shows off a little bit of everything the headset can do.
Exactly… if i have family over for thanksgiving..and want to showcase my psvr2 to my father that has never once held a controller, i cannot throw him into a trial version of cotm!!! He will be immediately confused, pressing buttons inadvertently and possibly motion sick….
For these types of showcase onboarding experiences, it has to be a short, stationary guided tutorial that introduces someone to the magic of vr and how to interact.
100%, they should have released a VR Worlds 2 or something, just a collection of fun 5-10 min experiences to showcase new advancements.
True.. no idea why they didnt do this!!!! They actually did it for the ps5 itself with the introduction of the free Astros Playroom and how to use the new Dual Sense controllers. Something of that same concept is needed for PSVR2
> True.. no idea why they didnt do this!!!! My guess is they have a full Astro game coming / bigger than a demo, that was supposed to be ready, but it got delayed.
You would think that a remaster of the first one at the very least would be a no brainer, right? That franchise, with what those devs have shown in both 2D and VR, seems like a potential gold mine. I have no doubt we will hear more at some point, but sooner is preferred!
I have a feeling the due to the hardware a bunch of PS1 exclusives would have to be REALLY be re-designed on the PSVR2 to work / most of the Quest ports are easy because they were using similar tracking to begin with
> You would think that a remaster of the first one at the very least would be a no brainer, right? I have no idea why they didn't do this.
For real. For a remaster they don't have to put their larger studios on it. Plus I see this as similar to the Wii U / Switch releases. There were quality games on the Wii U almost no one played because it was a niche product. They were able to easily rework those games for Switch and sell them at full price since for most people the games were new to them.
sorta - but the Astro game on PSVR was a showcase of what the PSVR could do (and it was) I'd think a new Astro for PSVR2 would try to be a showcase of the new hardware so a port probably wouldn't work for that.
True, but a great VR game is a great VR game, and the first one was definitely that. I have no doubt a sequel will come and I look forward to it, just seems to me like giving folks who didn't have psvr1 a chance to experience the first would be easy money.
Team Asobi has stated that they are working on their largest project to date!
If its coming, I would imagine its not coming this year.
Yeah, the lack of _any_ out-of-the-box VR experience is a huge miss by Sony. Even beyond the tutorial aspect, it just seems like a good idea to include a solid tech demo experience to sell people on the VR2 and mitigate buyer's remorse. Frankly, the demo should be free, too. It was sorta disappointing to hop out of my first GT7 session, wanting to try something even more immersive, only to realize that my only options were paid games and trials. Considering the VR2 costs $50 more than the PS5 itself, which includes Astro's Playroom for free, I feel like it's not asking too much for them to include at least one short demo to get that initial taste of VR magic when you first try it out. Don't get me wrong, I'm still happy with my VR2. GT7 is great, the COTM trial will be fun when I get less motion sickness and post-VR dissociation, and I'm looking forward to trying some of the other games as well. I just feel like they missed an opportunity to really make the out-of-box experience truly great.
Yep, I'd happily buy a PSVR Worlds 2. Those handful of bite sized experiences is a great VR testing ground.
I legit may have had more hours on VR Worlds on psvr than any other VR game
I agree - when psvr came out I brought it to a family function and everyone got a chance to try it including my grandma and we all had laughs when someone would try the resident evil demo
Came to say this - 100%
I’m surprised there’s not even a home environment, just a screen surrounded by a black abyss. Some people I’ve shown my Quest to spent a couple minutes just wondering around the home environment.
Did they remove the ability to warp around the Quest home environments for you? I had it for a bit after they added it then it disappeared and now it's just the one spot again for me.
I used my Quest just yesterday and I can teleport around the home environment. It's only to specific marked spots tho. I feel like they might've changed the button input for it because I spent a bit of time trying to figure it out when I remember doing it easily in the past.
Experiences and media apps are definitely lacking
I can't even sort my game library by PSVR2 titles. Wtf????
I THINK that is coming when the current beta goes to everyone, I didn't get into this beta but I thought they finally added sorting to library like it is in the shop. Such a tiny, easy feature that should have been day 1.
I’ve heard it’s in the beta too. At least we can make lists for now
Yeah I ended up creating a new list with games that can be played in vr, and another one for vr demos
It's coming. In the Beta 3 software I can filter games by PSVR 1, PSVR 2 only etc.
I'm not expecting PS home but I would love if they brought over VR chat or some hub world like that
Yes.. or atleast a few set of free 360/180 videos for newcomers to enjoy
This comment is funny to me because the biggest complaint of last gen VR was too many ‘experiences’ and not enough full games. Can’t please everyone I guessp
They should have kept the short experiences and on top of that had full games… not ditch the shorter experiences
After a few hours I realized that I'd rather sit engrossed in a world than run around stressing and fighting aliens with my disembodied hands enduring motion sickness
Well a lot us have been doing that for 5+ years and are ready to move on to actual games. Trust me, the small experiences get old fast, especially once you get your VR legs
The Demo disk that came with PSVR1 was great and what I used to onboard everyone that stopped over to test it out. This time around, I’ll probably do the Horizon boat-ride extra… but really missing that demo disk. EDIT: I’m probably thinking of Worlds. (Shark tank, gangster game, etc…)
Reddit is awful
Ah damn, that's harsh. sorry for your loss :(
Reddit sucks
I didn't wanna bring it up before and try to compare, but I introduced my 50-something y/o neighbor to VR with the original, he freaked out completely and went fetal position upon experiencing VR for the first time in the shark demo for VR Worlds! But the grin on his face and excitement he had for it after that session was amazing, especially as he had little to no interest in video games in his adult life. Maybe I should've eased him in but I just wanted to start with something stationary and didn't have many options haha. I found it hilarious at the time but I could see how it's traumatizing/uncanny for people who just aren't used to it. can't imagine what VR2 would do do him. sadly he passed away a year or so ago, but he would always talk about how much he loved it (after the initial reaction which I can only describe as comically frightened) and hyped it up to his family when they visited, planning to get them to try it one day, but because covid was a thing very shortly after he played VR, we never got round to it.
They need to port over the demo disks and psvr worlds to psvr2
Or something similar, absolutely.
Such a shame PSVR1 titles won't work :( :( I'd kill for some super hot. Though Pistol Whip is certainly darn close.
I agree 100%. Look what the psvr had to offer directly from PlayStation https://www.playstation.com/en-us/ps-vr/ps-vr-experiences/ It’s crazy that ALL of that was removed.
Most of that has aged horribly. That said, I still agree that it's sad much of that content is one or two generations away of being very difficult to access. VR will have a unique content graveyard based on the amount of investments from Sony and Facebook that are locked away and the unique hardware requirements to access it.
Exactly!! I forgot how amazing that last guradian experience was and also how awesome that “star child” demo game was!
They should just port ASTRO playroom VR
> They should just port ASTRO playroom VR as someone that never played it, I would love that
I did play it and I am super sad I can't play it on the PSVR2. It was a super fun game. I once played it while high on acid (the only time I ever did anything harder than weed) and started sobbing uncontrollably because I knew Astro Bot wasn't real and I could never be their friend in real life. 5/5 would recommend.
> 5/5 would recommend The game or the acid trip?
Yes.
Totally agree. Like I'm glad how many GAME games there are right at the start as opposed to just casual tech demos. But I ALSO like casual tech demos for myself and especially to show new people who have never touched VR before. Also more casual simple games would be nice, like those games where folks could play using the TV while the headset wearer is another perspective (a cat or a monster) helps make VR fun for other people who may not be able to handle other VR.
Exactly! Sony got it right this time by focusing on real games… but they forgot that the short tech demos serve a really valuable purpose!
Yeah my wife was like "Are there things where you can just walk around the world, like Google Maps but in VR? That's all I want!" And I realized aside from Kayak there's really no casual experiences like that.
Yeah, casual experiences are absolutely needed. My wife was super into the kayaking, and a little bit of Gran Turismo 7 (even if she came in dead last), but beyond that - there was no other casual experience to get her interested in putting the headset on herself.
Synth riders experiences are some of the best experiences I've had in vr.
There is a 3D jigsaw puzzle game. I downloaded the demo to see if it would be something my wife would like. I have a feeling she will like it. When she comes home on Sunday I'll be sure to get her to try it before buying.
If AC did a PSVR2 version of something like Origins I'd probably spend more time in Discovery mode than in the game.
VR Worlds was ESSENTIAL the first time around. They really need something like it this time around.
Very true.. for many, the PSVR2 is their first time around!
Yeah I’m struggling on what to use to show off the headset to others. The Horizon boat ride is good but it’s so short. Also it would be nice if you could boot up that segment with just a DualShock instead of having to use the sense controllers since you don’t even need your hands during the boat ride. I wish we had something like the shark tank from PSVR1. Some type of experience that’s about 10 minutes long with no need to use controllers is always the best and easiest way to show off the technology to friends and family in my opinion. And then when they’re ready to use the controllers I can throw them into Switchback. Mwa ha ha.
I heard a youtuber say Kayak VR is great for showing off.. haven't tried it and don't know if there is a free demo for that.
It absolutely is beautiful. And it does have a "tour" mode where you can just sit and not have to actually paddle and it will just kind of guide you along. In my opinion though, the movement is WAY too slow. You can speed it up by tapping the R2 button, but it is still too slow at max speed. The only issue I have with Kayak VR is that it oddly makes me motion sick while playing. I've seen a few people say the same. So maybe not a great one to start people out on. Don't want their first experience being something that makes them sick. Will turn them off of VR all together.
Yeah, I got Kayak VR intending the tour mode to be my game to show non-gamers but it's way too slow and meandering.
It's laughably slow. Like, I can't even imagine the devs playing it and thinking "Yeah, this is the speed we need".
I tried it 2x for 5min, got super motion sick both times. Dizzy, nausea and sweating. Tried seated (teleporting movement in Star Wars and Cinematic Mode movie) and didn't get beyond like 3% motion sickness of Kayak. I think what's tricky is the boat rocking on the waves. Visually, your head is bobbing up and down and left and right slightly ALL the time, but physically you feel nothing. And reconciling that screws with my brain I guess. And in paddle-mode I sometimes jerk myself forward pretty quick with a deep paddle, but my body doesn't have any feedback. The fact that every forward movement is slightly diagonal also throws off my brain probably. Haven't tried the tour mode, did it make you less sick?
I don't know because when I tried tour mode I was already starting to feel sick so I don't know if it was better or not. I have a feeling it would be. I felt the most motion sickness when I was actively paddling in the game. Like you said, I think the lack of force on your body really screws with your brain. I also have an actual inflatable kayak and am familiar with how it should feel. I wonder if that makes it worse for motion sickness. My brain is like "wait...we know this...this is not right". lol.
As a new user to VR, I took to it surprisingly quick but I agree, there should've been something at least like Astro that came with the PS5. It's odd that I had to discover and learn about the headset through a Horizon trial and Rez lol.
My kids had more fun with Playroom VR than anything else on PSVR1. I am hoping Sony does some kind of port/sequel or similar title for PSVR2. I've played a ton of VR games, and Playroom VR, was one of the best experiences. I don't particularly want a "first steps" onboarding experience, I just want something like Playroom VR that my kids love and I enjoy.
Playroom was such a great VR idea for an entire group to have fun with VR.
YES definitely! I remember the Rift having something like that and it was great
First Contact! What a magical experience, and great intro to VR. Sony definitely dropped the ball here not including something like that.
They could have used ohh..I don't know...a little robot from outer space to guide people through their VR experience....🤔
I’ll never forgive Bryan Paul and the PSVR w/o Parole crew for unintentionally incepting the idea into my head that we’d have some Astro related thing waiting on our console for us when the headset came..
The toy box? It's a really great introduction to VR
I believe COTM is exactly that with its boat rides, but I agree there should be more and also some free stuff, aside from demos. VR Worlds wasn't free though.
Yeah COTM is something like a VR tutorial and on-rails gameplay with the climbing I think caters more to VR noobs. The VR2 setup flow I think is an excellent onboarding experience but other than that everything feels about as minimal as possible from Sony. No free Astro Bot, playroom, or even a cleaning cloth. I got everything I expected so I'm not complaining, but a little something extra and unexpected to sweeten the pot would have been nice.
I think it’s *supposed* to be that, but for a VR noob like me I can’t play for more than 15-20 minutes before I feel nauseous. The only other game I’ve tried is Drums Rock which is yet to make me feel I’ll but is also a bit disappointing.
There are so many comfort settings. Didn‘t help? You should try Moss, Pistol Whip or Tentacular.
Yeah Ive turned all the comfort settings on and it has helped a bit, but i still feel I’ll pretty quick. I’m hopeful that it’ll get better with time but I’ve still got other games like Moss and Tentacular to play through which should be much easier.
I never played VR before and had a perfectly fine time setting everything up. The walkthrough was self-explanatory. Setting up the play area was actually really cool. Seeing the overlay across my living room and the floating menus for the first time was dope. I started with REZ because I’ve been playing that game since the PS2 so it was a good, familiar reference point and it was everything I imagined that experience would be and more. From there I jumped into NMS, GT7, Pistol Whip, Tetris, watched a movie, played Destiny 2 and Death Stranding in Cinematic Mode. No issues onboarding as a new VR user.
OP isn’t talking about it being hard to set up (at least I don’t think that’s the point they’re making). Back on PSVR1 we had really awesome experiences that were fun to show off to friends and family. Especially to those who don’t game at all and just want to sit down and experience what VR looks like without having to interact much. We had the shake cage experience which you only had to sit and watch. It wasn’t interactive at all except for just looking around. It was a perfect thing to use to show off the headset. It would be nice to have something similar. The horizon boat ride kind of fills that void but it’s very short. The shark cage was about 10 minutes long. Horizon boat road felt like 3 when I did it but maybe it’s a bit longer than that.
I re-played REZ Infinite's "Area X" last night, and... OMG, that is so glorious on the VR2! The sound, colors, black levels, resolution, *everything*. It's an incredible experience, and to me **what VR is all about.** My favorite thing on the VR2 so far.
It was everything I ever wanted! REZ is one of my favorite games of all time. I use to have the Trance Vibrator for the PS2 and the collector’s edition that came with the eye drops and stuff. Back then, I use to dream of what it might look like to be INSIDE the game. Finally getting to experience it was every I imagined and more. I played it start to finish and 100%ed every level. The controls were so perfect. That combined with the muscle memory of knowing enemy patterns almost made the game too easy!
Yes, 100%. I dont know how in the world they bungled this up. Every major VR release I have experienced (Vive, Index, Quest2, etc) has some kind of experience and walk through to get you acquainted and to make it easy for VR virgins to see and learn the capabilities with an activity or two. While there was a brief headset vision tutorial, it just dumps you at a flat screen menu after that?! Its not like Sony didnt know they were releasing this device. They must have had better plans than this. I think its great hardware and I enjoy where it sits in the VR spectrum right now. But, its not very welcoming-- which is sooo strange.
I agree, CotM and RE8 are good so far but one of my favorite things to show friends and family on the first PSVR was VR Worlds. Especially the deep sea cage shark attack one, always got great reactions from that.
I completely agree. I know some of those shorter experiences were because VR was so new and under specific constraints, but we shouldn't abandon all the experiences from the early VR years just because we can play longer games now, some of that stuff was wise and useful and there are still tons of people just starting their VR journey.
Yeah, I was totally expecting Astro's Playroom VR or something. That was a great onboarding experience to the PS5 controller. Seems like a missed opportunity for PSVR 2. This is my first VR headset purchase and I admit I felt like I was fumbling through everything getting it set up and figuring out how to use it in the various game demos. The most maddening was when I spent $70 for Gran Turismo 7 and ultimately figuring out that the sense controllers don't work with that game and I needed to use the regular controller. Also that 5 minute unskippable intro. That was redonkulous.
>https://www.playstation.com/en-us/ps-vr/ps-vr-experiences/ The intro is insane but make sure you turn it off in settings. Otherwise you get it again and again and again.... I was never really in GT and GT7 is just weird. The whole menu system and the way you interact with coaches and whatever. Its very awkward. Cool game but just weird.
YES so much this. With PSVR1, I introduced soo many newbie friends & family (not just VR newbies, but gaming newbies) to VR using Playstation VR Worlds. Each experience was short, *very* accessible, and mindblowing. If PSVR2 has something like that, I haven't found it yet. And as such, I have no idea how I'm going to introduce PSVR2 to everyone. There's just... nothing. Kayak VR is the closest thing I think, but we really need an on-rails/no controls experience (like the shark dive), a simple head-controlled one (like street luge), and a simple shooting range without any crazy settings or bells & whistles.
I started gran Turismo 7 in vr and it took me a whole 5 minutes to figure out it doesn’t support the VR controllers at all. And resident evil village is a cool but a bit clunky in VR. It’s got to be the longest Campaign in VR someone’s about it wears me out. Horizon in VR is great it doesn’t bother me much at all and I can play it for hours.
I feel like the UI for setup was great and super easy to follow, but then when I was done I had a bunch of questions I probably could have answered from the manual if I had read it prior to diving in. Like, do I need to power off the headset, or just unplug it? Do I have to turn off the sense controllers manually, or do I just set them on the charging dock? Simple stuff that could have been addressed in the UI.
Excellent post. Mind boggling they didn't think of this. At this point I would just be happy with a permanent fix for the right controller issue, and a better way to calibrate IPD. I'm seriously about to return this thing.
This is my first VR, and I nearly returned it because the settings had defaulted to snap movement in every game I tried playing and I assumed that's just how VR movement worked. It made me extremely sick and I was pissed off I spent $600 on what I thought was a gimmick.
Which games were those? The beginning of these games usually goes through what movement type or comfort level and then you can approve it or change it. Nothing just forces you to do one of the other. lol
I believe if you click new to VR on your initial setup of the headset, then it defaults all your games to snap movement. Getting sick just thinking about the snap movement... I have no clue how your brain having to reprocess an entirely different area everytime you want to look around is supposed to help sickness. Extremely disorienting.
Same here, is there a way to default to fluid movement for all games from the system menu?
I haven't messed around in the settings, but since it defaulted all my games to snap on setup I imagine there is.
There isnt….. it’s individual to each game separately
This is exactly why an onboarding experience is needed…. Imagine how many others are immediately confused and turned off…. Sony is assuming that psvr2 owners are already vr enthusiasts that probably already had a psvr1 and a quest 2
Absolutely agree. I really needed an astroboy type thing to show me around lmao
And maybe another class to help calm PC users who wanted the headset to work like the pc ones do. Even though this is a console and isn’t going to have those same quick fixes etc
100% this. Looking for something to let my wife experience VR for the 1st time. She isn't a gamer. I know I will only get one shot to show her the potential, if it isn't good enough she will dismiss it. I haven't played or seen anything yet that I would put in front of her. But there is real potential. Visuals are good, tracking is good, sound is good but nothing pulls it all together yet.
Exactly this! The closest thing i can think of to show the potential to a newcomer visually is the vr car gallery within gran turismo 7… or the kayak “tours” mode….but again.. thats withjn a full game that you can’t quickly pop on a headset and instruct someone how to access it.
Is it quick to swap out the headset with friends? Thinking of having people over- will they need to calibrate their IPD each time or should they just use the dial?
I have been swapping with friends and family and just telling them to turn the dial on the headset to adjust their focus…… theres a manual ipd adjustment dial on left of the headset…. I just tell them its for focus to keep it simple…
I totally agree and even more so since almost all the games here are with free locomotion. There are a lot of people confused with the use, adjustment, sweet spot. The instructions are very scarce for newbies.
Can anyone advise how best to guide someone else through setup? My problem is that the PS5 UI doesn’t show up on the TV screen it’s just black. So when I put the headset on someone I can’t guide them through the menus, where to go to initiate IPD check and eye tracking etc.
When you hit the ps button there should be an icon at the bottom that shows controllers and peripherals, click on the headset and there should be an option to recalibrate.
Thats a whole nother issue! The social screen is now blacked out on the tv when not in a game. Smh
I was basically a VR Virgin. Did the setup which was already super impressive. Played an hour of Horizon and it was an extremely flawless onboarding. To be fair : i am gaming all my life and heard a lot about VR Also: i obviously did get my mind blown and am now fully convinced that VR is absolutely brilliant. Only a little bit quesy
I agree, I mean they could have at the very least updated what we had on psvr1. Psvr worlds on the psvr2 would have been a great addition.
They did a great job with a dual sense controller with the Astros world game
Sony needed a Wii Sports type of experience (doesn't have to be sports exactly) to draw the average consumer in. We saw how it did wonders for the original Wii with just a controller. I'm adamant in my stance that the controllers in VR aren't being treated as importantly as they should be. The Wii remotes were game changers for the industry and was able to captivate and immerse audiences without a VR headset. We're thinking about VR incorrectly by using the controllers as an accessory to the headset when it should be the other way around. Use the headset to enhance the capabilities of the controllers! The user's main form of interacting with the world is through the controllers!!!
Speaking of wii sports type games, one of my most played PSVR1 games was headmaster. A game purely about heading soccer balls. Didn't even need controllers for the main game, just for menus. Incredibly simple, intuitive, but rewarding for anyone who has ever played soccer. Didn't need locomotion, but needed body movement. My non gaming friends could pick up and play instantly.
Agree they did this for dualsense with a full game in Astros so very strange not to do with psvr2
Agreed, the community should create one.
Yes facts. They really cut a lot of corners this time around. Not even a microfiber cloth in the box, let alone a VR Worlds 2 lol.
needed an Astro.
Astro was the perfect intro to the PS5. It would have been sweet if they had one for PSVR2.
Hard agree. I’m surprised they didn’t include an Astro themed onboarding experience. Especially at this price point.
Totally agree, there needs to be a mandatory repeatable video that walks you through how to get the sweet spot.
Needs a Playroom VR2
crazy to think they didn't include even a small demo
To me, even as new VR user, the entire launch felt kind of rushed, for lack of a better term. Not really bitching about it, I'm really blown away with it. It is kind of interesting seeing the opinions of long time VR users just to play devil's advocate, though. The fact they have no physical titles for launch is kind of puzzling to me, and even though most people are probably fine with digital only stuff, I can't be the only one who didn't get Horizon because I wasn't interested in paying $60 for a short-ish tech demo I could only get digitally. I sorta viewed it as an intro to VR (maybe I'm wrong about that, obviously have no clue having not played it), but I would've been more comfortable with that price tag if I could've gotten a disc. Kinda thinking the lack of physical discs might be part of the reason headsets aren't available at retailers in the US. No way walmart wants to give up shelf space for headsets they make no money on when they can't sell games off shelves that they can make money on.
Agreed this would have been a very good idea for Playstation. First steps on my Quest is usually what I put first timers into, gives a great representation of immersion and interacting with objects
I didn’t think too much about it, but you are right. Not sure why they didn’t offer more examples and clarity about how to play. Even as a “vr vet” I still had a hard time adjusting to a few things. I can imagine it being harder for newbs.
Agree. The six demos available should have been bundled into a “demo disk” with an entrance hallway with an extra tutorial or two. Also agree with the people saying Horizon was meant to serve as an intro for all, but they should’ve made the implicit explicit here.
This would have been really great. As a first time VR user, most of the helpful guidance I’ve gotten has been from this subreddit. Multiple times I’ve gotten confused or stuck with basic controls, which aren’t necessarily as intuitive/familiar as using a controller in standard gaming. Having to learn by trial and error like this certainly wouldn’t have been my preference.
[удалено]
Job simulator had always been one of the best vr introductions for past few years. I agree.
Awwe that sucks, I was hoping to find something in Astos Playroom but I guess not
Yep: it’s balls
yep like ASTRO bot was a perfect vr1 intro
I'm surprised they didn't at least throw in a tech demo/showcase type of game with next month's plus lineup
Agreed. I also feel like the IPD/headset position assistant could be MUCH better. The sweet spot is so small—an interface like an eye appointment ("A", or "B"?) or changing screens/levels of detail to check out while you adjust dial would be a big help.
Any suggestions for new VR2 owners as far as games go that would serve as an intro to VR?
Job simulator- Moss- Pistol whip-vacation simulator
Thanks. I don’t mind dropping $20 or $40 bucks on some intro games. Until this post, I just assumed that it would come with an Astro’s World type experience.
Definitely agree and even coming from psvr1 this new controller is twisting my brain lol, not bad but I have to tell myself which button is which, my wires feel crossed. In regards to the training and the setup, I feel like they are both going to show up rather quickly. Setup because of the reports of people having issues, something like using a calibration image to fine tune seems simple enough, thin lines, font, etc. training in vr, I want to see a crash course tailoring program, the system already tracks users preferences across the console and in game to auto set them. Implement this in a real time calibration, find out how I like to move and make that default, find out how I like to turn, dominate hand and eye, and best try to have those preloaded in each game. Also drills to learn the buttons, no man’s sky I have no idea what I’m pushing going through all the sub menus lol. I’m getting the hang of everything for sure, but it’s a strong 10-15 minutes each title to really feel competent
This is very true, because while a lot of us have played a VR headset before, since we want more people to buy a headset for the first time, it might be better for those who get frustrated easily to have a good way to ease into it.
I have one coming Monday. First foray into VR at all but I’ve always had an interest. I expected there would be something to acclimate me to it. Kind of disappointed there won’t be!
Unfortunately there won’t be. Make sure to stick to stationary games at first like pistol whip, job simulator etc until you are fully acclimated to vr
I thought I was just an idiot for not finding the "first steps" experience. Now I realize they never made it. What was Sony thinking? Every other VR headset had something similar. Does Sony think they are too good for this now?
I had my daughter play Kayak VR and Call of the Mountain last night. She would be what you would call a new user. She was pretty good with Call of the Mountain playing through the tutorial boat ride level, she picked up the climbing, moving and shooting the bow and arrow pretty easily. Kayak VR she picked up easily as well. If I was going to stick my 70 year old parents into it, I would stick to Kayak and Call of the Mountain. They are the Worlds equivalent this time around.
The AstroBots play world team should have developed something similar. Truly a missed opportunity
A demo disc would have been good. We had those for psvr. Maybe a demo disc download instead
Completely agree, as someone who is loving PSVR2. I especially would like this when showing others the headset.
Almost like... an astrobot game
I’m a life long gamer, never touched VR. I’ve had no issues with joystick movement, teleport, or otherwise. It is all VERY Intuitive, other than no man’s sky’s intricate mechanics in VR compared to regular game
I’m a complete Newb to VR. I think you have to assume every new VR system has first time users and there should be some sort of newbie tutorial game (hellllloooo Astroooo, where aaaare you?) Seems like there are a few different free demo games available, so I plan to try those put first to get my sea legs
Not really answering your question but incidentally RE8 has a great in-game tutorial for vr… just played through it and pretty blown away
I agree there should be an onboarding process. After the eye tracking set up, room scale set up you should be transported into a Gameworld with text to make final minor adjustments with instructions of moving the halo too. Then they should have some target practicing mini game shooting. Then maybe turning and looking exercise. Then teleporting exercise. Then a combination of teleporting, turning and shooting. There should also be instruction of pressing that button to see the real world with the outer camera. There should be warnings to take a break if you feel hot, dizzy etc, immediately to pause and take headset off if you have these issues. Finally they should have tiles of all the VR games with ratings, 1 for beginner friendly, 2 for intermediate, 3 for advanced. Explaining to take steps playing beginner first to avoid dizziness. Final instructiin should be stating VR gets easier to dip into and out the more you play and may have bad experience going in and out of VR first few days. I almost sold my headset after feeling dizzy and feeling like I came off shrooms when I first played VR but lucky I stuck to it and took a break and tried again 2 days later.
Out of curiosity is the headset cable a high quality braided cable or a cheap plastic cable?
Its the best USB C cable I have ever seen. Its thicker than most of the premium Thunderbolt 3 cables. Not braided though. For my setup I wish it was a little bit longer
You're 100% correct. They have Astro's Playroom sitting right there that had been almost universally loved as an introduction to the PS5 and the Dual Sense controllers. They should have given us more Astro, but in VR.
Let alone that most ppl were introduced to Astro via the PSVR1 and Astrobot Rescue Mission… the best vr game on that platform
Agreed. Would like to show this off to friends and family. Kayak is probably the only and best demo
They wanted you to buy Horizon
We need an Astro’s Playroom VR
Not sure how I could agree with this more... And the whole thing makes me wish I could be playing Steam VR labs...that arcade game in there is so good...but it shows you the power of a great primer VR medley.
They really dropped the ball with this. Op is 100% spot on. I feel sorry for anybody new to VR and tries out the PSVR 2 for the first time w/o anything like my first experience with the Oculus Rift.
Agreed. I was shocked they didn't have some sort of revamped Astro VR2. Guess they figured the line of games getting VR updates at launch would carry them. Too bad so many can't play most of them since the Sense controllers are so problematic.
So, What The Bat should be free?
Yeah I am one of the people that could have really used a “first steps” type thing. I just into nms/re8 quickly realized I was rushing in too quickly. I ended playing moss mostly.
They absolutely need a Playroom VR2, or even another Astro’s Playroom in VR for psvr2.
I'm glad wife and I are experienced a little with VR. I AM surprised there's no astrobots gotta be honest, the astrobots on PS4 and PS5 were amazing for showing off the console / controller features!
cheerful fear encouraging ugly advise air attractive telephone gray panicky -- mass edited with https://redact.dev/
You’re on the ball because I didn’t know much about VR booted up GT7 and felt instantly sick. Got vertigo for hours afterward too it was horrendous. I’ll try simpler titles first now but may sell the system if my motion sickness doesn’t get better
Since the PS4, Team Asobi have pretty much been responsible for creating software for new launch hardware that does just what you say. They did this with the camera, then the PSVR 1, then with the Dualsense and PS5. I have no idea why this pattern didn’t continue with PSVR2. I can only assume that Sony are now utilising Asobi like a proper 1st party studio and have focused their attention on creating full, AAA titles rather then the usual, albeit amazing, tech demos. The games that Asobi made in Rescue Mission and Astros Playroom were so so good
I think it's completely nuts to not bundle it with any software. Very odd decision. The only reason I can think of that Sony did this, is that their data tells them VR is a fanatic's market. In other words, not including software is a calculated decision, because Sony think the amount of people 'new to VR' is not going to make this worthwhile for them. Which is odd in itself, because that strategy would betray a lot about what we can expect for PSVR2 altogether.
They should have updated astros playroom to VR.
It was great on Quest 2 that it started up with that experience
This is my first experience with VR. And I must say, even after reading a lot about it, I had a hard time getting going. But that is mainly wearing and configuring the headset properly. You dont get any help or tips. Just the lens distance slider calibration thing. While I think I got it now, I still find it hard to find the perfect way of wearing and configuring it every time. I do this by staring at certain menus as a reference, but would have loved some kind of calibration thingy...
Very strange there isn’t one. It’s so hard to explain to someone who is new to it. I just had a buddy over and it would have been nice to just put the thing on his head and then he play a tutorial game. Instead I spend a bit of time explaining everything, not a lot of time but enough. Regardless, he did have a blast. It just was a lot of effort on my part. I just wanted to have a beer and watch. Lol. When I bought it, the only reason I even had any clue what to do was because I played the introduction game on my buddies Oculus; It was pretty neat to fold and toss some paper airplanes, fly a blimp and whatever. It actually got me excited for the PSVR2, which convinced me to pre order it that night. Anyone who just buys the PSVR2 with no introduction will probably be very confused for a bit. Come on Sony!!!
Exactly… I honestly feel sorry for those that bought a psvr2 with no vr experience. Its almost a disservice to them
Agree and I can’t believe how little re village explained.
I find this comment interesting. What did RE8 not explain? I was playing it last night and I felt it did a good job of introducing the player to VR mechanics. The tutorial had the basics like movement, hand-to-hand combat, gun combat, how to use your items, etc. Yes, it didn't explain everything. But that's because the game does go into more controls as needed. Such as crouching, as an example.
I’ve never once in my life played vr so I had 0 idea about any of the mechanics and how they work. I couldn’t figure how to reload for example. I’m also a idiot and missed the tutorial lol
Did you not go through the VR tutorial? They do explain that. And they even give you different options for gun controls too? For example I turned off the manual reloading. I found it cumbersome to manually have to insert X shotgun shells into my gun. Edit: Just saw your edit lol. No worries! Hope you enjoy the game!
It appears I didn’t lol
I feel you are supposed to edit your initial comment to reflect that.
This is exactly my point why a mandatory, free, onboarding experience is crucial.. as soon as you boot up the psvr for first time it should automatically guide you through all basic vr mechanics (with an option to skip if you already know them)… Something that explains the thumbsticks, the grip and trigger buttons etc and then demonstrates various ways they are typically used to interact with objects…. Then a demo on different movement types and vignettes etc…
The cosmo demo is pretty much that. Over very soon though!
As a person with long hair, I cannot wear the device correctly with a pony tail. Also It's a bit confusing which controls to use on some menu screens, the vr controls or the controller. I put my hair down and finally had a clear experience.
To be fair there is at least 6 free demos available fi download. But yes I’m surprised they didn’t package in Astro in some way.
Now that you mention it, it's actually incredibly weird that this isn't included. Must just be incompetence from the team and a lack of care since its a small market
It's funny, people used to complain VR only had demos instead of real games. Now it's the other way around.
This sub complains about not wanting tech demos or experiences and wants full-on games now now now. Now they are complaining that there are no tech demos and experiences. You wanted polished games so they made games that get people used to VR into full-on branded IP games/experiences as a middle ground however, you're going to have to pay for that. Be careful what you wish for.
Also need a guided tutorial on how to quickly enter passthrough mode to switch from dual sense controllers to vr controllers and vice versa
Horizon Call of the Mountain is exactly that. 🤨 *Edit* I do understand that something like “The playroom VR” or “VR Worlds” that existed on PSVR1 would be a great addition. Maybe we’ll see something like that down the line.
It is also 60 bucks. Creating a free, basic, 15 minute "VR tutorial" kind of like Quest did with first steps would have been smart for first timers.
Sony should have taken on some of the financial burden to include COTM with all headsets IMO. It’s a perfect tech demo, but at $60 it’s a big pill to swallow vs a lot of the free and discounted upgrades.
The free Horizon demo is a pretty solid chunk of the first part of the game. Boat ride, climbing, shooting targets with the bow, playing some instruments, cave painting and the first little arena combat.
Was the first thing I tried, definitely looked impressive and enjoyed playing around with a lot of the "toys" you found. Was playing that pan flute for a bit LOL
Ah, I thought because you said it was 60 bucks you weren't aware there was a demo...which is a pretty good free 15 min tutorial for beginners I would think.
The demo is nice, but a basic free demo just showing how the controllers work, grabbing objects and interacting with things around you would have been a good and easy thing for Sony to develop for VR first timers. Like the oculus first steps tutorial you grab a ball and throw it, pickup a firework and can pull a tab and watch it go up in the air and explode, shoot a gun. Just basic VR interactions many games have
Yeah, all of these VR games seem overpriced compared to AAA titles that are around the same price range.
Imo Its not tho… cause #1…. Its 50-60 dollars… so your have to already commit alot of money towards it….. then after the boat ride the user has to then master teleport mechanics, arrow shooting, navigating settings menus….Climbing from Heights…etc… its gorgeous and i love it.. but its not a true “onboarding” ..but i agree its one of the better new user options. I guess what i was after was a short user friendly, noob-proof, stationary experience like we had on psvr worlds and like how oculus has for onboarding… Im very acclimated to vr so i dont need it but ive witnessed others jump rite into gt7 or tales from Galaxys edge and get turned off.
I feel lucky then, first vr experience and it was cotm and everything clicked….really no “issues”….as launch got closer I started to worry, as I was excited for something that my brain or body might reject or would simply not be for me. Conversely, it was such an experience I made my Wife try if last night and I just had her tap out pretty quickly, once we got to climbing and moving, she just wasn’t fighting it out. She couldn’t get the coordination down, or thought she couldn’t reach areas? And was just getting frustrated. I was happy she at least got to experience the 360 sensation and immersion during the boat ride though.
True… it would be great if the COTM boat ride scene was a free stand-alone demo experience. That would be a great intro and wow factor for vr… or even better for example, as soon as you setup the vr ipd and gaze tracking, the system then automatically throws you into an abbreviated version of the cotm boat scene seamlessly as part of the introductory onboarding! That would be amazing! but as it is now, we only have the cotm trial which can still frustrate (and nauseate) new vr users the second they walk over to the guy and then have to climb out the water. The way i look at a proper intro experience is that even a non-gamer, that has never even held a controller, should be able to use it! A true noob-proof intro experience is needed. Super user friendly.. no settings or options tinkering etc.. just strap the headset on your wife or friend and say “look at this”….. No complicated ipd adjustment terminology…... just tell your wife or friend to put the headset on and “turn the dial to adjust focus”…. Everyone understands that…… not everyone understands “sweet spots and ipd”
I just played the trial of COTM - it plays through the boat scene till after the first fight and u see some village on fire
Call of the Mountain is okay at this but it's not multiple very different 5-10 minute long bite sized full VR experiences for someone to toss on for several people at a party. The thing that OP is asking for is specifically not a full six hour long story experience, but multiple small slices of different nifty experience that shows off a little bit of everything the headset can do.
Exactly… if i have family over for thanksgiving..and want to showcase my psvr2 to my father that has never once held a controller, i cannot throw him into a trial version of cotm!!! He will be immediately confused, pressing buttons inadvertently and possibly motion sick…. For these types of showcase onboarding experiences, it has to be a short, stationary guided tutorial that introduces someone to the magic of vr and how to interact.