Vision Pro first impressions and recommendations

As a fairly enthusiastic VR fan and huge gamer… I’ve always kept my eye on the technology. From the early days with Lawnmower man and the Nintendo Virtual Boy, the fantasy of being inside a truly digital world has always fascinated me.

A while ago I read mind bending statistic that in today’s society, the likelihood of people preferring to live in a more perfect digital world, rather than their own reality… was around 30% of the global population. Which is understandable considering the amount of war, inequality, news and political turmoil we all have to witness from the retangular screen in our hands, or worse… experience first hand. It seems The 1999 movie ‘The Matrix’ may be a closer version of the future than we anticipated.

On a more cheery note, as a Playstation VR (1 + 2) owner… I know first hand how a great VR game can be entirely different from sitting back on your sofa and looking at another rectangular panel. (Under the correct conditions which I will list below).

In partular, the standout OMFG moments include the insanely good WipEout Omega Collection VR update (sadly only available on PS4), the blissed out, trance like Tetris Effect and the game changing Gran Turismo 7, which once experienced… will have you refusing to play a traditional racing game again.

Requirements of a great VR experience comes down to 3 key things:
1. Frictionless set up
2. High quality resolution
3. Incredible content

Blockers for a long lasting VR experience:
1. Comfort, or lack of for extended periods of time
2. Lack of compatibility for day to day life
3. Silliness factor

Point 2 being a huge issue, you are either using it or you aren’t, there is in reality no ‘augmented’ version of a VR / AR experience currently that is high enough quality whilst being low enough on silliness. Yes you can in theory walk around with a Vision Pro outside, but you will look like an idiot, using digital eyes instead of real ones, with zero benefit of what wearing it in the first place brings.

That will of course… eventually change.

Like any cutting edge technology, the reality of today is often far from the full vision of the experience.

What we liked:

• The ambition, we appreciate the bravery in building and creating this place
• The potential, to drive conversations of the future in today’s world
• The more playful ideas of the future
• The branding and the architecture
• The future visions of Dubai’s cityscape – more of that please, in more detail

What we didn’t like:

• The lower tiers, especially the wellbeing floor feel like a complete miss.
• The final floor showing cutting edge things feels under stocked and not cutting edge enough.
• The plastic plants – come on… you can do better than that.

Final Thoughts and suggestions:

It’s a testament to Dubai and its leadership to be able to build and invest in such an iconic place. But it’s clear the experience inside is underdeveloped and in much need of a version 2 update. With some of the floors needing a full replacement (or a huge improvement) in our opinion. Our recent visit to Super Nintendo World, Universal Studios in Osaka set the standard which could be applied here. Where every detail, both physical and digital is seamlessly interwoven. A feeling that you’ve stepped into something special and can’t wait to tell everyone.

The Museum of the Future has a fantastic opportunity to link ideas, research, products, education and inspiration via technology and tactile, real world experiences. They’ve built the platform, go make it world class. Right now… there’s a lot more to be done.

We hope you’ve enjoyed the review.
(All photography by Acid Works)