VR Spaceship Review
A virtual reality experience that puts you in a high tech spaceship full of control panels waiting to be tampered with, grated floors and industrial structures.
To move about the spaceship, you look at pink neon way points that float in front of your eyes. This is a pretty easy way to navigate the ship, and it really helps keep you engaged with this app.
Gameplay
VR is a great medium for space-themed experiences that range from boarding the International Space Station to bending planets to your will. There are even a few that aren’t quite games, but still offer unparalleled immersion.
One of the best is Mission: ISS, available on the Oculus Store. While it may not be as detailed as some of the other options, the freedom to roam around and imagine yourself onboard the real-life ISS makes this a must-see. Despite being a documentary, it also does an amazing job at conveying the emotions of its crew members as they deal with the realities of life in space.
Other options include GNOG, which creates a unique experience with its ethereal puzzles and quirky art style. Then there’s Rez Infinite, which is a true VR classic that seamlessly blends rhythm, space shooter, and puzzle genres into an unforgettable experience. Of course, as virtual reality becomes more affordable and mainstream, there will be plenty of other space-themed adventures to enjoy.
Graphics
Virtual reality provides new opportunities to explore the universe. Players can visit planets, fight hard in space or drive a spaceship through stars in many different VR games. The best space-themed games offer multiple gameplay modes and challenging obstacles.
Mission: ISS, an Emmy-nominated simulation for Meta Rift and Oculus Rift S, takes you on a tour of the International Space Station. Learn how astronauts move and work in VR Spaceship zero gravity as real astronauts guide you through archival video clips. You can even perform some of the tasks yourself in this true-to-life experience.
Sketchfab, an online repository of 3D models, isn’t a traditional app but can be accessed through headset browsers. It’s like flickr for VR. You can find everything from Jezero crater on Mars to ice mountains on Pluto and more. The Smithsonian has also made its digitized collection freely available, including the Apollo 11 command module and space shuttle Discovery. And France’s Laboratoire de Planetologie et Geodynamique has posted various moonscapes and Mars surface images to its gallery. 151,925 space exploration stock photos, vectors, and illustrations are available royalty-free.
Audio
In the hands of a talented team, this virtual reality experience could be the best of its kind. However, this experience is not as immersive as it could have been and will not satisfy the average space-minded person looking for an engaging virtual reality experience.
This experience is definitely more suited for the average beginner VR user and is not meant to replace real life space travel or exploration. Instead, this experience should serve to entertain those interested in industrial surroundings and space as a whole.
Space Explorers: ISS Experience brings you aboard the International Space Station. Two years of footage from a basketball-sized VR camera sent up by Felix and Paul Studios let you see how astronauts move and work in zero gravity. In addition to some archival clips, you can also hear crew members directly address you and explain how they operate the station’s many systems.
Controls
VR Spaceship is a great way to introduce people to virtual reality. The easy-to-use buttons make it fun for newcomers to experience this immersive technology. It’s a perfect fit for people who don’t want to spend too much time learning controls or who may be intimidated by other games.
The game is a mix of environmental storytelling and virtual reality simulation. Players must solve a series of tasks and puzzles to advance through the ship and unlock doors. It’s a challenging and unique experience that will test the player’s agility and logical thinking skills.
One of the best parts of this app is that it feels realistic. It doesn’t offer a lot of interactivity, but it is able to simulate the feeling of being in a spaceship surrounded by control panels waiting to be tinkered with. It also has a very cinematic feel, which is perfect for someone who doesn’t have the budget to go to the moon (or even to the ISS).
For those who would like to add a level of interactivity, they can use their headset to reach towards the navigation system or communication system icons and activate them. Using these will VR Motorcycle allow them to select destinations for their ship’s hyperdrive. For more options, users can also adjust their Prospect library settings and change the height increment for flying up and down in VR by clicking the gear icon on their in-VR menu.
Overall
Spaceship is a good VR experience for those who are interested in seeing how a high-tech spaceship looks on the inside. However, it’s primarily a tech-oriented tour with no real connection to the larger theme of galactic exploration. It’s a fun experience to have, but it’s not something that would be very engaging for someone who doesn’t share the creators fascination with industrial design and space technology.
Mission: ISS is an impressive, if not entirely immersive, tour of the ISS that took two years to film. It’s a rare look at the life of astronauts in space and the attention to detail is superb. From flipping switches to batting ketchup bottles around, the app makes you feel like you’re there.
Discovering Space 2 is a more expansive space experience that lets you see the planets of our Solar System up close. While its graphics sometimes resemble a theme park ride, its overall feeling of being in space is enough to make this a worthy purchase.
