Assetto Corsa EVO's VR update is a significant step forward, but it still has room for improvement. The game's developers, Kunos, have introduced a foveated rendering option that enhances the VR experience by prioritizing the area of the screen that players focus on, resulting in improved frame rates and stability. Additionally, a new pixel density option offers players greater resolution tunability, with settings ranging from 50% to 150%.
While these changes are welcome, there are still some issues that need to be addressed. For example, the controls settings menu, which is crucial for sim racing VR, is marked simply as 'Reset View' in the 'Camera' sub-menu, with no mention of 'VR' anywhere. This makes it difficult for players to center their view, which is a fundamental function in VR. On the other hand, the UI menu has a bunch of VR-specific settings to map, which seems strange to separate these mappable headset actions into different places.
Furthermore, the game still struggles to cope with the demands of high-end VR headsets like the Pimax Crystal Light, which is surprising given the specifications of the gaming PC's RTX 4070. This suggests that there is still much work to be done to create a bug-free in-headset experience.
Despite these issues, the latest Assetto Corsa EVO update, which releases today on PC via early access, is a marked improvement on previous versions. In addition to the VR changes, it also adds the Kyalami circuit and three new cars, as well as other improvements and content updates. However, it is clear that Kunos still has some work to do to create a truly seamless VR experience for Assetto Corsa EVO.
Personally, I think that the foveated rendering option is a great step forward, but it is just the beginning. I believe that Kunos should continue to focus on improving the VR experience, particularly in terms of usability and performance. In my opinion, the game still has some way to go before it can be considered a truly bug-free, seamless VR experience. However, I am optimistic that future updates will address these issues and bring Assetto Corsa EVO to the forefront of VR racing games.
