Zuckerberg, Iribe talk VR at Oculus geek fest
In June, Oculus VR Chief Executive Brendan Iribe holds up the new Rift virtual reality headset during a news conference in San Francisco.
No price or exact release date, but Oculus VR did provide a broader look Thursday at apps for its first virtual-reality headset, going on sale early next year.
“Minecraft,” Netflix, Twitch, “Sonic the Hedgehog” and new artistic tool Medium will be top apps in the Oculus Store, the Facebook-owned technology company announced at its developers’ conference in Hollywood.
More than 1,500 people are attending Oculus Connect, most of them designing games and content for virtual reality goggles — where a headstrap holds a screen in front of users’ eyes and envelops their view.
Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told the developers Thursday to think of virtual reality as the “next major platform,” surpassing personal computers and smartphones. Even if sales of the Oculus Rift headset are low initially, Zuckerberg said Facebook is committed to virtual reality.
“VR has gone from this science fiction dream to this awesome reality,” he said, making a surprise appearance on a stage bathed in blue and purple light at the Dolby Theatre.
Oculus Chief Executive Brendan Iribe reiterated that Rift would be released sometime in the first three months of 2016. It’ll require a computer with a strong graphics card, and the company plans to work with desktop manufacturers such as Asus and Dell to put “Oculus Ready” stamps on compatible machines.
Iribe also cautioned Rift adoption would “start small” but grow into “something incredible,” with millions experiencing virtual reality for the first time next year.
Many consumers first might turn to the Samsung Gear VR, a $99 headstrap that holds a Samsung Note 5 or Samsung Galaxy S6. The smartphone replaces the screen and PC in the Rift set-up. A new, lighter and comfier version of the Gear VR will go on sale in November. Oculus Connect attendees were set to receive one for free.
The company also said its Touch controller would go on sale after the Rift, and that it would come with an app called Oculus Medium for painting, sculpting and designing in 3D.
Both the Gear VR and Rift will have an app store similar to what consumers today find on their smartphones. But in virtual reality, the apps will have 3D components. Watching video game competitions on Twitch puts viewers in a virtual living room, with the ability to interact with avatars of friends. “Minecraft,” the popular game owned by Microsoft Corp., will be in 3D, too.
Highlights of games drew most attention on stage. But Oculus executives said virtual reality provided opportunities for other industries.
“It’s going to be an inspiring moment when VR wins its first Oscar on this very stage,” said Nate Mitchell, Oculus vice president of product.
Movies from 20th Century Fox and Lionsgate, including “Gone Girl” and “Hunger Games,” will be sold in the Oculus store. The company revealed few details about what apps like Facebook video, Netflix, Hulu and Vimeo would look like, though.
Chat with me on Twitter @peard33
