The problem of locomotion remains one of the big unanswered questions in VR.

The kinaesthetic dissonance between being a seated player, whilst moving an avatar with a control stick is, at best, a little presence-breaking and at worst nauseating. Moving with a joypad also raises design problems like – is forward where I’m looking (preventing me from observing my surroundings as I move)? Or is it disconnected from my head movement (potentially leading to disorientation)?

Whilst there are plenty of great VR experiences that can be made that sidestep the locomotion question, by focussing on a seated experience, enthusiasts and designers can hardly be blamed for wanting to reach towards experiences that allow the player free movement – to have the ambition to try to build the Holodeck.

Motion controllers like PrioVR, Stomps or the STEM system will only get you so far. This is where omnidirectional treadmills, like the Virtuix Omni and the Cyberith Virtualizer come in. Both systems operate on a similar principle, by harnessing the user firmly at the waist, allowing them to turn 360″ and emulate walking by virtue of a static, slippery base – with sensors detecting foot movement.

I haven’t yet tried the Omni, but I was lucky enough to get a chance to try Cyberith’s Virtualizer at GDC Europe. The Virtualizer boasts several improvements on the Omni design – the harness is on vertical runners so it is able to shift up and down to accommodate jumping as well as sitting (although the climbing equipment-style harness means that this is probably not going to be comfortable for extended periods). The other enhancement is that, in place of the Omni’s bowl and custom shoes, the Virtualizer has a flat slippery surface that is designed to be used wearing normal socks. The argument is that the bowl shape of the Omni is a constant reminder that you’re standing in a plastic bowl, and so the Virtualizer’s flat base will allow a more natural gait.

So much for the theory, but I’m sorry to say that I still wasn’t able to walk in a way that I’d call natural. It definitely works, in the senses that stepping forward or back had an effect that in some way resembled my original movements, but it also felt like hard work to get exact results. I never truly felt like I was doing much more than slipping around, much like how swipes on the original wiimote could make you feel a bit like you’re swinging a sword as long as you don’t think about it. Where it fell down was when I started running – it didn’t reliably acknowledge that I had increased my speed. I should note that the demo I tried had my leg movements mapped to traditional controls – not any attempt to map my movements one-to-one, something that is going to be worked on as part of the SDK, which will come out of the kickstarter.

The metal construction of the Virtualizer does feel very solid – I certainly felt safe in it. I was comfortable making rapid 180″ turns that I would not do standing unsupported in my room with a headset strapped to my face. Another nice design touch and/or safety feature is the pole that hangs overhead allowing the Rift cables to be run safely out of the way, preventing tangles and self-asphyxiation.

If you’re not feeling acrobatic, the height of the harness can be locked into place, providing more predictable support. However, I was not able to reach these locks whilst in the device – which reinforces my suspicion that theses kinds of devices will find their market at trade shows and other out-of-home entertainment centres more than with the home-enthusiast crowd.

The space they take up remains an issue for the home user as well. Like the Omni, the Virtualizer can be deconstructed to a relatively flat state, with a view to being slid underneath a (double) bed. Even so, this feels like it will be a bit of an industry, and something that’s going to act as a barrier to getting it out in all but special occasions – unless you’re lucky enough to have space for it to be permanently set up.

Overal, the Cyberith Virtualizer is well constructed, but suffers very serious practical issues. If you’ve already ordered one, you have presumably already assessed that you’re able to accommodate and afford the device. However, I was personally quite unconvinced with the hacked integration with existing games, so backing this project as a consumer is a bit of a punt on the hope that the full SDK provides a much more accurate mapping of your movements and gets implemented by enough devs to make it worthwhile. At a base price of $600 before shipping, that’s quite a punt! Hats of to those early-backing enthusiasts and developers of both this and the Omni for being willing to take that risk. I myself, will continue to watch and wait, in this space – hopeful but, still a little skeptical.

More info about the Cyberith Virtualizer can be found by clicking here

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