Pompeii Virtual Tour

VR Review ★★★★☆‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎
Quest Link Education History Museums Travel Comfortable Stationary

The image shows an ancient street with ruins on either side under a clear sky. The word “POMPEII” is superimposed in large black letters in the foreground. This image highlights the historical significance of Pompeii, an archaeological site preserved by volcanic ash from Mount Vesuvius.

The image shows an ancient street with ruins on either side under a clear sky. The word “POMPEII” is superimposed in large black letters in the foreground. This image highlights the historical significance of Pompeii, an archaeological site preserved by volcanic ash from Mount Vesuvius.

Pompeii was a vibrant ancient Roman city located near modern day Naples, Italy when in 79 AD it was tragically buried under a thick layer of volcanic ash by neighboring Mount Vesuvius. This cataclysm preserved Pompeii's streets, buildings and even the inhabitants' final moments, offering remarkable insights into Roman daily life two millennia ago. Everyone should get the chance to explore and experience this world heritage site for themselves, but not all will have the opportunity to go, making virtual reality possibly the best alternative to the real thing.

The immense amount of data required to capture and present this expansive site makes a full VR exploration impossible, even with today's technology. Hence why a 12 GB download is required to recreate a small section of the city in this VR program, but one that captures a fair representation of Pompeii. Included in this tour is a walk down the stone paved street of Via di Mercurio with Vesuvius visible in the distance, the Arch of Caligula, and interior investigations of a house and the forum baths.

The photogrammetry captured and modeled for this program is able to provide a sense of presence, and has adequate detail to show off delicate frescoes and mosaics on walls and floors. Movement is achieved by gazing at green navigation circles that indicate points of interest, then the program slowly comfortably slides the user over to the new location while maintaining the illusion of presence as the scenery glides past you. The height of the camera can be unnatural at times, as some green circles can be at different heights meaning that your point of view can vary from head height to being a foot of the ground for no apparent reason. You can move within your room space somewhat to improve your viewpoint and look around obstacles, but that ability is dampened by the program.

The image shows a computer-generated reconstruction of an ancient site, possibly Roman, with a clear blue sky. There is a stone and brick archway in the center, with remnants of walls on either side. A cobblestone path leads through the archway, and a green sphere with a trail indicates movement along the path.

The image shows a computer-generated reconstruction of an ancient site, possibly Roman, with a clear blue sky. There is a stone and brick archway in the center, with remnants of walls on either side. A cobblestone path leads through the archway, and a green sphere with a trail indicates movement along the path.

Navigating Via di Mercurio using the green indicators.

Optional audio narration is presented in a conversational style that provides insights into the area in which you are standing. Unfortunately it's not implemented well. It begins as you arrive at a new location and it's best to stay where you are if you want to hear all of it. If you move elsewhere a new audio track may override what you're listening to, or even more frustratingly the same audio track will restart at the beginning. We found it easier to pause narration, then restart it at a location where we wanted to remain for a while.

We found Pompeii to be immersive and instructive, particularly when we'd come to terms with some of the clumsy navigation and narration. Presentation could have been better too - we'd love to see how the area we were exploring fit in with the whole city (we've added a map below to give you an idea). As it is, the program abruptly drops you into the forum baths with no indication of where you are. There is also a flatscreen website version of this content at Specterras' website though we notice that the graphic fidelity is much better on the virtual reality version.

The image is a detailed map of ancient Pompeii. It shows various buildings, streets, and open areas, with labels in Roman numerals indicating different sections. A prominent red-colored area is marked.

The image is a detailed map of ancient Pompeii. It shows various buildings, streets, and open areas, with labels in Roman numerals indicating different sections. A prominent red-colored area is marked.

Red marks the area covered by this experience.

Summary:

Good level of graphical detail

Great sense of immersion

Variety of content

Clumsy but comfortable navigation

Frustrating implementation of narration

Supported Languages:
English

Product Links:

$3.99 at Meta PCVR Store
Requires a PC. View in Oculus Rift or Meta Quest linked to PC.