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Changelog ShadowVR Alpha 3.4.1

  • 23 December 2020
  • 22 replies
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Raph from Shadow
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Hello everyone,

A new release is upon us for Shadow VR (Alpha). Go get it on Sidequest!

We have focused this release on the three Pillars I wrote down in our previous changelog a month ago: Changelog 3.2.4 (19/11/20)

  1. Supporting Oculus Quest 2 at 72hz
  2. Improving head movement fluidity by implementing VSync
  3. Removing update times between Alpha Desktop clients & Shadow VR (Alpha).


Changelog:

Oculus Quest 2 support
You can now use the app on Oculus Quest 2 natively without resorting to an IPD change workaround. The proper resolution is applied at launch.

Vsync implementation

We are aware that shaky/jittery head movement is the biggest turn-off of the app at the moment. It makes it hard to enjoy VR at this stage.
We believe with the implementation of Vsync we are making a step forward to a more acceptable experience. We still have work to do on the way we predict and send frames but you should already notice a difference.


This comes with improved frame timing & improved prediction.

Faster switches with desktop alpha apps

This is done. When using the desktop alpha clients and switching toward Shadow VR you will not experience lengthy environment updates anymore. The switch from one desktop client to the Oculus Quest’s should take less than 30 seconds now!


We are very happy with this improvement as the app in its previous state was not that user friendly.

In addition to this we have also worked on the following:

  • Continuous Integration is now implemented, making our release lifecycle more robust and less time consuming for the team :)
  • There was a conflict with Virtual Desktop because our drivers would not uninstall properly at the end of a session, this is now fixed. 💡If you had the issue, just run Shadow VR once then you will be able to get back to using Virtual Desktop normally
  • Fixed several cases of users who would get stuck at ‘’Starting Shadow VR’’
  • QoL: Email is saved in the login screen when you log out from the launcher


New known bugs:
Unfortunately this release comes with two new bugs that we will be addressing in a later patch:

  • On Oculus Quest 2, in the Shadow VR launcher, Oculus Touch pointers blink permanently.
  • Starting Shadow VR while your Shadow is turned off will result in a session with very poor performances. Please start Shadow VR only with your Shadow session already turned on through a desktop client (That is unless you want to have the kind of performance below):

                                          bJL0-479XwfI1Nu3nTNz7oC3BRLxK-8RtLJydGDLKSOaUgy4A6gpSxmu1zqKoLs6UZNr5ERyLGKh8n6smMZY1P5MP1Libs3CtODqBs-4TE-GU4Fl3pxZuctAW1l_2dd6G7jhTWL3

Next Steps:

  • Desktop mode (2D) to handle Steam, SteamVR, Windows update and allow for interaction with the Shadow environment within Shadow VR (so as to avoid having to go to a desktop client when stuck).

  • Fix Performance issues when starting Shadow VR from a shut down Shadow

  • Improve late starts GPU & CPU that generate in game lag

 

We have updated our list of known issues and planned feature with this release’s content so you can follow up on our progress.

And keep sharing your feedback and bug reports in the appropriate forum section, it really helps!

Product Manager @ Shadow

22 replies

A

i can now logon using a quest 2  which his good...however i get “double vision”… which makes it unusable… its like both images are going to both lenses at the same time… any ideas on a workaround ?

T
Userlevel 1

@AussieTimLooks like we still have issues with starting the stream properly… Best I can tell you is to try connecting on your Shadow using a desktop client, kill SteamVR and try again in your Oculus Quest

A

no luck unfortunately -- which is such a shame as the refresh rate looked really good .. very smooth

 

any other ideas?

P

Previously I couldn’t get ShadowVR to connect at all. Switched back to Stable environment.

Today updated the app and tried again. First try got stuck at “Starting ShadowVR” and then the app became unresponsive. Not even pressing the home button 4 times would kill the app. Had to force restart the Quest.

Second try it connected and got into SteamVR home! Running at…. I’d say about 2 frames per second. I waited a while to see if it improved. It was pretty nauseating even trying give it a chance. I gave up after a few minutes. 

A

Did we always have to open the shadow app on the desktop to use this? I feel like that defeats the purpose of the app since it was supposed to reduce friction of use with the quest...the barrier to entry is the exact same for virtual desktop now and that app is significantly more developed at this stage. What is the incentive to use this app if you still have to use an external device beforehand?

Raph from Shadow
Userlevel 5
Badge +4

Did we always have to open the shadow app on the desktop to use this? I feel like that defeats the purpose of the app since it was supposed to reduce friction of use with the quest...the barrier to entry is the exact same for virtual desktop now and that app is significantly more developed at this stage. What is the incentive to use this app if you still have to use an external device beforehand?

No, this is a new bug we are fixing. I agree with you the purpose of the app is to go to PCVR without going through an external device first, hence why it’s on top of our priorities.

Product Manager @ Shadow
H

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N

The view of vr is really weird, like it looks 2D and 3D at the same time, like the FOV is maxed out. But it runs really well!

S

Hi!

I’m a sim player.

How can I connect my shadow on ShadowVR (alpha) and my Shadow Ghost (30ms) at same time?

 (where is connected my driving wheel or my H.O.T.A.S. by USB) 

 

Ping: Virtual Desktop (300ms) or ALVR (100ms) with 5.0 Wifi… Maybe need to setup propely?

Can I see my ping on ShadowVR Alpha?

Happy Holiday’s!

A

Mirroring nick2085, the quest 2 has a weird “double-vision” thing going on that totally messes with how everything looks. I have a quest 1 as well and this doesn’t happen on it

M

Setting the IPD to 68 is making it zoom out for me.

B4N4NI

Tryed ShadowVR right now on my quest2 and finally it works! Awesome! 
I only have problem with head movement is “freezy” or something what give me sick feeling. Image following head instead of head freedom movement. But everything others is perfect 🙃

Sorry for my poor English. 
Martin - Czech republik - Europe

DBOI27
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no luck unfortunately -- which is such a shame as the refresh rate looked really good .. very smooth

 

any other ideas?

I managed to sort this by having my IPD set to level 2, worked a treat pal

Alex_Ger
Userlevel 1

Tryed ShadowVR right now on my quest2 and finally it works! Awesome! 
I only have problem with head movement is “freezy” or something what give me sick feeling. Image following head instead of head freedom movement. But everything others is perfect 🙃

Sorry for my poor English. 
Martin - Czech republik - Europe

Yes i have the same problem. Not really playable without sickness. :/

L

I’ve been really enjoying this. Very impressed with the image quality and very rarely experience lag.

I just limit myself to about 30 minutes playtime per session due to the stuttering tracking issue and accompanying motion sickness and it’s perfect. 

H
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The app loads but when it connects to the shadow it just displays the 2d desktop. I have steam VR open. Am I doing something wrong?

D
Userlevel 1
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I gave 3.4.1 a chance on Quest2 after trying the very first Alpha on Quest1. 

It has already improved a lot. Is it smoother and looks better.

But the view is not correct for me. Looks a bit zoomed out/wide FOV? Maybe something with IPD because the L/R balance does not feel natural. My IPD setting on Quest2 is on the widest setting of the 3.

Looking forward to actually using it. Now it is still unusable for me because of the incorrect view.

B
Userlevel 1

I gave 3.4.1 a chance on Quest2 after trying the very first Alpha on Quest1. 

It has already improved a lot. Is it smoother and looks better.

But the view is not correct for me. Looks a bit zoomed out/wide FOV? Maybe something with IPD because the L/R balance does not feel natural. My IPD setting on Quest2 is on the widest setting of the 3.

Looking forward to actually using it. Now it is still unusable for me because of the incorrect view.

I was experiencing the same issue with the weird FOV, switched my IPD to the middle setting and it is MUCH better.

Still experiencing some jitteriness when tracking head motion, but overall this is considerably improved from the previous version.

D
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

I gave 3.4.1 a chance on Quest2 after trying the very first Alpha on Quest1. 

...

I was experiencing the same issue with the weird FOV, switched my IPD to the middle setting and it is MUCH better.

Still experiencing some jitteriness when tracking head motion, but overall this is considerably improved from the previous version.

I will check, but this is no end-solution. Changing the IPD to a non-matching setting to your own eyes will distort the image also.

But its a good find, and will probably help Shadow find a universal solution.

D
Userlevel 1
Badge +1

Just checked the ShadowVR Alpha with the Quest2 IPD on setting 2 and, indeed, this was a lot better. Not the sharpness I am used to with my personal IPD, but OK. I even played a nice game of Archery in The Lab. It definitly was not bad, so hooray: My first game on ShadowVR! Keep the updates coming :)

B
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Setting the IPD to 68 is making it zoom out for me.

How do you change IPD?

D
Userlevel 1
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Setting the IPD to 68 is making it zoom out for me.

How do you change IPD?

Uhm, that is kind of a basic setup step…

On Quest1, there is a slider on the bottom that adjusts the distance in between the lenses.

On Quest 2, you grab the lenses and push them towards the sides or the nose. There are 3 steps, indicated by a small number in the middle.

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