Portal-Themed App Tests Your PC to See if You Can Run Virtual Reality

If you've got the cash to spend and want to know whether your PC can run a virtual reality headset, you'll be able to test it with a new Portal-themed app.

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Valve released the free app on Steam today, allowing users to test their PC and see how well it'll handle virtual reality games (via Polygon). The test isn't specifically tuned for the Vive, instead testing your system to see the level of fidelity your computer can run VR at.

The demo features a two-minute excerpt from Valve's Aperture Robot Repair VR demo, in which you sit in a room and watch a number of things happen. You're given your results once the demo is over.

The results get into specifics, letting you know the average fidelity, the number of frames tested, and if the demo ever ran below 90 frames per second. It also recommends which piece of hardware needs upgrading if your PC is not VR-ready. However, it's worth noting that it does not test for the number of USB ports--the Oculus Rift suggests four.

Oculus released a simpler test that just tells you if your computer's hardware met the recommended system requirements or not.

The Vive will be available for $800 and ships in April, while the Oculus Rift sits at $600 and releases in March.