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HTC launches a monthly subscription for Vive VR apps
Virtual reality is still in its infancy, so it's no surprise that most apps for the HTC Vive are smaller, experimental and ultimately expendable experiences. If you're a new headset owner, it can be hard to know which games are worth buying, or to get a good sense of what the medium has to offer without spending hundreds of dollars. To help, HTC is launching the Viveport Subscription, a scheme that offers five VR apps for $6.99 per month. You choose from a pool of 50 and can rotate your selection every four weeks, keeping your library and knowledge of the platform fresh.
Climb Mount Everest in VR on your Oculus Rift
You no longer need an HTC Vive to scale Mount Everest in VR on your PC. Sólfar Studios and RVX have released Everest VR for the Oculus Rift, bringing the virtual ascent to Facebook's headset. It'll be familiar if you've tried the Vive version, but a few things have improved since the original launch. There's a new sequence (the Lhotse Face), and an expanded God Mode lets you see the Himalayas from perspectives that aren't possible for a mountaineer. Logically, Oculus Touch support is present if you'd prefer a more hands-on approach.
HTC wants to bring back the arcade for its VR gear
HTC's high-end VR gear is expensive and takes up a fair amount of space that most people simply don't have. That's why the company is hoping to bring back the old-fashioned arcade in the hope of giving more people access to the future of gaming. At a VR developer conference, HTC announced that two popular titles are coming to Viveport Arcade, it's licensing platform enabling titles to be played in public spaces. It's hoped that the program will pave the way for businesses to create "thousands" of new arcades by the end of 2017.
The brain hacks that make climbing in VR feel real
When I talk to friends and family about VR, their most pressing questions are usually about immersion. Once they've finished asking about the possibility of vomiting, the conversation turns to: "And how real does it feel?" "Do you believe you're really there?" Truth be told, I've never had that sensation -- a complete and utter submission of my senses -- although developers are getting better at tricking my brain for a few fleeting moments.
'Everest VR' will take gamers up a CGI mountain next year
Along with a "mobile supercomputer," NVIDIA dropped off this teaser for Everest VR at its event earlier this week. Made by Sólfar Studios and RVX, it used NVIDIA's GPU to mash up over 300,000 high res pictures of the mountain range to create a 3D mesh and textures that is claimed to be the "definitive" CGI model of Everest. Some of Sólfar's personnel come from CCP where they worked on EVE Online, but this new company is all about creating purely VR experiences, like Everest for PCs and Godling for Playstation VR. I'm not going to climb Everest to find out exactly how realistic the simulation is, but everyone can form their own opinion when the full experience is available next year.
