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'Doctor Who: The Edge of Time' VR game arrives November 12th
While it might be an iconic TV franchise, Doctor Who hasn't exactly set the video game world alight over the years. BBC Studios, publisher PlayStack and developer Maze Theory are trying to remedy that with the promising Doctor Who: The Edge of Time, a VR game they'll release November 12th. It was previously scheduled for a September debut.
Google used photogrammetry to create a detailed VR tour of Versailles
Versailles palace is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the world, but fighting those crowds in person can be frustrating. Now, Google and the Château de Versailles have teamed up to take VR users on a private tour of Louis XIV's royal residence. It's the largest photogrammetry project ever done at the castle, with 21 rooms and 387,500 square feet of internal surfaces captured. HTC Vive and Oculus Rift users can handle and inspect over 100 sculptures, paintings and other works of art and see them with incredible close-up detail.
HTC Streamlink turns VR headsets into big screens for console gaming
One surprise announcement coming out of today's Vive Ecosystem Conference in Shenzhen is HTC's Streamlink, an in-house VR app that lets your PC-powered or standalone Vive headset -- like the new Vive Focus Plus -- receive HDMI signal from any USB video capture card -- some of which can be bought for as low as $65 per piece in China, according to an HTC rep. There are many potential use cases here, of course, but HTC is specifically pitching this as a new way of playing games on your consoles -- namely PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch and Xbox One S -- as well as watching videos from your set-top box.
'Beat Saber' players were so fast that they broke Steam VR
Beat Saber, one of the coolest and most physical games available on VR, has some incredibly fast players. Valve recently announced that it updated Steam VR to "increase limits of what we thought was humanly possible for controller motion based on tracking data from Beat Saber experts." That's because some players are so good at the rhythm game that Steam VR couldn't even track them.
HTC Vive Pro Eye hands-on: Everything is prettier with gaze-tracking
HTC's newest Vive Pro headset adds just one feature to the existing hardware, but it's a doozy -- integrated eye-tracking. Using Tobii technology, the Vive Pro Eye is able to follow users' eyeballs in real-time, letting developers gather data on exactly where they're looking and when, and opening the door for new, more immersive experiences. But eye-tracking isn't just a clever input method. Its existence also enables foveated rendering, a technique that essentially means VR is about to get a lot prettier.
HTC's next VR headset is the Vive Cosmos
The Vive Cosmos exists and it's built for folks who may have hesitated to buy a VR headset in the past. With this device, HTC is emphasizing comfort, simplicity and ease-of-access. Just like the Vive and Vive Pro, the Vive Cosmos needs a processing source (such as a PC) to function. However, HTC executives suggested it will be able to run on a PC or a smartphone, rather than just one of those devices. It has two front-facing cameras, two side-facing cameras, and uses two motion-tracking controllers.
HTC's Viveport Infinity subscription offers unlimited access to VR
Last year, HTC unveiled Viveport VR subscriptions, which let you download and play with up to five titles a month for around $9 a month. Today, at CES, the company is taking the VivePort subscription a step further. It announced a new VivePort Infinity plan, which it says is the world's first "infinite VR subscription." So instead of just five or so titles a month, you'll get unlimited access. Think of it as the Netflix of VR. Viveport Infinity will be available not just on Vive hardware like the Focus, but also all Wave VR partners. It'll be launching on April 5th, which is also HTC's "Vive Day." There's no word on pricing just yet. According to HTC, the number of Viveport subscriptions went up three times since last CES, and it also has three times the amount of content as before. Over 1,000 new games have been introduced to the platform since then. Just like the regular Viveport subscription, there's a free trial period and you can cancel at anytime. The service works on both Vive hardware as well as the Oculus Rift.
The Vive Pro Eye adds eyeball-tracking to HTC's VR headset line
The Vive Pro Eye is the next evolution of HTC's virtual reality headset line, and its shiniest new feature is integrated eye-tracking. HTC America General Manager Dan O'Brien revealed the Vive Pro Eye at CES, explaining how built-in eye-tracking can benefit industries from auto technology to fitness and gaming.
HTC Vive Pro McLaren Edition is made for Formula One fans
When HTC and McLaren announced their multi-year partnership back in May, the two had already teased an upcoming limited edition Vive headset along with some special VR content. Well, the wait is finally over for hardcore Formula One fans. As announced at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, said hardware turns out to be based on the Vive Pro full kit (not to be confused with the cheaper starter kit), which makes sense given that the Vive Pro is the official VR device for McLaren's eSports competition, Shadow Project. The Vive Pro McLaren Limited Edition is accented with the racing team's signature orange around the headset's front cameras, as well as on the menu button and strap on the controllers (2018 version, to go with the bundled Base Station 2.0 units). Naturally, this package comes with its very own box artwork. The damage for all of this is $1,549, which is a tad more than the standard full kit's $1,199 holiday offer.
HTC's standalone Vive Focus will soon get 6DoF VR controllers
While Facebook's Oculus Quest won't arrive until the spring of 2019, its seemingly beefier inside-out tracking plus 6DoF controllers may already pose a threat to HTC's Vive Focus, as well as to other Vive Wave-based standalone VR headsets -- including Pico's Neo (whose ultrasound-based 6DoF controllers are still missing) and the more recent G2. As such, HTC's first order of business is to release a developer kit for adding not one, but two 6DoF controllers to substitute the Vive Focus' single 3DoF controller -- one that relies on software to simulate a 6DoF feel, but also often requires re-centering.
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.
Can Jesus save virtual reality?
Vive Studios just debuted its first "feature-length" virtual reality movie at the Raindance Film Festival in London. It's neither sci-fi nor twee endearing animation, however: it's a Christian film based on Jesus' seven miracles, captured in 360-degree video, and it was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize for Best Immersive Story. The majority of the tale is told in wrap-around 8K video, with each of the miracles taking roughly 10 minutes. The episodic structure makes sense: Virtual reality is still tiring, both because you're wearing the mask and because you have a screen so close to your eyes. It's not the only issue with virtual reality, especially when it's used on lengthy media.
'Twin Peaks VR' will take you inside the mind-bending Red Room
Not everyone who watched the original Twin Peaks series can remember much more than a woman with a log and something about owls, but the title inarguably made a dent in the popular culture. Now, after a handful of movies, novels released and a follow-up TV series in 2017, the iconic horror drama is returning as a VR game. Twin Peaks VR will take you to the Red Room, a surreal place from the original series where people talk backwards and a doppelganger can hunt you down. The title is produced by Collider Games and Showtime — which aired Twin Peaks: The Return in 2017 — together with original series creator David Lynch.
Philip K. Dick's 'The Great C' for Oculus Rift arrives this October
The virtual reality adaptation of Philip K. Dick's The Great C is now making its way to VR headsets after debuting at the Venice Film Festival. It will be available for the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive as soon as October 9th, but PlayStation VR owners will unfortunately have to wait until 2019. Fans can expect to be thrust into a 37-minute immersive sci-fi adventure when they put on their headsets and fire up the experience.
Firefox brings the thrills of web browsing to VR
Mozilla's headset-focused web browser is finally ready for your cranium: Firefox Reality is available for HTC Vive, Oculus and Daydream devices through their respective stores. The software is designed from the start for AR and VR hardware, with an interface that revolves around pointer control and voice search. There's a virtual keyboard if you need it, but let's face it -- you'd probably go back to a regular screen if you wanted to type more than once in a blue Moon. And yes, Mozilla knows the flat web isn't so exciting in a headset. The home screen provides fast access to 3D content like Sketchfab models, so you won't be hurting for something to take advantage of AR and VR technology.
HTC's Vive Wireless Adapter will cost $300
14 months after HTC and Intel first showed off their wireless VR prototype, the two are finally ready to ship the product. According to HTC's announcement today, the Intel WiGig-based Vive Wireless Adapter is priced at $300 and works with both Vive and Vive Pro, though the latter requires an additional $60 for a "compatibility pack" -- it includes a connection cable, foam padding and an attachment device. For those who have been longing for this upgrade, they can pre-order it at Amazon, Best Buy, Microsoft, NewEgg and HTC's very own Vive.com starting from September 5th. This will be followed by the official launch on the 24th.
'Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice' is getting the VR treatment
British developer Ninja Theory is bringing its critically acclaimed Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice to the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive later this month. The new version will be available as a free update for anyone that has already bought the game on Steam, starting July 31st. According to Ninja Theory, the VR version is almost identical to the original game -- this isn't a side story, or some kind of technical demo that you can blast through in 30 minutes. It will retain the original's third-person perspective, keeping the player locked behind Senua. You will, however, be able to turn the headset to look around and gently guide the Pict warrior in a different direction.
Philip K. Dick’s ‘The Great C’ is coming to VR
A VR adaptation of Philip K. Dick's short story "The Great C" is headed to the Venice Film Festival, Variety reports. First published in 1953, the story centers on a human tribe living in a post-apocalyptic world set in the future. Each year, the tribe must send a human sacrifice to a computer called the Great C that rules the world. In the VR adaptation, created by Secret Location, a woman named Clare grapples with whether to accept the tradition and let her fiancé be sacrificed or take a stand against the cruelty.
The Mario Kart VR experience is coming to London
Last year, Engadget Senior Editor Richard Lai tried out the Bandai Namco VR arcade in Japan, and he had great things to say. But the experience was limited to Tokyo -- that is, until now. Today, Bandai Namco announced that the company will bring its Mario Kart VR arcade experience to London.
HTC's June sales highlight the need for its recent layoffs
HTC can't catch a break. The company has announced that in June its sales fell "nearly 68 percent," according to Reuters. Earlier this week, the company revealed it would cull some 1,500 employees from its Taiwan manufacturing division in its chase for profitability. The last several years haven't been kind to the company, rife with reorganizations (including one earlier this year), key staff members resigning and desperate efforts to put money in the bank by seemingly any means possible -- including selling its Pixel team to Google for $1.1 billion. Recently, the company combined its virtual reality and mobile divisions in an effort to refocus. Given this week's news, and the Pixel sale as evidence, it wouldn't be surprising if, in a last-ditch effort to return to profitability, HTC sold its Vive team to Valve. The two worked closely on the device, and it's not like Valve's coffers will run dry anytime soon. Where would that leave HTC though, like BlackBerry? Vive is the company's last stand, from the looks of it, and selling it off sounds like a Hail Mary. More than that, pulling a BlackBerry only works if the handsets HTC produces capture the market, something that hasn't happened in years. And unlike BlackBerry's keyboards, HTC doesn't have one defining feature, let alone two (a reputation for enterprise-grade security). The new reduction in headcount probably won't have the same financial benefits of the Pixel sale, but we'll have to wait for HTC's next earnings report to know for sure.
