Critic from Pushsquare experiences PSVR for the first time. In short, he loved it.

The game he was playing is new, soon-to-release PSVR VR exclusive The Persistence, which is a horror game set on a spaceship where, throughout the campaign, you are stalked by fellow human passengers that have mutated as the result of an accident during a failed experiment involving teleportation. The writer of the article, Jamie O'Neill, was skeptical about PSVR until he actually TRIED it, and was so impressed that he felt compelled to write about it. I know the feeling! Below are some quotes, and a link. Also, at the bottom I've included a half hour gameplay segment from Eurogamer (they loved it too!).

http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2018/07/soapbox_playing_the_persistence_as_my_first_ever_psvr_experience

"...the artistry creates similarities to the claustrophobic feel of the Nostromo's (Alien) corridors and narrow air ducts felt spot-on. I couldn’t help but notice Firesprite’s inspiration from Dead Space, and the interiors also recalled the tension built from watching atmospheric set-designs in the film Event Horizon. Carus described the “incredible lighting system”, and touches like using a torch to cautiously brighten dark corners reminded me of The Last of Us, but were elevated by PSVR, making me pause to reflect upon how magical VR technology is at heightening the senses."

"With the PSVR headset on, I was so immersed it distracted me from my manners. Whenever I cover a game I love researching extra tidbit details, and I make reams of notes. Yet, I was so keen to stay in the headset experience, I asked Firesprite’s staff to write notes for me."

"Seamlessly through hands-on time with The Persistence, any of my previous apprehension about first playing PSVR had naturally turned into open-mouthed wonderment, and pure fun."

The natural reaction. Practically everyone sees the staying power of VR after they try a decent game with it. Horror games in particular like the above are crazy intense. Alien Isolation in VR was horrifying on a new level.

I myself could not handle the stress of RE7.

Similar reaction to what my friends and family get when they put on my PSVR for the first time.

I think most of the people bashing VR are too poor to afford one or they've never used a proper VR headset before and have only played with the low end VR headsets for phones.

There's also the trouble of store demos. By definition they won't show VR off that well because even if you manage to get a good setup, you don't have enough time to take your own pace, and they only demo arcade-style games rather than what people consider the best of VR.

True. I noticed this problem too before I got my PSVR. A lot of the games they show off are shitty demos and the headsets usually aren't calibrated.

When people's only experience with VR is a shitty 5-10 minute demo it's no surprise many think it's a gimmick.

Pretty much. Basing one's opinion of VR on crappy VR shovelware is unfortunately all too common. Everyone I've shown good VR games to has been suitably impressed. Most are totally blown away.

The game is indeed pretty stressful in VR (especially the crazy Mia sections!), but I personally dig that kinda thing. Not, mind you, that I didn't do my fair share of screaming playing RE7 on PSVR. It's just, the more terrifying, the better imo. I understand it's not everyone's cup o' tea, though.

Yep, that's the trouble. So many people only try low end mobile VR, and think that's all that VR has to offer. It's a shame.

@reduc_ab_: I work pretty hard and get stressed out enough as it is. I tend to play video games to de-stress, so VR RE7 is kinda the opposite of what I need haha. That being said, it’s an incredible experience

Wait, a "critic" from a PlayStation site loves PSVR, well I'll be damned.

Shit, the cow desperation for this flop of a device is truly sad, but funny at the same time, as in everyone else is laughing :)

Its about time they ran over it and put it out of its misery :(

@i_p_daily said:

Wait, a "critic" from a PlayStation site loves PSVR, well I'll be damned.

Shit, the cow desperation for this flop of a device is truly sad, but funny at the same time, as in everyone else is laughing :)

Its about time they ran over it and put it out of its misery :(

lol

@quadknight: I agree and let's be honest, it's too expensive right now, but that's how it always is with new tech since those are for enthusiasts, I can't bring myself to pay for VR right now, but let's hope gen 2 is better and cheaper as it should be.

Ah yes, Push Square... the only gaming site that manages to be as bad as Nintendo Life.

@KBFloYd said:

@i_p_daily said:

Wait, a "critic" from a PlayStation site loves PSVR, well I'll be damned.

Shit, the cow desperation for this flop of a device is truly sad, but funny at the same time, as in everyone else is laughing :)

Its about time they ran over it and put it out of its misery :(

lol

The thread is a massive flop, so works in well with the flop known as PSVR lol.

@i_p_daily said:

The thread is a massive flop, so works in well with the flop known as PSVR lol.

its destined to fail.

@i_p_daily said:

Wait, a "critic" from a PlayStation site loves PSVR, well I'll be damned.

Shit, the cow desperation for this flop of a device is truly sad, but funny at the same time, as in everyone else is laughing :)

Its about time they ran over it and put it out of its misery :(

Oh, look, it's that one guy that posts the same gifs in every VR thread over, and over, and over, and over, and over. It's also that one guy that has talked about VR like he's an expert on it for like two years straight at this point, yet has never, in his life, played a VR game, or used a VR headset.

This place is frustrated manboy central at times.

This is cool and all, but when are Sony going to bring their big, triple A exclusives to PSVR?

I've said several times and I guess I'll say it again. PSVR kinda sucks, and it's far from being a huge success. But there's certainly a future for VR and Sony will never drop it as it would compromise future endeavours when next gen comes.

But kudos for those who enjoy it. To me what it offers right now is so inferior to a traditional game experience that I sold mine a few months after. I did enjoyed Thumper, cool experience. Absolutely hated RE, feels clunky as fvck. But I didn't enjoyed the game even without VR. Couldn't even finish it. At the same time, I have to say, the initial moments of that game, while it's still a walking simulator, felt amazing. Even with the lackluster image quality.

@mandzilla: These things take time. Most big devs need a higher user base than a few million to jump in. That'll come eventually. In the meantime there is a pretty good library of great VR games already here, and it's growing.

@KBFloYd: Come on, dude. Let's squash it for like five minutes. That possible?

cmon thats what this place is meant for endless bottomless lols

no beef here

@KBFloYd: I meant just posting gifs over and over with no thoughtful content, even if it's just trolling. Put some work into it! ;)

but i searched the interwebs for a whole minute for that gif. thats all the work your thread deserves. especially since thats how much thought you put into this thread.

@KBFloYd: Hehe. ;)

All I have to do is pop in Skyrim VR in my PS4 and I'll lose a friend to Tamriel for hours. The tech is damn good, especially considering the lack of raw power in a console.

hours? let me guess 1 hour in the actual VR. Then 2 hours of barfing in the toilet?

or the hours in the ER for the seizures

@KBFloYd said:

or the hours in the ER for the seizures

My 72 year old mother can deal with VR just fine. It's not anyone's fault that you are weak.

@Shewgenja said:

@KBFloYd said:

@Shewgenja said:

All I have to do is pop in Skyrim VR in my PS4 and I'll lose a friend to Tamriel for hours. The tech is damn good, especially considering the lack of raw power in a console.

hours? let me guess 1 hour in the actual VR. Then 2 hours of barfing in the toilet?

@KBFloYd said:

or the hours in the ER for the seizures

My 72 year old mother can deal with VR just fine. It's not anyone's fault that you are weak.

is this your granmother?

@KBFloYd said:

or the hours in the ER for the seizures

There's nothing to suggest this is a big problem. I've seen someone have a seizure before in VRChat and it sucked - but it was a dance club with flashing lights. That doesn't automatically mean it was VR causing it as the same club in real life might have triggered it also.

it can happen though.

It can happen on a TV / Monitor as well. And I have yet to see anyone have issues from Beat Saber which has lots of flashing lights.

Yeah that the annoying catch 22 of new tech/stuff, the developers wait for the install base to grow before committing with big budget games. However if they did the sales would be through the roof, and they'd have a big audience for their titles. It happened before with the Vita, and could end up being a similar story for Switch third party. Then again though, perhaps it's a good thing that PSVR gets its own unique library to set it apart from the regular PS4 lineup. Certainly seems well suited to the horror genre, where you can create a claustrophobic atmosphere. Too spooky for me though! :D

How poor are you? I paid around 400 bucks for my Oculus Rift Touch Bundle with two sensors. You can get it even cheaper if you buy it used. PSVR is likely even cheaper.

No wonder you're such a shit troll, you can only afford a PS4 and that's why you shit on all the other platforms.

Personally I really don’t care how good the tech gets and how many triple A games make use of it, I simply don’t want to spend my time playing my games in VR. I just prefer playing games on a standard TV with a standard controller in my hands and see nothing now nor in the future that will change my mind.

I want resolution high enough to where I can't see the pixels.

Oh yea and games that look as good as they do on a single screen.

Then I'll give it a try.

Do you have a smartphone? If so, I'd imagine that you'll have an MR (AR + VR) headset. VR is a lot more than just gaming, and combined with AR, it has the potential to become a near necessity like smartphones are today.

It's highly likely that VR gaming will surprise you anyway in all sorts of ways as it develops.

@blueberry_bandit: Yeah I know VR has other uses besides gaming however when it comes to gaming it’s simply not something that I’m at all interested in using. I haven’t seen anything yet nor can I imagine anything in the future that may make me at all interested in playing games in VR. Like I said I would just much rather play games on a standard TV with a standard controller.

There's nothing wrong with that, but I seriously doubt that you'll be gaming for the next 20 years without any interest in VR. There is something for everyone. What are you favorite game genres?

@blueberry_bandit: I can easily see myself gaming in 20 years with no interest in gaming in VR. I like a lot of different genres but my favourite ones are probably:

- JRPG’s

- Fighting games

- Action/adventure

- Platformers

- FPS/TPS

Some people just can't hide their buyers remorse with the PSVR. I would be defending this flop to if I wasted money on this con device.

I just psvr for my birthday, its amazing. Im surprised how good it is. I didn't think it would be as immersed as i was. Or the tracking would work so well

Platformers are surprisingly amazing in VR. People generally think they won't work, but both 1st person and 3rd person platformers are extremely well suited.

In 1st person you have much more control, so a game like Mirrors Edge or Assassin's Creed's climbing system can be a lot more intuitive and versatile in VR, and generally just more fun.

In 3rd person platformers, you're now in the world and feel more of a connection to the character. Like in Moss, you can give Quill high fives, or pet her, and when she's in trouble, there's going to be a higher response of empathy due to being closer to the character. It turns a great platformer into a magical experience. I definitely believe any platformer properly adapted to VR is going to be better because of it.

FPS is very much made for VR. This is one area that I expect to be a niche in 10-15 years in traditional gaming, but big in VR. It's so much more satisfying when you have complete control, and you get a bigger rush of adreneline, and the skill ceiling is a lot higher because you always have more options at any given time. FPS games are stagnating, but in VR there are plenty of totally new FPS experiences like Echo Combat. Then you also have the ability to interact with other humans with actual body language in multiplayer, and this completely changes the dynamic.

Action / Adventure games like Uncharted are great fun, and they will continue to be fun. But you don't feel like your body has literally been on an adventure. A game like Uncharted with all it's mechanics can be adapted to VR and really make you feel like an action hero and like you've genuinly gone on an adventure in another world.

JRPGs / TPS / Fighting games can be done, but certainly aren't the highlights so I won't talk about those.

There will be many new genres born from VR as well. Those could surprise you.

Boats make some people sick=boats suck... Anti-VR fanboy logic.

@blueberry_bandit: You really shouldn’t have gone to all the trouble of typing that up. I don’t really care what type of games can be done in VR as I’m simply just not at all interested in playing games in VR regardless. For instance I really enjoyed Resident Evil 7 however I would just simply prefer to play it on a standard TV with a standard controller. I don’t care about how good the tech gets, how cheap the prices go, or what games are playable on it. I simply am not interested in gaming in VR.

You can't know for sure if you'll have that stance permanently. I'm sure you were uninterested in a game or game genre before at some point and came around liking it. This is common among gamers.

Cool! Have fun!