October 07, 2024
There are two factors that influenced my decision to go with the Rift. One of which I feel a bit queasy about…First: I actually went to my local Microcenter to purchase a Vive. I noticed that they had several returned units being offered with the scratch-and-dent discount, so I asked the sales guy about it. As it turns out, they had 5 or 6 returns, because the lenses got scratched. This is a persistent issue with the Vive, but not the Oculus, because the Oculus uses a different material for the lenses. At least at the time (last December), it was not possible to replace the lenses. For some, this might not be a big deal, but I have kids, so it seemed like a poor match for me.
Otherwise, hardware-wise, both are fine choices. Oculus room-scale is marked as experimental, but third- and fourth-sensor setups work just fine.
Second: The Steam ecosystem is much more open… I feel a bit bad making this recommendation, but the truth of the matter is that there are many more Oculus exclusives than Vive, so the Rift works with more software in total. Does this mean recommending a Rift is rewarding Oculus for locking down their ecosystem? Well, yes.
On the other hand, the situation in VR is different than exclusive titles for consoles. For game consoles, typically the game is going to get made in any case. Then, midway through development, Sony and Microsoft, et. al., can bid over which games they are willing to pay to make exclusives. For VR, it’s not a given that the games will be made at all. A lot of developers have done the math, and don’t think the audience is large enough yet for them to jump in. So, for some Oculus-exclusive devs, the only reason their game exists is that Oculus was willing to heavily subsidize it.
So, I believe in open ecosystems. But I value that Oculus is putting money into expanding the audience for VR as a whole and supporting developers. But… I wish more of their software was going to make it to Vive eventually… My feelings on the matter are mixed. But if you want the headset that works with the most software today, that’s the Rift.
