Hopefully you'll like it better this time around. I know VR preferences can be very subjective, so I can understand why it may not have worked for you. While I don't know what specifically you didn't like, I will say that on the performance and visual fidelity aspects of VR, they've done some good work over the last year or two. Improvements to the engine and things like DLSS in VR really help it run better.

Regarding the crafting and material collection, I have some good news. From your time with the game, you probably remember the difficulty options of Normal, Survival, Permadeath, and Creative. That last one eliminates all costs and penalties from the game, for people who just want to Netflix warp drive and chill. But, if you don't want to make it too easy, they've since added a ton of granular difficulty controls, most of which are adjustable on the fly. You can make a game that's otherwise normal, but eliminates crafting costs, if that's your preference. You may already be familiar with the settings, but I mention it anyway because a surprising number of people I talk to about the game don't know and have played the game for a long time without realizing they can adjust fine grained difficulty settings.