Virtual life? It’s a real rollercoaster
I HAVE had to hide the virtualreality headset as my children rapidly became helpless addicts, pursuing me around the house shouting: ‘Helmet!’
I was dreading the looks I’d get from worthy parents, who already sneer at my children’s Netflix habits, if they came in and found the youngsters plugged into a virtual-reality world, trying to grab at nonexistent dinosaur legs.
Oculus Go is the simplest and best-value VR machine so far. It’s an all-in-one, so you don’t need a phone or a PC, and it turns on as you put it on your head, plunging you into a 3D ‘menu’ room.
From here you can select games, apps and videos (including an endless supply of videos where you’re on rollercoasters, and a game where you fight people – while on rollercoasters).
My children shrieked endlessly at a Jurassic World app where it briefly seems as if a dinosaur is about to step on you (spoiler: it doesn’t).
The games look fantastic, controlled by a simple one-handed laser/pointer-style thing. I still don’t quite ‘get’ the TV apps (I’d rather just watch Netflix on my TV), but these headsets are going to be great for viewing live sport and music, as if you’re in the stadium.
It’s a giant step towards the day when VR goes mainstream, but it’s still not quite there. The Go weighs a pound, runs out of batteries after two hours, and many apps are still too grainy for you to really lose yourself in (unless, of course, you’re aged six).