Sunshine@piefed.caIs it worth getting into or should we wait for more options and better Linux support?
The modern VR experience is, we have SteamOS run on the headset, so it doesn’t even need to be connected to any Linux computer. I think it’s quite pricey, though. And not sure if waiting is going to help with that.
I have a Quest 3 and a fairly strong PC, I play almost exclusively PCVR because meta doesn’t need more info from me.
Its in a good state I’d say. Theres a ton of fun experiences out there, with VR mods for standalone games being some of the best experiences I have ever had in gaming, but I think overall VR still feels like its in its infancy due to low adoption, which is a shame cause the experience feels like its ready for prime time. This is most likely due to fragmentation of headsets and cost, as most PCVR headsets cost $1000+ and require making a lot of space for a good experience, while standalone headsets are more affordable and do support PCVR, but come at the cost of privacy most likely being violated and training AI.
Which is where the Steam Frame begins a new era of VR that will most likely be the first domino in a long string of improvements. Its a little more powerful than the Quest 3, and lacks built in color passthrough which is a shame as taking off and putting a headset back on repeatedly can be annoying, but Steam Frame represents a change in how VR headsets and their ecosystem can be built.
On the hardware side, theres a lot customizeability that can be done with the headset. The compute module, battery, and face gasket are all separate pieces, meaning they can be swapped out with third party options or in the event of the compute module, you could upgrade to a Steam Frame 2 and not need the other parts. The face gasket has the microsd card slot, as well as seems to be where the wire for the battery connects to, so this part in theory could have additional features added to it. The battery is on the back of the headstrap instead of being in the compute module, acting as a counterbalance to make it more comfortable, while also reducing the weight on your face. The controllers should also get special attention, as they are the only VR controllers I know of that have every button a standard gaming controller has, letting you easily play any game in your steam library without needing another peripheral to do so. It also has a proprietary pcie port in the front of the compute module that will be intended for things like color passthrough cameras, face tracking, and who knows what else lol. There actually is already a third party color passthrough camera, solving the one real advantage I’d say the Quest 3 has.
As for the software side, it runs Steam OS on ARM thanks to a translation layer called Fex, which means this headset is a full linux PC on ARM that can run x86 apps on it. They also have Lepton, which is a translation layer for android apps. These two layers are massive deals for VR because it covers what would have been weaknesses for the Steam Frame otherwise. Most PCVR games run on x86, so Fex closes that gap and raises the amount of games that run on standalone. For Lepton though, this was a smart move because what doesn’t run on x86 almost certainly is running on android because Meta’s headset is running a modified version of android. This will massively boost compatibility with all VR games and make porting for devs drastically easier. Fex also means flat screen games can run on the headset itself, which in my experience playing flat screen in VR is one of the best ways to play. You get a resizeable screen and resolution options that normally cost a ton of money to use otherwise. Ultrawide visuals become accessible without a special monitor, you can make the screen massive for a theater experience, and you can even throw in 3D mods and shaders to make games display in 3D and provide a level of immersion I can’t find anywhere else.
The last piece to mention for the Frame is the wireless dongle. If you have a PC with better performance than the headset, you can connect the dongle to your PC and play those games using your PC hardware instead. While this could introduce lag or stutter, I can say from using a 5G router with the Quest 3 and no dedicated dongle, wireless PCVR is still a great experience and very worth the time. The frame dongle should reduce lag and stutter a lot compared to my setup due to being a dedicated connection as well as being 6G instead.
So to answer your question, VR is in a pretty good state overall, the potential is there but it still is finding its footing. If you want a cheaper barrier to entry, the Quest 3 or 3S will be a decent way to experience it, even if it is meta. If you want to be on the ground floor of the future of VR though, the Steam Frame seems like its going to be the beginning of that transition into a new era. Pricey, yeah, but for the price you get a lot more out of it than most headsets of similar pricing.
Thank you for the detailed reply.