Comfort

Helping ensure visual and physical comfort is crucial since users rely on the headset’s cameras to see their physical and virtual environment. Even when the headset is put on and fits properly, experiences can affect how it impacts a user’s comfort. For immersive experiences, it is important to dynamically adjust content based on the user’s head position and whether the user is standing, sitting, lying down, or riding in a moving vehicle. We want to allow the user to comfortably interact with a range of core experiences and seamlessly transition between them without needing to adjust their headset or behavior for a more natural experience.

Keep important content in the person’s field-of-view: Field-of-view (FoV) is what the user can see without moving their head. The in-headset FoV is smaller than a user’s natural FoV. Meta Quest will launch content in the same position and rotation relative to the user’s head as it was placed in the game engine. In experiences where no scene queries are involved, the user additionally has the option to recenter the experience by holding down the Meta button on the right controller.

Give content freedom of movement: Avoid anchoring content statically in front of the user’s camera, especially if it obscures a large part of passthrough, as it decreases the user’s awareness of their surroundings. Content anchored at the peripheral FoV or to the sides of the user might require a large range of quick head and neck motions for interaction. Constant head and neck movement can increase visual and physical discomfort especially over longer durations of use.

Depth: Depth affects how we relate to objects in space. Content far away can be nice and large and encourages people to interact at a distance. Nearby objects invite interaction and are easier to inspect at different angles. A small head movement or a few steps should allow users to see the object from all sides. A great use of depth is to create hierarchy. Depth needs to be reinforced with visual cues like light and shadow. Some objects emit light. The light shines onto the floor and ceiling, highlighting its position in the room.

Using depth to communicate feedback: Depth helps create visual feedback and make an object stand out from its surroundings. An example of this would be a button that stands out and moves slightly back when pressed.

Use depth sparingly: Adding depth to every object in a scene can feel unnecessary and tiring to the user’s eye. Consider the size and importance of objects when adding depth, as it can be effective for highlighting large, or important elements like UI panels. However, avoid using depth on text components as it can make them harder to read.

Scale: Like depth, scale is a new way to emphasize content. Small objects feel personal and lightweight. Large objects feel impressive, like a spaceship hovering in a room. Increasing the scale completely changes the feeling of the object we are interacting with. Some objects are best viewed at their real-life scale. For example, a car showroom app may want to display cars as they appear in the physical world. Remember that if a user is expected to interact with physical objects in their environment, avoid placing virtual content in places that may cover these physical interactions.

Motion sickness can occur when there is a mismatch between what the user sees and how they move.

Show the real-world environment at the edges of the user’s field-of-view. This provides stable visual references and helps ground the user, especially during movement or rapid scene changes. Passthrough periphery is an effective comfort strategy in many mixed reality experiences.

For more information on using passthrough periphery, see the Passthrough Design Guidelines.

Adjust the headset’s interpupillary distance (IPD) to match the user’s eyes. When IPD matches, virtual content appears more natural and comfortable, minimizing visual strain and helping users maintain focus.

MR has the ability to populate the user’s space with a range of virtual content, and might encourage the user to move around their physical space. If dynamic user movement is not a core feature of the experience ensure that the experience can be inclusively enjoyed by a range of users and spaces, and leverage the safety features that educate or keep users within a safe area during dynamic movement. Repetitive motions can tire users, reduce their enjoyment, and could lead to physical stress.

Do not overwhelm users by displaying too many objects in the scene at once, which can obscure people’s surroundings, be confusing, and potentially be a safety hazard. For example, try to keep the main controls in a single UI panel, as opposed to having multiple windows floating around.

By offering the user a way to interact with objects from a distance, they can enjoy the experience without having to move around too much. Avoid requiring the user to perform a direct interaction on objects that are far away or where an interaction over an extended amount of time is required, as this can be tiring. Conversely, items requiring direct touch should not be placed too close to the user, as this can cause visual discomfort.

Favor options like teleportation and snap turning, and offer customizable settings for user preferences and abilities. Minimize discomfort and motion sickness by avoiding sudden acceleration, rapid direction changes, and unnatural camera movements. Use clear boundaries and visual cues to keep users in safe areas and prevent collisions. Ensure accessibility for standing, seated, and assistive device users.

For more details, including a chart of common comfort and usability risks, the types of locomotion that trigger them, and techniques to improve the experience, see the Locomotion Comfort and Usability Guidelines.

Explore more design guidelines and learn how to design great experiences for your app users:

For technical information, start from these development guidelines: