Tweet
At this week's EGX Rezzed show in London, I had one of those experiences that journalists live for. I got a glimpse of the future - or perhaps it would be more accurate to describe it as a privileged understanding of the present. I tried Valve's SteamVR system and for half an hour was held rapt by a suite of demos that allowed me to walk around virtual spaces. I came out with my head spinning - only figuratively - and babbled excitedly at anyone I could grab. The first friend I subjected to my ravings told me I looked stoned. I did feel like my perceptions had been altered in a way that taking the headset off didn't immediately reverse. It's that good.I've calmed down now, but a day later I remain profoundly impressed by Valve's technology. For context, I'd describe myself as a virtual reality agnostic; sceptical would be too strong a word for my position, but I'm not a true believer either. I'm interested in the possibilities of VR and happy to see some significant hardware and software innovation being driven by the games industry. But I have doubts about its applications and its mass-market appeal.
That said, the last time I felt this excited by the potential of something I was reporting on was when John Carmack introduced me to an early prototype of Oculus Rift at E3 2012. It was a fun demo, but I was mostly energised by the prospect of a new technological frontier for games to head towards. This is, after all, a tech-driven art form that has taken many of its biggest creative strides in tandem with advances in engineering, and it's been a long while now since the 3D graphics and online gaming booms flooded the medium with new experiences. Even if VR could never be so game-changing - Carmack seemed to envisage it, primarily, as a natural extension of the first-person perspective, a better way to experience the games he was already making - a little bit of that future-tech frisson could go a long way.
Read more…
More...