Table 1.

Overview of virtual reality (VR) usability assessment approaches.

Approach	Assessment requirementsa	VR aspects evaluated	Typical output of assessment	Results type
Cognitive or task walkthrough [14,29]	Representative external users, developed task or scenario, and recording and timing equipment	Environment navigation, object interaction, and user-system interaction	Task performance and user feedback	Discrete and descriptive
Graphical evaluation [30,31]	Multiple relevant graphical environments, recording equipment, questionnaires, and interview guides	Quality of graphics and image renderings	User feedback	Descriptive
Post hoc questionnaires and interviews [32]	External users, questionnaires or interview guides, and recording equipment	Nonspecific	User feedback	Descriptive
Physical performance evaluation [33]	External users, developed task or scenario, and recording and timing equipment	Physical immersion and VR performance	Task performance, system performance metrics, and user feedback	Discrete and descriptive
User interface evaluation [14,34,35]	Developed task or scenario, recording and timing equipment, questionnaires, and interview guides	Integration of VR environment and real-life tools and VR performance	User feedback and task performance	Discrete and descriptive
Heuristic evaluation [14,21,36]	Experienced users, developed task or scenario, questionnaires, interview guides, and recording equipment	Various	Refer to list in Heuristic Evaluation section	Descriptive

^aItalicized text indicates optional requirements depending on specific assessment approaches being used (eg, recording equipment is only required if incorporating think-aloud methods).