Meta's long-in-development 'Avalanche' PC VR cloud streaming system appeared on a French outlet's Quest 3. The "Activate Avalanche (Alpha)" option appeared in the Experimental section of the settings of one of GamerGen's Quest 3 headsets, as demonstrated during a recent livestream.

The description of the setting translates to "Launch an Avalanche session using the cloud gaming endpoint". When activating it GamerGen was offered to play Lone Echo, a blockbuster Oculus Rift game from 2017 that hasn't been ported to Quest. However, actually attempting to launch it resulted in an error that translates to "Unable to launch the Avalanche session", with a description of "An error occurred while launching the Avalanche session, please check your network and try again."

Meta's long-in-development 'Avalanche' PC VR cloud streaming system appeared on a French outlet's Quest 3. The "Activate Avalanche (Alpha)" option appeared in the Experimental section of the settings of one of GamerGen's Quest 3 headsets, as demonstrated during a recent livestream.

The description of the setting translates to "Launch an Avalanche session using the cloud gaming endpoint". When activating it GamerGen was offered to play Lone Echo, a blockbuster Oculus Rift game from 2017 that hasn't been ported to Quest. However, actually attempting to launch it resulted in an error that translates to "Unable to launch the Avalanche session", with a description of "An error occurred while launching the Avalanche session, please check your network and try again."

Developed under license from Asmodee Entertainment and published by Saber Interactive, Exploding Kittens VR will be released this fall for Meta Quest 3, Meta Quest 2, and Quest Pro. The VR game is based on the card game of the same name.

Exploding Kittens VR aims to combine the humorous strategy and chaos of the original game with the immersive experience of VR. Up to five players can compete online or against AI opponents, forcing their opponents to pull the infamous Exploding Kitten. The last one standing wins.

The game is played in three different game modes: Classic Mode, Blitz Mode with up to five players, or Duel Mode against a single opponent. You can customize your avatars and there will also be a social lobby to explore and mini-games.

Play For Dream MR's design is clearly heavily "inspired" by Apple Vision Pro. But unlike the cheap Chinese knockoff we tried at CES in January, this new headset actually has the specs (though likely not the software) to rival apple.

The XR2+ Gen 2 chipset, Qualcomm's most powerful XR chip yet, is paired with 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and either 512GB or 1TB of UFS 3.1 storage, depending on the model you buy. The headset features dual 3840×3552 micro-OLED displays from BOE, higher resolution than Vision Pro's Sony panels, with a refresh rate of 90Hz and 92% DCI-P3 color gamut, the same as Vision Pro. Its pancake lenses offer a claimed field of view of 103°, and the headset has eye tracking for automatic IPD adjustment and foveated rendering.

RIVEN (1997), the sequel to iconic point-and-click puzzle-adventure MYST (1993), just got the VR treatment in its new remake. Unlike Myst, which felt a little too game-y and obtuse at times, Riven plays a lot more like a modern title, which thanks to Quest and SteamVR support, is true in every sense of the word now. Granted, you’ll need to look past some VR implementation issues which keep it from feeling like a ground-up VR native, although however you play, you’ll be exploring a fascinating world that’s both puzzle-dense and undeniably beautiful at every turn.

The rumors come from Nicolas Sutrich of Android Central:

"Sources close to Android Central have revealed that Sony is making deep cuts to funding for VR games. While I'll paraphrase for anonymity, my source was told that there will be very few opportunities for VR game development at Sony going forward," Sutrich writes.

"To back that up, another source informed me that only two PSVR 2 games are in development at Sony."

Somnium is a Czech startup previously solely focused on its social VR platform Somnium Space. But in late 2021 it announced the Somnium VR1 headset with a monster spec sheet for the time, in partnership with VRgineers - known for its ultra-high end XTAL headsets for enterprise. Originally Somnium VR1 was pitched as a hybrid headset with standalone capabilities via an onboard Snapdragon XR2 chipset, but that idea was ditched in 2022 to focus on making it a solely PC VR headset instead.

Supporting five players in online 2v3 matches, Mannequin sees two Agents hunting down shape-shifting aliens. As the aliens, you can freeze to blend in with your surroundings by striking a pose. Following last month's launch on App Lab, it's now arriving on Steam, and the Quest version also received a new patch enabling cross-platform multiplayer and new UI changes.

XR enthusiast and serial data miner Luna uncovered existence of the tool, which is said to allow users the ability to update Quest’s operating system over USB via the “Sideload Update” option in the recovery menu.

The Radio Research Agency (RRA), a South Korean certification body for radio and communication devices, has apparently certified a new Pico headset. A certification usually indicates an imminent launch.

The model name A9210 is identical to a Pico headset that recently appeared in a public CPU benchmark (see UploadVR in the sources). According to this benchmark, the headset could use the same chipset as Quest 3 in combination with 12 GB RAM.

I tried a brief hands-on with the headset and its unusual controllers at the Augmented World Expo conference in Long Beach. The demo software, connected to PC, showed a workflow for arranging virtual cameras and changing scenes – the types of tools directors or animators might use to visualize their upcoming movie using a VR headset.

The field of view seemed somewhere under 100 degrees diagonal, narrower than most headsets. In the brief demo, I struggled with getting the ring's touch sensor correctly oriented on my finger so it could recognize a pinch allowing me to grasp virtual objects. I also struggled with the other controller selecting a virtual button at my wrist. Both interactions seemed less reliable and intuitive than the pinch gesture on Apple Vision Pro and Meta Quest headsets. While those gestures have to be emulated on PC hardware for creatives, I'm still left wondering why a creative would pick this headset and a workflow with this hardware rather than opting for a Quest 3 and Logitech MX Ink stylus or Apple Vision Pro.

Buried in their report today about Apple suspending work on Vision Pro 2 to focus on shipping a cheaper headset by the end of next year, The Information's Wayne Ma and Qianer Liu also report that Meta "started work in November on a new high-end headset, internally code-named La Jolla".

We've heard that La Jolla name before. In March 2023 an internal Meta hardware roadmap was leaked to The Verge. Alongside accurately describing Quest 3 and other Meta products, the roadmap revealed that a 2024 Quest Pro 2 candidate had been canceled in favor of a more ambitious but “way out in the future” model codenamed La Jolla.

Bad news for the VR industry: Apple has reportedly halted development on its next premium headset and Vision Pro successor.

This is reported by The Information. The website cites an employee of a supplier that makes key components for the Vision Pro and has been notified accordingly by Apple. The Information is considered a reliable source and reported on the development of the product long before the Apple Vision Pro was unveiled.

The site also claims to have learned from two people involved in the supply chain and manufacturing that Apple is continuing to work on a cheaper Vision Pro model with fewer features, which is planned for late 2025 at the earliest.

Xreal Air glasses lack onboard compute or battery, they just act as an external monitor for whatever device (such as your phone) you connect over USB-C, projecting the image onto a head-locked virtual screen in front of you. When used with a few specific Android phones, a PC, or almost any device via the existing Xreal Beam adapter though, the glasses can support rotational 3DoF tracking. And when used with specific Samsung Galaxy phones the Xreal Air 2 Ultra glasses can even do true AR with 6DoF positional tracking.

Enter Xreal Beam Pro. It's designed to let you use true 6DoF AR on Air 2 Ultra or have a 3DoF screen on the other Air models, regardless of what phone you own and without draining its battery.

Indie studio ManaBrigade and publisher Fast Travel Games today announced that BlackForge: A Smithing Adventure, a fantasy VR blacksmithing game, is now available on Quest and PC VR headsets.

VRChat let go 30 percent of its team and promised at least 12 weeks of severance for departing staff.

The CEO of VRChat, Graham Gaylor, suggested in an email posted to the company's forums that recent management changes have set up the company "for success over the next five years."

"We’re in a good cash position, but to execute effectively on our five-year strategy, we need an extended runway with line of sight to profitability. The current fundraising environment is tough, and we’ll likely struggle to fundraise without greatly improved metrics. To take control of our own destiny and not solely depend on market-driven outside investment, we’re placing an emphasis on capital efficiency to ensure VRChat thrives."

HTC Vive announced it’s offering a new hardware bundle for its Vive XR Elite headset that brings some handy new accessories to users for free, which are designed to enhance the headset’s ergonomics and increase user comfort.

Called the Vive XR Elite Deluxe Pack, the bundle includes four new accessories, which are also being offered for free to new and existing owners of the headset.

The accessory pack includes an improved Vive Face Gasket, a mixed reality Face Gasket for better peripheral vision and ventilation, a Deluxe Strap for better weight distribution, and Temple Clips for a more secure connection to the battery mount.

The Quest v66 update "significantly" reduces Quest 3's passthrough distortion and warping, according to Meta.

The v66 update also brings an experimental option to use wrist-mounted menu buttons instead of the pinch gestures when using hand tracking, background audio and media controls, the ability to hide apps in your library, and a new sleep mode.

As always, keep in mind that Quest system software updates "roll out" gradually, so it may take a few days or even more than a week for your headset to get the Quest v66 update.

Palmer Luckey says he will announce that he's working on a new headset at AWE 2024, which is taking place June 18-20.

It comes as Luckey's new company ModRetro just announced and opened preorders for Chromatic, a $200 handheld that can play Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges on a display with the same resolution and colors as the original consoles for a pixel-perfect and color-accurate experience.

VR enthusiast and YouTuber Brad Lynch responded to the Chromatic announcement on X by saying "Even Palmer would rather release a handheld than a VR HMD", referencing Valve releasing Steam Deck instead of an Index successor or new standalone headset (Index is now five years old). But Luckey replied to Lynch to say "I am going to be announcing the fact that I am working on a new HMD at AWE!".