Which VR experiences are best?

Photograph of a VR user

There is no right or wrong. Everyone has different levels of comfort and enjoyment. Some will prefer less intensive experiences, while other will prefer more intensive experiences. There might even be some residents who only want to observe others using VR.

Tips:

  • When you are putting residents in VR for the first time, try using experiences that don’t require use of the controllers. 360 VR videos are good for this, particularly if they’re launched from the Alcove application. Alcove allows the facilitator to start the experience, and then place the resident in VR without any further use of the controllers. Our project used the Hot Air Balloon experiences in Alcove as a great first taste of VR. Other travel and nature-based scenarios (for example, Ocean Rift) are also good.
  • Games like Fruit Ninja are a good starting point for getting a feel for the controller.
  • Once someone has been through several experiences – and you’ve asked how they found it, assess their desire and ability to try more interactive experiences which require users to stand and move around (for example, First Steps). These apps let you show residents different ways to use the controller; with their permission, guide people’s fingers and hands around the controller.
  • More complex apps that can be tried are Wander, and First Steps, or teaching users how to navigate and select different experiences in Alcove.

“Tried a few residents with it last week. They enjoyed interacting with the dolphins in Ocean Rift. Looking forward to learning more tomorrow.” Lifestyle Manager

Check out the toolkit section on selecting apps.