I Spent an Hour in the Virtuix Omni One Full-Body VR Headset—Here’s How It Feels

I’m strapped into the full-body virtual reality of the future, and it’s taking some getting used to.

I’m talking about Virtuix Omni One ($2,595), a new VR gaming platform that features a 360-degree treadmill and an articulated support arm, as well as a VR headset. The arm extends from the treadmill to a vest and belt that you strap yourself into to let you walk, run, crouch, and jump in VR—without destroying your living room.

I was excited about the opportunity to try out the Omni One, as I’ve been following VR technology for over a decade, ever since the original Oculus Rift Kickstarted in 2012. Virtuix soon held a successful Kickstarter for its first full-body VR platform, the Omni. Fast forward over a decade, and the company is finally getting ready to release an advanced version of that full-body VR headset that’s ready for home use.

The device is called the Omni One, and while the price may be too high for some (a monthly payment plan is also available), Virtuix hopes it will sell enough units to build a healthy ecosystem for its proprietary VR gaming platform.

This is not just a treadmill, it’s a VR platform

Virtuix Omni One

(Photo source: Future)

That’s right, the Omni One doesn’t run on the same platform as competitors like the Meta Quest 3. While you can connect this full-body VR gaming headset to your PC to use with Steam VR games, it’s designed to work best with games in the Omni One store. Virtuix says it will have over 30 games available in the Omni One store at launch, including multiplayer games specifically tailored to the type of full-body movement the Omni One supports.

The big question is whether what’s available in the Omni One store at launch will be compelling enough to convince people to buy a nearly $3,000 VR device? I only had a chance to play one multiplayer game during my Omni One demo, so I can’t say much about the quality of the software on offer. A short multiplayer match of a cooperative zombie survival shooter I played with a Virtuix employee went quite well, despite me slipping and sliding on the Omni One’s treadmill like a newborn calf on a booze binge. Fortunately, the Virtuix team has dialed back the difficulty enough that I was able to play through a match on the Omni One without feeling sick or breaking an ankle.

And I have to be honest with you, that was a real concern for me during my brief introduction to the Omni One. Company founder Jan Goetgeluk graciously jumped in first to show me how to put on the special shoe wraps and fasten the vest, making running and jumping on the Omni One treadmill look easy. But, dear reader, trust me, it’s anything but easy.

Virtuix Omni One Trailer – YouTube
Virtuix Omni One Trailer - YouTube

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Oh, it’s easy enough to wrap the special Omni One shoe covers with foot trackers around your shoes and step onto the treadmill, which appears to be a giant concave plastic disc. But once you’ve strapped on the harness, put on the custom Pico 4 headset, and grabbed the controllers, things quickly get dicey. Personally, I found learning to walk on the plastic plate while strapped to the articulated arm to be a bit awkward. Taking a step forward is easy enough, but learning to lean back and sort of shuffle so that I could walk backwards without falling took me a good twenty minutes. Forget about running and jumping—hardcore enthusiasts could probably handle that, but as a novice in my late thirties, I wasn’t about to tangle my ankles and knees in a death knot trying to run in place.

This seems like a great way to break an ankle.

Honestly, that’s one of my biggest takeaways from my hour spent with the Virtuix Omni One: It feels like a great way to crack an ankle. But I’m pretty tall (6’4”), so my legs are a bit too long for the device, and I’m pushing the limits of how big a person it can support—the One supports users from 4’4” to 6’4” and up to 250 pounds. Younger, smaller users will likely feel more comfortable using it, and have more fun navigating VR on a treadmill, which works well enough once you get the hang of it.

Perspectives

Virtuix Omni One

Company founder Jan Goetgeluk shows how easily the Omni One can be folded out for transport purposes. (Photo source: Future)

After an hour of using one, I wouldn’t say I’m hooked — but I’m intrigued. Now that competent VR headsets are widely available, there’s a seemingly endless horizon of experiences and inputs to experiment with, and I can’t wait to see what clever developers can do with the technology.

But personally, I think I’ll hold off on spending a paycheck or two on the Omni One until I see what software is out there and how many people are playing it. The fact that Virtuix has developed this technology to the point where you can order it to your home and set it up in minutes (the Omni One is quick to assemble, requires no tools, and has built-in wheels for easy transport) is amazing—now all it needs is some great software and a healthy community to help it get off the ground.