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'Arca's Path' is the VR puzzle game I've been waiting for
Super Monkey Ball in virtual reality, but instead of using a gamepad to control the titular sphere, movement is dictated with head-tracking -- that isn't a reductive judgment of physics-based labyrinth Arca's Path, it's just the easiest way of describing the debut game from Dream Reality Interactive.
VR puzzler 'Moss' and its adorable mouse are coming to PC
Enchanting adventure Moss might have launched as a PlayStation VR exclusive, but developer Polyarc has confirmed it won't be tethered to Sony's console any longer. It's finally available on both Oculus Rift and HTC Vive for $30.
HTC brings multiplayer VR games to Dave & Busters this month
Playing games in virtual reality can feel kinda anti-social, even when your buddies are in the same room. You're probably locked into a world only you can see properly, and you'll likely be wearing headphones for true immersion. But, if you want to jump into a virtual experience with your buddies in the same place, you'll get to do so at Dave & Buster's arcades very soon.
Seagate's hard drive/battery fanny pack is made for VR
In addition to the major software update for the Vive Focus standalone VR headset yesterday, HTC also unveiled the Seagate VR Power Drive which, as the name suggests, is a hybrid of a power bank and a portable hard drive. This isn't an entirely new idea, of course, but it's the first of such kind designed with VR usage in mind. Specifically, this device packs 5,000 mAh of battery juice -- almost doubling that of the Vive Focus -- plus 1TB of storage space (but no speed specs yet), and it has a detachable belt clip which can be locked at every 90 degrees.
Vive Focus VR update lets you take calls from the real world
Even though the Vive Focus won't be available outside of China until later this year, it's already getting a major update which will make it a lot more versatile. At the annual Vive Ecosystem Conference in Shenzhen just now, HTC announced that as of today, its standalone 6DoF (6 degrees of freedom) VR headset can install a "System Update 2.0" which adds a handful of notable features. One of the main highlights here is the added ability to receive calls, social notifications and messages from a paired HTC smartphone, with the recently unveiled U12+ being the first model to take advantage of this immersive feature. This is nothing new for existing Vive users, of course, as the Vive companion mobile app already supports the PC-powered headset on this end.
$1,099 Vive Pro Starter Kit has everything you need for VR but the PC
One of the bigger complaints about the HTC Vive Pro from our review was that the $799 headset felt like an upgrade path for existing Vive owners -- not an entry point for new users. HTC and Valve must've heard those complaints and the pair will start packing its existing $300 accessory pack in with the Vive Pro. The Vive Pro Starter Kit will set you back $1,099, and it comes with the Vive Pro headset, two Vive 1.0 controllers and a pair of Vive 1.0 base stations. More than that, if you already have your Pro, HTC is giving away $100 store credits for the Viveport marketplace. The bundle will go on sale April 5th.
HTC's Vive Pro headset is available to pre-order for $799
Once staunch rivals in high-end VR, it now seems Facebook-owned Oculus and HTC are treading different paths. While Oculus is gearing up to launch a more affordable standalone headset, HTC has gone in the opposite direction with the Vive Pro, a new top-of-the range facehugger announced at this year's CES. Today, HTC has revealed the Vive Pro is the antithesis of affordable at $799/£799, and that it's now available to pre-order globally ahead of its April 5th shipping date.
Immerse yourself in ‘Ready Player One’ with HTC's VR experiences
The upcoming Spielberg-directed nostalgia orgy Ready Player One depicts a run-down future where the only escape is diving into a fully immersive cyberspace. Soon, you'll be able to visit that digital world, too, when HTC's Vive Studios releases a slew of VR experiences created by a variety of developers. They'll be available to download later in March, but first they'll come to events and 'VR Arcades' across the US -- including at South By Southwest.
MLB's 'Home Run Derby VR' is coming to PSVR and Vive this spring
Major League Baseball has gotten into VR lately with a host of initiatives, including partnerships with Google for At Bat VR, Intel for "Game of the Week" live streams and Samsung for immersive highlights of the 2017 season. Now MLB is bringing a VR Home Run Derby that debuted at the All-Star Game and select ballparks to your home via PlayStation VR and HTC Vive.
The auto industry is head over heels for VR
Virtual reality and augmented reality are all over the North American International Auto Show floor. Chevrolet, Ford, Honda, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen are all using the tech to show off their latest cars and concepts. During the industry preview days (the show is open to the public through Sunday, January 28th) lines to try the experiences stretched around each booth. The value to prospective customers is directly tied to the quality of each experience, though, and that quality shifts dramatically from one automaker to the next. Instead of thoughtful experiences that work within VR's current limitations and are simultaneously informative and entertaining, more often than not, the VR implementations felt like cheap amusement park gimmicks with little regard for the user's comfort.
BMW used virtual reality to bring its latest crossover SUV to CES
When you're in Las Vegas for CES and want to show off a brand-new car before its debut at the North American Auto Show, what do you do? Well, if you're BMW, you do it virtually. The German automaker "brought" its new X2 crossover SUV to the desert with virtual reality, in a first-of-its-kind (for BMW, at least) demo experience that lets potential customers get behind the wheel and poke around the vehicle's nooks and crannies. BMW sees this as a natural bridge between looking at pictures online and reading brochures, and for the automaker, the medium seems like a logical next step to updating the shopping experience for the future.
Take a good look at the HTC Vive Pro and VR wireless adapter
The Vive Pro is a beefed-up version of HTC's original VR headset, adding integrated 3D audio and high-res OLED screens displaying 2880 x 1600 combined, with a pixel density of 615 pixels per inch, an upgrade from 448ppi. The headset also addresses some of the first iteration's fit issues, adding a new headstrap with a sizing dial that helps redistribute weight, so it's not all collected at the front of the headset.
HTC has a new high-res Vive Pro VR headset
HTC has a few upgrades in store for its virtual reality headset, the Vive. First up, the Vive Pro, which features a pair of higher-resolution OLED screens (2,880 x 1,600 versus the original's 1,080 x 1,200) and built-in headphones. The Oculus Rift headset had attached headphones when it launched in early 2016.
Live from the HTC Vive press event at CES 2018!
HTC Vive is one of the most promising virtual reality platforms at the moment, and today at CES 2018 we'll get to see what the company has planned for the future. It's not clear if there will be any new hardware unveiled, but we'll definitely learn more details about HTC Vive's latest headset, the Focus. Of course, that means there will be a bunch of never-before-seen VR experiences, so let's hope there are some good, mind-blowing ones. We'll be liveblogging the event at 1PM PT/4PM ET -- bookmark this page to keep up with the action as it happens.
'Blade Runner 9732' recreates Deckard's apartment in VR
Fans of Blade Runner can now have an interactive snoop through spacecop Rick Deckard's LA apartment thanks to a lovingly-built, fan-made virtual tour. The game, Blade Runner 9732 (the number of Deckard's apartment, obviously) has been created by super fan Quentin Lengele, who's faithfully recreated as much of the set as possible for you to explore. Yes, the ESPER machine is there, and yes, you can sit on the balcony watching the rain-lashed city.
Facebook brings its social VR 'Spaces' to the HTC Vive
Earlier this year, Facebook unveiled Spaces, its inaugural attempt at bringing the social network to VR. And, seeing as Facebook also owns Oculus, it's no surprise that Spaces was a Rift-exclusive at launch. But, just as Facebook is on every platform and device imaginable, the plan for Spaces was always to have it spread far and wide as well. That's why starting today, Facebook is making Spaces available for the HTC Vive, marking the first time the app is going cross-platform.
'L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files' is available now for HTC Vive
We were excited to hear that 2011 detective simulator L.A. Noire was headed to modern consoles and the HTC Vive for some VR action. The title received some visual upgrades, too, making the jump to PS4, Xbox One and the Switch a bit more graphically appealing. The Vive version is now available as a set of seven self-contained cases from the original game, remade for virtual reality and titled L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files.
I can finally do cartwheels in VR with HTC's Vive Focus
After fully unveiling the Vive Focus, HTC finally allowed lucky folks like myself to properly test out the six-degrees-of-freedom (6DoF) standalone VR headset. For the first time, I can actually walk around in VR without being tethered to a PC nor confined to a fixed space. It's a truly mobile VR solution -- more so than smartphone-based VR headsets, which only let you look around on the spot (3DoF). Naturally, I used this opportunity to test this 6DoF tracking to its limits, even if it meant doing cartwheels while wearing the Vive Focus.
HTC's standalone Vive Focus launches in China for $600
While we've already taken a good look at the Vive Focus standalone VR headset with 6DoF "world-scale" tracking, HTC had yet to reveal its detailed specs nor price, but almost a month later, we finally have some answers. First of all, as of December 12th, the device will be available for pre-ordering in China starting from 3,999 yuan or about $600, with shipment commencing in January next year. The base price isn't far off from the original PC-tethered Vive which is priced at $599 before tax in the US (in China it costs 5,488 yuan which is about $830). Better yet, that price applies to a new white version which, in my opinion, is much better looking than the original "electric blue" -- that's now a limited edition priced at 4,299 yuan (about $650).
The best VR headsets
It's crazy to think how far VR has come over the past few years. While the technology made its big consumer debut in 2016, with the launch of the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR, we also spent plenty of time anticipating its arrival. It promised to be the biggest technological shift since the rise of smartphones -- and potentially since the dawn of the internet. This year, VR headsets got cheaper, simpler (especially with Microsoft's new Mixed Reality platform) and more worthwhile, thanks to the launch of new immersive titles like Rez Infinite. We've gone from having too few VR options to having too many. These are the best.
