Virtual environments make us underestimate distances, but a simple fix exists.
Accurately judging distances in virtual environments is harder than in the real world. Factors like floor texture and movement method affect how well we estimate distances. People tend to underestimate distances in both virtual and real environments, but it's more extreme in virtual ones. Moving around helps us estimate distances better, but using a treadmill doesn't always improve accuracy. Adding cues like tones every 10 feet can greatly improve distance estimation in virtual environments.