How to reduce motion sickness in virtual reality

VR is more more accessible than ever, thanks to autonomous and accessible headphones like Oclulus Quest lowering the entrance barrier. And from addictive games like that Beat Saber to immersive games guided by stories like Half-life: AlyxThere are many things to keep busy in your virtual world.

Unfortunately, VR still comes with some drawbacks, one of the most notable being motion sickness. Even if you’re not a person who gets sick of movement on a boat or plane, some VR games can make you feel dizzy or nauseous, ruining what should have been a fun experience.

Experts believe that motion sickness is mainly an imbalance between the signals sent to your brain. If your eyes see one thing and your inner ear experiences another, you may have nausea, he explains Adrian Priesol, Otoneurologist in the Division of Vestibular Diseases Mass Eye and Ear. “Sitting in the back seat of a moving vehicle maximizes this sensory imbalance and can worsen symptoms,” he explains. “In the case of VR, the sensory imbalance is reversed: Visual stimulation is sending a signal to the brain that the person is moving, and signals from the balance organs indicate that the person is not there.”

You may have more experience in some virtual reality games than others, depending on what the experience requires to move. Almar Suarez is the R&D Director at Tapptic, a European digital agency based on innovative mobile applications, VR, AR and other connected experiences. In Some of the experiments with VR, found that motion sickness was especially common in environments we are most unfamiliar with, think zero gravity games ADRIFT) or scenarios that cause vertigo (e.g. Ascent). It can happen even if the frame rate is too low, which can be a problem on less powerful computers.

Based on my experience – I own some VR headsets and have reviewed them as a tech writer – games that require control sticks to move make me feel nauseous. If I move only with my body, like inside Space Pirate Trainer or Superhot VR, I’m fine, but throw me out Skyrim VR and after a few minutes I feel like I have to lie down.

However, you can relieve some of these symptoms. First, says Suarez, make sure the lenses are clean and that the IPD (interpupillary distance) is well set in the headset if it offers an IPD adjustment. If you wear glasses, you can find that value, in millimeters, with your recipe. If not, you will need to adjust while you are in the game to find the right setting.

When it comes to glasses, if you can’t wear contacts, try fitting the glasses into the headset by adjusting the strap or using the glasses distributor on the headphones provided (sold separately). Beforehand, make sure the headphones are comfortable and that your PC (if you’re using it) is capable of running games at a sufficient frame rate. Sixty frames per second is good, but the higher you go, the better. Most reputable headphones can display 90 frames per second or more.

Once you’ve got the basics off, you can start delving deeper into your game settings. “The best way to prevent disease is to use control schemes that work better for each type of experience,” Suarez explained. “In general, the standard video game [thumb stick] the controls are the worst of all, especially when trying to turn the view. It’s more natural to turn your head. “Try to rotate your body as much as possible, instead of using a stick, and if the game allows you to switch to teleportation, if you want to move where you want to and immediately show up.”