Astro VR
Travel among the stars and planets In this VR only astronomy simulation. Within the solar system you can visit all the planets and moons as well as many asteroids, trans-Neptunian objects, and other small solar system bodies. Outside the solar system, go to thousands of stars and their exoplanets.
SIMULATION
All the solar system objects sizes and locations are based on accurate and up to date information. Where actual images are available you will see the correct texture or, if detailed information is available, a reasonable extrapolation is used. The orientation of the planets is correct relative to the solar system and the solar system itself is oriented correctly to the background stars.
Star color, brightness, size and position are taken directly from available data or are calculated. There are thousands of stars and hundreds of exoplanets to investigate. The habitability zone of each star is calculated and the exoplanets within it are textured appropriately. As you explore you will see an indication for stars that are known to have planets as well as planets that are within the habitability zone.
DATA
Every object is labeled with an option to turn off the text. In addition, detailed information on each object can be displayed. When available, we collect data on position and orbits, size, mass, temperature, magnitude, luminosity, inclination, and more. You can do side by side comparisons with the sun, Jupiter, Earth, and the moon.
Currently there are:
- 2248 Star Systems
- 2877 Individual Stars
- 8 Planets
- 197 Moons
- 75 Minor Planets
- 280 Exoplanets
- 5 Spacecraft
There will be more.
VR EXPERIENCE
You may freely move among all the stellar objects with only two controls. Left controller thumbpad/stick for movement, right to zoom. Separate scales for object size and distance allow you to see the entire solar system within arms length or you may zoom in to where size and distance scales are the same.
Currently:
Min Scale Distance: 1 meter = 2 light years.
Min Scale Object: 1 meter = 200 diameters Sol.
Max Scale (both): 1 meter = 10,000 km
Game Discussion
Steam User 17
Initially I could not launch it on Linux, but Developer came forward and made sure that I can.
Fellow Linux Users,
If you are reading this review consider supporting developer for not forgetting about us.
For everyone esle: consider supporting educational projects such as this, to prove that humans can use VR for something other than degradation.
For Developer:
Consider enabling rotation by default and maybe ability to select what kind of locomotion to use. I feel like head orientated locomotion can be a good addition.
Steam User 18
Experienced on the Meta Quest 2
You can view my initial impressions review & gameplay here:
I do recommend this app. It's a simple, but very effective space exploration app. You can quickly travel & zoom in to almost any celestial object known to man. You can also manipulate time and watch the orbiting planets or moons, either sped up or slowed down.
I would say the UI is a little rough, but it's worth it given the sheer amount of celestial objects you can explore and zoom in on. I also wish there was information available on each celestial object identified. It's only $2.99 USD though so I can't really complain for the price. It's quick & easy exploration of the vastness of the known universe. I wish we could listen to our own music though or watch YT videos while we're exploring. Maybe we could look up info via YT on the celestial object we're looking at.
Rate ?/10.
If you enjoyed my review, please consider joining my Steam Curator Group. You can join here:
Steam User 4
The attention to scientific detail in the environment and the seamless VR integration make for a great experience. There are an enormous number of exoplanets and objects in our own solar system to explore. Once you get used to the zoom-move controls you can smoothly navigate through the cosmos. The AR works but has a lot of latency, though this could be because I don’t have an AR headset (Vive Pro). Highly recommended for anyone looking to explore the vastness of space in virtual reality.
Steam User 2
It's great in VR for wandering around space looking at planets, moons, galaxies, etc.. Played both VR (HTC Vive) and PC. Easier to navigate in VR and more of a wow factor than just PC, but still good for PC only users. Highly recommend for anyone that enjoys and is interested in astronomy.
Steam User 3
Fun game for exploring and getting lost in the solar systems. Like that it works both in VR and in a screen mode. Interestingly enough I had my embedded graphics card turned off on my laptop to favor using the installed NVidia card and that seemed to cause a performance issue. Re-enabled the default card and the game still used the NVidia card, but all worked well then... I expect that's more of a driver issue with my laptop than anything else.
Steam User 2
movement left me confused, very cool app just needs a better system for travel and planet inspection.
Steam User 2
its cool and all but i wish there was a way to find planets faster like a tab to go there or a way it shows you them instead of digging all around the universe and also you get lost every easy the zoom if you zoom into a star its like you cant go back its a fun game but those are my ideas i recommend if your into astromy and just better movement hard to move you look