First Report: Real VR Fishing
Insane, right?
What says Getting Away From It All like putting on a VR Headset?
It’s the juxtaposition.
Fishing is off the grid, an escape to the natural. More about tranquility than accomplishing, usually.
VR is the grid. An escape to the unnatural. Often associated with mayhem and violent conquest.
How can this unmatched pair find love? The essence of all romantic comedy. It seems impossible — that’s why we watch, “Bringing Up Baby,” both versions.
That’s also why I spent twenty bucks on the VR game.
I have been active in VR for five years. This is the third game I have purchased. Beat Saber was first. Then it was a solo experience.
I bought Walkabout Mini Golf, for fifteen bucks, because it is not a solo experience, (neither is Beat Saber now). Up to four people at a time can play.
I did not buy it because I love miniature golf. I bought it specifically to hang out with old friends who don’t live anywhere near me or each other for the most part.
It’s working!
We have known each other for over fifty years and have been in close contact, off and on, all that time. Now there is no one I feel easier being with. And that’s the VR Super Power — the feeling of being-with.
We’ve gotten in a round and hung out every week for enough months to say we’re doing it. I will not speak for all small groups at all times and places, but for us, a little structure helps. We can all just show up and that’s something, but a little intent and a framework makes things more fun.
The heart of it is finding the right balance between the demands of the game, or any other format, AND the social attention it takes to check-in with each other, to catch up. Try checking-in during most poker games and you’ll be sent away. Mini-Golf, not so much.
So we socialize some and it’s all old and new at the same time.
We are exploring friendship and its immeasurable human value — in a world ruled by measurable transactions that sees us as consumers.
The game publishers know we will eventually seek novelty and of course there are premium tiers to last a lifetime. This is the game on top of the game in which we are the players but not necessarily the pawns.
My plan is to find novelty in someone else’s Basic Package. A new game.
Real VR Fishing is highly rated and convincingly reviewed. The whole idea is so outrageous, I had to experience whatever it was.
- I am not drawn to fishing
- I am very impatient learning new things
That’s two strikes right there. Any more and I’m out $20.
There weren’t any more.
I had to go through the Tutorial, which is smart because I’d skip it if I could. It showed just what was needed for the next step.
Catching a fish is surprising at first and fun. A few things need to be done at least semi-correctly.
Nibbles at the bait come through the controllers. It’s a cool feeling, waiting until just the right moment to yank it up and reel it in. There is a reel and there’s tension, shown on an indicator. Too much tension, slow down or the line breaks.
Some success comes easily. The game plants the hook and reels players in slowly.
Challenge can be dialed up for free but success cannot. Better equipment can be purchased. Invest. Reward.
Then there’s the locations, created by placing you and your virtual boat in a high-resolution panoramic photo from some gorgeous place in the natural world.
Lake Lewis in western Washington, (above) is one of the free fishing spots and there are plenty more. There is also an attractive array of additional places in the world to sit around and fish, for a few more bucks.
Maybe we can game them.
Some weeks we’ll play theirs, some weeks we’ll make up our own. Or Wander around together. Explore an new open world somewhere.
Making it up as we go. I think some VR Fishing will fit quite nicely into our social life, along with more.
Tom writes about new media technologies and other topics he has little if any standing to write about.
He holds a Black Belt in Learning and loves writing. More here.
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