Visual realism and presence in a virtual reality game

Virtual Reality (VR) has finally entered the homes of consumers, and a large number of the available applications are games. This paper presents a between-subjects study (n=50) exploring if visual realism (polygon count and texture resolution) affects presence during a scenario involving gameplay, graphics, and controls that, contrary to much existing research, resemble commercially available VR games. The results suggest that participants exposed to a higher degree of visual realism experienced a stronger sensation of presence, as assessed by means of self-reports, and physiological measures revealed that higher visual realism also was accompanied by stronger fear responses which may be indicative of stronger presence.