Why Oculus Quest is so important for the future of VR
Virtual reality is quickly progressing in the public eye from a gimmick to an essential life tool. As technology continues it’s inevitable march forward...
by VR NOSY
Posted on April 24, 2020 at 12:00 PM
Creating a New Way to Game in Virtual Reality
For nearly as long as computers have been around, the concept of virtual reality has existed. We long to create realistic gameplay that feels as though you have truly teleported to another world. For nearly as long as we have had the technology, we have been trying to create worlds that we could integrate ourselves in entirely. Early models of virtual reality were relatively simplistic, with headsets being created allowing users to "block out the real world" but didn't give you the true feeling of being in the game.
However, as the technology around us has continued to consistently develop and become more powerful, companies have begun throwing millions of dollars into developing consoles made specifically for virtual reality games. There is a long history behind the development of these consoles, however, leading up to what has inevitably been one of the most successful virtual reality headsets of all time - the Quest.
What Did Virtual Reality Games Initially Look like?
In the beginning, these games were very similar to many games we currently know and love. The concept of virtual reality, at that point, was less than feeling as though you were truly immersed in the game and more to give the user the ability to block out the outside world. Often, virtual reality consisted of a headset that worked with a smart-phone, which would then utilize the phone's motion-sensing abilities to allow the user to interact with what was otherwise a 2D game.
This lost a lot of appeal for many, however, as often in order to make selections in the game, the user had to use buttons on their phone, breaking the virtual illusion. Furthermore, it could often be somewhat difficult to navigate these games - they lacked the technology that allowed players to move within the game safely, often leaving them stationary. While these headsets were often great for watching movies and other similar experiences, they typically failed to make for realistic virtual reality gameplay.
Soon, companies such as Samsung and Google started to really invest in virtual reality systems, creating headsets that worked with the user's phone, but also came with controllers and featured proximity sensors, gyroscopes, and accelerometers that provided a much more realistic sense of play. These, even, were not fool-proof, though. Often, the games could only be as graphically powerful and thorough as the phone allowed, and many app designers struggled to create fully developed and well thought out games that were realistic while also being of file size that users would be comfortable downloading to their smart devices.
Then there was the more robust and very expensive tethered VR headsets. These headsets had to be connected to a computer system and were not stand-alone VR. While PC-VR is able to provide a much more realistic experience, they work off of the specs provided by the machine - for many users, for truly integrated play it is difficult with their current setup. Furthermore, the connection sometimes requires a cord and limits the player's ability to move freely. For some, this was a satisfactory in-game experience, however, many users yearned for a solution that allowed them to freely roam, and that was independent of their gaming computer.
This is where the Oculus Quest had it's time to shine. Oculus does, currently, have a tethered version of their headset available, known as the Oculus Rift S. However, it offers nowhere near the freedom as the stand-alone VR headset, the Quest. The Quest, realistically speaking, is easily one of the top VR headsets on the market in terms of mass adoption. Since the unit is it's own contained device, it allows users to play on specs that are optimized strictly for virtual reality and Oculus is very picky about what apps they allow in the Quest store. This headset has changed the way we look at virtual reality games entirely.
What's So Special About the Quest?
The Quest has what many other VR headsets don't - the ability to reliably stand alone with 6DOF tracking. Out of the box, there is no required PC connection. The device has proximity sensors, as well as gyroscopes,four accelerometers, and front-view cameras, allowing the user to create their own play space based upon the room they are in. Additionally, users can adjust their play area at any time with the ability to see through the VR headset and into the real world anytime via what Oculus is dubbing Passthrough+, making it a highly adaptable system.
Playing the Quest feels like truly experiencing the game. The sensors allow the user's movements to feel natural in-game and react to touching objects during gameplay - in fact, given the fact the Quest has audio jacks on both sides of the unit, allowing users to plug in noise-canceling earbuds, it is especially easy to forget that you aren't actively in the experience until it's over.
Another feature that makes the Quest great is the ability to connect the Quest to a PC via the Oculus Link. This allows users to connect to their computer - meaning they can access virtual reality games available on their PC. This provides the user with the ability to play almost any game available in VR. Furthermore, with the use of the Oculus Link, users can create virtual workspaces, allowing them to utilize the headset not only as a method for games (and, in some cases, exercise, as many VR games are designed to get you up and moving) but for productivity and work, as well.
Users have the ability to broadcast their gameplay to phones and televisions, making it a less solitary experience. Friends can gather and watch you as you play and explore new worlds, meaning you don't necessarily have to play alone. This also makes it easy to stream games to wider audiences as well.
Where Will VR Take Us Moving Forward?
With the ability to utilize interesting applications, such as Google VR View, which allows users to create VR-compatible websites and other platforms, there are a world of possibilities. People have yearned for years for a system that allowed them to freely explore the virtual world, and it shows. In December, the Quest sold out nation-wide. It was absolutely impossible to find the unit on shelves anywhere.
What was most incredible was that it stayed this way for months. Online, users would attempt to resell their Quests for two and three times the price of the unit - and would actually make sales this way. Everyone wanted to get their hands on the Quest, and to explore unique options such as Google VR View or simply to have a truly immersive sense of gameplay.
The Quest is seen as a great solution to a variety of standard problems in gaming - the inability to really experience the game, the stationary aspects of gaming, and the lack of "realness" that some feel during gameplay. As the Quest is finally coming back to the shelves, more and more developers are creating games that are compatible with it - and we expect to see continued growth as the tech community explores this new avenue of game systems.
As one of the best selling game systems of 2019, the Quest proved that the way we game is changing. People are looking for that next big thing, and quite a lot of them are absolutely certain it is VR. Now that a headset has fully allowed individuals to experience their games, all the major tech companies want in on VR.
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