We’re sure that at some point, everyone has thought about what it would be like to journey to the moon.
Well, with Apollo 11 VR, you can get a fairly accurate representation of what it must’ve been like for the astronauts in the Apollo 11 mission.
In this post, we will discuss whether the experience provided by Apollo 11 VR is worth your hard-earned bucks or not.
Apollo 11 VR
With Apollo 11, you get the full sense of what the journey to the moon was like as you experience it through the eyes of people who lived through it. It uses a mix of original archived audio along with accurate visual recreations to provide you with a highly immersive VR journey to our moon.
Alternate #1
Space Explorers: The ISS Experience
Space Explorers: The ISS Experience provides you with a highly intimate representation of what life is like aboard the International Space Station. While your potential to explore is limited, what is shown to you is highly engaging and immersive. That, along with its cheap price, makes it a highly viable purchase.
Alternate #2
Mission: ISS
On the other hand, if you want to explore the International Space Station on your own, then Mission: ISS is definitely worth considering. It provides you with an accurately depicted ISS that you are free to explore in any way you want. You can spend hours inside or immediately go out on a space walk.
Quick Summary of the Main Product
We found that the game is quite simple and straightforward. Furthermore, it also mimics the real-life Apollo 11 mission very truthfully.
As you boot up the game, you are put in the shoes of a person that’s sitting in a room watching JFK’s speech regarding America’s intentions to put a man on the moon. As you exit the room, you enter an elevator that takes you to the rocket being prepared for takeoff.
As you enter the rocket, you can hear scientists speaking to you and telling you details about certain atmospheric variables. As mentioned earlier, this audio is reconstructed from actual archival logs which gives the experience a unique sense of realism.
The impact of the rocket taking off is highly visceral and definitely something that is impactful to experience. As you fly up, the sky turns from royal blue to navy and then to black.
Many VR games fail to give players that proper sense of immersion when in space since the textures are particularly high-quality. However, the textures within this experience are high-resolution and really provide you with a wondrous view to gawk at.
Features and Benefits
High-Resolution Textures
As briefly mentioned above, the use of high-resolution textures really makes all the difference when it comes to making the experience seem real.
Nothing breaks immersion like noticing pixels or jagged edges as you’re trying to take in the surrounding atmosphere. We found little to nothing when it comes to immersion-breaking issues like these during our experience.
The visuals were stunning and immersive at the same time.
Great Use of Sound
Along with visuals, it’s also the sound that plays a huge role in immersing you in the setting.
That’s another thing that Apollo 11 VR does really well. The sound of the rocket’s engine, the silence of space, the small parts of your feet on the moon, everything is done extremely well.
Nothing is exaggerated or understated but rather, provided in that perfect dose that is just enough to really immerse you in your surroundings.
Unique Sense of Realism
As briefly mentioned above, the fact that this VR experience uses real archival audio really adds a sense of realism to the experience.
After all, the developers set out to provide you with as close of a reenactment as possible when it comes to the Apollo 11 mission. In that sense, this experience truly is an achievement in that sense.
The archival audio really makes the experience sound a lot more authentic and “real”. Thus, it doesn’t take too much suspension of disbelief to really immerse yourself and feel as though you’re truly hurtling towards the moon.
Factors to Consider Before you Decide to Buy Apollo 11 VR
Price
You can get Apollo 11 VR for a fairly cheap price on Steam at the moment.
We definitely feel its price is justified since it’s very cheap and offers an experience that is unlike any other out there. Not only is it historically accurate but it’s also captivating at the same time.
User-Friendliness
Apollo 11 VR is a largely non-interactive experience. Hence, there’s really not much to be said when it comes to user-friendliness. All you have to do is install and run it. After that, there’s not really much to do except take in your surroundings.
Nausea and Motion Sickness
Due to the sheer nature of the experience, there’s a high chance that you will experience nausea and motion sickness. Hence, be mentally prepared for that when you strap in.
Advantages and Disadvantages
- Highly immersive
- Great sound design
- Uses real archival audio
- Incredible visuals
- Budget-friendly
- Comfortable
- Can be nausea-inducing
Social Proof
We were curious about what others thought of the Apollo 11 VR experience.
Hence, we checked out what some reviews on Steam had to say:
Similar to Apollo 11 VR (Recommendations)
#1: Best Non-Interactive Alternative - Space Explorers: The ISS Experience Review
If you want an experience that allows you to sit back and experience your surroundings, then Space Explorers: The ISS Experience is definitely worth considering.
It’s a highly intimate look into the lives of the engineers and astronauts living aboard the ISS. The experience is highly non-interactive, but it still provides a highly intimate experience as you spend time with people aboard the space station.
You get access to four episodes which largely span a time of about 2 and a half hours in total. In the finale, you get to experience the spacewalk which is framed as the climax of the entire experience.
While the spacewalk is definitely a surreal and mesmerizing experience, it’s important to note that the mundane moments are just as entertaining.
You’ll be engrossed and immersed as you watch a can of tuna float by as you’re listening to the scientists talk about atmospheric pressure and such.
Factors to Consider Before you Decide to Buy Space Explorers: The ISS Experience
Price: Each episode is separately priced, and their prices are not that expensive at all. It’s definitely an experience that most consumers can easily get access to and it’s definitely something that we recommend everyone should check out.
User-friendliness: Since it’s mostly a non-interactive experience, there’s not a lot in terms of user input. Hence, the experience is the simplest that it can be. All you have to do is kick back and take in your surroundings. That’s about as user-friendly as it gets.
Nausea and motion sickness: Due to the nature of the experience, nausea and motion sickness are definitely sensations that you will experience. However, that’s to be expected since that’s something that actual astronauts feel during the actual experience too.
- Highly immersive
- Great sound design
- Carefully constructed, intense, and intimate moments
- Incredible visuals
- Cheap
- Nausea-inducing at times
Best Non-Interactive Alternative
The best non-interactive alternative is Space Explorers: The ISS Experience thanks to the level of intimacy it is able to achieve, its cheap price and great visuals.
#2: Best Free Alternative - Mission: ISS Review
Mission: ISS, in many ways, is the antithesis of Space Explorers: The ISS Experience.
While the latter provides you with a non-interactive experience that makes you feel like you’re a part of the crew on the ISS, the former does the exact opposite. In Mission: ISS, you are provided free control of a deserted ISS.
You can explore every nook and cranny of it to your heart’s desire. The level of detail is really something that impressed us during our playthrough.
Rather than simply pressing buttons to unlock doors, all of the mechanisms are properly designed to replicate that of the actual ISS.
Oftentimes, you’ll find yourself reading labels and experimenting with switches to figure out where you actually need to go.
While it’s possible to move around the ISS using the joysticks, using the wall-mounted bars to pull yourself forward offers a more authentic experience.
Last but not least, you can also venture out of the ISS to go on the much-talked-about space walk.
Factors to Consider Before you Decide to Buy Mission: ISS
Price: You can get Mission: ISS completely for free on the Oculus Quest store today.
User-friendliness: While Mission: ISS does not spoon-feed you all of the controls, part of the fun is figuring out how to navigate this huge space.
Nausea and motion sickness: Again, due to the sheer nature of being out in space and zero gravity, you’ll definitely feel motion sick while playing this title. That’s something you should definitely be ready for.
- Lots of content to explore
- Completely free
- Intuitive controls
- Great sound design
- Insane level of detail
- Can cause nausea for many individuals
Best Free Alternative
The best free alternative is Mission: ISS thanks to its great visuals, a large amount of content and attention to detail.
Buyer’s Guide
This section provides details on what factors you must consider before you buy any VR game.
Many of the parameters are the same as if you were to buy any regular video game. However, there are certain additional things to think about as well that you may not expect. It’s important that you assess these factors thoroughly and conduct the appropriate research to ensure that your money does not go to waste. You don’t want to spend your hard-earned cash on a VR game that you play once and then never boot up again.
The key factors you must consider before you purchase a VR game include the following:
Price
The price of any product is important to consider, and just like any other product, it’s important that you judge a VR game’s price based on the level of value that it provides.
Naturally, you must assess your budget as well to ensure that you don’t spend more money than you can afford. If you have a lower budget, some higher-end games may be out of your reach.
However, there are many smaller indie titles available on VR as well that are great. You can look towards them to fulfill your VR cravings.
On the other hand, if you do have the money to spend big on VR games, it’s still important to do your research. Just because you have money to spend does not mean that you should waste it on VR games that are simply not worth it.
Hence, look at the amount of content and the quality of content that a VR game provides. Is it worth the price? Or is it something that you’ll simply consider to be not worth it?
Many games have active communities that keep them alive for many years to come with custom levels, mods, etc. This is true for VR titles such as Beat Saber. These are the ones to keep an eye out for, as they are almost always worth the cash.
The reason for this is that you can gain enjoyment from them for many months or even years to come.
User-Friendliness
A game has to be easy to understand, but at the same time, it has to be difficult to master. That is the delicate balance that all game developers struggle with.
When done right, it results in a highly addictive and rewarding experience for the gamer. When done poorly, it results in a highly frustrating experience that can send you into a rage-induced frenzy.
Naturally, the latter is something you want to avoid since you don’t want to scare members of your household or your neighbors as you yell at the game. Not to mention the fact that it’s not fun.
A well-developed game may frustrate you with its difficulty, but at the same time, you get the feeling that you’re failing because you haven’t mastered the mechanics yet. Once you do finally master them and get through those hurdles, the experience can be extremely rewarding.
That is what you want to look for in your VR games.
Nausea and Motion Sickness
When it comes to nausea and motion sickness, it’s something that can be difficult to gauge because it’s different for everyone. One game may cause one person to have motion sickness, but another person may be completely fine.
Hence, this might be something that you may need to test out before you make the purchase.
Many games out there have free demos that you can try out before you buy them.
This can be a great way to test out whether or not a VR game’s gameplay will cause you to become nauseous or not. You can test this out, and if it feels good to you, you can then consider purchasing it.
If a game does not have a demo available, then you can consider checking out Youtube videos of the game to figure out if it would cause you to become nauseous or not.
Platform Compatibility
This is fairly obvious but we thought we should still explicitly state it for individuals that are new to video games: Consider what VR platform you have and the games that are available on it.
You may like a certain VR game, but it’s entirely possible that that game might not be available on the VR platform that you happen to have.
For example, you may like a VR game that is available on the PS VR. However, you might have an Oculus Quest 2.
Genre
This is another subjective factor and something that you must figure out for yourself.
Ask yourself: What type of experience do you want out of VR? Do you enjoy action-packed, gun-wielding fun? Or do you enjoy a more mellow and toned-down experience?
These questions will determine what types of games you should look for and what types of experiences you’ll be more likely to enjoy.
Once you figure this out, you can scour the market to find VR games that offer an experience similar to the one that you’re looking for.
Fun Factor
This is another factor that is fairly obvious, but it’s still something that many consumers don’t actually consider. That’s because many consumers still naively believe that all VR games are made with love, attention, and competence.
However, unfortunately, that is not always the case. Many VR games out there are unpolished, repetitive or just simply not enjoyable to play. These are games that you’ll purchase, play once or twice, and then never touch again.
Essentially, they would be a waste of money, and of course, they are something that you want to avoid at all costs.
To figure out whether or not a game might be fun to you, the two things you can do is read user reviews and check out gameplay footage.
These two forms of research will give you great insight into whether or not a certain VR game can provide you with an experience that you would find fun or not.
Wrapping Things Up
That brings our Apollo 11 VR review to an end.
It’s an experience that “hands-on” gamers may not enjoy as much as others. It’s more of a 3D experience where you’re a silent observer as you take in the mesmerizing surroundings around you. If you like space, definitely get this since it’s cheap and a unique, memorable experience.
What do you think of Apollo 11 VR? Let us know in the comments section below.