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What is the current state of VR in DCS; was your headset worth buying?


Jamesp1

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Short version:

Do you think your VR headset was worth buying, and do you use it without any problems?

 

 

Longer version:

I haven't had the opportunity to see a demo of VR (I have tried) but am tempted to get one.

 

I'll need an entirely new computer though: £1,200 for a PC plus £900 for a rift/vive and 4k monitor...

It's a good time to buy: The headsets are now shipping next-day and no next-gen computing parts are coming out for the next few months. It'll also move my gaming to 4k resolution.

 

On the other hand £2k off my mortgage would also be nice!

 

 

So, how is VR in DCS at the moment? It is still early-adopter hell or are most people using VR with no problems? Is it worth £2k?

 

James


Edited by Jamesp1
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No technical problems with the Rift here, it just works. ED have done a great job adding features with the last few patches (Zoom, VR presets, pixel density etc.) For me, it's been a hassle free experience so far.

 

VR will blow your mind. It's a total game changer. That's not to say that there aren't drawbacks. The resolution is NOT as good as a screen. However, personally I will never go back to a normal screen. Most, if not all the 'issues' with VR can be worked around. And you simply cannot beat the immersion. You are IN the environment. It's impossible to describe until you've experienced it.

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I'm selling everything that I once thought I would use for a cockpit build including my TIR5. I just can't go back.

 

You do need to "get over" the resolution of it but you just feel like your there. Hard to explain as I'm sure you've heard a thousand times but its so natural and virtually trouble free so absolutely yes, its worth it.

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There is no going back to a flat screen once you have tried flying DCS in VR. It really is that good. As previously mentioned, there are some drawbacks, but the whole experience is vastly enhanced by the fact that you are (as far as your brain is concerned) sat in the cockpit. It's all around you.

 

From a personal point of view, I fly for a living and was finding flight sims to be getting rather stale and too much like work. Now I have the Rift that has completely changed things. I absolutely can't wait to fire up DCS and take an airplane or helicopter up for a spin. It's awesome. I also had to by a new PC to run the Rift (I bought a GTX980 powered Oculus Ready PC as a bundle with the headset). It was a lot of cash to drop but it was worth every penny in my opinion. I just wish the GTX1080 had been available back in April - but I just couldn't wait :) . Oh, and I did not get the opportunity to try VR before buying either. When I first fired up DCS with the Rift I felt like a kid on Christmas morning. 5 months later that feeling hasn't worn off in the slightest.

 

Just be warned though. Since getting the Rift I have wanted to catch up on all the modules that I have passed up previously. Even the ones I haven't really had any interest in before.


Edited by Astronut
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I'm never going back to a monitor.

 

That said ... if you can try before you buy, using DCS (and/or whatever other sims you use) and for an extended time ... I recommend doing that.

I've seen people on these forums offer prospective VR'ers in their area the opportunity to try out their set up, so asking never hurts. ;)

 

Depending on your eyesight and/or other factors, like maybe having something on your face that might be uncomfortable because you are a bit claustrophobic, live where it's hot and humid, or other things like that, which may make the experience uncomfortable and consequently just not very compatible for you, or you just don't feel the current resolution/screen door, motion sickness, etc. is worth it.

I have no idea what % of people might fall into that category, but I suspect it is fairly small.

 

It does have a given $ overhead, but if you find you don't have the above issues, it's totally worth the price of admission ... and then some! :)

 

Also consider that with VR you save a lot of money and time Vrs a multi screen scale pit build, and can have an infinite number of different 'VR scale cockpits', that although are certainly not a scale build, IMHO are a good trade off with their own very significant set of advantages over a built scale cockpit.

Like ... you can store a VR HMD (and consequently, a never ending fleet of scale VR aircraft/race cars) in a drawer. ;)


Edited by MacThai_75

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One of the things that blew me away was how much I now appreciate cockpit size. You sit in the A-10 and there's so much room. You sit in the F-86 and think, wow, small. Then you get the "so this is what it was like" feeling running through your head.

 

The other thing is that I now fly the P-51. I can't even tell you why, its just more something, I'm not even sure what. Best thing I ever did was buy a rift.

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The Rift is the most important flight-sim peripheral development since the TrackIR and leaves that in the shade, the level of immersion is incredible.

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What everyone else said. Its painful to see the cockpit in 2D after flying in VR. Head tracking in VR is amazing and much better than TIR. I only use 2D for mission editing and testing.

 

That said, VR is first gen right now. I suspect it will get even better in the next year or two, so the question is....wait or jump in now? Only you can answer that.

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VR IS a Game Changer for Flight Sims,As stated above The DCS Team realize this and are working hard to refine/customize Their VR UI.

I use and enjoy other flights sims such as IL*2 and X-Plane,but I don't use them as much because the lack of VR support.I think you should get it,You will LOVE the immersion

Patrick

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Wow - that's some seriously positive reviews!

 

Thanks everyone that replied; I think you've convinced me to pull the trigger when my 0%-interest credit card arrives.

You know, I realised that the real question came down to: Do I buy a first or second gen headset?

 

First gen: Will certainly be completely outclassed in two-ish years time; £1k per year cost if my PC needs replacing to run the new hardware.

Second gen: A two year wait, before which point my pc will be dead/useless.

 

Well, my PC is five years old so could do with replacing soon: I guess I'll go for 1st gen!

 

UKRifter has tipped me towards the Rift over the Vive, by the way.

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There will *ALWAYS* be a better PC, GPU, VR HMD in the future. You can't wait forever, after all. In my opinion, it's the *single* biggest thing that happened to flight sim. Falcon 3.0 was incredible leap forward. DCS is an incredible leap forward. HOTAS is a big leap. The all of them pale in comparison to VR.

 

I wish I could go back in time and fly Choplifter or Knights of the Sky with VR! :)

hsb

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One other thing I'd add... For me, helicopters have always been hard. Even with TIR, pedals and a Hotas, I struggled.

 

VR changes that. Completely. The depth perception you get from VR, makes helis a breeze. I've been landing the Huey and the Gazelle on all manner of random flat surfaces with relative ease. It's a blast!

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It is a game changer for rotary aircrafts...that's for sure. add the stick extension for TM Warthog or a "real" cyclic and it becomes easier as well.

hsb

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i7-10700K Direct-To-Die/OC'ed to 5.1GHz, MSI Z490 MB, 32GB DDR4 3200MHz, EVGA 2080 Ti FTW3, NVMe+SSD, Win 10 x64 Pro, MFG, Warthog, TM MFDs, Komodo Huey set, Rverbe G1

 

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I have to say that VR is simply a step change in gaming. There are currently some drawbacks, such as low resolution in comparison with flat screens, and the field of view could do with being much wider to give effective peripheral vision, but those issues aside, the sense of immersion and simply "being there" make VR utterly ground breaking.

 

Is it worth the investment? Yes, absolutely. I can say that because I have the disposable income to do it, but as far as value for money goes, seeing is believing. It isn't cheap, because as you rightly observed, you need the highest spec PC, and the headsets are also pricey.

 

VR hasn't been in the public domain long, and it is still not fully exploited in any of the popular games packages yet - but already on platforms such as DCS World, it is already a pretty powerful medium although more features need to be added to get the best out of the system.

 

It doesn't suit everyone - but what approach to game interfacing does? It can cause motion sickness - for some it is insurmountable, for others it just requires some acclimatisation - and that can be a real deal breaker.

 

Best advice to anyone thinking of taking the step (giant leap even) into VR is to try it first. Visit a show where they're being demo'd or find a mate who has one, and try it before you splash out. It may save you a whole bundle of cash if you find you can't cope with it.

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Hi mate,

 

Where are you based? I only ask as I found that oculus are doing demos of the rift in U.K. stores now. I had never used VR so was hesitant to pull the trigger... until last night! I had a demo in the Currys/PC world in Glasgow last night, totally blown away with the immersion the rift gives you! Although I wasn't in a flight sim, I can totally see how it would improve DCS.. so much so I've just ordered all my new PC parts AND a rift! Lol!

 

Go for it!

 

Cheers,

 

Craig.

My rig - I5 6600k @ 4.5 - Corsair H100i GTX - Maximus Hero viii - 16GB Corsair Dominator Platinum ROG edition DDR4 3200mhz - Gigabyte 1080ti (Overclocked) - TM Warthog Hotas - Saitek Combat Rudder pedals - Oculus Rift CV1

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Just got the Rift. I think DCS is the best non native OR app out there, I've tried Vorpx with a bunch of other stuff and its just really difficult to get a satisfactory experience, but the Rift and DCS, they've done an epic job (evidently I arrived at the right time)

 

I was a bit worried about the drops in FPS near Senaki, It isn't much of an issue as I thought, everyone goes on about FPS FPS, if you do get a quick stutter it's not the end of the world in DCS. There's somethign in the Rift that makes it smooth feeling anyway.

 

Oh and I used to be worried about motion sickness. I get sick on roundabouts and nearly threw up in my first plane flight. You can induce sickness in the rift with a bad setup, but generally you either are immune (when young) or you can get more used to it. I dont have any issue with it now. But if you are already sick it will not help!

 

Try find someone near you with it as was said.

 

Also, the lack of resolution bears makes me play steam guage aircraft, some of the huds can be tricky to read. No loss, the older aircraft are more visual and fun for OR.


Edited by Pikey

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Yep another here, I'm running my rift on a modest GTX970. It is a case of, the experience outweighs the graphics, sure I've had to turn down some settings to get decent textures in the cockpit. But honestly I got goose bumps and just sat there repeating "f**k me" when I first sat IN the f15. On a practical note, I switched mouse control on so i can move my pointer rather than look at switches. did a cold start in the a10 with no problems, it is a good system.

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VR IS a Game Changer for Flight Sims,As stated above The DCS Team realize this and are working hard to refine/customize Their VR UI

 

Is this true? Other than a flurry of patches for Oculus and initial vive support a couple of months ago, I haven't heard anything about VR support - and zoom and pixel density only work on oculus.

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i really like that you can look around the sky so easy to identify targets. i have TIR but never liked the display panning around so never really used it, so all i ever saw was a tunnel view out of the front window. now i can look all around naturally and it is a night and day difference in using the sim.

 

i just wish it worked on 2.0 alpha version.

My kit: i7-4790K@4GHz / 8GB - GTX 980ti + rift CV1 - X52 pro - Multi Keyboard Remapper - 2DOF motion sim (in development)

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I use it in 2.0 all the time. You must be missing a setting somewhere.

i9 9900K @ 5.1Ghz - ASUS Maximus Hero XI - 32GB 4266 DDR4 RAM - ASUS RTX 2080Ti - 1 TB NVME - NZXT Kraken 62 Watercooling System - Thrustmaster Warthog Hotas (Virpil Base) - MFG Crosswind Pedals - Pimax 5K+

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After reading the above comments, I guess I'll be the first to make a... well, not negative but certainly not a "wow! it's f@%ing amazing" comment.

 

When you try the rift for the first, it's quite impressive, you feel like you're in the cockpit BUT NOT at 100% due to the resolution even with pixel density.

It's not as beatiful as you would think. looking through the rift it's like looking at a retrojection on a wall. It's hard to explain but this is not impressive at all.

 

secondly, the performance.. you really have to turn down alot of settings to have decent fps.

I went back to regular screen last week and I really think DCS is beatifull when you have the graphics on high.

And after a while of not using the rift, I kind of forgot it as it is really not comfortable to have something this heavy on your face.

 

Some people say that you kind of ignore the resolution after a while, well I don't agree with that... for example when I come in on final approche, I really notice it and it's really bad looking at the runway.


Edited by red777
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