SICK game, bro. Believe it or not, a new virtual-reality game is designed to make its players feel nauseous.
鈥淐测产别谤蝉颈肠办苍别蝉蝉鈥� describes the side effects experienced by some people when they try VR. The symptoms are similar to those of motion sickness, including headache, nausea and fatigue. It鈥檚 a thorn in the side of most VR developers, who want to find ways to overcome the problem so people can enjoy their games or experiences without getting queasy.
But and his colleagues at the University of Augsburg, Germany, see a possible upside to the phenomenon. 鈥淐ybersickness for any serious app is definitely a no go, but in the context of a fun game, I think it provides the experience of living through something outside of everyday experiences,鈥� says von Mammen.
Advertisement
His team has built a VR racing game called Drink & Drive, at the ACM Symposium on Virtual Reality Software and Technology in Munich, Germany.
鈥淐ybersickness sets in when people get disconnected from the physical reality of their body鈥�
In the game, the player races a car around a track scooping up diamonds. But if they hit a can of beer, their in-game blood alcohol content goes up 鈥� and a number of changes designed to reflect the effects of drinking kick in. The processing of the player鈥檚 input is delayed to mimic a slower reaction time, the image becomes blurry and shaky, and the colour contrast is reduced so it鈥檚 harder to see. These effects are also likely to increase feelings of cybersickness.
Cybersickness sets in when people become disconnected from the physical reality of their body, says at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. It鈥檚 similar to getting seasick: people need time to figure out how to adjust their body to the rolling motions of a boat.
This feeling gets stronger the more immersive the virtual world, which is why cybersickness is such a problem in VR and other simulators. 鈥淣obody ever got sick playing Pac-Man, but when you play Pac-Man there鈥檚 no pretense that you have entered the Pac-Man world,鈥� says Stoffregen. 鈥淭he more that you experience the virtual world as being real, the more likely you are to try and sort of synchronise the control of your body relative to that world.鈥�
But von Mammen and his team suggest that these negative physical effects can be harnessed to enhance a VR experience.
Of 64 people who tried their game at a campus event, 43 experienced some negative side effects, such as dizziness, while playing or after taking off the headset. However, most people said they enjoyed playing, giving it an average rating of 4.36 out of 5. 鈥淧eople still had fun despite being cybersick,鈥� says von Mammen.
The researchers conclude that cybersickness doesn鈥檛 necessarily take the fun out of VR, and can actually contribute to the enjoyment.
This article appeared in print under the headline 鈥淰R to make you nauseous鈥�