I was on board with the Sony PSVR virtual reality 
system from launch. How could I not be? I dreamed of stepping into virtual worlds as a kid in the 80s. My day job is with Sony Pictures and prior to the launch there were a half dozen VR systems set up in the Sony building on 25th street and Madison for employees to try. I was there every day.
At least once.
The first time I was helped into that blue and white headset, seated in a comfortable chair, my heart was racing. I found myself in a diving cage. Bent sunlight warped before me as schools of brilliant tropical fish teased the water into bursts of tiny bubbles. The cage jerked and my hands gripped the armrests of my chair.
We began the descent.
I am no swimmer. I have dreamed of exploring the deep but the furthest I ever came in Real Reality (RR) was in three feet of water, snorkeling in the Bahamas. Here I was, lowering deeper and deeper as the sunlight’s knife grew duller and darkness bloomed. The lights on the cage brightened as larger, more exotic fish came to check me out.
Now I knew damn well what was coming. I had heard the shaky voices of co-workers who had experienced this VR World before me. This was not about manta rays, sunfish or schools of angels.
There be sharks in the area!
A shadow danced in my peripheral vision and I jerked my head to look. Nothing.
As quiet and stillness returned, I could feel real sweat on my palms, hands that existed to my other body seated safely on Madison avenue. But me- my conscious me- was deep under the sea.
Bang!
My heart pounded as my eyes darted about. Something had struck the cage. Through the flickering lamp light I peered about. Then I saw it.
It was a great white shark coming my way. The voice in my head was telling me the obvious. This is a virtual experience. No matter how real this all looks, I cannot drown, get crushed by the forces of water or chewed and swallowed by nature’s most twisted and dangerous predator.
Yet there was fear in my blood. My heart was quickening.
BANG! The monster bashed the cage again and my steel safe zone tilted violently. I looked up and saw the pully was damaged. I was stuck- some two hundred feet or so under virtual waves.
I was now a plaything for this beast and he was about to have its way with me. And way it did!
With each pass, it grew closer and closer, headbutting the cage, denting the metal as if it were made of pixels rather than steel.
BANG! BANG! BAM!
The cage was buckling and that mouth of switchblades was inching closer and closer to my torso. Flashbacks of Captain Quint from Jaws popped in my memory.
This was scary but man it was so cool.
Finally the entire head was mere inches from me and I fought the urge to do what I had seen others do- physically kick at the giant fish. I stayed as calm as I could, watching in awe (and true fear) as it moved to eat me.
There was a tap on my shoulder. The ride was over. The Sony worker helped me off with the headset. My forehead was sweaty, my heart was racing and I wanted to yell out in excitement.
I was hooked like a mackerel on a shiny lure. Virtual reality had arrived and I was going to become a regular, dual citizen of this new land.
And I did. So now, as a vast part of humanity is trapped inside in the all too real and depressing RR realm, I escape daily into the VR world were dragons are there to battle- but the smaller and more dangerous viral monsters are nowhere to be seen.
You may have concerns of motion sickness and it’s a legit one. The first time I played Robinson the Journey, which is by no means a gravity defying, high speed race game like Wipeout, I did get sick in this beautifully rendered walking sim amidst dinosaurs. It takes a little time to get your legs. Don’t fret it. After a week as a VR-naut I was turning off all comfort settings, using free locomotion and quick turning and grumbling snobbishly as I watched YouTube players posting videos with that annoying black circle of safety around the edges of their worlds. VR sickness is conquerable and it is worth the patience and bouts of nausea to get past it.
The three games below are just a small sample of what is available but are amazing places to spend time when the RR world is less alluring.
3. BLOOD AND TRUTH
Watching a British crime film by Guy Ritchie or a Tarantino kill fest is entertaining. So is looking at the videos your friend took of his trip to Hawaii. Me, I’d rather get that sand between my own toes. So why watch a movie when you can dive in as the lead character and experience the adrenalin rush in a brilliant first-person way?
BLOOD AND TRUTH is an eight hour or so thrill ride in the seedy, colorful and violent world of London’s underground. It is based on the shorter (and really fun) demo, LONDON HEIST, part of the original VR WORLDS which shipped with the PSVR at launch. The sense of immersion is very good although my only beef is the lack of true free locomotion. It unfolds with interactive cut scenes on a corridor type journey through fun (and some cliché) locations filled with all the spy slash gangster tropes we can ask for. The action scenes can be challenging on the first go but after two or three shots there is a real satisfaction of success as the story unfolds to the next interrogation, family squabble or corny but fun face offs with mad baddies. The voice acting is actually quite good and it’s apparent the cast enjoyed themselves making this. Every aspect of the game seems to have been crafted with love.
So escape your virus quarantine and enter an exciting bug free world of planting explosives, defusing bombs, car chases, hand over hand vertigo-inducing climbs, gun battles (lots and lots of guns and fire fights!) zipline rides, bloody torture and a heart pounding final sequence that made even this veteran of VR go WOW.
2. BEAT SABER
Not in the mood to focus on plot and fine story points? Just need a quick15 minutes of escape? Up for some catchy beats? I personally held back buying BEAT SABER for months. Not sure why but after reading Reddit reviews and Facebook accolades I gave in and downloaded this exceptional rhythm game.
The premise is simple – wield duel light sabers and slice the incoming neon blocks of like-color to the beat of the pulsing rhythms. Sounds like a breeze. Well- at the beginner level perhaps. The blocks must be cut in the correct direction (and without missing too many), and you have to be ready to duck illuminated slabs that also cruise by threatening decapitation. Oh, and watch out for the occasional explosive mixed in with the colorful targets.
The devs have been great at releasing additional song pack DLC so there is plenty variety to keep things from ever getting stale (recent releases have been Green Day, Imagine Dragons, Tokyo Machine and ‘Famous ft. Jake Davis’ by Bruno Martini & Timbaland to name a few) It can be really satisfying (bordering on Zen!) as the movement of your slicing Skywalker blades becomes instinctual. You begin to feel part of the music itself as the cruel world around you dissolve away.
I am very glad I finally caved to the social media peer pressure on this one!
1. SKYRIM VR
I am one of those lucky people who never played flat Skyrim- my first introduction to the expansive and ever unfolding world of Tamriel came with my feet on those roads. Skyrim VR is my second place of residence. I have dual citizenship.
No game- VR or flat – has grabbed me by my chainmail codpiece and pulled me in the way that this game- this alternate life- has. It showed me that even with dated graphics – being immersed in a world as beautiful, exciting and frigging fun as this- the resolution and density of pixels means nothing. You are there. In a real place. Living a life of adventure that, as a kid, I dreamed of. This is the game I fantasized about when playing The Temple of Apsai on my Commodore 64.
This is the ultimate place of escape. Wander up steep mountain passes as heavy snow swirls around you. Then, standing on a rocky outcrop- gaze out across Tamriel and be awed by the sight of the brilliant, dazzling colors of an aurora bathing the forests and tundra below in a spectral glow.
I can wax poetic forever about Skyrim VR. There are days when I go there to wander. I find it enough to just casually stroll under canopies of autumn leaves- then stopping by a rushing stream and just breathe as salmon jump, and the rush of a waterfall fills the air with its music.
Speaking of music, the score of Skyrim (composed by Jeremy Soule) is sumptuous and ranges from soft, limpid and gentle tones to the in your face orchestrations you would expect when trying to ram your blade through the tough scales of dragon skin.
And when you are not just enjoying the lovely views- the game is about kicking dragon ass, smashing sword wielding skeletons to bits and battling the endless supply of baddies that inhabit Skyrim’s forests and dungeons. You will be, after all, The Dragonborn, trained by the Greybeards. Life in this world revolves around the Quests. Skyrim’s intertwining storylines can fill tomes. Bored of one questline? There are dozens of others you can branch off to. Tangents after tangents. Crossroads leading to forks in others. Your boots will never cool off in this game and the blood on your blades never dries. I have led the Companions and become a werewolf. Attended the Mage College to hone my conjuring skills and taken part in stealthy assassinations as a secret member of the elusive Dark Brotherhood. And I beat up a drunk in a pub.
For me, Skyrim VR is that magical juncture where virtual reality and gaming meet and become something greater than its parts. I have played 100s of hours and according to the game’s progress screen I have only completed a third of the game’s offerings.
So many more roads to travel. So many more dragons to slay.
While our Real Reality remains an uncertainty- dive in VR if you are able. It’s a needed reset from the 24 News cycle. By all means, step out into the real world for real air (just take necessary precautions) but VR offers something we are is desperate need of- an escape to a world of good, virus free fun.
Don that headset!
-Michael DiCerto
About Michael DiCerto
Filmmaker (NO EXIT, TRIPTOSANE), podcaster (THE STOOPS OF ATLANTIS) and consummate storyteller- Mike has always harvested his work from the abundant crop of his imagination. His wild and hilarious Rock and Roll (and award winning) space adventure MILKY WAY MARMALADE was compared to the works of Douglas Adams.
THE ADVENTURES OF RUPERT STARBRIGHT (The Door to Far-Myst, The Secret of My-Myst and The Ghosts of Winter Joy) continues to be his passion and Book 4 (and other exciting surprises) are coming soon!
Mike has also recently delved into the world of podcasting with the colorful tales of his crazy youth in THE STOOPS OF ATLANTIS. His love of animals, his family, music, reading, gardening, travel, movies, VR, playing guitar, and the mysteries of the Universe influence his life and his writing. He lives in NYC with his wife (and high school sweetheart) Suzy and their two fuzzy feline kids Cosmo and Ralphie. He enjoys growing chili peppers in his rooftop garden.
