Valve Index VR

This was the year I finally took the plunge on virtual reality, and you know what? I’m still not sure this will ever be our bright video game future of endless possibility. I don’t know who wants to walk around with a giant thing around their head that collects sweat. I don’t know how many people have the space to set up VR properly, or frankly, the money. Sure, some more accessible kits exist, but if you want the best possible experience, it’s the biggest wallet destroyer in video games. And a lot of games that end up in VR, really didn’t need to be VR in the first place.

Even as all those things are true, VR can be a remarkable experience. A decade into this career, it’s harder and harder to retain a sense of optimism or wonder about the medium of video games or the conditions that produce any of the things we love. The first time that Beat Saber really clicked for me, though, I remember thinking that I hadn’t felt such a pure, distinct sense of amazement since I was a kid, and like damn, isn’t that what we’re always hopelessly chasing?

Let’s not even get started on VRChat, a testament to the digital online worlds and attitudes that were mercilessly killed by big tech. All of this [gestures wildly] could have been so different. Messier, maybe, and more beautiful, definitely.

Does this stuff have a future, I don’t know. And maybe it doesn’t matter. Now if only Beat Saber would get some Bad Bunny in there…

Patricia Hernandez, Editor in Chief