If you haven’t been living under a rock for the past year or so, you definitely know that virtual reality is knocking on our door. Some big names have taken upon themselves to challenge the empty throne. Google, Microsoft, Sony, Valve, HTC, GoPro, and even Facebook wants to be known as the reigning king.

Is this a trend that will fail miserably? Or is it the future of our home entertainment?

Facebook-owned Oculus Rift has announced that they will start shipping their virtual reality headset sometime in early 2016, and that it will cost about $400, but you’ll need a proper PC that can run it. Oculus Rift CEO Brendan Iribe has said that a PC-build that now normally costs about $1500 should be more than enough to run their headset. In 2016, the price will most likely drop – you’ll notice a significant change.

Oculus Rift development kit

Microsoft’s HoloLens is most likely going to be Oculus Rift’s main competitor, along with SteamVR – the love child of Valve, and HTC, also called The Vive. But everything seems to cost hundreds of dollars, and if you aren’t a virtual reality enthusiast, these prices will scare the living hell out of you. More on this later when we talk about FullDive – the most affordable virtual reality product. Kudos to Giovanno Yosen Utomo, one of the co-founders, and Marcus Missirlian, member of FullDive’s operations team, for making time to discuss details about their product.

The interview regarding FullDive can be read at the end of article.

The majority will want a headset that will satisfy their curiosity about virtual reality gaming. Some virtual reality games are available, but they aren’t that great. The only one that sparks my curiosity is The Forest – available on Steam; users have reported feeling nauseous after playing it while wearing virtual reality dev gear. Others haven’t yet seen the light of day – keep your eyes out for Eve: Valkyrie.

EVE: Valkyrie

Oculus Rift announced that they managed to pinpoint the problem, and successfully fixing  it, but what does this mean then? Do games need to be built with virtual reality in mind? Do developers need to adopt a new strategy when building this sort of games?

Developers around the world think that when you build a game for virtual reality, you need to focus on it first, and then think how you want to port it for the traditional medium. Joe Ludwig, programmer at Valve Software working on the Team Fortress 2 team, and a crucial key-developer when talking about TF2 in the virtual reality medium isn’t that happy with their port.

When Joe talks about the Lesson learned while porting Team Fortress 2 to virtual reality, at a 2013 Game Developers Conference,  he pinpoints the fact that latency poses as a crucial element in solving the nausea mystery, and that other third-person adventure, and shooter games, even MOBAs, will be hard to tackle in the virtual reality medium.

Team Fortress 2 VR mode

We have no information regarding Sony’s Project Morpheus at the moment, and to be honest, the name makes me think about virtual reality porn – an idea that isn’t that far fetched. Be sure that if the trend explodes, virtual reality sex will dethrone the traditional medium in which we satisfy our primal needs – your fetish just a click away? Whoever finds the perfect method to market this will be a billionaire.

Virtual reality technology has come a long way since its inception, and Microsoft’s Build 2015 showcased a HoloLens that could be used around the house as your new portable entertainment system – plastering YouTube videos on walls, and setting them to follow you sounds like a phenomenal idea. You can cook, and watch a cooking guide from the internet at the same time without worrying that you’ll spill something on your laptop, or tablet.

Microsoft’s HoloLens

But wearing a blocky, and huge device on your head isn’t my ideal dream for VR usage. Google has tried to make something out of virtual reality in the past that seemed more practical. Remember Google Glass? Or how I like to put it Virtual reality goggles for the NSA lover. They launched it at the worst time possible, when everyone was terrified that the NSA knows everything about them – and sure enough, the leaks showed exactly that.

What is virtual reality and is it dangerous?

Can we get addicted to virtual reality?

The virtual reality definition, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, says that it’s – ” an artificial environment which is experienced through sensory stimuli (as sights and sounds) provided by a computer and in which one’s actions partially determine what happens in the environment; also :  the technology used to create or access a virtual reality.”

The computer generated environment immerses the person within its world fooling the player by giving him the false mental state that he is capable of manipulating, and distorting virtual existence.

The TV show Community has aired a pretty interesting episode where one of the characters used a virtual reality treadmill so much that he ended up thinking he was the God of his realm, and that subsequently led to him never wanting to leave the place. Dean Pelton spent a couple of hours in the VR world, but he’s a doofus, so better to ignore him.

Serious questions arise. Are we going to endanger ourselves by using virtual reality? Are we going to love the false world so much that we’ll hate the real one? I can’t answer these questions, and only time will tell if VR is indeed a gift, or a curse. Take it as food for thought.

Virtual reality therapy

Virtual Reality Exposure Therapy

Somewhat debunking those serious questions that I asked earlier, virtual reality exposure therapy is a real thing, and it helps people who suffer from certain phobias like Ophidiophobia – fear of snakes; Acrophobia, or Altophobia – fear of heights; and those who suffer from depression, and other mental illnesses. Amongst other uses.

According to the USC Institute for Creative Technologies, virtual reality therapy is – ” Currently found at over 60 sites, including VA hospitals, military bases and university centers,” helping those who suffer from PTSD. ” ICT’s Virtual Iraq/Afghanistan exposure therapy approach has been shown to produce a meaningful reduction in PTS symptoms.”

Marines from the 2d Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, train with the Future Immersive Training Environment

Treatments aren’t available for home users, and if you experience issues that don’t allow you to get out of the house, and into a facility that offers this kind of service, unfortunately, you can’t use virtual reality therapy. Why? Because you need a trained therapist that will guide you through the steps of your recovery.

You don’t want to start this journey on your own because a) you have no idea how you will react to the virtual stimuli, and b) you will end up deteriorating your mental state even more. Do not try this alone!

FullDive – an affordable VR option!

A couple of weeks ago I was chatting on Quora, and by sheer luck, I might add, I met Marcus Missirlian. We talked about books, and TV shows, and I ended up discovering that he works for a virtual reality company that is currently developing the most affordable headset on the market. Called FullDive, it’s a nifty little thing that immerses you into a dream-like world.

I immediately fell in love with it, and I asked him if we could set up an interview. He introduced me to one of the co-founders, and the rest is history.

The virtual reality headset is lightweight, and adjustable to fit any noggin – it also fits the user perfectly if he wears glasses; this is a big plus in my book.

It comes with a smart controller that helps you surf into your desired world – ” FullDive’s mixed reality controller allows your digital content to blend with reality as holograms.”

Full Dive’s team consists of virtual reality enthusiasts – some product designers, and engineers have worked for Tesla, and Google X; and founders Giovanno Yosen Utomo, and Ed Ow, are UC Berkely grads – which immediately makes me think that the entire team is comprised of sheer talent.

How do you use it?

Simple as pie. You download the app from Google Play – the iOS version will be available soon; you start it up, slide your phone into the headset, and you enjoy the experience. In the first 8 weeks of launch, the FullDive app witnessed over 50,000 downloads, and 1,450 reviews – the average rating was of 4.5 stars.

Their Kickstarter campaign hasn’t started yet, and it’s due this July – but you can pre-order their headset right now on their official website. It costs $29 for you early birds.

The headset offers a high quality affordable VR experience, unlike other virtual reality companies that make you cough up a lot of cash. You can use it to take photos, and record videos in the VR medium. Development is on-going, and expect to see FullDive enabling streaming of movies, and TV shows using Netflix, Hulu, and Roku.

The guys and girls over at FullDive are preparing their product to be available starting December of 2015. For more info, read the interview with Marcus Missirlian, and Giovanno Yosen Utomo just down below.

Q: Will FulDive support JellyBean, and KitKat, or it will focus on Lollipop, and the newly announced Android M? – on your website it only says that it works on all Android phones.

M: We are working to make sure the application functions properly on all versions of Android software, new and old, and actively stress test the application on different models of phone. The newer the software and phone, though, the better the application will function, because the application relies on the phone’s processor. Newer phones naturally have better processors, which allows the application to perform at its peak. As for the version of Android, we see this providing no impediment to the functionality of the application.

Q: The same goes for iOS. Which versions will it support?

M: The same goes for iOS. It will support iPhone 5 and above.

Q: Can you give any additional info regarding the Smart Controller? ” FullDive’s mixed reality controller allows your digital content to blend with reality as holograms.”  How does it work exactly? Will I be able to control said holograms? Can I give them certain commands like plaster this YouTube window on the wall, and set it to follow me? Something on the lines of what HoloLens can do. If yes, what are its limitations?

M: Because we are still building out the functionality of the Smart Controller, we don’t yet quite have a read on what its limitations will be. Ideally, we want capabilities on par with Hololens and that is what our engineers are striving to produce. Additionally, there will be basic commands, like move the controller forward to confirm.

Q: With the Smart Controller do you think that games such as Minecraft will be playable?

M: That is the ideal situation and what we are working to provide with the application. The controller will be able to be used in place of, say, the pickaxe or a sword.

Q: Are there any specific games recommended for the FullDive product? What about apps? Or you can just watch movies, and surf the web using the FullDive VR app?

M: While streaming media and surfing the web would be the primary purpose, we are providing the tools to produce games for the FullDive application. We are hoping this will encourage the proliferation of FullDive as users create and share their games with their friends. We ourselves are working to produce games to get the ball rolling. Additionally, any virtual reality application downloaded through Google Play or the App Store is compatible with the headset and can be launched through our FullDive application. Our vision is an affordable headset that offers a one-stop-shop virtual reality experience, and using the application as a landing site for all virtual reality applications on your device aids us in this aim.

Q: Virtual reality is facing some problems at the moment. Oculus Rift users have reported feeling dizzy and nauseous after using the VR gear. Is this a problem that FullDive has encountered? If yes, how did the team manage to get rid of it?

M: A few users have reported feeling off balance, but we have tried to alleviate this problem by making sure that screens are stable at all times through head tracking and use dark colors such as black and dark blue to guide users through our selection of apps. The FullDive VR design team is working hard to ensure that users have a comfortable VR experience.

Q: It’s been marketed as an affordable product even for third world countries, but what about first world ones? Do you think the public will accept it with arms wide open? Or will they flock to other products like Facebook-owned Oculus Rift, Sony’s Project Morpheus, HTC and Valve’s Vive, Microsoft’s HoloLens, and Samsung’s Gear VR?

M: The main problem with VR right now is its accessibility. The public wants to experience virtual reality but is waiting on these headsets to come out sometime within the next couple years. With FullDive, users already have everything they need, a smartphone to download our FullDive app. For high-end users who want to upgrade their computer or use VR for intensive gaming, the other headsets will have to be optimized with a powerful graphics card. It’s the same concept with laptops: there are your light users who want to daily use for school and work and those who buy laptops specifically for gaming. If the case was every user wanted the most powerful device, there would be no market space for a laptop like the Chromebook. There is a massive market for both sectors, and we have received a lot of enthusiasm about our affordable pricing.

Q: Google has announced their partnership with GoPro, and they too will tackle virtual reality. Do you think that the market is becoming overly saturated by so many VR products? 

M: While a lot of companies are tackling producing virtual reality headsets, a clear leader in the value space has yet to emerge. There are a great number of headsets, but each one is attempting to differentiate itself in a different way. The market we are attempting to tackle, the casual/light user projected to be the largest virtual reality consumer, still has a lot of room left for us to establish a significant presence.

Q: On your official website it reads that the kickstarter campaign starts this June. Do you have any information that you can share at this moment? What’s the initial goal? What are the rewards?

G: The kickstarter was originally planned at the end of June, but since we have some challenges on the hardware designs – we are pushing it to July.  We will pledge $50,000 but we are hoping to get more than that!

Q: What motivated you to start FullDive?

G: I was originally from Indonesia, a 3rd world country. Throughout my 5 years stay in the US, I feel the huge gap of technology; and this motivated me to bridge the technology gap by making a product that can be accessed by everyone. Internet sure does help, but it is not enough. We need that infrastructure. That is where VR comes in. I personally think that VR is a cutting edge technology that fits with my vision, to create an infrastructure can help people to have a better life.

Q: What is it you’re hoping to achieve with FullDive?

G: I want everyone, yes everyone around the world, to be connected and start experiencing VR. That is my vision of the company. We will overcome this challenge by creating a set of products (software and hardware) that is affordable to most people and made accessible through our distribution networks. Basically, it would make me happy if everyone can experience this new technology, and I believe that FullDive will bring a big step of evolution to how people enjoy media, socialize, and do businesses.

Q: How do you see the virtual reality trend evolving? Do you think it will wither in a couple of years, or are we witnessing our new form of home entertainment?

G: I am a keen believer that through VR and AR (augmented reality), we are approaching a new form of way of interaction with our daily live, not only for home entertainment, but also education, research, industry, etc. It will make all human’s life easier if we can utilize VR in parts of our daily lives. For example, surgeons can be assisted during surgery, by making sure that they are cutting the right spot; golfer will have the ability to see the speed of wind and distance projection, and it will help their decision on their shot. People can share their 360 experience with their family, instead of the usual a face to face video conference. These are just some of the examples that I can think about.

Q: Any thoughts on the behemoths of the industry? Oculus Rift, HoloLens, and Valve’s, and HTC’s SteamVR ( also called Vive).

G: I don’t think them as our competitor, but more of a big brother. They are the ones who are creating the cutting edge technologies, which will come with huge cost and not mobile – and not everyone can afford it. We are creating the simple technology, which is accessible to everyone. Think about having a super-power computer which cost $1000 you must be installed at home; or a mobile smartphone which cost less than $200.