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The makers of 'What the Golf' are back with VR game 'What the Bat'
More physics-based silliness is coming to Meta Quest 2 and SteamVR this year.
'Farpoint' studio Impulse Gear will release a VR hero shooter this summer
Among the characters in 'Larcenauts' is [checks notes] a sentient, brawling mushroom.
'Sam & Max: This Time It's Virtual!' heads to Oculus Quest this summer
SteamVR, Viveport and PSVR releases will follow in 2021 and 2022.
SteamVR now supports the OpenXR standard
SteamVR's latest update for Windows officially adds support for OpenXR, the standard meant to make cross-platform AR and VR apps more common.
Steam add-on makes VR games more accessible
New WalkinVR Driver software makes VR games in Steam more accessible to people with disabilities.
'Half-Life: Alyx' added nearly 1 million VR users to Steam
'Half-Life: Alyx' prompted a huge surge in VR users on Steam, although headset owners are still a tiny portion of the user base.
Valve will no longer support SteamVR on macOS
Valve has cancelled support for SteamVR on macOS. Apple may eventually create its own AR/VR headset, though.
Valve's Index VR headset will go back on sale March 9th
If you're itching to buy a Valve Index to get the 'official' Half-Life: Alyx experience, you'll soon have another chance... if you move quickly. A Valve spokesperson talking to Engadget has confirmed an earlier report that Index kits will once more be available to buy on March 9th at 1PM Eastern. However, it expects "high demand" to clear out stock of the VR headset that same day. Miss out on this batch and you'll have to settle for inventory on a first-come-first-serve basis, which could leave you waiting a while when the coronavirus outbreak has reduced production.
Valve will unveil its 'Half-Life: Alyx' VR game on Thursday
No, your eyes aren't deceiving you: after 12 years, Valve has announced a new Half-Life game. The company has confirmed swirling rumors with word that it will reveal Half-Life: Alyx, its "flagship VR game," on November 21st at 1PM Eastern. It didn't provide any details about the game itself, but this backs claims that the game will switch attention to Alyx Vance, the resistance fighter and Gordan Freeman ally who played a key role in Half-Life 2.
Oculus blocks SteamVR streaming on Quest
The developer of an Oculus Quest app called Virtual Desktop introduced an experimental feature that allowed users to stream SteamVR games to their Oculus headset. He's now being forced by Oculus to remove the feature. Guy Godin took to Reddit yesterday to inform the Oculus Quest community that he will be dropping the ability to stream SteamVR games at Oculus' behest.
Valve's Index VR kit goes on sale tomorrow for $999
Valve fans rejoice! The company today unveiled its Index VR kit, which consists of a $500 headset, $279 controllers and two $149 base stations. You can get the entire kit for $1,000 or the headset and controllers for $749, or buy everything individually if you prefer. Pre-orders begin tomorrow.
Firefox virtual reality web browser comes to SteamVR this summer
Mozilla's Firefox Reality browser has been available through a number of platform-specific VR portals, but it'll soon be available in a relatively neutral form. The developer has revealed that it's working with Valve to bring Firefox Reality to SteamVR sometime this summer. You'll install it through a new web dashboard button and browse pages in a window that floats over "any OpenVR experience." To put it another way, you could check a walkthrough for a VR-capable Steam game while you're playing it, whether you're using an HTC Vive, an Oculus Rift or Valve's own Index headset.
Valve's Index VR headset will ship June 15th
You won't have to wait until May to learn more about Valve's Index VR headset. Valve briefly posted (and promptly removed) unfinished pages for the Index that offer both a clearer look at the headset and reveal a June 15th ship date (Engadget has confirmed this with Valve). While the company didn't provide vivid detail about the headset proper, it showed that the Index would included its own headphones. It also appears that you'll have the option of buying separate base stations and Knuckles motion controllers (now Valve Index Controllers) on top of any potential bundles.
Robert Rodriguez releases over-the-top VR film 'The Limit'
Want to see how well Robert Rodriguez' directorial skills translate to virtual reality? Now's your chance. Rodriguez and STX have released The Limit on nearly every major VR-capable platform, including Oculus headsets, HTC's Vive line, Android, iOS, PlayStation VR and Windows Mixed Reality. Shell out $10 ($8 on phones, and half-off during the launch period) and you'll take part in a 20-minute film where you recruit a "super-assassin" (Michelle Rodriguez) to recover your identity and seek justice. To no one's surprise, this involves a whole lot of punching, shooting and gratuitous explosions. Norman Reedus also plays a pivotal role, although the trailer suggests he might not be so friendly.
Steam VR update lets low-end PCs run games more smoothly
Steam VR has introduced a feature for Beta called "Motion Smoothing," which will give PCs with hardware that aren't quite top of the line the power to deliver VR experiences more smoothly. It functions like Motion Smoothing for TV and Asynchronous Spacewarp for Oculus devices, which are frame-rate smoothing techniques that generate synthetic frames between two real ones in order to avoid a stuttery experience.
HTC hints at multi-room VR using Steam
You may know that VR in large rooms is becoming a reality, but what about venturing between rooms? It might happen sooner than you think, albeit with a few caveats. HTC has shown off an experience that used a SteamVR beta, a Vive Pro and 16 base stations to allow VR between multiple rooms. A tester successfully wandered between rooms finding tracked objects as he wandered through a complex but connected space. Don't expect to play VR games that span your entire home, though, as there are some limitations.
Valve's Knuckles EV2 controller will let you squeeze things in VR
Valve originally introduced its vertical-grip "Knuckles" controllers for VR in 2016, and shipped working models to developers last year. Now the company sending game makers another version, the EV2, that has revamped buttons, straps and a slew of sensors that essentially translate finger motion and pressure to let you touch, grab and squeeze objects inside games.
SteamVR Input beta test helps controllers adapt to any VR game
With the latest beta version of SteamVR Valve is now testing a new setup for controllers that makes things more customizable no matter what controllers you're using, what the game was designed for, or what capabilities the user has. With the new SteamVR Input system, developers are now able to offer alternate control schemes without updating the game itself, while gamers can adjust bindings for buttons and switches to their liking, then share those setups via Steam Workshop.
HTC slips out an upgraded VR object tracker
HTC's Vive Tracker is barely half a year old for everyday users, but it's already being replaced with a new model. The VR hardware maker has confirmed to Tom's Hardware that it's now selling an updated "Vive Tracker (2018)" for the same $99. The product listing doesn't say much about what's new. However, they're understood to support SteamVR Tracking 2.0, enabling object tracking in much larger (33ft by 33ft) spaces. That could make this new model virtually mandatory for some VR enthusiasts -- the old model isn't expected to work with 2.0 base stations.
SteamVR’s auto resolution knows what your GPU can handle
Valve updated SteamVR today with a new feature that automatically adjusts your headset's resolution up to what your GPU can optimally render. This should function like autofocus, taking the decision-making out of the user's hands and reassuring developers that their content is being enjoyed at the best resolution. But it could also make VR more accessible, since it also auto-selects settings on lower-performing GPUs, letting experiences run more smoothly on more affordable machines.
