Any way to play without a VR headset? Them shits expensive.
When you start the launcher, just select "Windowed", rather than one of the VR modes.
As for expensive.... This is my VR headset:
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$50 now, was $35 when I got it, and $25 when it was first released. It seems every time they sell out and get them back in stock the price goes up... If you see a price at $100+, it just means they're out of stock of all 3 models, and the price will go back down once they're back in stock. (Don't get the other options, only grab the 1440x1400 one, it's got 2 separate 1440x1400 screens, while the other 2 cheaper ones only have 1 screen, so they actually have a lower per-eye resolution, that said, one of them
is only $20)
The headset works with any SteamVR compatible applications.
They're not the best headsets, but they work for basic stuff. Only 3 degrees of tracking, so nothing that requires it tracking you moving around. A program called Driver4vr (I think the licence is around $20, but there's a free trial that will let you make sure things actually work before paying for it) will let you do things like hook up a Kinect/Wii sensor bar to the computer to simulate 6 degrees of tracking on-the-cheap. They also don't come with VR controllers, so you'll be limited to gamepad VR games (though, again, Driver4vr can simulate them from a gamepad or WiiMote, and there's a free program called FreePIE that can simulate VR controllers from a gamepad, but it's much harder to configure).
One warning, they have a max FPS of 60 FPS.... which is lower than you really want for VR, things with lots of peripheral motion WILL make you nauseous (I believe you need at least 75 FPS to avoid that), so don't go trying any roller coaster simulations on it... But for stuff like WSS? Or watching 180 or 360 degree video/movies/3D movies on an Imax-sized screen? They work great.