This haptic vest might be my new favorite Meta Quest 3 accessory
- The bHaptics vest and sleeves make you feel VR
- Compatible with Meta Quest 3, PC VR and PSVR 2
- I’ve tried them, and I love them
I love VR and the incredibly immersive experiences it can facilitate through headsets like the Meta Quest 3. But for all that VR headsets do well, they’re limited to just visuals and sound – with basic haptic fiddling in the controllers (and , in some cases cases, headset rumble) that do only a little to immerse you through touch. These simple haptics don’t quite feel like a VR world, but with bHaptics accessories – which I tested at CES – you can unlock a superior experience.
For my demo, I was equipped with three accessories: the TactSuit Pro haptic vest on my chest, a pair of TactSleeve haptic arm protectors, and my Meta Quest 3 headset was equipped with the Tact Visor haptic to provide head haptics.
I was then dropped into a custom XR sandbox, equipped with various weapons and items that showcased the capabilities of the bHaptics technology.
When I picked up a virtual shotgun, I felt the recoil in my arm and shoulder, while the electro-rifle sent a tingling ripple down my arm and side. I felt healing potions in my stomach and gentle waves through my body signaling that I was back to maximum health.
To show the differences, the demo also included non-haptic versions of each object so I could directly compare them to the haptic versions – and the haptic versions are a huge step forward in terms of immersion. I’ll admit they weren’t always perfect in terms of feeling like real life, but I’d give them an 8 or 9 out of 10, while the controller rumble without haptic accessories might be a 2 or 9. 3.
The experience went a step further when I felt the same weapons I fired before they were fired at me. Luckily it wasn’t painful, but I could fire electroshocks and lasers at a model representing me and feel the attacks – with my actions sending realistic signals through the haptics of the vest, arm and headset.
It was surprisingly accurate – as I traced the laser across my back, I felt differently placed haptic sensors activate as it moved – and gave VR attacks a more tactile feel than usual.
Perhaps best of all, these haptic gadgets are not a prosumer accessory that only companies or people with a lot of money can enjoy. The vest costs $499, the sleeve $199, and the visor $149 – which isn’t cheap, but not prohibitively expensive either. Plus, they’re compatible with Quest, PSVR 2, and PC experiences in games like Defeat Sabre, Dungeons of Eternity And Arizona sun 2 just to name a few.
The team also explained that community members can create their own custom haptic mapping mods for currently unsupported titles on PC – or to increase haptics in supported titles, so you don’t always have to wait for a developer to incorporate haptics themselves.
I would like to test them more, but after my short demo I was very impressed with what bHaptics has created. If you’re looking to upgrade your VR headset setup, I recommend looking not only at a headset strap or carrying case, but also at one of these haptic vests.
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