It might seem somewhat intuitive to highlight the importance of realism for VR to gain traction, yet numerous such problems have dogged the technology for several years. Researchers from North Carolina State University remind us that the technology still has a way to go to provide the kind of realism users crave.

“Our study is the first to identify that realism in these videos is a key variable in driving viewer engagement,” the researchers explain. “And the more engaged viewers were, the more likely they were to want to view additional VR videos in the future.”

The researchers honed in on VR videos that aim to provide a 360-degree perspective of any given scene, which allows users to navigate on a traditional video screen. In other words, VR headsets were not required.

Realistic experience

The researchers quizzed over 1,400 participants, each of whom had previously experienced using virtual reality videos in some way. They were asked a range of questions that aimed to explore the various factors that attracted them to VR videos and especially the elements that made the viewing experience engaging.

“We found there were two aspects of virtual reality videos that were the most powerful predictors of whether viewers enjoyed VR videos and engaged with their content,” the researchers explain. “Specifically, we found that realism and enjoyment were the key variables here. Another variable that contributed to user engagement was whether the VR videos were part of an interactive platform that allowed users to establish a sense of community.”

The authors hope that their work will be used by video developers to improve the usability and engagement of their products in order to encourage more use of immersive videos and attract a wider audience to them.