Oculus, Facebook’s Virtual Reality unit, is ready for the consumer market. Three years after revealing its first prototype, Oculus on Thursday officially unveiled the Rift VR device it will eventually sell to the public.
“This isn’t science fiction,” Oculus founder Palmer Luckey said. “This is reality, and it’s happening today.”
One of the biggest focuses on Oculus’s road to the retail market has been the weight — making the device as comfortable as possible. With that solved (not to mention any of the early concerns about motion sickness, et cetera), the focus turns to content.
What will early adopters be able to do with Rift? While Hollywood content creators are actively developing a wealth of VR experiences, this is very much a gamer’s device for now. The Oculus team is jazzed about the shooter game “EVE: Valkyrie” from CCP Games, while “VR Sports Challenge” allows you to play virtual versions of popular sports.
“Oculus Rift is going to deliver the magic of presence,” Oculus CEO Brendan Iribe said. “For the first time, we will finally be inside the game. This is going to change everything.”
The bigger question, however, is when will Facebook’s user base of nearly 1.5 billion people make its way into the VR world?
Facebook acquired Oculus for $2 billion last year. At Facebook’s recent developers conference, CEO Mark Zuckerberg spoke enthusiastically about a virtual reality-filled future. While photos are the most frequently shared content on Facebook, Zuckerberg sees Virtual Reality/Augmented Reality content taking the lead down the road.
The Rift device will begin shipping in the first quarter of 2016. With many expecting a price tag of around $1,500, that Facebook use case still seems far off. Indeed, advisory firm Digi-Capital recently forecast VR/AR market could generate a whopping $150 billion in revenue by the year 2020, with much of that VR-related revenue coming from gaming and 3D films.
Thursday’s announcement included a preview of other Rift games, including Insomniac Games adventure title “Edge of Nowhere”; news that the product will be shipped with an Xbox One controller and Xbox One owners will be able to stream their games to the Rift; and a demonstration of Oculus Touch, a pair of tracked controllers to enhance VR games and experiences.
Microsoft’s Head of Xbox Phil Spencer also took part in the announcement.
11 Horrible Video Game Adaptations Before 'Pixels' (Video)
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"Super Mario Bros." (1993)
Box Office: $20.9 million.
Mario himself, Bob Hoskins, has not only called this movie the worst job he's ever had, but it's also the biggest disappointment AND regret of his career.
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"Double Dragon" (1994)
Box Office: $2.34 million.
In this wildly-inaccurate vision of 2007, the fate of a crappy city called "New Angeles" (L.A. and San Diego combined) will be decided by an ancient Chinese medallion, that alcoholic sibling on "Party of Five" and the T-1000 from "Terminator 2: Judgement Day." If the trailer doesn't scare you away, it's currently streaming on Netflix.
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"Street Fighter" (1994)
Box Office: $99.4 million.
The goofy Jean-Claude Van Damme action movie nearly tripled it's $35 million budget internationally, but it was universally panned by critics. Perhaps the biggest flaw was the eventual appearance of fan favorite character Blanka -- a ferocious beast in the game, who just looked like a poorly-costumed actor in the movie.
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"Wing Commander" (1999)
Box Office: $11.57 million.
This movie bombed in theaters, and was booed by critics. But at least this Freddy Prinze Jr. movie really, really, REALLY makes you appreciate "Star Wars." Even the prequels.
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"House of the Dead" (2003)
Box Office: $13.8 million.
In this zombie video game adaptation's defense, it landed in theaters years before the public's hunger for the walking dead began. And it was directed by Uwe Boll.
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"Alone in the Dark" (2005)
Box Office: $10.4 million.
The video game helped set the standard for survival horror, while the movie set the standard for the rest of Tara Reid's career. Uwe Boll was charged with bringing this to the big screen, as well.
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"Doom" (2005)
Box Office: $55.98 million.
Before The Rock was box office viagra, he starred opposite Karl Urban in this $60 million first-person shooter adaptation that went limp at the box office.
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"DOA: Dead or Alive" (2006)
Box Office: $7.5 million.
What happens when Eric Roberts rounds up a bunch of hot fighter chicks to fight for a $10 million prize "any time, anywhere"? Nothing good.
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"In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale" (2008)
Box Office: $13 million.
Jason Statham, Ray Liotta and Burt Reynolds may have thought they were starring in the next "Lord of the Rings"-style fantasy epic (or they just needed a paycheck). But in reality, this adaptation of Microsoft role-playing game "Dungeon Siege" was just the next Uwe Boll bomb.
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"Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li" (2009)
Box Office: $12.7 million (2009).
Hopes for some kind of redemption for the beloved Capcom fighting game -- or a Chris Klein comeback -- were immediately dashed when this "Street Fighter" got a beating from critics.
"Need for Speed" (2014)
Box Office: $43.6 million.
In his first lead big-screen role post-"Breaking Bad," Aaron Paul failed to rev up audiences playing a street racer who joins a cross-country race with revenge in mind.
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As bad reviews pile up for Adam Sandler’s new film, here are 10 more awful video game-based movies that tanked
"Super Mario Bros." (1993)
Box Office: $20.9 million.
Mario himself, Bob Hoskins, has not only called this movie the worst job he's ever had, but it's also the biggest disappointment AND regret of his career.
