Meta is full steam ahead on its mixed reality platform, however Head of AR Glasses hardware Caitlin Kalinowski says in a new interview with Android Central that its first augmented reality glasses will offer a real “wow” moment to users thanks to its “high field of view immersion.”
Meta announced it’s licensing its XR operating system to select OEMs in a bid to become a more open alternative to Vision Pro, marking a monumental shift in the company’s XR strategy. This puts Meta in an entirely new position as a platform holder, as it now seems the company is trying to beat Google at its own game. And you know what, it just might win.
Meta’s big announcement this week—that it will allow select partners to build third-party headsets based on Horizon OS—will be felt for years to come. And for developers who get a large chunk of their business from the Quest platform, the stakes are real.
Two and a half years ago, Pimax announced VR Station, a compact, console-like computer for running PC VR content that would be wirelessly streamed to its Reality “12K” and Crystal headsets. And while the “12K” still hasn’t shipped (and the Crystal still doesn’t have its wireless streaming add-on), Pimax insists the VR Station is still in the works.
Independent tech analyst Ming-Chi Kuo maintains Apple may be reducing Vision Pro shipments for its international debut by a wide margin due to demand falling “sharply beyond expectations” in the US market.
Meta dropped a major announcement yesterday, saying it plans to allow select partners to build third-party headsets that will run Horizon OS (formerly Quest OS). The news is prompting significant discussion within the XR industry, including from Oculus founder Palmer Luckey.
If you live in Northern Europe outside of the Eurozone, or in New Zealand, Meta says recurring subscriptions will soon be priced in local currency and not in U.S. dollars.
Relic Entertainment, the studio behind the classic real-time strategy franchise Homeworld, announced it’s releasing its all-new VR game for Quest next month, putting players in its iconic 3D space battles.
Meta says that even though third-parties will be making headsets with Quest OS (now called Horizon OS) the company will continue to develop its line of Quest headsets.
As part of Meta’s huge announcement today, the company says its rebranding the Quest Store to the Meta Horizon Store. In doing so, the company plans to make it easier for developers to get their content onto the platform.
Today Meta made what is likely to be an industry-altering announcement: it plans to open up the Quest operating system to third-party device makers. Asus, Lenovo, and Xbox have been tapped to create new headsets built on the operating system which is being branded ‘Meta Horizon OS’.
Meta today announced it’s opening its operating system to third-parties, and has named three heavy weights that have pledged support for its newly renamed Meta Horizon OS: Asus, Lenovo, and Microsoft’s Xbox.
Fast Travel Games announced it’s bringing Mannequin, the upcoming asymmetrical stealth social VR game, into early access on Quest via App Lab starting next month.
Fast Travel Games announced Mannequin is set to release in early access on Quest via App Lab starting on May 2nd, priced at $20.
At its early access launch, Mannequin is slated to include all four maps featured during its Open Alpha, which is said to include updated visuals. The studio says there will also be improved friend list features, as well as the option to password-protect party play and custom games.
The studio says it’s also going to release promotional codes which will discount the game to $10 during its launch weekend. For now, players of the Open Alpha can still play until its official cut-off date on April 28th.
Notably, an early access release on PC VR is in development, however Fast Travel hasn’t said exactly when we can expect that, or the PSVR 2 version of the game as such.
In the meantime, check out the latest gameplay trailer below:
Previously only available to Discord members, Fast Travel Games just opened Mannequin’s open alpha a bit more with the launch on SideQuest, the unofficial sideloading app store for Quest 2/3/Pro. It’s only available for a limited time between now and its Spring 2024 launch, so make sure to jump in sooner rather than later.
It also has a number of updates, including the ability to find friends In custom games, two new levels (replacing Courtyard and The Lab), an updated lobby, and a number of balance and performance tweaks, Fast Travel says.
Additionally, the studio threw out a new gameplay trailer that includes a brief explainer of the action, linked above:
Somewhat like the ‘Prop Hunt’ mode from Gary’s Mod, the Mannequins have to blend into the scenery of frozen humans, but have the power to ambush Agents by dashing forward and freezing them in place with a single touch. On the flipside, Agents can scan for Mannequins and neutralize with their trusty EMP gun.
Fast Travel Games says the alpha “represents a very early build of the game with a first look at just a few of the levels and features planned for the full game,” and is said to include two levels in addition to a social lobby so players can chat or talk strategy ahead of matches.
The open alpha is free to download via the game’s Discord (see update), with the full game set to launch on Quest, PSVR 2, and PC VR headsets later in 2024.
From now until April 28th, you’ll be able to get your hands on a ton of top Quest titles for up to 64% off the regular price.
