Cameron Spera

Wednesday's class included a lot of "firsts" for me. It was the first time I had ever experienced VR other than through Google Cardboard. It was also the first time I ever saw a Cirque de Soleil performance and walked through my own art masterpiece. It was pretty fun to say the least.

Although everything seemed like a novelty to me since I am pretty much new to the VR world, there were some apps and techniques that I quickly realized worked a lot better for me than others. One of the first devices I used was the Gear VR. This was seriously one of the coolest things to me mostly because I got to watch a Cirque de Soleil performance that I nearly felt involved in. Watching the performance through the Gear VR was really incredible because it almost felt interactive. When I turned to the right, the contortionists acknowledged me on stage and when I moved to the left, the clowns motioned toward me. I felt completely immersed in the performance that was going on and nearly felt present. This, to me, was amazing since the Gear VR is only a headset and doesn't involve any handheld controllers or remotes that bring your other senses into play.

Another thing I really liked about the Gear VR was how smooth the head tracking was and that the headset does not allow any light in. Although the headset is not compatible with all phones, it creates a great screen and fits really well to the phone so that there is no light and you can't see the outer part of the phone unlike some of the other lower priced headsets that I tried like Google Cardboard. This helped me to become fully engaged in the performance that was going on in front of me and made me feel like I was really there. I also like that I got to try it with headphones on because having the audio block out the rest of the noise in the room definitely helped make a better experience. I talked to other people who went through the Cirque performance and a lot of them thought similar things. It was cool to see everyone's reactions when they took the headset off and hear how much they felt like they were a part of the performance.

Aside from the Gear VR, another experience that really stuck with me when was I tried the HTC Vive. The Vive has what seems like a lot to it- the headset, controllers, light boxes, connection to the computer, etc. I won't lie, it was a little intimidating at first, but once I put the headset on, it really was amazing. I attempted Tilt Brush, which was an awesome app even for not so artsy people like me. The app let me use the controllers to create art right in front of me and literally walk through it, around it, and even under it.

The graphics were incredible and having controllers in your hand that include that extra element of tracked hand motions really intrigued me. Being able to see what your hands were doing, walk around, and make virtual art forced me to incorporate more parts of my body, which made it a really interesting experience that I think some of the other devices lack. The full-body experience was smooth and didn't make me feel nauseated or disoriented- in fact, I think having the ability to walk around and be part of the scene helped me not become nauseated like I did in some of the others.

Watching other classmates use the Vive was also a really fun experience. Seeing someone virtually live out another scene is awesome. I watched a lot of people go to Stone Henge and hearing them talk about feeling like they were on top of the water was wild. One of the only things that I think would make the Vive better is having hand controls that can attach to your hands without having to hold onto something. There were a couple instances where I almost wanted to reach out and grab something, but I had the controller in my hand. Maybe if there was a type of glove or wristband that had the same capabilities as the controller, you would be able to include your hands into the scenes more effectively.

Overall, my different VR experiences were really interesting, but the Gear VR and Vive definitely stuck with me. I think they were most effective to me because I felt completely immersed in the experience and the graphics of both were really great. The Gear VR allowed me to take part in an actual scene that wasn't computer generated, which made it even more impressive and the Vive gave me a full body experience that was different from any other. Both were smooth and the devices didn't feel cumbersome or difficult to use.