At Oculus Connect 2015 I sat down with Oculus Founder Palmer Luckey to learn more about the latest at the conference and the impending launch of the consumer version of the Oculus Rift. Although the company’s 2012 Kickstarter seems like ancient history, Oculus may yet have a little something in store for the folks that helped to get the ball rolling.
At Oculus Connect 2015, key members of the teams responsible for designing and manufacturing the consumer Oculus Rift took to the stage to talk about the process of creating a headset for mass production. It was revealed that the first headset has already rolled off of the production line.
Despite the rise of digital distribution, GameStop is a bricks and mortar game retailer who’s managed to weather the changing seasons remarkably well. The company has it’s hands in multiple “channels”, including PC game download portals and games media, in the guise of magazine Game Informer. Now, the GameStop Corporation’s Chief Executive has thrown his support behind the coming virtual reality revolution stating “We’re going to be the destination for VR”.
There are few directors who can lay claim to creating crucial pillars of geek culture in the way Ridley Scott can. The Alien and Blade Runner director has now gone on record saying that he is working on a new virtual reality experience.
VR Launchpad is the startup showcase for virtual reality companies. Tickets for the event are now on sale. Secure your seat for access to a select group of VR startups vetted by VR community and media leaders, SVVR and Road to VR.
As we approach the Rift’s Q1 2016 consumer launch, Oculus Founder Palmer Luckey has given us a new minimum for the still unannounced Oculus Rift price.
VR Launchpad, presented by SVVR and Road to VR, is the startup showcase for virtual reality companies. Applications for startups and entrepreneurs are now available. Apply today for an invitation to pitch before a crowd of press and investors.
Last week’s Connect conference was three days of exciting announcements from Oculus. Join Road to VR’s Ben Lang as he and Cymatic Bruce host special guest Brad Herman inside of VR itself to recap and discuss the latest news from the conference. The action goes down inside of AltspaceVR on September 30th @ 8:30pm PT (your timezone here); you can join and participate with or without a VR headset!
Microsoft has sent some confusing signals about their commitment to both their Windows Phone platform and mobile virtual reality by promoting a Russian VR hackathon using an image of a ‘Cardboard’ like mobile virtual reality viewer called the ‘Microsoft VR Kit’, before pulling it hours later.
Now that some of the hardware problems surrounding virtual reality, such as 1:1 head tracking and high frame-rate displays, are being resolved, the ways in which a player’s physiology can be brought in line with the mind are being looked to as the next step for complete immersion. This latest contraption aiming to do just that is called CableRobot Simulator and it’s one of the most unique motion platforms we’ve yet seen.
Dead and Buried is the latest game to come from the first-party Oculus Studios; built specifically for the company’s Touch controllers, the game has you gunning down targets backset by an old west mining operation. With your hands directly in the game, there’s room for your own style to break through into the experience.
Strangers with Patrick Watson by Felix & Paul Studios has been showered with much acclaim. The VR video, which gives users a piano-side seat for an intimate performance by musician Patrick Watson, has only ever been publicly available on Samsung’s Gear VR, but a remastered version will make its way to the Oculus Rift with a substantial increase in quality.
CNN and NextVR are teaming up to bring the Democratic presidential debate to VR this October. While NextVR captured the recent CNN Ronald Reagan Debate in VR, the upcoming Democratic debate will be the first to be livestreamed in VR.
Felix & Paul Studios along with Matter Unlimited have collaborated on a project documenting the work the Clinton Global Initiative have been doing in the region of East Africa. Follow President Bill Clinton and daughter Chelsea in 360 video as they visit the region to find out what impact the CGI have had on the region.
