Check out my Top 10 Tips to reduce VR sickness. VR Sickness is a real thing. I’m one who gets car sick and sick on amusement park rides quite easily so I wasn’t surprised when it happened in VR as well. However, with many of these tips, I’ve been able to extend the length of VR sessions. I wouldn’t say I’ve completely gotten rid of my VR sickness but I’ve been able to play movement games for between 1-2 hours at a time now. Check them out in the video below or read about them further on.
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#1 Start Slow
My first tip to reduce VR sickness is to start slow. This can be done in many ways. First, this might mean playing for short amounts of time to start. 15-20 minutes might be all that you can handle. You will gradually be able to build of more play time.
Start with games that don’t require the player/user to walk/move around that much. Games like Beat Saber, Civilization 7, Vermillion, Puzzling Places, and so many more have things moving around you while you as the player can stay in one place. Third person control games like Moss are also great for this as well.
Play some mixed reality games at the beginning. By being able to see some of your surroundings while having elements of VR incorporated will help your mind get use to the difference. I’ve recently been playing Pencil and having fun learning to draw in mixed reality.
You can also choose to play games with “teleport” movement instead of “smooth” or “locomotion” movement. The teleportation is much better for those of use with weaker stomachs. You can also make your movement in the home environment to be teleportation as well.
#2 Use a Fan
The second tip for helping reduce VR sickness is to use a fan. If you have a little fan, or even a ceiling fan in your play area, turn it on! The movement of air will help to keep you cool while you are playing and create a sense of movement.
#3 Stay Hydrated
My third tip for reducing VR motion sickness is to stay hydrated. I have definitely noticed a difference in myself when I have played while being dehydrated, and hydrated. Have a water bottle close by with a good supply of water to drink while playing.
For a while I used to do VR exercise with Les Mills Bodycombat. I definitely had a big bottle of water near my play space to drink during breaks. If you are prone to getting motion sickness, being dehydrated while playing can lead to headaches as well.
#4 Don’t Play Hungry
The fourth tip for helping with VR sickness goes along with the third one. Don’t play hungry. If you fast often, as I know some people do, maybe keep it to less intense games. Your body won’t be able to cope with the changes in VR as well when you are hungry.
#5 Chew Ginger or Mint Gum
The fifth tip for helping get rid of VR sickness is to chew ginger or mint gum. I’ve never actually used this one but I know many people who have. We all know that mint and ginger help with nausea so it does make sense that chewing this type of gum would assist with those sick feelings. This is a really easy one to try as many of us have mint gum on hand anyway.
#6 Set Your Boundary
My sixth tip for helping reduce VR sickness is to set your boundary properly. If you have a large playing space, use the room scale boundary so you have more space to physically move around in. This will be less movement you are just doing in VR and make the movements feel more real as you are actually able to do them with your body.
Also make sure your height is set properly. Your brain is use to your height. If the height is incorrectly set on your Meta Quest, your brain will pick that up right away and things will feel off. This can lead to an equilibrium imbalance and sickness.
#7 Change Your Settings
The seventh tip for VR motion sickness is to change the settings. Not all apps or games have this option but many will have comfort settings to help with VR sickness.
The first setting will be the type of movement that we mentioned before. Some will allow you to switch between teleport and smooth. Choose teleport if you are new and then work your way into smooth.
The second setting you might be able to change is the type of smooth movement. By turning the comfort level higher, it will often create more of a tunnel vision while moving. This does help your brain focus on a smaller area. As you adjust that comfort level down, the tunnel will widen until there is not tunnel vision anymore.
#8 Take Medicine
My eighth tip is to take some medicine. There are things like ginger tablets, Gravol, and other medicines made for motion sickness and upset stomachs. This will help with VR as well. If you have some on hand, I would recommend trying it to help you build up your tolerance but wouldn’t rely on it 100% of the time.
There are even different types of patches that you can purchase as well that can help with motion sickness/vertigo.
#9 Use Bands or Necklaces
The ninth tip is to use motion sickness/vertigo band and necklaces. There are a ton of different types of bracelets, bands, and necklaces. PrismXR used to sell one that I have tried and it did honestly help. It didn’t completely remove the feelings but I found that it helped me build up my tolerance much faster than what would have happened without it. I would love to know if others have tried anything like this and what they thought.
#10 Run/Move While Playing
My tenth tip is to move/run on the spot while playing. This might look silly, and I feel a little silly doing it while playing, but I find that this really does help. Just a little movement while moving in VR helps trick the brain into thinking you are actually moving. This is the poor mans version of the VR Treadmills that are out on the market.
Bonus #11 Throw Up and Keep Playing
I don’t know if you want to call this a bonus or not, but I read of one guy who said he just throws up and keeps on playing. Personally, I’d still feel sick after. But hey, if that works for him, all the power to you!
What other tips do you have to help with VR Motion Sickness? Leave a comment below!
