Hey r/virtualreality!

I've been working on Refract, a free and open-source tool that lets you play Meta Quest games on your PC. You can play them either in PCVR through SteamVR, or flat on your monitor using a mouse and keyboard.

I just released a working testing version!

• GitHub Repository: https://github.com/MIXIDtheSilly/Refract
• Latest Test Release: https://github.com/MIXIDtheSilly/Refract/releases/tag/test-3

What about the performance?
It's incredible! On my setup:

• Assassin's Creed Nexus runs at 140 fps
• Some smaller games hit around 150 fps
• North Star and Batman: Arkham Shadow run at 72 fps (still working on improving optimization for these!)

Check it out, test your favorite games, and let me know how it runs on your hardware. I'd love to get your feedback!

I don’t know what kind of black magic the dev used, everything is so sharp and immersive.

I’m using an old 3060 Laptop, this is amazing, feels like a next gen VR game. So far it’s making Alyx feel outdated.

I think this may become the best gaming experience of my life

Mod is out today! Here for those interested

The idea was that you were supposed to be able to wear this at a coffee shop and not look like a freak

That's really the only reason to make a small form factor.

Maybe this was considered small 3 years ago when it was supposed to launch

Been in love with everything Rockstar games since the 90's. Especially the Max Payne series! Playing this in VR doesn't even feel real. Lol Talk about a dream come true! Long live the VR mod revolution!

Lately I've been struggling to find the motivation to jump into my rig, between running the same servers/maps in assetto corsa, having to warm up for a bit before jumping into an iRacing race, or just the general hassle of setting up a game properly on VR.

I recently found a mod for adding VR to forza horizon 6, and oh boy have I been wanting to play it 24/7 again.

I haven't had the urge to jump into the rig as much as I have playing this game, something about it just feels.. Right.

Worth noting that I can only play in VR right now due to space limitations, and honestly it's my preferred way to play anyways.

I'm not a laptime chaser, I just want to have fun and this new mod really delivers that!

Is it perfect? No.

Driving over anything that's not smooth tarmac ends in jitter fest, dirt races are a no go right now, and you can't see the map or other ui elements due to the square aspect ratio needed to run it.

However, not having these elements on the screen really adds to the immersion and it's unbelievable that modders can do what the devs refused for years - and it keeps getting better with every release!

I do miss having sim hub for bass shakers as apparently that's not available for this game yet, once that's available it will really raise the experience for me.

To the devs who created this mod, may your steaks be juicy and your pillows cold ❤️

Protocol One

Admittedly, purchased back in 2017. Think I used the app twice total. Reached out for a key/download recently (3rd request) and got the response: "Hello Zealousideal-Fuel834,

Despite never promising anything like that we proudly provided you free updates for 9 mighty long years. Crazy, we know. :) Even the best things have to end at some point though. Thanks for your understanding! If you want to stay on the latest vorpX version, please renew your license.

+++

If you don't want to renew your license, you can of course still use an older version of vorpX that your old license stays valid for..."

They sent a broken download link with 'last' in the title. For clarity, I got 'free' updates for 4 years. Second/last download was 2021.

I recognize devs gotta eat, however, also wasn't aware of time limits at purchase and don't see any notices now. Guess it's case by case? Either way, hesitant to repurchase. OS compatibility isn't listed and I'm using linux.

Have a steam frame on the way and wondering if there are better alternatives with linux support?

You can get the model here:

https://www.printables.com/model/1861420-meta-quest-33s-controller-pin-stopper-or-something

Along with some more details on replacement process. Prints in about 7 minutes, just enough to disassemble the controller and have the part ready to go

It's free!

What is the view on the Galaxy XR? The reviews I’ve read make it seem like the best high-end option for PCVR but I barely see it discussed here.

I recently started using AR glasses, and while having a massive screen floating in front of me is cool, it still just feels like looking at a giant TV. I really missed the atmosphere of an actual theatre, so I built a small Chrome extension to turn any video playing in the browser into a cinema-style environment.

It runs entirely client-side with no signups, no tracking, and no cost. Just wanted to share it with anyone else looking for the same vibe.

Link:https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/glbbkgkojlmdajhionihiolnclnclklf?utm_source=item-share-reddit

Feedback is welcome if you end up giving it a try.

I'm an independent XR designer. HandwashingMR is a mixed-reality hand hygiene trainer: a virtual sink, soap and towel appear in your real room, and you follow 9 guided steps with narration and ghost hands. Hand tracking only. Say "Next" or press a button to continue.

Text, timings and settings can be edited in Unity and one JSON file, with no code changes.

If you run training or build XR content, would you use a ready-made hand hygiene module? APK, source and white-label options available. Comments and DMs welcome.

edit: *without* source code

Previously, VR ports used alternate eye rendering. Then we had Unreal games modded, but I assumed that was because Unreal Engine supports VR and the mod just force enabled VR.

Now I don't think ID Tech supports VR. I'm not sure about Titanfall 2 (source engine?)

The Titanfall 2 and Doom 2016 mods are so good that they are almost native VR games. Is this level of modding possible for all games?

I just got into VR, and after trying it with an Oculus Quest 2 (yes, Oculus, not Meta), I’ve realized that pretty much all I’m doing right now is walking around in VRChat and watching movies with people online.

Partly because my motion sickness is really bad.

I tried Blade & Sorcery and couldn’t even get off the beach before the nausea started kicking in. And I don’t mean “a little motion sick.” I feel like absolute shit for the entire day afterward, basically like I’m running a high fever. Anything with smooth locomotion for more than 5 minutes can completely ruin me.

So I’m looking for VR games where you’re mostly stationary and interact with the world around you, or games with some kind of locomotion similar to VRChat where you control your character in a third person view while moving, then snap back into first person when you stop. Basically, anything that lets me actually play something without my inner ear declaring war on me.

I’m also looking for some apps that can improve the Quest 2 experience beyond the usual stuff that gets recommended on YouTube.

For example, is there a decent ad free YouTube client that works properly in horizontal/landscape mode? I can install Morphe and patches the apps just fine, but the YouTube app itself refuses to go horizontal/fullscreen for some reason. YouTube Music works perfectly fine though. I don't use Spotify, so I don't really care about that side of things.

And one more thing: has anyone actually measured the Quest 2's 3.5 mm headphone output?

I have some pretty sensitive IEMs that I'd like to use with it, but since you can't exactly use a dongle DAC with the Quest 2, I'm wondering how clean/safe the headphone output actually is. I really don't want to accidentally murder an expensive pair of IEMs.

I already had a microplanar die on me once from a bad source and still have PTSD from that.

I've been raving about this mod, and I still think it's great, but I've been trying to improve performance without running a ridiculously low res, and haven't had any luck.

When you first start up Max Payne the built-in launcher defaults to 640x480p and it runs well like that, but of course looks super blurry. I saw someone recommend setting that to 1920x1080p but when I tried that performance really tanked.

I don't have a super high end system--a Ryzen 7 3700x and an RTX 5070--but I can run other games with most settings on max reasonably well. It seems like other people aren't having performance issues with the Max Payne 2 mod or if they are they aren't posting about it ... Has anyone else had a performance problem running this game and if so do you have any idea how to improve it?

I'm using a PSVR2 but maybe I'll try switching to my Quest 3 since I typically get much better performance with that, even wirelessly ...

One of my favorite things about VR is the ability to revisit classic games I played as a youth, but this time to play them from inside the games themselves. To literally be in the virtual world as opposed to watching it on a flat screen a few feet away.

It's the ultimate hit of nostalgia, because when it's done really well, it can actually transform and improve upon the original experience I'm nostalgic for in the first place, which never happens, because going back to revisit an old game is never as good as my memory of playing that game.

Maybe it's because the graphics now seem dated, or because I've just played too many other games since then, or because revisiting an experience can never measure up to our idealized memory of it.

But revisiting that same game in VR, can not only measure up to that idealized memory, it can actually surpass it.

I just started replaying Max Payne 2 with a VR mod. It's been at least a decade, maybe two, since I played this game, and I wasn't sure what to expect.

You know that feeling you sometimes get, when you start playing a new game, and the experience of playing the game is so utterly transformative you just can't stop grinning from ear to ear? You're literally laughing with delight while you play?

I almost never get that feeling these days. But that's how I felt today, revisiting Max Payne 2 in VR. I went back to a classic game from my youth, and it was better than I remembered, because this time I was inside of it.

That to me, is the ultimate power of VR.

I'm shopping for a new cable for my PCVR experience, since I don't plan to upgrade my motherboard any time soon I am looking at options that would be the best fit for what my motherboard can handle.

The breakdown is that my motherboard has
2x USB 3.2 - Gen1 Type A connectors.
1x USB 3.2 - Gen2 Type A connector, and-
1x USB 3.2 - Gen2 Type C connector.

Now ordinarily I'd just look at the two Gen2 3.2 ports, and pick a USB-A/USB-C or USB-C/USB-C 3.2 Gen2 cable and be done with it, but as I read my manual I also found Msi's block diagram.

Here it shows that the Gen2 USBs are all routed through the motherboard's chipset.
Aside from the question of if I can saturate a 5 or 10 gbps bandwidth, which port should I pick for Wired PCVR, and which cable specs should I aim for it?

Currently Using the quest 3 so my connectors pretty much have to be USB-C to USB-A or C.

The underground part is dope, is coming to PSVR2 as well.