‘Pokémon Go’ Studio Niantic Completes $200M Funding Round
Niantic, the developer behind Pokémon Go and the upcoming Harry Potter AR game, announced they’ve taken on $200 million in their Series B investment round.
‘Justice League’ VR Experience Comes to IMAX VR Centers Worldwide, Trailer Here
Continuing its diversification from pure, cinematic experiences, IMAX has announced that it’s partnering with Warner Bros. to bring its forthcoming superhero movie franchises to virtual reality via multiplexes and it’s dedicated VR centres.
‘Ghost in the Shell: Arise’ PvP Shooter Comes to Bandai Namco’s VR Zone, Catch the Trailer Here
Bandai Namco’s Shinjuku-based VR Zone seems to have all the luck; there’s Mario Kart in VR, Dragon Ball Z in VR, and now Ghost in the Shell is making its way to the giant VR arcade this December too.
New ‘High Fidelity’ Partnership Makes it Easier to Host Your Own Virtual World
VR metaverse company High Fidelity recently released an update that allows users to easily deploy their own High Fidelity domains to the cloud. The project was created in collaboration with DigitalOcean, one of the largest hosting and cloud service providers in the U.S.
Check Out the Next World Record Attempt for Longest Time in VR, Live Stream Here
Michael Kantack, a developer at South Korea-based indie studio Get Off the Roof, is currently attempting to break the Guinness Record for Longest VR Marathon. Kantack intends on staying 50 hours in his HTC Vive in MakeVR (2017) working on 3D models for the studio’s game.
Coatsink Partners with Fierce Kaiju on Secretive VR Project, Expected 2018 Release
Coatsink Software, creators of the Esper series, Augmented Empire (2017) and A Night Sky (2017), announced they’re collaborating with Viral series creators Fierce Kaiju on a new VR project scheduled for release in 2018.
The Best VR Hardware Has Never Been Cheaper Than Right Now
If you’re thinking of pulling the trigger on finally getting a VR system, there’s no better time than now to basically get any headset currently on the market at a discounted price. Check out the deals we’ve found, all of which are valid during the weekend between Black Friday and Cyber Monday (until supplies last).
Oculus Creates Guide to Help VR Devs Make Highly Optimized Games
Oculus recently published a new guide on how to optimize VR experiences along with some of the common pitfalls for devs to watch out for when tracking down and solving VR performance issues.
TPCAST Shows Off Oculus Rift Wireless Module, Due Out By Year’s End
TPCAST announced last month plans for an Oculus Rift version of their wireless module. This week at the SVVR offices in Silicon Valley, the company showed off a functional version of the module for the first time. The unit is said to be available by year’s end, and will have the same or similar $300 price as the HTC Vive module.
Indie VR MMO ‘OrbusVR’ to Launch in Early Access in December
OrbusVR, an upcoming indie VR MMO for SteamVR-compatible headsets, has seen several closed betas since it’s successful Kickstarter back in March 2017, but starting December 15th the plucky quest-driven MMORPG will head into Early Access on Steam.
Everything You Need to Know About Samsung Gear VR Phone Compatibility
‘Dispatch’ Expertly Weaves a Tale of Grizzly Murders in VR Through the Sound of 9-1-1 Calls
Dispatch (2017), a new episodic story from VR pros Here Be Dragons, launched on Oculus Rift and Gear VR yesterday. Following a small-town emergency dispatcher named Ted (voiced by Martin Starr), you experience the story through a sort of half-imagined, half-real version of the grizzly events he’s privy to.
Fan-Created ‘xkcd’ VR Tool Lets You Make Your Own xkcd-style Webcomics in VR
Created by Winnipeg-based indie studio The Campfire Union, xkcd VR lets you become a character from Randall Munroe’s popular webcomic and create your very own stick figure-based stab at the comic’s famously acerbic humor.
Best VR Experiences to Introduce Your Family to Virtual Reality Over Thanksgiving
The turkey is in the oven, the cranberry sauce is in the can, and your VR setup is in the box ready to be shown off to the family at Thanksgiving. Since you’ll be doing a fair bit of VR evangelizing on the big day, an important question remains before you can plug your unwitting relatives into ‘the final computing platform’: what do you show off first?
Report: Apple Acquired VR Headset Startup Vrvana for $30 Million
Citing sources close to the deal, TechCrunch reports that VR headset maker Vrvana has been acquired by Apple for $30 million.
