BoxVR review: VR fitness, fun and exercise!

Box VR (stylized BoxVR) is a VR exercise title for the PC and PSVR. As of 2020, if you are a VR fan and want an intense workout, consider checking out this review.

The home fitness market has always been there. Those of us who remember Jack LaLanne, well remember his exercise TV programs from the 50’s through the mid 80’s. Jack lived to a very healthy 96. When asked how he managed to live so long, he famously replied, “I can’t die; it’d ruin my reputation!”

Then came the mass adoption of Video Tapes and DVDs. These enabled people to watch – and rewatch – instructional videos on Aerobics, Tae Bo, and dozens of other regimens.

Today streaming services bring you on-demand exercise videos for free and every home with an internet connection can house a Peleton or magic exercise mirror, personalized to it – although these often come with steep subscription fees attached.

In 2016, I was fortunate enough to pick up an HTC Vive at release and it’s running well to this day. The lighthouses continue to work and the controllers, although they’ve grown a little “eccentric” in their age, still carry out their duties effectively.

As telecommuting becomes more common and VR looks for ways to become an essential enabling technology, a question naturally arises: Can VR save you an occasional trip to the gym and take its place alongside these other home exercise solutions? Based on the momentum gained in the last few years, I’d say there’s little doubt. While VR can’t (yet!) provide the experience of weight-training, stair climbing, or similar physics-based interactions, it does provide the opportunity to supplement an aerobic exercise regimen.

And part of mine, for years, has been BoxVR.