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Posted by Ben Huber on Mar 2, 2015 in Tech 
The past few days, rumors swirled of a Valve virtual reality headset being announced with a major hardware producer. Today, in Barcelona, HTC announced that they’ll be the ones partnering with Valve to create a new VR headset called the Vive that will release before the end of 2015. The device will use two 1200 x 1080 screens (one for each eye) that’ll refresh at 90 frames per second. In addition to the standard accelerometer and gyrosensor, there will also be two laser position sensors that’ll track your head in a 15-by-15 foot space. The VR hardware race is heating up, now with Oculus, Valve, Sony, and possibly Nvidia all planning headsets (plus Apple is investigating the area too). This should be fun to watch! Read more…
Tags: HTC, oculus rift, Valve, Virtual Reality
Posted by Ben Huber on Sep 22, 2014 in Science, Tech 
Yup, Oculus is still at it, and they’ve announced a new iteration of their Rift virtual reality headset. Once again, this isn’t the final consumer-ready version — it’s another prototype for developers to use to create games for the platform. This new hardware, named Crescent Bay, was announced at Oculus Connect, an official event set up by Oculus to give developers the chance to try the latest hardware and help them overcome any challenges VR might have. It features additional track sensors for a full 360 degrees of movement, a lighter design, an improved screen with less gaps between pixels, and integrated optional audio with 3D positioning. We’re getting closer and closer to consumer VR, and I’m so very excited. As you might guess, there’s no word on when the final version will come out, but so far 2015 seems a solid bet. Read more…
Tags: oculus rift, Virtual Reality
Posted by Ben Huber on Jul 25, 2014 in Cinema, Videogames 
Legendary Pictures’ booth at SDCC is all about Guillermo del Toro. On one side is a section devoted to his upcoming haunted house film, Crimson Peak, and on the other, they’ve got a big Pacific Rim section. Featuring what, you might ask? An Oculus Rift experience! You can put on the headset and see through the eyes of a Jaeger pilot right alongside Charlie Hunnam as Raleigh. It’s non-interactive, so you’re just along for the ride, but you can look in every direction and watch the action happen as if you were really there. This uses the new DK2 Rifts, which are being sent out to developers as we speak, so we should see more Rift content in the near future! Read more…
Tags: oculus rift, Pacific Rim, San Diego Comic-Con 2014
Posted by Ben Huber on Mar 29, 2014 in Tech 
Everyone was surprised by Facebook buying Oculus VR earlier this week. It seemed like an odd fit, and many people were incensed by the acquisition, but my opinion on it is as follows: Facebook might not be the best fit, but Oculus needed money — badly. So far, Facebook has let their last two acquisitions, Instagram and WhatsApp, operate on their own, so I believe we can expect similarly of Oculus. As part of their new budget, Oculus has hired Valve’s Michael Abrash, a pioneer of the VR movement and creator behind Valve’s VR tech demo that got so much press. At Oculus, he’ll be reuniting with his old pal John Carmack to build Oculus up. Let’s hope it all goes well! Read more…
Tags: Facebook, oculus rift, Valve, Virtual Reality
Posted by Bob Muir on Mar 26, 2014 in Tech, Videogames 
In an unexpected move, Facebook has announced their plans to buy Oculus VR, the company making the Kickstarter-ed Oculus Rift virtual reality headset. Facebook is paying out around $2 billion, which includes $400 million and 23.1 million Facebook shares, with another $300 million tied to undisclosed milestones. The partnership seems completely random, but Facebook and Oculus VR reason that this is another step in connecting people. After games, the plan is to expand the technology into other areas, like getting ring-side seats at a sports game, consulting with a doctor, and going to school. Read more…
Tags: Facebook, oculus rift, Virtual Reality
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 8, 2013 in Tech, Videogames 
John Carmack, co-creator of Doom, co-founder of Id Software, and programmer on many, many computer games is joining Oculus VR, the company making the Oculus Rift, a virtual reality headset for use with games. Carmack was the one who debuted the device at E3 2012, and now he is taking a full-time position at the company as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). However, the award-winning programmer isn’t really leaving Id, either. He’s still planning on working on games, and he’s also not abandoning his rocket company Armadillo Aerospace. Read more…
Tags: id Software, oculus rift, Rocket
Posted by Ben Huber on Jul 8, 2013 in Videogames 
With Oculus Rift’s all over the place now, more and more tech demos and games have been popping up with support for the impressive virtual reality goggles. Perhaps one of the most exciting genres of expansion will be space flight sims. It works well with the current limitations of VR (sitting in one place, only able to look around) and is simultaneously impressive visually. Cymatic Bruce has returned to take a quick look at three recent space ship games: Delta Draconis, GoD Factory, and Space War. I must admit, my own Oculus Rift headset will be arriving in mere days, so this is a great look at what to prepare for. Read more…
Tags: oculus rift, spaceships
Posted by Ben Huber on Jun 24, 2013 in Videogames 
If you want a great way to show off your Oculus Rift, look no further. User Arpvidz on YouTube has been testing out a lot of software for the Oculus Rift, but none impressed him (or I) as much as Titans of Space – a virtual tour through our solar system and space. They take advantage of the 3D in the Rift excellently, and make the planets and stars suitably huge (and even then, obviously, not to scale!) which leaves Arpvidz speechless. While you can download the demo here and try it out, you’ll need an Oculus Rift to take full advantage of it. Although you could try the eye-crossing trick on the YouTube video below! Read more…
Tags: oculus rift
Posted by Ben Huber on Apr 27, 2013 in Videogames 
Now that’s a mouthful! At the EVE Online Fanfast this year, the EVE Online developers showed off their latest creation: a space dogfighting game. The kicker? It’s viewed in first-person via the Oculus Rift, so it feels like you’re actually piloting the ship. This isn’t a full game yet, and the creators aren’t even sure when or if they’ll release it, as it was created as a fun side-project in just 7 weeks. Still, they set it up at the convention and showed it off, so hopefully they have aspirations to get it to the public one day. Penny Arcade Report has a longer write-up of the game, and below the jump is some video. It looks great! I’m just going to continue waiting patiently for my Rift to arrive. Read more…
Tags: EVE Online, oculus rift
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 10, 2013 in Fandom, Videogames 
You’ve probably seen me post about the Oculus Rift before, but this mod takes it to a whole other level. Using an Xbox Top Shot Elite controller, a tracking device taped on top, and an Oculus Rift, Nathan Andrews has created an awesome-looking mod for Half-Life 2. Your view and gun controls are separated and controlled individually by each motion tracker, thus allowing you to feel closer to being in the game itself. It’s a really neat setup, and one that I hope can be replicated easily, especially with the Rift dev kits coming out so soon. Watch the video below! Read more…
Tags: Half-Life, Mod, oculus rift
Posted by Ben Huber on Jan 14, 2013 in Tech 
Have you been paying attention to the long and exciting story of the Oculus Rift? It’s a virtual reality headset that has been making waves in the gaming community as the first “good” VR equipment. Originally a Kickstarter that took flight, it has now grown into an impressive production that will launch a developer SDK in March along with a prototype headset, and a final consumer version by the end of the year. So far every impression of it has been glowing, with fans and journalists alike saying that it’s a great experience, if a bit disorienting at first. Check out some video below! Read more…
Tags: oculus rift
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