I thought the same thing, and there's no way using a resistance band feels anything like an actual punch. It looks like what DDR is to dancing, which to be fair, is how I lost a good amount of weight in high school.
Can see where you're coming from - VR's key USP is often touted as'immersion'.
For us, it's about building something that is exciting enough to distract you from the workout you're doing - the gaming takes over from the awareness of your exercise in your mind. There are a number of ways to do this, some would include VR. For now we've opted against it as our users found VR fitness too sweaty and uncomfortable in its present form.
Where do you stand on VR? Do you have any of the headsets currently?
I'm a big fan of VR in general (but looking forward to improvements in comfort).
How sweaty you find it is surely a function of your local climate and availability of air-con. I wouldn't play Beat Saber in the summer without good air flow but then I'm in the UK where air-con is fairly rare in the home.
But I can happily play for 45-60 minutes when it's not super hot in the house.
VR can track punches pretty well already, including player head and hands position for dodging and movement. (If developers supported more trackers, then it could track feet too) The only things missing are resistance and feedback. Technically, you can probably just wear this quell system or something like it if you want resistance. Feedback is trickier. I’m more interested in using the quell straps in VR since there are already good VR fighting games.
Thanks! We decided against VR at launch because test users found VR fitness too sweaty and uncomfortable. However, we are working on building VR experiences for when the headsets get lighter and more breathable. There’s also no reason you can’t buy the system and wear the Gauntlet while playing VR today!