Does anyone have a headset? What do you think about it in the context of your mental health?
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I got into VR during the pandemic which allowed me to socialize at any time (often in the wee hours) in VRChat. It absolutely helped my mental state at the time. I also discovered countless people using VR for other mental and physical health reasons. Ended up with a girlfriend who moved to my state (going on four years now). There are also worlds specifically for chilling out, sightseeing, nature etc. I would highly highly recommend it to anyone for VRChat alone (which is also free).
Eventually I branched out into other games and now I can’t go back to flat first person games. The immersion of VR can’t be described.
So yeah, 100% get a headset. Meta just announced new prices so you can get started for as little as $299 (for the Quest 3S). Obviously there are many other options out there (I personally like Pico) but I don’t know the specifics of your situation. Feel free to ask any questions.
I had a Go a long time ago and I loved it for watching movies but the small sweet spot was an issue. I feel a strong pull towards pancake lenses but I think the cost is still out of reach… a new q3 is approaching 1k after straps and games.
Pico 4 is fantastic right out of the box with pancakes. The games library isn’t as vast but most of the big hits are available. And of course you can connect to a PC and play Steam games. Pico also has full body tracking coming out this holiday season.
During the COVID restrictions, I used to use my Quest 1 with a free game called “Bait!”. Not because of the game itself, but because of the relaxing environments (pond, waterfall, etc.) and because it’s one of the rare game that you can play in an armchair.
All I really use mine for is to escape. I’ll play flatspace PC games or watch TV while chilling in a nice VRChat environment instead of just using my TV in reality.
Is that good for mental health? I’m not an expert but I would guess “probably not.” If anything, it’s the opposite.
I had an Oculus Go for a while and despite the average, kind of uncomfortable, kind of blurry experience I was still always struck when I took the headset off how stark reality felt in comparison. I was happy in VR, it something to look forward to. The alternatives are less good…
For me my headset (Quest 1) is too uncomfortable to really be relaxing.
I don’t think that’s changed with the Quest 3. The interface is hard and the balance is whacky, but I wasn’t expecting comfort more getting “away”. MR and passthrough make it feel less claustrophobic.
Maybe Big Screen would do the trick. Its form fitting and is supposed to be pretty light.
I went ahead today after a lot of deliberation and bought one. Big upgrade from the Go but also familiar in a lot of ways (not comfortable, hot, sort of nauseating). I’m happy. I cleaned the kitchen for the first time in a week. It took me out of my head for a few hours and that’s what I wanted.
my index hurts my eyes, even with corrective lenses, which stresses me out. i dunno, maybe there’s something about having big lamps 2cm in front of your eyeballs.
