Praydog is a very interesting VR mod that enables Flat2VR on popular games with less effort than ever. But how close is UnrealVR away from working on your favorite game?
Below, we take a look at the Praydog UnrealVR mode in full detail, including:
How does UnrealVR work?
What game will get VR support?
How do you install and use the Praydog Flat2VR mod?
Keep scrolling to view video demos of the UnrealVR mod in action!
If we’ve missed anything, comment and let us know!
What is UnrealVR?
UnrealVR is a PC mod that enhances regular flatscreen games built with Unreal Engine 5 by transforming them into full virtual reality (VR) games.
It converts new unreal engine games into first-person virtual reality with standardized code to do this. The mod supports room-scale VR, meaning that your movements are tracked in real-time, allowing for a full-body interactive experience within the virtual world.
To ensure a realistic experience, UnrealVR requires a high-end gaming computer to render regular flat games in virtual reality. It also enables six degrees of freedom and VR motion control support, providing a more immersive gaming experience.
The mod also offers configurable profiles, allowing users to save and share their preferred settings for each game. This feature allows players to tailor the VR experience to their preferences, providing optimal visuals, control mappings, and comfort.
Key Features of the Praydog Flat2VR Mod
UnrealVR offers several key features that enhance the virtual reality gaming experience:
Stereoscopic Rendering
UnrealVR presents the game in full 3D, providing a truly immersive experience.
Unlike simply displaying a flatscreen game in VR, UnrealVR utilizes stereoscopic rendering to create depth and perspective, making the virtual world more realistic and engaging.
6 Degrees of Freedom (6DoF)
With UnrealVR, the movement and rotation of your VR headset are tracked within the game. This means you can move your head in all directions and explore the virtual environment from different angles.
6DoF head tracking capability enhances immersion and allows for more interactive gameplay experiences.
Configurable Profiles
UnrealVR offers the convenience of configurable profiles. This feature allows you to save your preferred settings for each game individually.
By saving and sharing these profiles, you can easily switch between different games and maintain customized configurations, ensuring optimal visuals and controls for each title. This flexibility enhances your convenience and personalization.
Work in Progress Features
Input Binding
This feature will allow you to map VR controller buttons to specific in-game actions. You can optimize your control scheme by customizing the button configurations to match your preferences and play style.
Input binding adds flexibility and personalization to the VR gaming experience, ensuring seamless interaction with the virtual environment.
Controller Tracking
With upcoming motion controls tracking support, UnrealVR will link hand movements in the real world to in-game objects or characters. This means your hand movements with the VR controllers will be accurately translated into the virtual world, providing a more immersive and intuitive gameplay experience.
Grabbing, throwing, or interacting with objects will feel more natural and responsive.
Synchronized Rendering
Currently, UnrealVR renders each eye separately, potentially leading to discomfort or motion sickness for some users. However, the forthcoming synchronized rendering feature will render both eyes simultaneously, significantly reducing the potential for discomfort.
This improvement aims to provide a smoother and more comfortable VR experience, allowing you to enjoy longer sessions without experiencing visual discomfort.
Plugin System for Motion Controls
Praydog is working on native head tracking and motion controls support by default on every game. As a fallback option, he will release a plugin system or API that developers can work with to add motion controls into each game manually.
Rendering Methods
UnrealVR supports two rendering methods for virtual reality experiences:
Native Stereo
The Native Stereo rendering method is a commonly used approach in VR. It involves rendering the scene separately for each eye, mimicking how our eyes perceive depth in the real world.
This means the game’s visuals are rendered from two slightly different perspectives, creating a stereoscopic effect when viewed through a VR headset.
By providing a separate view for each eye, Native Stereo enhances depth perception and contributes to a more immersive VR experience.
Synchronized Sequential
The Synchronized Sequential rendering method is another technique employed by UnrealVR. It involves rendering frames for each eye in a synchronized and sequential manner.
Rather than rendering both eyes simultaneously, Synchronized Sequential rendering renders the left eye frame first and then the right eye frame, ensuring that the frames are perfectly synchronized.
This method reduces potential visual discrepancies or motion artifacts when rendering both eyes independently. By rendering frames sequentially and synchronously, Synchronized Sequential improves visual consistency and can contribute to a smoother and more comfortable VR experience.
How does UnrealVR work?
UnrealVR transforms regular flatscreen games built with Unreal Engine 5 into full virtual reality (VR) experiences. It achieves this by implementing a PC mod that adds VR support to the games.
The mod modifies the game code and assets to enable VR functionality, such as stereoscopic rendering, head, and controller tracking, and input mapping. It leverages the power and capabilities of Unreal Engine 5 to enhance the visuals, physics, and overall immersion of the games when played in VR.
When a game is launched with UnrealVR, it utilizes the capabilities of VR hardware, such as headsets and motion controllers, to track your movements and actions in real-time.
This allows for a more interactive and immersive experience as your head movements and hand gestures are translated into the virtual world.
When will Praydog’s UnrealVR Mod Be Released?
According to the modder, Praydog’s UnrealVR Mod is coming out in 2023. The developer has mentioned that the first beta version of UnrealVR is halfway to release, indicating that a significant portion of the development work has been completed.
Key features like OpenXR output and stereoscopic view have already been implemented, suggesting that the mod is in an advanced stage of development.
Praydog is working on spatial tracking, indicating that some features and functionalities are still being developed and refined. After spatial tracking, the developer plans to focus on further optimization of the graphics pipeline, which suggests a commitment to enhancing the visual quality and performance of the mod.
Additionally, the developer has mentioned plans to implement a configuration menu and VR key mapping, focusing on providing customizable options and controls for users.
What Games Does PrayDog’s VR Mod Work On?
This spreadsheet tracks the current status of popular PC games tested and whether they work with the Praydog VR mod. As you can see, many AAA games will receive VR support once this mod is released.
Here’s a summary of some games that have full support, half support, and no support for UnrealVR:
Full Working Support
Astroneer
Astroneer works perfectly with UnrealVR. This space exploration game is huge in size and scope and is a game that many have sunk hundreds of hours into playing.
Stray
This open sandbox game lets you view the world as a cat. It works perfectly with UnrealVR, offering stereo audio and complete support.
Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot
With full working support for UnrealVR, Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot offers an immersive VR experience. You can step into the shoes of your favorite Dragon Ball characters, using the mod’s VR motion controller support and 6 degrees of freedom to engage in epic battles and explore the iconic Dragon Ball universe in virtual reality.
The mod enhances the game’s visuals and provides a more immersive gameplay experience.
Working Well
Hogwarts Legacy
Hogwarts Legacy is working in VR mode using Praydog’s mod. You can look at a video of the game in VR below, rendered in synchronized sequential mode.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmRQp8hbgUE
Final Fantasy VII Remake: Intergrade
The popular Final Fantasy VII Remake: Intergrade mostly has support for UnrealVR.
You can expect enhanced VR experiences with the mod, enjoying improved visuals and possibly utilizing VR motion controller support and 6 degrees of freedom.
Kingdom Hearts III
Kingdom Hearts III also mostly has support for UnrealVR. The mod enhances the game’s visuals, incorporating VR motion controller support and 6 degrees of freedom.
No Support
Days Gone
Unreal VR does not provide support for Days Gone. Using the mod, you cannot transform this game into a virtual reality experience.
It remains a flatscreen game without VR-specific enhancements or features.
Meet Your Maker
Meet Your Maker does not have support for UnrealVR. The mod cannot be applied to this game to enhance VR functionality.
Uncharted Waters Origin
UnrealVR does not offer support for Uncharted Waters Origin.
UnrealVR Video Demos
What Virtual Reality Headsets Will UnrealVR Work On?
UnrealVR is designed to work with PCVR headsets that are connected to SteamVR. By default, this includes headsets like the HTC Vive Pro, Vive XR Elite, and HP Reverb G2.
The Meta Quest will support Praydog with the help of Oculus Link, Oculus Air Link, or Virtual Reality.
