Pilot body in VR - most underestimated feature in VR or useless?

[Rosebud47]

Just want to bring some attention to the pilot body in VR in general.

 

After flying for years DCS in VR the pilot body has become very important to me. It wasn´t like that in the beginning, when you learn to fly any aircraft and the attention is more on the systems, panels, knobs and gauges, but when you know your aircraft and start enjoying it in VR, a pilot body is hardly missed on many aircraft.

 

I believe it has to do with recognizing your presence in VR. While on flatscreen, you could see and feel the presence of your real body, but in VR you can´t see your real body. The cockpits in VR without a pilot body are not only empty, they actually feel empty, what could get pretty weird after a while.

 

So meanwhile I leave most modules which does not provide a pilot body in VR aside and don´t fly them. I think it´s the most underestimated feature in VR by the developers and only considered as a cosmetic nice to have. In my opinion it is more and essential for the VR experience in particular. The pilot body in VR should become standard feature in development.

 

What is your opinion? Is it essential, nice to have or useless?   

[speed-of-heat]

It's  all of them, all at once. 

 

its essential it  gives me a feeling of being there.

 

its nice to have because I can live without, some modules just don't have it yet.

 

its useless and gets in the way because i cant see the switch to arm or disarm the ejector seat in the 18.... 

 

[Rosebud47]

That´s a diplomatic point of view. Got the button mapped by default to switch the pilot body on/off, so it could be switched on/off quickly, when it is in the way. 

It just reminds me of Wags latest video for the upcoming Hind, where even the pilot seat could be switched on/off, when it is in the way, but I guess no one would leave the pilot seat switched off. Surely we got inevitably used to fly without a pilot body, especially in the early access modules, but meanwhile it bothers me, if there is no pilot body in VR available at all - it should be included by standard.   

[speed-of-heat]

oh i know the switch is there, but it would be nice  just to move the leg...

[Svsmokey]

I find the pilot body very helpful for immersion . I don't fly modules that don't have one . I especially appreciate the clever animations tied to Hotas/rudder movements . I have the switch mapped for on/off to access controls i otherwise could not .

[Eugel]

42 minutes ago, Rosebud47 said:

What is your opinion? Is it essential, nice to have or useless?   

Hm, for me I think it´s somewhere between "essential" and "nice to have"

It would not keep me from buying a module I´m interested in if there is no pilot body, but I really like to see the body in VR for increased immersion. The A-10 always feels a bit weird without one...

[Max Thunder]

Interesting question because I never tried to play with the pilot body feature. I never had the feeling that something is missing.
But I will test it this weekend. Someone knows which Moduls have this feature?

[Pride37]

I put it on wherever it's possible (F-18, M2000C, SU-33) right after cold start. I miss it so much when it's not there...

I'm with you on it @Rosebud47, I have a Hotas bind just to quickly make it appear/disappear when I need to reach a side-panel knob.

To me, the best looking body is the M2000C one (besides Kelly Brook's one, of course...!)

[dburne]

I hardly ever turn the pilot body on, really don't think about it.

[Hawkeye_UK]

useless

 

[Nodak]

Don't use them, really don't care for them, nothing impressive or particularly eye catching about them, not as compared to the cockpits themselves.  They don't look good close up as first person, however they do look OK when in other crew positions in some aircraft such as the Tomcat or even the older Huey.  Maybe its the whole Ichabod Crane thing going on, where I'm missing my own head looking down my hollow neck.

[Rosebud47]

I like the pilot bodies of the F/A-18 and the F-5 the most. These two do fit perfectly by the dimensions in the cockpits to give some organic impression of yourself controlling the aircraft.

Interestingly the new pilot body of the Harrier is much more detailed, than the two mentioned above, but looks very much out of place in the Harrier, beside its dimensions gives the impression of 12 year old in the cockpit. Maybe an overly detailed pilot model result in an uncanny valley effect in VR, while the more simple graphics, but right dimensions and movement of the model provides the right feeling in VR.

 

There are a lot of really genius graphic artists at ED and 3rd Parties - creating a simple pilot body isn´t a big task for them, but adds a big effect for VR. While looking forward for the Hind, Apache and some of the other announced new modules, I already fear them feeling incomplete for years without a pilot body, just because the developers don´t have attention to it.   

 

[Hoirtel]

I never have them switched on mostly due to them getting in the way. Even in cruise I like to scan around and make sure everything is when it should be. Having read some of the passion that people have for them here i may try it again and see how it goes. Can say I've ever missed it though. Back when I was on track or I used to always hide control sticks. I never do that now. Always prefer to have it. 

 

As for the hind seat removal? That's for 2D only. VR users will just move their head as  the pilot would. 

[Dunx]

I can't resolve the disconnect of legs, arms and especially hands.

 

Some in-game joint articulation of the hip, knee, elbow and wrist... exposed via API... mmm...

[Fri13]

Not important for me, but enjoy to see a fellow pilot in Mi-8, UH-1, Gazelle....

 

As the body dimensions are wrong in those, it is like someone cut 1/3 away from shoulders, it is just immersion killer.

 

As well I use virtual hands, so seeing four pairs of hands in cockpit kills immersion.

One as in body stuck to throttle and stick, and then magical pair moving in cockpit.

 

Maybe if the arms would move with the virtual hands when grip button is active and otherwise be on the stick and throttle and floating gloves disappear - then it could make sense.

 

Please, allow us to adjust the shoulders width.... It is not nice to be like a matchstick in cockpit when your body has lost whole V shape.

Using the world scale (that DCS calls "IPD") either makes body better (but you feel fat then if matching shoulder) but cockpit becomes like you would be 12 year old.

[Crash *]

Personally, I think a VR body is very important. It is essential for immersion.
It also gives you a feeling for the correct proportions of the aircraft and the position of the head in VR.

 

If someone has the feeling that the VR body is constricting everything, then congratulations, now you know how a real pilot feels. That's kind of what we want, isn't it? For everyone who doesn't want the VR body, you can just turn it off.
I agree that 2D users can hardly see the body and can do without it. Still. VR is the future and I love ED for recognizing and implementing it early on.

 

I consider a module without a VR body to be incomplete and unfinished. The reason why I haven't bought the F16 yet is solely because there is no VR body. I am also annoyed that the VR body in the KA-50 was simply removed and nothing comes on request.

But in a community in which it is important that every switch works exactly like in RL, how can some people do without the pilot completely? If the pilot were missing in the external model, oh what would the howling be.

 

It is a shame, but understandable, if the body is only implemented in the final phase, but it should always be included as a standard. DCS should set standards and not be based on cheap software.

 

I hope that some old modules like the A-10C and the Mig 21 will ever get a VR body.

 

That was a lot of text, but that was and is an important topic to me.

[Lurker]

It's very subjective I think. I don't care about it one way or the other. I might even disable it, if it will save me a frame or two.

 

On the other hand, if they added some really great controller support where my pilot actually moved his VR hands and could hit switches (as I moved my controls around) without using that stupid finger-laser pointer, now that would be something I would find really interesting. 

[Crash *]

vor 3 Stunden schrieb Lurker:

On the other hand, if they added some really great controller support where my pilot actually moved his VR hands and could hit switches (as I moved my controls around) without using that stupid finger-laser pointer, now that would be something I would find really interesting. 

 

As much as I would welcome this further development, it will not really be implemented in the next 10 years.

 

Unfortunately, comprehensive VR glasses coverage is still not technically and financially possible for everyone. Therefore, the subject is still treated very casually.

 

But hopefully it will look different in 5 years.

 

The VR glasses are more standard than niche and when the rapidly growing number of VR pilots notices that it looks stupid, without a body and requires a detailed body, which casts shadows, breathes and moves the hand and arm, when pressing buttons and the kneeboard can really be used on your knees, THEN the developers will start to develop it and then it will take at least another 5 years.

[Dave317]

It's an absolute must for me.  Razbam's pilots are partularly stunning.

[Hartsblade]

Pilot body is a must. I miss it when not there. 

[A.F.]

This is interesting.
I have been flying VR since December last year and found it very unfortunate that some modules did not have a pilot. My plane is the F14.

But after a short time the pilots actually always bothered me. On the one hand they are Blocking the view, on the other hand it felt strange when I move my hand to operate a switch, but the pilot sits nailed to his place. It didn't fit with my body movement.

Now I always move the pilot away.

In my opinion, a pilot only really makes sense when my hand movements are tracked and the pilot then executes them virtually.

Blocking the view

[Rogue Trooper]

9 hours ago, flusim3 said:

This is interesting.
I have been flying VR since December last year and found it very unfortunate that some modules did not have a pilot. My plane is the F14.

But after a short time the pilots actually always bothered me. On the one hand they are Blocking the view, on the other hand it felt strange when I move my hand to operate a switch, but the pilot sits nailed to his place. It didn't fit with my body movement.

Now I always move the pilot away.

In my opinion, a pilot only really makes sense when my hand movements are tracked and the pilot then executes them virtually.

Blocking the view

There are pilot bodies in the F-14?

How do you get them to show?

I tried but no luck.

I get the truly awesome mirrors with the pilots heads but no pilot bodies in the 3D pit... I have pilot bodies set as standard to on!

 

I think it is time ED standardized its general menu settings and made them simple law in DCS regardless of what 3rd parties think!

Pilot in pit as standard is just exactly that, if you do not want 3d pilots in your pit you untick it in the general menu!....... Is it me?

 

Is there something wrong with me?

Why am I manually having to switch on my pilot figure in the harrier when the general menu setting is set to "show pilot" in pit?

 

Edited May 29, 2021 by Rogue Trooper

[javelina1]

I've never enabled it, I've been fine flying without it.  But that's just me.  For folks who do use it, and you like it, cool beans.

[Rogue Trooper]

8 minutes ago, javelina1 said:

I've never enabled it, I've been fine flying without it.  But that's just me.  For folks who do use it, and you like it, cool beans.

agreed, its not for you and I respect that.

I love it mind.

 

Edited May 29, 2021 by Rogue Trooper

[Rogue Trooper]

For me, looking around the pit I am working, I like to see my virtual body. 

 

It just sucks me into the DCS world even more, like the clouds and the far superior water effects we now have.

 

The pilot body only obstructs the left side with his arm and hand on the throttle, the rest can be leaned over in VR.

Edited May 29, 2021 by Rogue Trooper