VeeR: Exploring the Feasibility of Deliberately Designing VR Motion that Diverges from Mundane, Everyday Physical Motion to Create More Entertaining VR Experiences
Pin Chun Lu, Che‐Wei Wang, Yu‐Lun Hsu, Alvaro Lopez, Ching-Yi Tsai, Chiao-Ju Chang, Wei Tian Mireille Tan, Li-Chun Lu, Mike Y. Chen
Abstract
This paper explores the feasibility of deliberately designing VR motion that diverges from users’ physical movements to turn mundane, everyday transportation motion (e.g., metros, trains, and cars) into more entertaining VR motion experiences, in contrast to prior car-based VR approaches that synchronize VR motion to physical car movement exactly. To gain insight into users’ preferences for veering rate and veering direction for turning (left/right) and pitching (up/down) during the three phases of acceleration (accelerating, cruising, and decelerating), we conducted a formative, perceptual study (n=24) followed by a VR experience evaluation (n=18), all conducted on metro trains moving in a mundane, straight-line motion. Results showed that participants preferred relatively high veering rates, and preferred pitching upward during acceleration and downward during deceleration. Furthermore, while veering decreased comfort as expected, it significantly enhanced immersion (p<.01) and entertainment (p<.001) and the overall experience, with comfort being considered, was preferred by 89% of participants.