Strolling the streets of Pompeii, exploring Nefertari's tomb in Egypt, floating on the International Space Station, or watching a movie on a 350-inch movie screen... These are some of the things you can do from your favorite chair, thanks to the magic of virtual reality.
A screen cannot convey the sense of presence that VR achieves, thanks to the life-size image and 3D sound that covers your entire visual space, along with motion sensors. We are going to see 10 virtual reality experiences that will amaze you and help you avoid yourself.
Getting inside the La Gioconda painting, exploring the International Space Station or enjoying the cave paintings of the Chauvet caves... surrounded by cave bears , are some of the things we are going to do.
If you find them in stock, right now the most balanced glasses in relation quality / price are the Oculus Quest, autonomous glasses that work on PC through streaming.
Most of the experiences cited have been created for PC glasses, although some of them are available for PlayStation VR or mobile . You can get cheap PC virtual reality glasses starting at € 150 or € 200 on eBay or Wallapop, if you search carefully.
They all work on all models (Oculus, HTC, Windows Mixed Reality, Pimax) and can be downloaded on Steam, unless we indicate otherwise. They can also be in the native store of your glasses, if so, that version is recommended.
Most of them are free experiences that have come out recently , so you will surely find some that you do not know, even if you are an RV veteran. There is a couple of payments but they are only a few euros, it is worth the disbursement. If you are looking for other less recent options, check out these 10 free virtual reality games and experiences not to be missed on PC and 10 free PlayStation VR games and experiences .
10 virtual reality experiences that will amaze you
1. BigScreen Cinema, 3D cinema on a 300-inch screen
The magic of virtual reality, that most people can't imagine until they try it, is that everything you see is life-size. Either an ant, or an aircraft carrier.
So nothing prevents modeling a theater, and projecting a film on a 300-inch panel. That is exactly what Bigscreen Cinema does, a virtual cinema platform that projects 2D and 3D movies every day that you enjoy with other people around the world, as if you were in a real cinema. It is available for PC, but will soon be released on PS VR.
The movies change every week, and although they are not new there are very attractive titles, such as the latest by Indiana Jones, Star Trek, Transformer, and others that you watch on a huge screen and in 3D, without the disadvantages of 3D TVs.
Since virtual reality has two real glasses, you do not need to darken the image to generate the 3D effect. They look spectacular, although logically the resolution will be the maximum that your glasses offer.
Each pass costs between 4 and 5 euros, depending on whether it is 2D or 3D, although you can watch free trailers and classic episodes of series like Doctor Who. You can watch the movies in public rooms, alone or in private rooms with your friends, and comment on them via chat.
2. Porsche Halls of Legends VR
The popular German automaker has created an entertaining virtual reality experience where we have the possibility to explore in great detail, and in real size, several of the mythical models of the brand.
From the 1894 Egger Lohner C.2 Phaeton, which is basically a powered carriage, to the classic 550 Spyder of 1954 or the modern Porsche 919 Hybrid of 2018.
In a futuristic garage we access each of the vehicles, and here we can read various curiosities of its manufacture or its history in racing, interact with objects of the time and examine the car walking around it.
Each vehicle includes a mythical scene that we can relive in the first person. The most spectacular transports us to the interior of the Porsche 550 Spyder when, at the Mille Miglia 1954, Hans Herrmann and Herbert Linge jumped over the railway track barrier and were about to be run over by the locomotive.
Porsche Hall of Legends VR is an interesting experience if you are a fan of cars and especially of the German brand.
3. Horizon Beyond
Horizon Beyond is a calm and fun experience, ideal to relax.
You drive a flying boat in a fantasy landscape, on huge hills or inside caves. It takes a little skill to control the rudder and orient the sails to change height.
In addition there are some dangers in the form of tentacular monsters and pelicans that will unbalance the boat until you give them a fish, which you must first catch.
4. Museum of Other Realities
It is possible to visit many real museums in virtual reality, but they are experiences that almost never take advantage of the magic of virtual reality, because you do the same as you would if you were in the real museum.
Museum of Other Realities (MOR) is a virtual museum, designed to take advantage of all the virtues of VR. More than 20 digital artists exhibit spectacular interactive works of art designed for VR.
You can walk through this huge museum alone or in the company of other people, and chat with them through the microphone to discuss the works.
Thanks to VR it is possible to become an ant or a giant and get inside the stage or fly with total freedom, to explore from different perspectives.
5. Google Earth VR
This is one of the first experiences that Google created a few years ago, but it is so spectacular and overwhelming that it could not be missing from this list.
Imagine having the entire planet Earth at your disposal, which you can freely explore in 3D, in real size. Fly over cities, mountains or seas, and stroll through the streets thanks to Street View.
With the movement controls you rotate the Earth and access any place, or you can also enjoy guided tours of the most emblematic places on the planet.
Thanks to the search engine you can easily locate any location, and add bookmarks to return later.
One of the best uses of virtual reality that exists. It will leave you with your mouth open.
Free download Google Earth VR on Steam. It is also available for mobile.
6. IL DIVINO: Michelangelo's Sistine Ceiling in VR
If you have the privilege of visiting the Sistine Chapel, all you can see are some wonderful paintings by Michelangelo that decorate the ceilings of the Apostolic Palace ... from the ground.
With IL DIVINO: Michelangelo's Sistine Ceiling in VR you can get on a crane that will lift you to the ceiling to observe each of the frescoes, just a few centimeters away.
They have been recreated from a 3D scan in high definition, and even the cracks and damage to the paint can be seen.
In addition there are more than 100 interactive points where a narrator explains what each scene means.
IL DIVINO: Michelangelo's Sistine Ceiling in VR free download on Steam.
7. The Dawn of Art
The cave paintings of the Chauvet caves in France, over 36,000 years old, are considered the first representation of the art of Humanity.
They have been closed to the public for many years, but thanks to the magic of Virtual Reality, we can freely roam the caves with complete freedom, and we really believe we will be there, because they have been scanned in 3D in high resolution with the most advanced Google technology...
More interesting still, you visit the place inside the skin of a prehistoric man (or woman), so while we walk through the cave we will meet the odd cave bear.
Being inside the Caves of Chauvet and observing the beautiful cave paintings from 36,000 years ago with a photorealistic image, illuminated only by the light of a torch, is an overwhelming experience.
And with the added bonus that the guided tour is narrated by Daisy Ridley , the popular King in the new Star Wars movies. Highly recommended, considering that it is also free.
8. BBC Home - A VR Spacewalk
One of the first things that most people want to do when they buy a virtual reality headset is to get into an astronaut's suit and walk around space, or on the International Space Station.
BBC Home - A VR Spacewalk is an incredible VR experience developed by the BBC where we become an astronaut of the International Space Station, who is going to take a walk outside the station.
9. Nefertari: Journey to Eternity / Pompeii
Many virtual reality experiences are done with computer modeled graphics. But others rely on photorealistic images captured by 3D scanners, to obtain a 3D scene that is a clone of reality, in real size.
It is the case of these two proposals that we have put together, because they are two historical adventures that nobody who has a PC glasses should miss.
Nerfetari - Journey to Eternity offers us to visit, on a real scale and with free movement, the interior of Queen Nefertari's tomb, wife of Ramses II, located in the mythical Valley of the Kings. The realism of the tomb walls is so great that it will make you feel like you really are there.
10. Art plunge
Art Plunge is an art gallery on the Moon, showing five of the most famous paintings in history:
- The Mona Lisa
- Van Gogh's Starry Night
- Botticelli's Birth of Venus
- Michelangelo's Creation of Adam
- Woman reading a letter, from Vermeer
The magic of the experience is that, thanks to virtual reality, you enter the paintings , and suddenly you are in the same room as the Mona Lisa, or looking out the window that the Woman reading a letter observes, and you can see the water channel and listen to the sound of seagulls and carriages.
The artists who have created this experience, Martin Eklund and Martin Christensen, have recreated the interior of the paintings in 3D and in real size , in the same artistic style as the original artist.
It is an experience that will completely change the way you see these famous paintings. It only costs 1.59 euros, and it's definitely worth it. It is also ideal to put family and friends.
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