Bugsnax VR Beta Access

[Luthyr]

What is Bugsnax VR?
Bugsnax VR is now available through a FREE beta update on the Steam Windows version. It allows you to play the entire game in virtual reality, with the option to seamlessly switch back to a flatscreen (non-VR) playthrough at any time using your existing saves.

How do I access Bugsnax VR?
The VR update is now live in the default branch. You can still subscribe to the beta to get more recent changes. In Steam, install Bugsnax, right-click it within the library and select Properties. Go to the Betas tab and enter the code “virtualreality”. Select vrtest from the dropdown and update the game. Launch SteamVR before opening Bugsnax to play in VR.

IMPORTANT: Please go to SteamVR Settings, select to Show Advanced Settings, and change the option Dashboard > “Present Non-VR Applications on Theater Screen Upon Launch” to “Off”. Because this test is being done on a beta, Steam does not know this is a VR game and will otherwise erroneously display screen transitions during loading periods. Click here for a screenshot of the Settings Menu [i.imgur.com]

What is supported by Bugsnax VR?
The game was primarily tested using Quest 2/3, Valve Index, and PSVR2 along with their respective controllers. For Valve Index, please apply the community button mappings. Vive wands are not supported. Gamepad support is available for those who prefer to play without motion controllers.

The game offers both teleport and continuous movement options, as well as snap camera rotation with customizable degree settings. It can be played seated or standing, in room-scale or stationary setups. Left-handed mode is also available.

Why is this being soft launched?
Much of the work on VR was done as a fun side project, but it’s now reaching a point where we believe it could be worth a public release. Before we officially list VR as supported on our Steam Store page, we want to check for any major issues or omissions. It will continue to be a free update if publicly launched to everyone.

Will Bugsnax VR be coming to other platforms?
There are currently no plans for other platforms, including PSVR2, Meta Quest standalone, or Apple Vision Pro. Bugsnax was created using a custom game engine, making full porting time-consuming. We intend to update the Windows version of Bugsnax on Epic Games Store to include SteamVR support if our soft launch concludes successfully.

Which VR platform are you using?
We developed this off and on for a few years using OpenVR, which is the API developed for SteamVR. We have not switched to OpenXR, so running SteamVR is a requirement.

I have a Meta Quest, how can I play the game through SteamVR?
You can connect to SteamVR through:
Steam Link
Oculus Link[www.uploadvr.com]
Virtual Desktop[www.vrdesktop.net]

Steam Link is the easiest to setup, but you may notice more micro stutters under some PC/WiFi configurations.

What are the system requirements?
A high-end Windows gaming desktop PC with an NVIDIA 3000 series graphics card or newer is recommended for best performance. A 10th generation i7 or similar CPU (released 2020 or newer) also recommended.

Can I stream and share video from the VR beta?
Yes. Though instead of sharing just the beta access passcode, please direct others to this page for instructions on enabling VR.

Where should I leave feedback about the VR update?
Please post issues in this thread. Keep in mind that this release is mostly feature-complete and that we do not intend on doing any large-scale additions. Please include the headset you are using and any other relevant specs.

[sW33tTh9nG]

Amazing! I never expected this! I can't wait to try it out! Oh, oh
It's Bugsnax! Thank you!

[christofin]

This is amazing! I've always thought this game would be fantastic in VR, I can't believe it's actually real now!

[Max]

What an incredible addition! Thank you SO SO MUCH!

11/10

I am very thankful - as an aside, and a wishlist it would be incredible to have a native OpenXR or Oculus sdk implementation one day that would be just peaches please

[Fdruid]

Wow, this is actually a really nice addition to the game. Thanks devs!

[FEFE]

Just wanted to share, just got your game because you've decided to add vr to it. Awesome that it's a free update as well! It being on sale currently helped, but still hah.
Thank you for working on this. :D

[Giodude]

Will this eventually be coming to epic games?

[Kondiq]

I wonder if it works with HP Reverb G2. Usually copying controls from Oculus Touch profile is enough, sometimes with small adjustments, so I might grab the game and test it out, if not during the week, then maybe next weekend.

[Amish Robot]

new vr game on sale, nice!

[Cur1nga]

I'm playing Quest 2 with an RTX 4060ti.
The game is running at 40% performance on my hardware, but occasionally with frame drops and minor stutters.
Is there a way to adjust the height of the camera and subtitles?
The camera is pointing a bit too low, causing the object descriptions to be at the bottom of the lens' field of view and blurry, making them hard to read.
I've already finished Bugsnax in flat mode and thought it would be a good VR title.
Thanks for the VR update.

[Matze]

This made me buy bugsnax again. I played through it multiple times on console. I love it

[Mamang.VR]

thank you! bought this game cause of this !

[Popaenota]

Played a bit, had a blast so far.
Quest 3, 1660Ti, virtual desktop.
runs smoothly on medium settings. went up to the beach area, had no major issues.

Few qol issues i've encountered:
- constantly trying to select dialogue options with trigger and it is not working, only A button.
- Subtitles constantly change focus distance, would be great to let us option to have it static.

Anyway, thanks devs for awesome VR mode, looking forward to play through entire game with it <3

[christofin]

After playing through the intro and into the first main area of the game, I have a few items for feedback:

- First off, this is amazingly done! The cutscenes at the beginning before departing for the island work as expected and are very immersive. Seeing the bugsnax in 3D really is a great experience.

- The Index controllers have a few specific issues I've noticed that are causing the game to feel much jankier than it needs to be:

1- Jump being bound to Right A, as well as initiating dialogue, results in hilarious behavior in which every time I interact with an NPC, I jump up.

2 - I'm not sure if it's the touchpad or the joystick but I keep accidentally activating snap turn. I don't think it's an overly sensitive controller as this doesn't happen in any other game. Not sure if I need to turn up the deadzone or what is going on?

3 - It seems like it's intended behavior for the pointer to not allow you to hover over dialogue options and click with the trigger; you instead have to use the left joystick to scroll up and down the dialogue options. This isn't great VR UX design as most people will default to using the pointer as a virtual cursor.

Besides the input issues, I haven't encountered anything that I would categorize as an "issue". I do have one piece of feedback, though - Make the SnaxScope much more immersive! currently, bringing it up is a click in of the right joystick, and a massive camera takes up the entire screen, attached to your head.

Why not allow us to reach into a backpack, pull out the SnaxScope, and actually hold it in front of us like a true camera lense? This seems like a huge missed opportunity.

In fact, the inventory system as is, with the Rockstar style wheel, is juuust a bit clunky. If you plan on sticking to the wheel, at least boot up Half Life Alyx and see how that is done - you actually physically move your hand to the item you want to bring out of the item wheel, once you pull up the item wheel. The joystick is super clumsy to use.

Overall though, this is an amazing, unexpected edition, and even if there weren't any improvements, it would be an easy recommendation for VR owners because of how excellent the base game is. If a few input issues were fixed and perhaps better VR interactions like the SnaxScope were built up, this would legitimately be a contender for one of the best ever VR games!

[Luthyr]

Originally posted by Giodude:

Will this eventually be coming to epic games?

After a public release on Steam happens, our goal is to update EGS version. It will still require Steam and SteamVR to be running.

[Luthyr]

Originally posted by christofin:

- The Index controllers have a few specific issues I've noticed that are causing the game to feel much jankier than it needs to be:

It's been a while since I made it, but can you check for a community controller mapping through Steam to manually apply? By default, the Index has some oddities that I tried to work around but that's the best I can do without. When the update gets publicly released, my designated mapping can apply automatically through Steam's backend. But not while it is a beta branch.