Sony's PlayStation VR system is well and away the easiest form of non-mobile virtual reality in the world at the moment. With the introduction of VR to the console world came the possibility that there'd be more than a couple splits in content - and usability. Interaction with the 3D content in a virtual reality, from your couch, in your living room - that's the true dream. Now add a pair of pants.
Today is a pretty big day for the folks at Oculus, as the company is launching two new virtual reality headsets. Coming out of the gate today are the Oculus Rift S and Quest, and though the goal of each headset may be bringing VR to the masses, they both do it in very different ways. The headset you go for ultimately depends on what kind of set up you're looking to have.
Later this month, Sony will release two new PlayStation VR bundles with the hardware players need to get started with the system, as well as games ranging from golf to action and horror. The games come in the form of both Blu-ray discs and digital voucher codes (depending on title), and they're joined by the expected PS VR demo disc with additional experiences.
Google is known for cooking up many interesting experiments and investing in them as far as making them available to consumers. It is, however, also known for sometimes flip-flopping on those and abandoning them with very little warning. Nowhere is that more evident than Google's augmented and virtual reality thrusts, which has undergone some significant changes over the years. At I/O 2019, Google reaffirms its commitment to its ARCore platform will keeping ominously silent on Daydream VR.
Dan Carlin, the man behind popular podcast Hardcore History, has teamed with MWM Immersive to announce War Remains, a virtual reality experience that takes viewers into the First World War via "practical effects and a tactile physical installation." MWM Immersive will premiere the experience at Tribeca Film Festival's immersive program this month, after which point War Remains will launch in Austin, Texas.
The New York Police Department is testing the use of virtual reality as a training tool for officers. The test started in early April and involved a couple hundred officers over the course of a single week at a facility in Brooklyn. This is the first time the NYPD has used virtual reality for training, and it joins the police department's recent adoption of drone technologies.
Back at the end of March, Valve revealed - or at least teased - the Index, a new VR headset it's been working on behind the scenes. That teaser didn't come with any significant information on capabilities or hardware requirements, but it did suggest that we could look forward to learning more in May. With May now just around the corner, Valve announced today that the headset will go up for pre-order tomorrow.
Drivers are often told not to look at screens and keep their eyes on the road while driving. That, however, probably didn't take into account when the screen is the road and is on your face anyway. Although you probably will never drive a real car on a real road wearing a VR headset, there will be "safe" places soon where you can. But why bother driving down boarding highways when you can bump into each other while trying to avoid menacing giant steampunk robot as well.
If you're one of the folks who picked up Nintendo Labo's new VR kit, then you can play both The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey in VR beginning today. Nintendo has pushed updates to both games that enable Labo support, allowing you to pop your Switch into your headset and play both games with a fresh perspective.
In just a few days, Nintendo will be rolling out an update to two of the Nintendo Switch's most iconic games. That update will bring a new mode to Super Mario Odyssey and Zelda: Breath of the Wild. a mode that will let users see them in a different way. And what better way to see those new worlds, or at least Hyrule, than with a VR headset. Nintendo just recently unveiled a cardboard one. Fortunately, one eager beaver set out to modify that plain DIY box and make it an almost true VR headset.
Oculus, the Facebook-owned VR hardware company, is gearing up to release a pair of new headsets in the coming weeks: the Oculus Quest and Oculus Rift S. But during the manufacturing process it seems some unintended Easter eggs were added to the motion controllers that will ship with the devices, the company has revealed. Silly phrases like "This Space For Rent" have been printed inside "tens of thousands" of the new Touch controllers, a joke that was only meant for prototype models.
The tragedy of the Virtual Boy may have traumatized Nintendo for a time but now it seems to be giving virtual reality another shot, just from a different angle. Last month, it introduced its latest Labo kit that turned the Switch into a makeshift machine. Now it is announcing that its cardboard-based VR Goggles won't be limited to just small games and experiments, it will also open new experiences to two of the Switch's most popular games.