50 replies to this topic

[Cybergoth]

Hi there!

It's so sad. Out of the first 4 PS3 games I tried, I could only enjoy Heavenly Sword

Bioshock, okay, that was just an experiment anyway. I didn't have much hope for it, since I had problems with most Ego Shooters since the original Descent. I think the only one I could play in the last decade was Metroid Prime 3.

Oblivion hit me by surprise, since I was extra playing it in third person view, which so far almost never gave me any problems.

I got very wary after that, so when I felt just the slightest bit of health problems with the Uncharted demos, I immediately dropped them from my shopping list. Also Fallout 3 / New Vegas and Bioshock 2 for obvious reasons.

So I tried the Tools of Destruction demo and had no problems with it at all. I ordered the full game, really enjoying the first 3 levels. Then came the part where you have to search 6 parts for the Lombax ship. Instead of blasting straight forward like before, I had to look around and scan the area for parts. It started to feel odd, but I could stand that for some 20 minutes. Then came the part where you switch to Clank. Enable his time slowing powers, accompanied by some vision blurring and... GAME OVER for me!

I'm a bit puzzled now what to do next. E.g. there is GTA IV on my shopping list. There's no demo for it, but I had no problems with Bully on the Wii. Does that mean I can play GTA IV as well, or should I respect all the warnings I see when Googling [GTA IV +"motion sickness"]?

Not only would I hate spending yet another 20-30 Euro on a game I can't play - I already hate just the process of figuring it out the hard way, which usually knocks me out for the rest of the day (and even some of the night)...

I'm feeling depressed. I hope at least JRPGs like Valkyria Chronicles and Eternal Sonata work for me.

Greetings,
Manuel

[SpiceWare]

Bummer - guess you get it worse than I do as I was able to play R&C w/out any problems.

[cimerians]

My girlfriend cannot play most modern games because of that. She cant watch them at all. Dragon Age makes her sick too. The Wii is much better for her but when I'm on the 360 or PS3 she cant watch most games.

I tend to get used to it or stop playing after 20-30 minutes. For those games that do not make you sick right away just stop playing after a short time. Eternal Sonata is fine. You wont have problems with that because the camera does not move all that much. Some action games like Ninja Gaiden Sigma, Dante's Inferno also are ok.

Resident Evil 5 will make you sick although I'm ok with it because its mostly 3rd person.

Demo everything as best you can.

[Cybergoth]

SpiceWare, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 10:35 AM, said:

Bummer - guess you get it worse than I do as I was able to play R&C w/out any problems.

I think I could force myself through the Clank parts somehow and complete it in short 20-30 minute sessions per day, but that's not really how I like gaming. I prefer totally diving into a game, playing it 2-3 hours straight for a week or two. I really loved the setting of R&C and the gameplay, the RPG like weapon upgrading and the fighting, I sure would've enjoyed playing it normally.

cimerians, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 1:06 PM, said:

My girlfriend cannot play most modern games because of that. She cant watch them at all. Dragon Age makes her sick too. The Wii is much better for her but when I'm on the 360 or PS3 she cant watch most games.

It's too bad it's a case by case, game by game thing. When e.g. googling for Heavenly Sword I also find a lot of people complaining about getting motion sickness from it, but it didn't affect me at all in this case.

cimerians, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 1:06 PM, said:

Eternal Sonata is fine. You wont have problems with that because the camera does not move all that much. Some action games like Ninja Gaiden Sigma, Dante's Inferno also are ok.

That's good to know. For the moment I still have Eternal Sonata and Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 on my shopping list and Brütal Legend. They are my 'type' of gaming and there's very few to no reports regarding motion sickness. It's still a big downer for me that I have to rule out about half the games I actually bought the PS3 for. Since I had almost no problems with Wii games, I thought game makers had this problem under control nowadays.

cimerians, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 1:06 PM, said:

Resident Evil 5 will make you sick although I'm ok with it because its mostly 3rd person.

That would be too bad. Since I didn't have any problems with RE4, I at least want to give it a try. I read that it has a sequence with a rotating elevator that might be hard to get through. If motion sickness problems would be limited to just that one scene, then I should manage to make it through.

cimerians, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 1:06 PM, said:

Demo everything as best you can.

I'll definitely demo everything I can from now on. It's really not worth sinking any more money into games I cannot play.

[Random Terrain]

I wonder if motion sickness wrist bands would help?



Or what about chewing gum? Both are mentioned here:

http://en.wikipedia....ickness#Devices

[moycon]

Random Terrain, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 2:58 PM, said:

I wonder if motion sickness wrist bands would help?

They'll help lighten a heavy wallet I'll bet.

[Itchy Koala]

I think those bands would work. When I get motion sickness in the car i put pressure on the vein and that seems to alleviate any problems I'm having...assuming these bands work with the same concept I think they have a good chance of working.

[moycon]

Itchy Koala, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 3:19 PM, said:

i put pressure on the vein and that seems to alleviate any problems I'm having...

Ah I see they actually do something, they hit a pressure point of some sort?
I thought those disks might be magnets, for some reason people think if they wear magnets they'll instantly be cured of whatever ails them.

Just found this about those wristbands....says it can (not guaranteed) work for sea sickness, is motion sickness similar?

http://www.ehow.com/...a-sickness.html

Acupressure, or acustimulation, for the relief of motion sickness is an ancient Chinese technique originating with acupuncture. The P6/Neiguan is a pressure point on the inner wrist that has been shown effective in lessening the symptoms associated with seasickness, especially nausea. There is no guarantee that branded or home-made wrist bands will work for you, but this noninvasive method offers hope for a drug-free way to mitigate the effects of motion sickness.

Goes on to state to avoid scams and that you can test the method yourself without opening your wallet very far....

Make Your Own

Making your own bands is a simple and inexpensive way to find out if this method works for you. You will need a pack of ¾-inch-wide elastic bands, small Velcro strips or adhesive squares and one small, round button. Soft, cloth-covered elastic bands are available at most craft-supply stores. Measure and cut out the correct amount of elastic band to fit your wrist snugly without impeding circulation. Sew the Velcro strips to each end, or use the self-adhesive kind, so you can easily take the bracelet on and off. Make sure the Velcro strips are cut small enough to fit comfortably and large enough to keep the bracelet secure. Sew the button on the inside, directly in the center of the band. Find the pressure point and make sure that your creation applies ample pressure without discomfort.

[Cybergoth]

That's some interesting ideas I might give a try.

So far I only tried Ginger Tea and only after already suffering from nausea. It didn't help that much, but at least seemed to normalize the blood pressure quickly. I also keep hearing that Dramamine might help, but I kinda refuse to drug myself just to play a video game.

[save2600]

Cybergoth, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 3:49 PM, said:

but I kinda refuse to drug myself just to play a video game.

Whoa! I think you've just hit on the future of gaming... instead of holograms and 3D, DRUGS will be the next accessory

For years, some "trailblazers" have already been mixing drugs and alcohol with stuff like the Atari's Video Music machine, Jaguar's VLM and Grand Theft Auto.

[Random Terrain]

Random Terrain, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 2:58 PM, said:

I wonder if motion sickness wrist bands would help?

Or what about chewing gum? Both are mentioned here:

http://en.wikipedia....ickness#Devices

Here's what that page says:

Quote

Acupressure wrist bands may also help prevent motion sickness. The bands, sold over-the-counter in many drug stores, use a pressure point on the wrist to prevent feelings of nausea associated with car sickness and air sickness.

Quote

A simple method for relieving common and mild car sickness is chewing. Chewing gum has an uncanny effectiveness for reducing car sickness in those affected. Chewing gum, however, is not the only thing one may chew to relieve mild effects of car sickness, snacking on sweets or just chewing in general seems to reduce adverse effects of the conflict between vision and balance.

[ApolloBoy]

I've never had any kind of motion sickness from playing games, but I have gotten eye strain from playing games before. I tried playing LittleBigPlanet once and I had to stop playing it because it made my eyes hurt (and the controls were terrible).

[Reaperman]

I almost never have problems with motion sickness while gaming but recently I had a pretty serious reaction to a homebrew a8 project called project M. It's an amazing piece of work but something about how it updates the screen(?) makes me pretty sick. I first noticed it on real hardware (NTSC displayed on a modern tv), but now even looking at youtube vids gets me going a little. (link)


The thing is that there's no crazy up/down tilting in that, which I would have guessed was the cause. maybe it's something in how the walls meet the floors and ceiling.
I recall some of the old early/mid 90's fps games hit me pretty hard too.

Edited by Reaperman, Mon Jan 31, 2011 4:35 PM.

[cimerians]

Portal is a perfect game for inducing vomiting.

[Cybergoth]

Random Terrain, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 4:22 PM, said:

Quote

A simple method for relieving common and mild car sickness is chewing. Chewing gum has an uncanny effectiveness for reducing car sickness in those affected. Chewing gum, however, is not the only thing one may chew to relieve mild effects of car sickness, snacking on sweets or just chewing in general seems to reduce adverse effects of the conflict between vision and balance.

I'm just coming home from my local drugstore, where I ordered a package of ginger flavored chewing gum. I thought that might combine two possible remedies.

I'm also experimenting with an idea I got from further researching this issue. It sounds weird, but I partitioned my TV screen into a couple of smaller segments with thin wool threads. This grid is supposed to constantly remind my brain that it is just watching something

Once I'm ready to give Ratchet & Clank another try, I'll also move the slider for camera movement speed to the other side of the scale. Wish me luck!

[SpiceWare]

cimerians, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 4:51 PM, said:

Portal is a perfect game for inducing vomiting.

Surprisingly I was not affected by Portal at all. I couldn't play anything else in Orange Box w/out getting sick. I've played Portal on both my PS3 and my Mac and am eagerly awaiting P2.

[madmax2069]

Some things can be caused by the refresh rate on your TV, some can be caused by how far or close you are to the TV, some games can give me a severe migraine which is the result of the refresh rate.

I have never had motion sickness from a game, I hear that sometimes it can be solved by moving closer or farther away from the TV. and like a few others have pointed out those wrist bands can help, sometimes putting on a pair of cheap light (not too dark) sunglasses, the same effect can be playing in a dark room or a well lit room.

I would really suck to have motion sickness and being a gamer and having games trigger it off. I only hope you can find a method or a combination of methods to solve your problem.

Edited by madmax2069, Tue Feb 1, 2011 5:10 PM.

[rockman_x_2002]

One sure-fire way to take care of the problem is a smaller television (19" to 21" or so). Sure, it may not be as fun as gaming on a big honkin' huge 50" 1080p flat panel, but the smaller screen will help your eyes (and your mind) reconcile that you aren't actually moving, just the image on the television.

This is unfortunately one of the drawbacks of larger television screens. If you don't get motion sickness (or don't get it easily anyway), it's an awesome experience. But if you do, it's a problem.

Still, even though it's not an ideal solution, it is, nevertheless, a solution that generally does work.

[amiman99]

SpiceWare, on Tue Feb 1, 2011 3:34 PM, said:

cimerians, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 4:51 PM, said:

Portal is a perfect game for inducing vomiting.

Surprisingly I was not affected by Portal at all. I couldn't play anything else in Orange Box w/out getting sick. I've played Portal on both my PS3 and my Mac and am eagerly awaiting P2.

Portal make me kinda sick if I play to long, PS1 Dark Forces, XBOX Call of Chutlu make me very sick, I dont know why, Half Life for Dreamcast (unreleased game) make me sick, but PS2 version is fine. I think, it got something to do how they render the 3D environment. Doom 3, I can play for hours. My son can't play "Lego Star Wars" for PS2, but "Lego Star Wars II" for PS2 can play for long time. I just don't let him play "Lego Star Wars" anymore.

[JamesD]

Cybergoth, on Tue Feb 1, 2011 2:43 AM, said:

Random Terrain, on Mon Jan 31, 2011 4:22 PM, said:

Quote

A simple method for relieving common and mild car sickness is chewing. Chewing gum has an uncanny effectiveness for reducing car sickness in those affected. Chewing gum, however, is not the only thing one may chew to relieve mild effects of car sickness, snacking on sweets or just chewing in general seems to reduce adverse effects of the conflict between vision and balance.

I'm just coming home from my local drugstore, where I ordered a package of ginger flavored chewing gum. I thought that might combine two possible remedies.

I'm also experimenting with an idea I got from further researching this issue. It sounds weird, but I partitioned my TV screen into a couple of smaller segments with thin wool threads. This grid is supposed to constantly remind my brain that it is just watching something

Once I'm ready to give Ratchet & Clank another try, I'll also move the slider for camera movement speed to the other side of the scale. Wish me luck!

How about just drinking Ginger Ale?

[Itchy Koala]

^^ It works but not as well as ginger pills (if they still make those?)

[Rex Dart]

Forget ginger flavor, ginger tea, ginger soda... get actual ginger capsules. It's the stuff itself that helps, not the flavor. They're pretty cheap, too.

[Cybergoth]

It's been a while. After some experimenting, I didn't really find any remedy that worked well for me, so I think I'll end up just avoiding everything that looks even remotely suspicious. Just in case I'm also visiting an optician and a neurologist later this month.

I didn't touch the PS3 much during the last weeks. I tried playing Valkyria Chronicles, but got problems with that as well. I don't even think it's the 3D as such in this case, but I'm rather suspecting the blur effects (esp. the transitions in and out of the 3D and the Fog grenades) and the heavy aliasing in this game. Of course maybe I'm just getting paranoid...

[82atari5200]

Cybergoth, on Mon Mar 7, 2011 7:43 AM, said:

It's been a while. After some experimenting, I didn't really find any remedy that worked well for me, so I think I'll end up just avoiding everything that looks even remotely suspicious. Just in case I'm also visiting an optician and a neurologist later this month.

I didn't touch the PS3 much during the last weeks. I tried playing Valkyria Chronicles, but got problems with that as well. I don't even think it's the 3D as such in this case, but I'm rather suspecting the blur effects (esp. the transitions in and out of the 3D and the Fog grenades) and the heavy aliasing in this game. Of course maybe I'm just getting paranoid...

I sympathize with you. I got a ps3 a couple years ago and after playing nearly every system made through the ages I found out I couldn't play Call of Duty Modern Warfare. GTA IV was okay for about an hour, but after that started feeling queasy. Modern Warfare actually made me vomit and have horrific migraines. The only thing my PS3 is used for is Rock Band.

[Mendon]

I honestly feel sorry for you guys! While I sometimes moan & groan and rant & rave over things I may not like about present day gaming, I've taken for granted the fact that I can play and enjoy any game I care to. Gives me pause.......

Can your motion sickness also happen during 3D experiences, such as watching a movie in 3D or playing a 3D game on the 3DS or PS3?


Mendon