Does Virtual Reality affect people emotionally?

[BronyPony 575]

Before continuing with this topic, here is a little sneak peak into a virtual reality game I am making with a few people:

 

 

Not really much, but it may show either excitement or nothing at all from people, but here comes the main point of this topic. 

 

I have really wanted to explore the emotional aspects of virtual reality. Would people react differently when put into a virtual reality than when given a controller and looking at a screen? Here are a few poll questions(as a scientific statistics sample) on a few emotional parts of a virtual reality game.

 

1. If, in the virtual reality, you were confronted with a multi-player sword-fight and you were met with winning against another real live player in the virtual reality and now to win you just needed to stab or brutally kill your opponent and the virtual reality had many aspects of real life(meaning it is almost feeling real), would you have a harder time killing the player than if you just had a controller and fighting in multi-player?
2. Having the same setting as the previous question except for an NPC, would you still have a harder time killing the NPC?
3. If the NPC or player in multi-player displayed pain(programmed into the game) when you attacked them, would you have a harder time completing the goal of killing the opponent in the virtual world?

Maybe I will add questions later on, but those are the main three I want answered. It will help with development of a giant virtual reality game that is being made.

 

Edited October 30, 2013 by BronyPony

[TheFoolArcana515 50]

Lol you got this concept from the anime Sword Art Online. It's a good anime and I need to finish watching it. Also if you get this thing going it could be cool

[BronyPony 575]

Lol you got this concept from the anime Sword Art Online. It's a good anime and I need to finish watching it. Also if you get this thing going it could be cool

Maybe. 

 

But this is only one part of the virtual world we are creating. But, one part of it is sword fighting and such. More will be added soon.

[TheFoolArcana515 50]

Maybe. 

 

But this is only one part of the virtual world we are creating. But, one part of it is sword fighting and such. More will be added soon.

Haha lol

 

Sounds good. Keep up the good work and you might get something amazing out of this project. It would be cool to see some class systems and occupations done too, but I'm sure you have that planned out already

[Celtore 2,769]

1) I wouldn't feel right attacking other players in that sort of environment, it's already difficult for me to do that in any sort of MMO I've played ever. Even in open world PvP I usually let my prey or even hunters get away.

 

2) I wouldn't have any mercy towards NPCs though, they're basically AI. They do as they're programmed, there is no person on the other side of their screen. If their death animation is realistic enough that I feel a twinge of empathy though, I wouldnt kill them. I used to feel bad for killing wolves in wow because of how they yelped when they died.

 

3) Answered in two

Edited October 30, 2013 by Celtore

[BronyPony 575]

Haha lol

 

Sounds good. Keep up the good work and you might get something amazing out of this project. It would be cool to see some class systems and occupations done too, but I'm sure you have that planned out already

It is already on the agenda list. Currently, we are implementing Razer Hydra capabilities. The problem is, I don't have that so I have to work blindly a bit. It should pull through, however.

 

EDIT: I added another poll question.

Edited October 30, 2013 by BronyPony

[Malinter 3,064]

Well films cam make folks laugh , cry or be afraid. So why can't VR? The emotions might be stronger considering such a thing would feel more immersive.

 

It would also depend how each individual seperates VR from reality. People blast each other in the face with guns all the time in FPS or brutally gang up on an opposing player. Doesn't make them horrible people, its just the nature of the game, also they know that other than frustration, no actual harm comes to either player.

[BronyPony 575]

Well films cam make folks laugh , cry or be afraid. So why can't VR? The emotions might be stronger considering such a thing would feel more immersive.

 

It would also depend how each individual seperates VR from reality. People blast each other in the face with guns all the time in FPS or brutally gang up on an opposing player. Doesn't make them horrible people, its just the nature of the game, also they know that other than frustration, no actual harm comes to either player.

Yes, but there has been research done that while using the controller your view of things is that your not "killing" the player, but someone else in the game is killing the other player, therefore the brain doesn't associate any other emotion because it isn't you who is doing the "killing." However, in the perspective of being the person doing the killing, the brain associates that with the emotion of guilt because the brain begins to associate the killing of a player inside the game with YOU killing the player.

 

Psychology is a strange thing. 

[ClearIight 8]

If, in the virtual reality, you were confronted with a multi-player sword-fight and you were met with winning against another real live player in the virtual reality and now to win you just needed to stab or brutally kill your opponent and the virtual reality had many aspects of real life(meaning it is almost feeling real), would you have a harder time killing the player than if you just had a controller and fighting in multi-player?

It would depend on if the player actually died like in Sword Art Online. If the game is more like Alfheim Online, then I wouldn't have a problem with killing the person at all if I knew they would going to respawn. Now if the game was SAO and the character I had to fight against did something so malicious from my point-of-view that I felt obligated to kill them to save others then I would kill my opponent with little to no remorse. I wouldn't enjoy it but I wouldn't dwell on it either.

Edited October 30, 2013 by ClearIight

[Malinter 3,064]

That's not quite right, The brain knows its a game, It knows they are not real. The Russain Airport level in Modern Warfare for example. You just mow down innocent cilivians in a wave of gunfire. I didn't skip the level and played though it. Didn't feel 'guilt' because I knew they were npcs despite all the screaming and the blood.

 

Now, if the game could recreate the feeling of holding the gun, of it recoiling in my hand, the smell of blood.... maybe then with all that extra senory data in my mind would I start feeling something like 'guilt'. but as a game. its just lights and noise. nothing more. 

Edited October 30, 2013 by Malinter

[Fluttershyfan94 5,738]

1.) No, not really I would always know it wasn't real. So I wouldn't mind it, I wouldn't really care but I guess some couldn't do it. For me it wouldn't have any effects on me. I wouldn't have a harder time doing it

2.) No, it would be even easier.

3.) No, since I know that person isn't real, I wouldn't have any problems with it.

 

I would be very excited if a game would be like Sword art online. I think virtual reality does affect people emotionally but you'll always know it's not a reality. So it will never have the same effects like in the real world, unless you didn't know it was a virtual reality then it would have some effects depending on the person. But you got to remember that when you're put into a position were you either kill or be killed, you're ready to do everything. So I'm not sure if you would feel any guilt since you just did what you had to do.

[Glaci 119]

I wouldn't really have a hard time doing it unless the other person was displaying pain or emotion of some sort, that's when I would probably be a bit bothered.

 

For example, there was a game I was playing where you had to torture this guy and he was crying and stuff, and it was pretty realistic. I had a hard time doing that, I didn't like it one bit.

[BronyPony 575]

Here is another screenshot of the game:

 

 

Players will be able to edit their own avatar bodies and be able to do more with it. More to come if anyone is interested.

[GhostPony750 958]

Well, I used to play call of duty a bit with my friends.

 

Until I killed that guy, and he started to glitch a bit, like if it had seizure or something. Then I looked at his face, and I was disgusted. I am having fun killing people... so nope and never played again.

 

It actually depends on people.