Half-Life 2 VR shows the Oculus Rift in action.
Michael Johnson February 11, 2013 - 6:14 pmA mod for Half-Life 2 has shown the Oculus Rift might be able to do the impossible – make me return to Ravenholm.
Natural cynicism has so far kept any excitement about the Oculus Rift at bay for me. VR headsets were the deluded 90′s dream of gaming’s future, that either failed to materialise, or just outright failed. This video though goes some way toward chipping away at my skepticism, the head tracking looks extremely clever and there’s the added bonus of looking like a silly neon future soldier. But it’s the idea of going face first into Ravenholm that really excites – I hate Ravenholm.
Ravenholm is kind of like a playground, no sooner than you’ve obtained the gravity gun and you’re packed off to an environment full of saw-blades, explosive barrels and neat traps to activate with your new toy. It’s also filled with head-crabs. Not just the normal ones either, the black poisonous ones are there, they hiss at you and then leap around in a taunting dance as you flap your mouse across its mat. In previous trips to Ravenholm I’ve been frustrated and annoyed as well as a little creeped out. If the Oculus Rift can live up to its hefty promise, on my next journey there, I’ll be flinging myself to the ground and possibly even crying.
Really though, this video has shown me the potential there is in the device for revisiting some of the best gaming environments we’ve explored and interacting with them in a completely different way.
Now, lets just convince those responsible for the VR mod to have a go at making Amnesia: The Dark Descent compatible…
Comments (2)
This is genuinely amazing. All I can do is imagine playing Battlefield 4 with this. And then maybe being treated for shellshock a bit later.
I had the image of someone playing Amnesia on Oculus in my head when watching the video. Imagine, you could hide in a cupboard shivering uncontrollably in reality, while hiding in a cupboard shivering uncontrollably in the game at the same time.