#challenge mode to this is when the two couples exist in separate universes

[sexycornenthusiast]

if you get good enough at shipping you can unlock an advanced bonus level where you ship one couple with another

[aeneasx]

PISCES COMPATIBILITY

PISCES AND ARIES

Aries and Pisces are two signs that really have trouble connecting. The beginning of all things lies at 0° of Aries and their end at 29° of Pisces. Their connection is like a “little death” making room for all that is new, untamed and inexperienced. It is hard for them to bond, as much as it is hard for all of us to transcend, go beyond our physical body and be one with the Universe. With that said, it is understandable how difficult it is for their sexual natures to accept one another.

This is a relationship disturbed mostly by the lack of trust and the ability of both parties to open up to their partner. Aries is ruled by Mars, the planet that rules our first chakra, responsible for our ability to set good boundaries. Pisces is ruled by Neptune, in charge of our entire aura and our permeability for outside stimuli. Since they are both responsible for our border with the outside world, it is hard to say which partner should loosen up and make it possible for them to come close. Their only chance of a happy ending is if Aries partner dives in and their Pisces partner wakes up.

PISCES AND TAURUS

Taurus and Pisces are both all about pleasure. Taurus represents the art of love making, tenderness and sensuality. The sign of Pisces is a culmination of a sexual encounter – orgasm. This is a place where Venus is exalted, magical, mysterious and unbelievably satisfying for Taurus’ ruler. They have the ability to get lost in each other, make their dreams come true and satisfy each other by pure existence.

Because of the Pisces’ tendency to enter each relationship with an idealistic approach, there is a great chance they will open up to their Taurus partner as soon as they realize how stable and secure they seem. The beauty of their contact is in the fact that when together, they both lose their need to hide and let their emotions grow with ease.

This is a relationship based on love and full of it while it lasts. They both crave romance and beauty in their lives, and will do anything that is needed to keep the beauty going between them. Taurus will give their Pisces partner a chance to connect to the real world, showing them how to ground their creativity, while Pisces will lift up Taurus and make them a bit softer and more flexible. They seem to be on a mission of convincing them that true love exists. When their relationship is over, they will both know it instantly and very often a conversation about a breakup would be redundant. If they savor their trust and nurture the beauty of love they share, their relationship can last and be as inspiring as a dream coming true.

PISCES AND GEMINI

It is a good thing there is so much creativity to Gemini’s approach to sex, or they would really have difficulty making any sort of intimate connection with Pisces. They can be attracted to each other due to the fact that they are ruled by Mercury and Jupiter, the same planets that rule their opposing signs. Still, there is a big chance they won’t even recognize each other as sexual beings or keep a distance from each other if they do.

Trust is already a weak spot in almost every relationship these two can have and when they get together, there is a chance they will have no idea how to create any trust between them. They have completely different ways of dealing with their emotional relationships and their issues with self-image, and they will think of many different ways to bend the truth when they are together. Unfortunately, when any of them lies, they won’t have much success. Gemini is too smart to be lied to by their Pisces partner, and Pisces sense their Gemini partner’s state too well to not realize when they’re not telling the truth. Basically they both dip into each other’s unconscious and see each other in the way that none of them looks at themselves.

Gemini and Pisces are squaring signs that often don’t have that much in common. They are both usually positive enough to have a superficial enjoyable relationship and go well together at large social gatherings. They could both forget to call each other when they agreed to, and they can both change their opinions in two seconds, but they simply don’t share the same goals. As a strongly mental and a strongly emotional sign, their lack of understanding can be hurtful for Pisces and sometimes for both of them. If they do fall in love and start a romantic relationship, chances are they will not last very long.

However, there is a beauty in the creative side of this relationship and if Gemini decides to truly listen to Pisces, they could help them use their talent in a constructive way. In most situations Pisces will just drain the energy out of their Gemini partner, especially if they end up in their fragile, needy mode that some other signs could understand much better than Gemini. If they are to succeed in their persistence to be together, they should work together and socialize a lot. The most important thing for both of them in this relationship is to reach for their emotional cores and give in to true intimacy, or they will never manage to communicate.

PISCES AND CANCER

Cancer and Pisces are almost always brought together by a romantic love. Their sexual connection is usually primarily emotional. Pisces partner might seem a bit weird and kinky to Cancer, but they should have a feel for each other, strong enough for both of them to enrich their sexual relationship with their own quality.

It is a good thing that Cancer is usually not aggressive or pushy, or they could easily get dishonesty from Pisces as a response to their tendency to create intimacy and a happy home at any cost. Pisces don’t really understand marriage except as a part of a fairytale ending or because of all that lace, and Cancer will usually want a wedding as a crowning of a loving relationship. This could be recognized as pressure to some point and this could lead to Pisces partner getting scared.

As two Water signs, Cancer and Pisces connect through emotions, usually as soon as they lay eyes on each other. This is one of the typical combinations of zodiac signs for love at first sight. Their main challenge is hidden in the changeable nature of the sign of Pisces, not because it is there, but because they might fear to show it. Their biggest problem lies in the fact that they give priority to different types of love in their life. If passion and sensual, sexual love isn’t there, Pisces will rarely be satisfied with the love they get from their family, and Cancer would find a life without a family nest very depressing. A fine balance needs to be made between excitement and stability, and they could be one of the most wonderful couples of the zodiac – Cancer inspired and Pisces with a feel of home.

PISCES AND LEO

It is incredible how two signs that represent love, can be so wrong for each other. Leo will seem like a brute, caring selfishly about their own needs, incapable of forming an intimate relationship with anyone, let alone Pisces. Although this is not true, it might be the obvious reality to Pisces if they end up in a relationship with Leo Partner. In return, Leo will think of Pisces as weak and unrealistic, completely separated from their own desires and the strength of their body or emotions.

Neptune is a planet of all deceit and mistrust in the world, making things around us seem foggy, unclear and fake. Pisces is the sign ruled by Neptune, and Leo brings it to its fall. This is a difficult combination of signs to reach a point of mutual trust. They will both seem dishonest to one another, not because they lie, but because their characters seem unreal. Leo will think of Pisces as if they were always on drugs, and Pisces will feel sorry for Leo and their lack of faith.

Leo and Pisces seem to be put on this Earth to spread entirely different kinds of love. The problem isn’t in their element or their quality, as much as it is in their connection through the fall of Neptune, the ruler of Pisces. If they get attracted to each other, they will be subjected to the risk of great damage to their beliefs, their inner faith and usually succumb to mutual disrespect because of a simple lack of understanding. The beauty of their relationship could be developed through the fairytale approach of Pisces, if they build the heroic image of their Leo partner to the point in which other differences between them fade.

PISCES AND VIRGO

Virgo and Pisces are opposing signs and their attraction is very strong. Since they also represent the axis of Venus’ fall and exaltation, we can conclude that their relationship always has a lesson on Venus to teach. These partners have a task to find the place of physical intimacy in which they will both be relaxed to be exactly who they are.

Virgo can have some serious trust issues that Pisces won’t actually help them overcome. In order to have a healthy relationship in which they both trust each other, they will both need to be secure and confident enough to be honest. Both of these partners will easily give in to dishonesty, although their convictions are the opposite of their behavior. It can be torture for both of them if any one of the partners tells a lie. Fortunately, they are both aware that some secrecy might even spark their relationship and give it more passion. This is why they will usually get over small intimacy outbreaks in order to trust each other on a higher level.

Virgo and Pisces represent the axis of the exaltation and fall of both Venus and Mercury. This makes them partners with greatest challenges and the greatest potential for love in the entire zodiac. They need to find a fine balance of rationality and emotions, each one individually and together through their relationship. In many cases this is not a couple that will last very long, as their mutable quality makes them changeable enough to disregard the entire relationship quickly if they aren’t satisfied. They need to realize that perfection they seek might not be presented in the form they expect. If they stay together for long enough to understand the benefits of their contact, they might discover that the love between them is the only true love they could find in this lifetime.

PISCES AND LIBRA

Air and Water, Libra and Pisces seem to have almost nothing in common. However, we shouldn’t forget their connection through Venus, the ruler of Libra, exalted in Pisces. Since they touch each other through this sensual, loving planet, they might find true sexual satisfaction together. They can both be selfless lovers, caring more about the satisfaction of their partner than their own.

They will not understand each other well enough to share much trust. The need Libra has to be accepted and liked by other people will be wrongly interpreted by Pisces, for they don’t understand how can someone’s self-confidence be that low. That sparkly, always in love, childish, flirty nature of Pisces will be a huge turn off for Libra, who will not be able to trust someone who openly shows their interest in other people. The only way for these partners to remain in a trusting relationship is to approach it casually and build their understanding and trust from zero, as if they have never had any relationships prior to this one.

Libra and Pisces have a meeting point in the beauty of Venus. Still, they perceive it in two different ways and they will often not respect each other enough to find the beauty of Venus in one another. They could have real trouble adjusting to their partner’s speed, and the mutable quality of Pisces often won’t help them open up any faster to build a relationship in the pace that would fit their Libra partner. Both Libra and Pisces can selflessly be interested in the satisfaction of their partner, and this should help them stay on the good side of their relationship whatever happens between them. If they move past the disrespect and the unrealistic expectations from each other’s personalities, they might find that they share real love.

PISCES AND SCORPIO

As two Water signs, both Scorpio and Pisces find it very important for emotions to be the most intense part of their sexual experiences. Scorpio is a sign that represents sex, as well as sexual repression, and depending on the upbringing and previous sexual experiences, they can be a bit rough on their sensitive Pisces partner. On the other hand, Pisces is a sign of orgasms, strange sexual experiences and all of the sexual weirdness. If they understand the emotional depth of Scorpio, they might be much more resilient than we would assume.

Suspicious Scorpio can easily become a clingy, control freak in a relationship with Pisces. However, they will both be in search of their one, perfect love and this should bind them with certain honesty. As soon as one of them is cheated on or disappointed, their relationship should end, because none of these partners can handle the tainted image of love. Trust between them will be maintained for as long as Pisces have an idealistic approach, doing everything for their one true love. When their image clears and they realize who they are with and what their relationship looks like, it might become very difficult for them to stay in loop with Scorpio’s expectation of honesty.

When Scorpio and Pisces come together, this relationship will probably give them both new insights on emotional possibilities. They will both easily get carried away into an image of a fairytale love, and this image could keep them together for a very long time, even if they are both not that happy. As two Water signs, they will rely on their emotional judgments and understand this about each other, creating true intimacy. The challenge here is for the nature of Scorpio not to obsess and suffocate their changeable partner, and for Pisces to stop running away from negative emotions.

PISCES AND SAGITTARIUS

If they ever manage to end up in a physical relationship, they will have a lot of fun. As two mutable signs, there will be no end to their creativity and changes in positions, scenery and levels of commitment and intimacy. Their sex life will have ups and downs, excitements and disappointments, too many expectations and a lot of surprises. The best thing about their relationship is the positivity both partners share, and a lot of laughter and fun they will share in their sex life.

It will be very difficult for Sagittarius and Pisces to trust each other, but they will probably accept it as a perfectly normal thing. This is the beauty of Jupiter’s rule – everything makes sense in their relationship. Sagittarius partner is too passionate and loves to have a lot of options when it comes to relationships. They will rarely settle down with anyone who lacks a strong decision to win them over. Pisces, on the other hand, will be too sensitive while trying to show their imaginary strength. They could end up following their Sagittarius partner in adventures they are not ready for, sad because of the lack of emotional understanding from their partner and ready to open up to someone else. Regardless of the purpose of each little thing they do, they will often have twisted expectations from each other and this will lead to unintentional dishonesty.

This is a relationship of two kindred spirits that often doesn’t last very long. At first, it will be challenging for them to leave the platonic zone and start building a physical relationship. Once they get close to each other, their process of learning will begin and both partners will be fascinated by each other, thinking that their relationship could never end. They will easily idealize each other, think of their relationship as the perfect love, but this infatuation won’t last very long because of their changeable natures. The fact is their relationship represents a moment in time when they have both deserved to smile. For as long as it lasts and they are happy, it will be cherished by both of them.

PISCES AND CAPRICORN

There is probably no better way for a Capricorn to relax, than to enter a relationship with a Pisces partner. Their sexual relationship is a contact of two powerful individuals, one of them extremely strict and rational, and another flexible and emotional but confident about their beliefs. Differences between them will create a strong attraction, almost as if they were opposing signs.

They will often understand each other well enough to respect their relationship and keep it clear of dishonesty. This is not always the case, and the possible roughness of Capricorn can sometime induce Pisces to tell a lie or two. On the other hand, if Capricorn is closed up and unreachable, trust will be disturbed by a simple fact that they don’t know each other that well at all. The beauty of their relationship is in their approach to trust when they realize who they are dealing with. Since both of the partners don’t trust the world to open up easily, they will have to earn it, day by day, from each other. This might seem like a game or a competition to win over the trust of their partner.

A relationship between Capricorn and Pisces tells a story about possibilities of inspiration. If someone like Capricorn can be pulled into a crazy love story, exciting and unpredictable, this must be done by Pisces. In return, Capricorn will offer their Pisces partner stability, peace and some rest from their usual emotional tornadoes. There is a fine way in which Capricorn can help Pisces be more realistic and practical, while feeling more cheerful and optimistic themselves.

Still, there are challenges in their contact, mainly represented through their love of Jupiter. It might be hard for them to reconcile their different approaches to religion, faith and their different belief systems. To overcome this, it is best if they both ask themselves – does their belief system work? And does the one of their partner also work? If they understand answers to these questions, they might find enough respect to leave each other’s Jupiter intact.

PISCES AND AQUARIUS

The sign of Aquarius exalts Neptune, the ruler of Pisces. There is a strong link between these two signs, and in their sexual relationship, things will most certainly never get boring. At first glance, they don’t exactly go well together, one of them romantic, looking for their perfect love, while the other distant, looking for ways to set themselves free from all emotion. Still, their sex life can be quite amazing if Pisces don’t get too attached and find a way to keep their distance until their partner shows emotion.

Trust is the most important issue for this couple and it can go from one extreme to another. Depending on the state of their intimacy, they could end up covered in lies or completely free of them. Aquarian nature can be a bit aggressive from time to time and their personal rebellious needs don’t actually help Pisces feel secure enough to share intimate thoughts. The potential emotional dependency of Pisces can make Aquarius partner give in to their perfect lying skills in order to feel freer.

The only way they can build unconditional trust is to use their ability to feel each other’s true core. If Pisces understand the soft side of Aquarius, the one that lies far beneath the surface, they won’t run from telling the truth. When intimacy is found, Aquarius will finally be able to stop running away from commitment and the problem with the lack of freedom will be automatically solved.

As all neighboring signs, Aquarius and Pisces don’t necessarily have the best understanding of each other’s personalities. However, the sign of Aquarius exalts Neptune, the ruler of Pisces, and this gives them a strong bond through the planet of all magic. It is not easy to create the fairytale version of this contact, but once they find the emotional balance and the one, core truth to each other, they will have no problem keeping their fairytale alive, day after day.

[psychotherapyconsultants]

How to Get Started Doing That Thing You Really Don’t Want to Do (But Have to!)

You need to fill out paperwork. You need to clean out the garage. You need to pay the bills. You need to start a really challenging project that you’ve been putting off for months. You need to do some other dreaded task that you really don’t want to do but must be done.

And yet, instead of tackling that task, you’re scrolling social media, looking at photos of strangers or people you didn’t like in high school. You’re watching cute videos of cats (or dogs). You’re texting memes back and forth to your friends.

It’s so bad that you’re actually cleaning the kitchen, or scrubbing the toilet, or washing the dishes.

Yes, it’s that bad.

It’s easy to put off tasks we don’t want to do. After all, it feels good. Literally. That is, “our brains deliver a dose of feel-good chemicals when we choose something fun over something we should be doing,” said Maura Nevel Thomas, a speaker, trainer, and author on individual and corporate productivity and work-life balance. Which, of course, today is easier to do than ever before thanks to technology. After all, distractions are—again literally—at our fingertips. You can’t get any more convenient than that.

We also tend to procrastinate on big tasks that have vague action plans, Thomas said. “We keep putting them off, because we don’t know where or how to begin tackling them.”

But even though it’s tough to complete certain tasks, and it feels like the universe is conspiring against us, we can absolutely accomplish the most frustrating, boring, mundane, or daunting things.

The key is to begin. As such, below, you’ll find a list of tools and tricks to help you spark your start.

Avoid using vague verbs. “When we phrase tasks with ‘vague’ verbs, they sound too big and too difficult,” said Thomas, author of the forthcoming book Attention Management: Breaking the Time Management Myth for Unrivaled Productivity (September 2019). Which makes it all-too easy for us to push these tasks aside and pretend they don’t exist.

Thomas calls vague verbs “speed bumps,” and shared these examples: Instead of writing “organize the meeting,” write “email the staff about the meeting.” Instead of “create the budget,” write “enter receipts into spreadsheet.” Instead of “research competitors,” write “Google business coaches in Chicago.”

Set a timer for 7 minutes. Thomas suggested shutting out all distractions and giving the dreaded task your full focus for those 7 minutes. She noted that this trick takes advantage of an idea from physics called “activation energy”: “The idea is basically that once you’ve started, you’re more likely to keep going.”

And even if you don’t keep going, 7 minutes of concentrated work is still work, which means you’ll be much further along than before you started. And you just might be surprised at how much you can accomplish in that time.

Do it first thing in your day. “It sounds counterintuitive, but do the most annoying task first, the thing you’re seriously dreading,” said Julia Dellitt, author of the book Get Your Life Together(ish). Make it non-negotiable. This way there’s no time to waver. And you’ll feel amazing after it’s done, and can focus on enjoying the rest of your day.

Set strict deadlines. For Emily Price, author of Productivity Hacks, one of the toughest tasks to do is writing a longer feature story that doesn’t have a specific deadline. “I’m great at getting even the largest projects done before a deadline, but whenever there isn’t one I tend to go into procrastination mode,” she said.

Price suggested setting a deadline for tasks that don’t have one—and telling that deadline to a coworker, your boss, or someone else who can keep you accountable.

“Saying you’ll get a project done ‘this week’ might end up meaning you’re plugging away on it late Friday afternoon. Instead, tell your boss you’ll get it in on Thursday. That forces you to buckle down and actually get the work done.”

Use regular rewards. The key here is regular. “According to psychologist Alexander Rozental, promising yourself a big reward at the end of a project isn’t likely to motivate you if you’ve been procrastinating on getting started,” Thomas said.

However, rewarding yourself as you progress through a task or goal, or complete quick tasks is highly effective. For instance, you might take a 20-minute walk after writing the first draft of your article. You might eat at your favorite lunch spot after submitting a brief report. You might buy yourself a freshly baked bagel and cup of coffee after spending the morning paying the bills or filling out preschool paperwork.

Blast through a bunch of dreaded tasks. Make a list of all the irritating, excruciatingly boring things you need to do. “Then, divide the list of tasks into two categories—what will take a couple minutes, or what needs more time devoted to it,” Dellitt said. “From there, set a timer for 15 minutes and do as many of the smaller tasks as possible until the timer goes off.”

This helps Dellitt create some momentum, and it sparks an important realization: Many of the tasks looming on her to-do list (and lingering inside her mind) don’t actually take that long if she just concentrates on completing them. 

Set an “implementation strategy.” According to Thomas, “When you set an implementation intention, you commit to engaging in your desired behavior whenever you receive a certain cue,” such as: “When my alarm clock goes off, I’ll do a quick guided meditation to start the day.”

This kind of tool is especially effective because it doesn’t require relying on willpower, “which may get depleted with every decision you make,” Thomas said.

Other examples are: “When I get to work at 9 a.m., I’ll spend 20 minutes Googling a research study for my article on depression.” “When I sit down on the bus tomorrow morning, on my way to work, I’ll call the doctor to make an appointment.”

Create weekly systems with small daily actions. “Instead of spending your entire day working on something from start to finish, find ways to break it up into smaller bites that you can handle scattered throughout your day or week,” Price said. For instance, when Price is working on a larger story, she transcribes an interview in the morning. Next she works on something else. Then in the afternoon she returns to the project, and focuses on the actual writing.

Price does something similar with cleaning. On Mondays, she cleans the bathroom. On Tuesdays, she cleans the kitchen. “It doesn’t really matter how things are divided, the key is breaking it up into small enough pieces that I’m able to actually accomplish what I set out to do,” she said.

If your dreaded tasks are ones that need to be regularly done, separate them into chunks, and create systems. Make doing them automatic and easy, and make your environment work for you, so you don’t even give yourself the chance to back out.

Find a way to make it fun—or less awful. Put on your favorite music. Work at your favorite café, library, or park. Ask a friend to join you. This can be a time for them to tackle their dreaded tasks, too. You can even make it into a weekly ritual, and go out for dinner after you’re both done.

Doing tasks we don’t want to do is hard. It’s especially hard when we have so many other things going on in our lives, and distractions are aplenty. It becomes all-too easy, and natural, and automatic to put those annoying or daunting tasks off. However, when we’re strategic about these types of tasks, we can actually complete them.

Plus, keep in mind that the longer we put a task off, the more intimidating and overwhelming it becomes. Because that’s what avoidance does: It creates and magnifies our anxiety.  So remind yourself that this is just a task. Sure, it’s annoying. Sure, it’s boring. Sure, it feels really difficult. But maybe you’re also building it up in your mind. Maybe you’re also giving it too much power. Maybe it’s all bark, and no bite.

And remind yourself that you’ve handled lots of stuff tough before. Remind yourself that all you have to do is start. You’ve got this.

from World of Psychology https://psychcentral.com/blog/how-to-get-started-doing-that-thing-you-really-dont-want-to-do-but-have-to/

[vladsbox]

The Stress of VR: Why Repeat VR Usage is Difficult

HTC Vive / Image by Maurizio Pesce / Flickr

With the recent release of Star Trek: Bridge Crew, Ubisoft put out a high-budget, cross-platform multiplayer VR game, spanning Playstation, Vive and Oculus’ VR platforms. It also illustrates very well the challenge with VR as an entertainment format, and that we are currently focused on VR experiences rather than VR content or, as it were, realities. I will use Bridge Crew as the backdrop through this entry, though I recognise the patterns from other multiplayer VR games.

To begin with, let’s look at how Bridge Crew plays, and the steps it takes to accommodate its medium. The game is played entirely sitting down, with no motion or walking needed, allowing for the lowest-common denominator across platforms. Additionally, the players are always permanently seated in the VR world as well, thus skipping the normal VR “teleportation” mechanic. Additionally, the default view shows a Star Trek bridge, with the external motion being limited to a window view that, for most players, doesn’t need to be viewed. This almost entirely avoids any instances of motion sickness from, well, motion.

Bridge Crew’s, well, bridge. The yellow shirts are the erstwhile players, whose derrieres are permanently attached to their chairs. / Image from Ubisoft

Game sessions begin from a menu. After a game mode (public/private/single player) is selected, the player is shunted off to a lobby screen and selects a mission to play. The missions are between 20 and 40 minutes long, and all take place on the aforementioned bridge. This session length format neatly sidesteps another issue with VR usage: the fatigue that inevitably occurs from having a VR headset strapped on to your face; the physical feeling of discomfort from perspiration gathering there, and the general unease that comes from the almost-but-not-quite-3D world that the eyes are straining to see.

It is against this backdrop that Google recently noted that Daydream users spent a total of 40 minutes using it per week, time that was spread out “over a couple of” evening and weekend sessions. To add insult to injury, users spent more of that time browsing through the Daydream app store than using the apps themselves.

If we put the pieces together, it’s not that difficult to see why. Even though things like Bridge Crew are marketed as complete games, and placed on the same theoretical pedestal as Call of Duty, they are very different beasts. Bridge Crew gives the experience of being on a bridge. This is like going to Universal Studios and “visiting” Hogwarts. An impressive experience, and exquisitely crafted (the comparison may be even more apt with Batman Arkham VR), but once you have seen the roller coaster there is little left to discover.

The immensely impressive effects of Batman Arkham VR immediately stun the user once they place Batman in front of a mirror and have the user wave, turn their body, and see Batman do the same back. This hammers home the VR illusion on the first try, but has no value after the first impression is done. / Rocksteady / WB Games

Unlike regular games, VR games do not allow users the time to “hang around”. When playing Bridge Crew, if a user cannot find a game session in a few minutes, that’s way too long. When playing desktop games, it is far easier to pause, do other actions, take a break, or even grab some snacks. VR demands full attention from the user, and nothing less will do. Also, from a departure from regular games, VR content has yet to graduate past the novelty factor. Instead of VR being used to enhance the story or entertainment, we are left with VR itself being the story and entertainment, and what would usually take the place of the core entertainment mechanics is, at best, window dressing.

There are two reasons contributing to this.

First, VR is not a “jump in” type of experience. There is a high hurdle right now to entice people to use it, and the way to do so – the chosen way to – is by making VR attractions. Bridge Crew is an excellent example there, and I will readily admit that I have taken this attraction, and it is very compelling as a roller coaster ride. However, once you’ve ridden the coaster, the novelty is off. Sure, you might hit a few more rides, but if that’s all there is to it, there is little reason to come back.

Second, VR is a taxing experience. Much like few people would want to stay on a roller coaster again and again and again, VR sessions have a natural end when people merely wish to be free of the headset that is making their face feel warm. This, again, plays in to Bridge Crew’s 40 minute sessions; any longer, and they may risk people dropping off mid-session.

The sum then becomes that VR is a high barrier of entry engagement, takes time to set up, cannot be used in long sessions, and has little compelling reason to return there. So it should not be surprising that Google is looking for the VR killer app, but what would it be?

Putting aside the long term VR aspect, there are indeed compelling reasons for VR today. While it may sound like the experiences are a dead end, that is a far cry from it. I have no doubt in my mind that VR will sell nicely as an experience add-on; just imagine the money that people would freely give for A Day in the Life of a Hobbit VR simulacrum of Hobbiton. However, these things do not exist in a vacuum, so we must rather consider what comes around.

One of the key features of VR going forward will be the ability for people to “jump in”. There is no doubt that VR brings unparalleled immersion to remote interaction. Indeed, Bridge Crew’s simulated bridge certainly makes it feel like four people are sitting right next to each other, when in reality they can be in their own separate corners of a continent.

What is missing from the picture is the surround; the world, or lobby is not compelling; people cannot wait around in VR; and the experiences themselves are shallow except when running. So, to continue the analogy, we need the amusement park to keep us happy as users until it is time for the ride. Perhaps a movie is playing, and we reach a 360 video segment. Perhaps we have been preparing for a battle in an MMO, and, when everyone gathers, they don their VR helmets and go. Or perhaps I was just waiting for a friend to come online.

Right now, meeting up in VR is a cumbersome, long-winded process. But for VR to become a thing, it can’t be. I shouldn’t have to play around with a VR app launcher when I already have a serviceable one elsewhere. Typing on a virtual VR keyboard is just tedious. And why invent VR matchmaking when we have perfectly serviceable ones elsewhere? No, my VR content should be ready for me when I don my headset. And the process of donning the headset itself should be fast and simple. The headset should remember all adjustments needed for my head (in case I’ve shared it) and adjust automatically. So, when time comes, I can slip it on and I’ve reached the experience already.

Let’s call it Five Seconds to VR.

The Stress of VR: Why Repeat VR Usage is Difficult was originally published on Vlad's Box