  In virtual reality (VR) games, playability and immersion levels are important
because they affect gameplay, enjoyment, and performance. However, they can be
adversely affected by VR sickness (VRS) symptoms. VRS can be minimized by
manipulating users' perception of the virtual environment via the head-mounted
display (HMD). One extreme example is the Teleport mitigation technique, which
lets users navigate discretely, skipping sections of the virtual space. Other
techniques are less extreme but still rely on controlling what and how much
users see via the HMD. This research examines the effect on players'
performance and gameplay of these mitigation techniques in fast-paced VR games.
Our focus is on two types of visual reduction techniques. This study aims to
identify specifically the trade-offs these techniques have in a first-person
shooter game regarding immersion, performance, and VRS. The main contributions
in this paper are (1) a deeper understanding of one of the most popular
techniques (Teleport) when it comes to gameplay; (2) the replication and
validation of a novel VRS mitigation technique based on visual reduction; and
(3) a comparison of their effect on players' performance and gameplay.
