An exploratory study on virtual reality head mounted displays and their impact on player presence.

This study explores how a video game player's sense of being in a game world (i.e., spatial presence) is impacted by the use of a virtual reality head-mounted display. Research focused on virtual reality research has fallen by the wayside since the early 90s due to the limitations in the technology. With modern reimagining of virtual reality head-mounted displays, there is now an opportunity to reexamine the impact it has on gaming experience. This thesis explores the results of an experiment in which university students played video games using either the Oculus Rift VR head set or a standard monitor while playing a first-person shooter (FPS) video game. Control interface was also manipulated. Results indicated that virtual reality head mounted displays have a positive impact on a players’ level of spatial presence, but they can also produce negative feelings that counteract that sense of presence in its impact on enjoyment.