With all the fuss and happy-happy fury about virtual reality gaming seemingly becoming an ACTUAL reality sooner than later (again, but in a few smaller, lighter and thankfully less expensive formats), you know someone had to take things to an even more intensive level of immersion. Enter the folks at Virtuix Omni and their rather innnnterersting peripheral that’s going to get your ass up of its ass and make you play those 3D games in a whole new way. Unlike some of those first VR terminals of the 1990’s where you stood and basically turned in place with your arm out, the Omni Natural Motion Interface will get you a workout you can’t believe and probably will get hooked on once your body heals from the first few days of wondering why the hell you’re REALLY running when you usually sit down to play that favorite shooter, action game or open-world RPG…

Granted, the experience won’t be for everyone and thankfully, isn’t being mandated into any current games. Can you imagine the outcry from overweight or just plain larger-sized gamers who won’t fit into that cool-looking Omni terminal? Yeah, I’d not be wanting to hear from them at all, especially if I’d have to break the news that a model made for their size and weight would probably cost double (ouch). Of course, people with really tiny apartments (or dorm rooms), overly perky pets and/or children and a slew of other types who might not want to get up and move around while gaming won’t be into this either. Of course, the VERY obvious positives here will outweigh the negatives for many, I’d bet. Turning an old game into a brand new experience IS pretty exciting, although “jogging through Skyrim” in that video above is a laughable prospect unless you turn off the enemy AI and random dragons dropping in to say “Hello, DIE!” while you’re out on your stroll. I love me some Skyrim, but I’ll wait for a game that’s a LOT safer to jog around in…

In terms of cost, I was surprised that the entire Omni setup (including a custom pair of sneakers made for the unit) only costs $499 as a pre-order (well, $449.99 if you buy one while the company’s holiday sale is on). However, that cost doesn’t include the not yet released Oculus Rift peripheral (expected to retail for around $300) nor a decent gaming PC (cost varies, but expect to spend at least $1000 on a decent gaming rig if you build it yourself). Currently, console games aren’t supported, although there have been tech demo videos released that show Kinect 2.0 functionality, which means since Microsoft’s updated peripheral is supposed to work on Windows-enabled PC’s as well as the Xbox One, we could see some intriguing integration in the near future if the Omni becomes a “thing” gamers want to have.

Would I want this in MY living room? Perhaps… but I’m not sure at all how much I’d use it over time as I play a WIDE variety of games that don’t require walking or running around. I’m absolutely not down on the concept one bit save for a few caveats. While it’s awesome that game developers and early adopters are thrilled at all these new toys, I have to question if they’re really just bored with making games as they’re currently being made. The key for me is many past to current games are perfectly playable by nearly anyone with standard controllers and for people with some disabilities, special controllers have been crafted for them (usually as DIY projects). Of course, with a few tweaks I can see the Omni being a boon to some disabled gamers who might benefit from the exhilaration of actually standing and moving while playing a game…

Tech such as the Oculus Rift and the Omni are fantastic, but in a way, limit who can enjoy them by virtue of their price points and the need for the people who use them to be somewhat fit and able to afford everything needed to run it all. I’m almost afraid of a future where gaming is taken away from a percentage of the population because it becomes a sport of kings and not something that can be done unless there’s a constant financial transaction happening. Of course, one can say that gaming isn’t “necessary” for daily life at all (and I’d agree). But I think the people who create new tech need to take into consideration as many users as possible as they cook up these expensive toys that make things better for fewer folks in the long run.

As always… we shall see… we shall see…