Honest opinions on getting into VR

[Flashy]

Hi Everyone,

I have been tempted for many years to get into VR for Il-2, but the costs were always prohibitive for me. However, I have recently noticed that used Quest 3's are getting into the ballpark of affordability (around $350 here) so I am wondering if I should dive in and give it a try. I have many questions regarding the whole VR thing though, and it seems the more forum threads and reddit posts I read, the more confusing it becomes 😅. So I guess my main questions around this are:
 

• how difficult is it to set up and get working nicely with Il-2? I see there are different apps like SteamVR, Virtual desktop etc, and lots of settings to play with.. which kinda makes it sound like you spend more time struggling and fiddling with settings than actually playing! Is this accurate? 
• My PC is on the slightly weak side in some respects (i3 12100, 32gb RAM, 3080 GPU). I can play normal Il-2 at 4k with no issues on this machine, but will I be able to get decent performance with the Quest 3 on this setup? I can maybe spring for a new CPU (i7 12700) but a new GPU is still way too expensive.. should I even bother to try VR on my rig?

thats all for now.. I'm sure there will be more questions..

[dgiatr]

5 hours ago, Flashy said:

Hi Everyone,

I have been tempted for many years to get into VR for Il-2, but the costs were always prohibitive for me. However, I have recently noticed that used Quest 3's are getting into the ballpark of affordability (around $350 here) so I am wondering if I should dive in and give it a try. I have many questions regarding the whole VR thing though, and it seems the more forum threads and reddit posts I read, the more confusing it becomes 😅. So I guess my main questions around this are:
 

• how difficult is it to set up and get working nicely with Il-2? I see there are different apps like SteamVR, Virtual desktop etc, and lots of settings to play with.. which kinda makes it sound like you spend more time struggling and fiddling with settings than actually playing! Is this accurate? 
• My PC is on the slightly weak side in some respects (i3 12100, 32gb RAM, 3080 GPU). I can play normal Il-2 at 4k with no issues on this machine, but will I be able to get decent performance with the Quest 3 on this setup? I can maybe spring for a new CPU (i7 12700) but a new GPU is still way too expensive.. should I even bother to try VR on my rig?

thats all for now.. I'm sure there will be more questions..

Hi, VR is really nice , a game changer in IL2 , I could say..but under some conditions...

1. Probably your card is rather marginal for a decent image through Vr. I am flying with an rtx 3090 ti at about 3000x3000 resolution at 72 hz , with medium clouds, no mirrors, no shadows at all and 2XMSAA using openxr toolkit and opencomposite ( not steamvr ) for better results. At about 3000x3000 is the minimum resolution in vr in order to identify other planes at a long distance and not get bounced every time and i cannot go higher in resolution with that card and the other settings i have already mentioned...

2. I have a 13900 kf cpu , a little overclocked in order to deal with stuttering in busy scenes with multiple objects ( planes, especially AI objects, buildings, etc...) since il2 code is higly cpu single-cored and unfortunately not multi-cored. My tower is well ventilated in order to cope with high working temperatures of cpu and GPU. From the moment I opened the front case panel I stopped suffering from crashes and heavy stuttering especially during summer time.

3. I can reassure you that quest3 is the best value for money Vr device for now. I fly with usb cable and I have no problem at all.....BUT YOU TO BE VERY PATIENT in order to manage the best settings for your rig ( cpu, gpu, vr and game settings)...if you are not PATIENT ENOUGH VR ISNT FOR YOU!!.

If you cannot buy an advanced GPU,  at least I could say that you should buy a better cpu than the one you are planning to with a very good single core performance cause IL2 is a heavily single cored application and it can easily overload a weak cpu during playing.

 

 

Edited Wednesday at 01:52 PM by dgiatr

[Aapje]

I have a 12400 + 4070 + 32 GB RAM, which is fairly similar to your setup. The 12100 just has 2 fewer cores, but I'm not sure whether that matters that much with IL-2, which does not seem to use that many CPU cores. And the 3080 is about on par with a 4070. I would not upgrade the CPU unless you notice that it is limiting you.

I'm quite content with the performance on my Quest 3, so I would say to go for it. I personally could not enter combat without VR anymore after experiencing the benefits. However, different people have different standards with regard to visual quality and FPS, and you will definitely trade some visual quality for the huge benefits of VR. I do depend on the 'assist' that identifies planes for me because the visuals at distance are not good enough to be able to do this myself in a realistic way. Spotting is excellent, though.

Also keep in mind that the Quest 3 skimped on comfort a lot. I would reserve a little money for at least a headstrap replacement, and probably also a new facial interface. If you wear glasses, then inserts are also a big improvement and they keep your Quest safe from some naughty lens on lens action that can cause scratches.

A powered USB 3 hub with a good USB cable is very useful to allow you to get in a good flying session.

Setting it up is a challenge, with various settings and tools that you need to get right. For example, I consider XRNecksafer a must. However, once I got it set up properly, I almost never have problems with the VR side of things. So it is a matter of getting things right and after that the fiddling should mostly be over.

Do keep in mind that motion/VR sickness can also affect you and may require gradually doing longer and longer game sessions until your brains adapt.

If you decide to go for it, I can answer more specific questions, point to settings guides, etc.

[GiftGruen]

Simply: Do it ! Flying in VR is an absolute great experience.

And in case you dont like it - what I can hardly imagine to be honest - just sell the Q3 again.

More GPU power is always nice in VR, but your rig should be able to give a decent experience. As Aapje already told you, take some time to optimize comfort and settings and dont give up too fast.

And yes, for sure dont fly with glasses, they ruin it! Invest the money for lenses from VRoptician or HonsVR if needed.

I preferred VirtualDesktop and wireless over USB cable. But that’s probably a matter of taste.

[AEthelraedUnraed]

On 6/3/2026 at 10:09 AM, Flashy said:

• how difficult is it to set up and get working nicely with Il-2? I see there are different apps like SteamVR, Virtual desktop etc, and lots of settings to play with.. which kinda makes it sound like you spend more time struggling and fiddling with settings than actually playing! Is this accurate? 

I have a Quest 2. Usually, it's easy enough to start playing. But every once in a while, something goes wrong and I spend half an hour rebooting and fiddling with settings before it works again. I've also got the occasional disconnect, with varying results when trying to get back into the game. As Aapje says, make sure you have a good USB cable to mitigate the issue. Still, with all the hassles, VR is well worth it 🙂

On 6/3/2026 at 10:09 AM, Flashy said:

• My PC is on the slightly weak side in some respects (i3 12100, 32gb RAM, 3080 GPU). I can play normal Il-2 at 4k with no issues on this machine, but will I be able to get decent performance with the Quest 3 on this setup? I can maybe spring for a new CPU (i7 12700) but a new GPU is still way too expensive.. should I even bother to try VR on my rig?

"Decent performance" is subjective 🙂 I used to play on a 2060. On the lowest graphics settings, I could just about reach 30FPS. That's too low for many people, but luckily I'm not too sensitive to low framerates. With a 3080, I expect you'll have a decent experience as long as you don't put your graphics too high.

I would recommend to try VR at least once, before you buy a headset. Some people experience motion sickness. It's not unusual to feel a bit queasy the first few times you try it, and you will get used to it. But if you instantly feel sick, VR might not be for you.

[kraut1]

On 6/3/2026 at 10:09 AM, Flashy said:

Hi Everyone,

I have been tempted for many years to get into VR for Il-2, but the costs were always prohibitive for me. However, I have recently noticed that used Quest 3's are getting into the ballpark of affordability (around $350 here) so I am wondering if I should dive in and give it a try. I have many questions regarding the whole VR thing though, and it seems the more forum threads and reddit posts I read, the more confusing it becomes 😅. So I guess my main questions around this are:
 

• how difficult is it to set up and get working nicely with Il-2? I see there are different apps like SteamVR, Virtual desktop etc, and lots of settings to play with.. which kinda makes it sound like you spend more time struggling and fiddling with settings than actually playing! Is this accurate? 
• My PC is on the slightly weak side in some respects (i3 12100, 32gb RAM, 3080 GPU). I can play normal Il-2 at 4k with no issues on this machine, but will I be able to get decent performance with the Quest 3 on this setup? I can maybe spring for a new CPU (i7 12700) but a new GPU is still way too expensive.. should I even bother to try VR on my rig?

thats all for now.. I'm sure there will be more questions..

I am flying with a 6 years old average gaming PC and a Rift-S of same age. 
And the whole time I am at the lower limit of performance.
I use OpenComposite to get some ca. 20% additional FPS for the disadvantage of a bit lower graphic quality.
Very importent is for me effective mission design with limited number of planes and flying when the weather is good with clear sky or some few Cirrus clouds is helpful too.

Due to my old system I can't help you directly with informations but maybe one topic is interesting for you:
After flying many years only in WW2 I started this year flying from time to time FC WW1 missions with VR and it seems to me that this works very well in respect of FPS in comparison with WW2...
Maybe others experienced the same?

[Jeronimo83]

I would also seriously consider the PSVR2 headset with a PC adapter. After using many headsets with and without OLED, I concluded I can't get immersed with LCD. Also the PSVR2 has ability to do eye tracking , and although it is not supported by Sony natively, there is a mod that enables this. IL2 can make use dynamic foveated rendering, and it does make a 10-20% performance difference. In DCS, using quad views and eye tracking, the perfomance gain is more like 100% (!) which makes for a huge advantage. DCS really outperforms IL2 in this respect (unfortunately). 

[GiftGruen]

IL2 supports DFR? That‘s new to me. i once owned a QuestPro and my research then told me that IL2 does‘nt support it, but maybe I am wrong.

[dgiatr]

3 hours ago, GiftGruen said:

IL2 supports DFR? That‘s new to me. i once owned a QuestPro and my research then told me that IL2 does‘nt support it, but maybe I am wrong.

Ι don't think il2 supports DFR..