Setting Up Space for HTC Vive or Oculus Rift

[jpishgar]

Hey all,

A short while back, I ordered an HTC Vive. I very much want to game on this thing, and when it arrives, I expect I'll be spending a lot of time smashing pixelated skeletons in immersive 360 dungeons. A major consideration though, is where the heck do I set the thing up?

My home office is where I do all my work. It's about the size of a small bedroom, has a loveseat and L-shaped desks in the corners. I game here, since my work computer is also my gaming rig.

The living room has a big TV, couches, and a wide open space.

The gym / multipurpose room has a bit of excess space, with an elliptical in it, and an old old desk and an older computer. It's set off from the rest of the house away from everything else (and internet connections at the moment).

If I set VR up in the office, I can probably just upgrade my graphics card and run the HTC Vive from my gaming computer, and game in the same place. The space is limited though. What's considered the acceptable minimum clearance, and then what is the actual ideal?

If I set it up in the living room, I either have to lug my tower back and forth anytime I want to game (a royal pain) or plunk down for a whole new system, and THEN set that up on a desk or new spot in the living room. A full tower gaming rig in the living room? The type of graphics cards we're talking here don't exactly lend themselves well to MiniATX form factors.

If I set it up in the gym / multipurpose room, there's already a desk, there's enough room, but there's no internet connection and it's far from the center of activity of the house. I'd also need to upgrade or get a better standalone rig to support the headset. Would I eventually neglect the headset since it's far from where I'd normally game or hang out?

So I'm asking, what are you guys doing for your setup at home? Do you plan on hanging the cord from the ceiling via a hook, or letting it trail back towards your computer? What's your physical setup look like, or going to look like, when your headset arrives?

Much appreciate any thoughts on this that you guys might have.

Yours,
-JP

 

[FishermanWharf]

Lugging your computer from room to room sounds like a nightmare. Since VR can be a social activity, you may want to think about building a new rig in your living room if you have the money.

I'm curious though, especially with the HTC Vive: What is the "recommended" spacial requirements? What is the minimum? How much does space play into creating a great gaming experience.

I think developers see the Vive as a holodeck platform and use this capability to distinguish Vive VR games from games that are developed for the Oculus Rift or PSVR. Space must be important!