Still really blown away with the Q3, especially how much I'm using it. I didn't really expect to see a huge increase in (PCVR) use, but this and the steam deck (casual couch gaming) are where my time has gone.
As expected, getting some of the games/mods setup is still a bit of a pain. I've been playing a lot, here are some of my highlights:
- Skyrim VR - My biggest issue here is that I left off pretty deep in the game. The problem is that my mod list became relatively unstable last I played (but not gamebreaking). Since my last play there's been quite a few changes to some things. My advice is to just go the Wabbajack FUS route if you want to get into this one, and don't start tinkering. That came about as the mainstream option after I started my game, but I wish I would have started over sooner.
- iRacing - I got my bass transducers setup on all 4 corners and tuned up. I have my wheel (OSW) pretty well setup. I resubbed to the service. I ran a few laps. It's fantastic. There's some blurriness on the horizon that's bugging me, which has set me into some tinkering sessions. The actual racing has been fun, but challenging. I was targeting the Porsche Cup, and turned a few laps. That seems pretty manageable, but it would take a bit to be able to run a full race without incident. I might divert into something with shorter sessions, or even Oval while I get settled in. I've also considered just dropping the service for now and trying something like Assetto Corsa to just get some consistency down.
- American Truck Sim - I got this on a deep sale a long time ago. It's probably not for everyone, but it's a lot of fun with the rig and VR combo. I made a few visual/control tweaks, but spent a few hours last night just hauling loads and listening to the built-in real radio stations (even turning the dial with my button box). I actually looked forward to getting back into the rig tonight to run some more, but I got distracted with the next one..
- Portal 2 - This is a relatively new mod. People have been talking about this for years, but all agreed that it would be a barf simulator. Turns out that's not at all the case. Granted, I have some pretty sturdy VR legs, but I was able to get this mod up and running within a few minutes, and spent the next 3+ hours picking up my mid-late stage save file from years ago. I'm going to finish this out in VR for sure. I got to the final chapter, and I'll probably give it another at some point. The game looked fantastic, and played flawlessly for me. I think this is one of those top-end "wow" VR experiences for me.
- Half-Life 2 VR - This is another mod, but this one I believe is getting a dedicated release. I only gave this a quick check but it looked great, and seems like it would control well.
- Star Wars Squadrons - definitely in that top tier of VR experiences for me (with the HOTAS). The trouble is the menus suck and multiplayer is pretty dead. It's actually infuriating because if my peripherals get mucked up, I literally can't navigate menus. It becomes this really specific dance where I have to d/c them all, get to where I need to be, and then slot them into the right in-game equivalent. It's way more difficult than it sounds. I don't know what I did to knock it out of my preferred setting, but this isn't the first time.
I jumped between some other familiar favorites, Thrill of the Fight, Demeo, Beat Saber, Superhot.
I tried to get back into Outer Wilds, but I'm having issues getting the VR to trigger. That's one I'll need to troubleshoot. Probably the next one after I complete Portal 2.
I tried UEVR, specifically Pinball FX. I got it to load and then it crashed upon a button press. I've seen some others experience the issue and sounds like there's a new version I may need to grab. There wasn't a lot else that grabbed my attention.
I'm kicking around getting into No Man's Sky or Elite Dangerous. The latter I played a bit in VR and had some fun. It was daunting, and I had more time then. My biggest barrier back then with the original Rift was that the text fatigued my eyes. I don't think that would be an issue anymore. I have a solid dual Gladiator NXT setup, so running something with HOSAS/HOTAS is on my radar.
I actually have a bit of a backlog at this point, with other story games like Firewatch, Jedi Academy, HL Alyx and Asgard's Wrath 2. My hope is that these things keep me busy until we see some more advancements in software.