Trying to sell VR to people without giving them direct access to a unit like the impressive HTC Vive is a difficult thing. Images of people smiling whilst wearing a headset and holding onto a controller just doesn't cut it. As that's one step away from those sort of empty promotional images of families sitting on a couch enjoying multiplayer gaming as a single FamilyUnit.Exe. To tackle this issue Valve has probably done the best job we've seen so far of selling the prospect of Virtual Reality, with a new genuinely impressive video demonstration.

The solution, which was to film people against a green screen backdrop and then insert them within the virtual game world they were playing in, is a stroke of genius. Because it works. The feeling that these people are actually interacting and engaging with their virtual surroundings is infectious.

Plus it kind-of sells HTC Vive's motion controllers and movement tracking as two things that could be integral to the Virtual Reality experience. The only problem with the trailer, which is minor, is that it probably tries a little too hard to sell VR as a communal experience, one that is best enjoyed with family and friends watching you and your virtual exploits on a TV screen.



But even so, me want now!

This trailer coincides with the release of the HTC Vive, which has begun shipping, and the launch of SteamVR, Valve's platform for the monetary acquisition and launching of virtual reality experiences like the ones we see in the trailer.