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Facebook buys Oculus VR...and I can't stop laughing!


antithesis

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Facebook is looking to re-brand Oculus...

 

 

 

Source: IGN

 

So they're going to re-brand and redesign the Oculus, that sure does sound promising...

 

 

Parker

FB rebutted this claim in http://www.gamespot.com/articles/facebook-we-have-no-plans-to-redesign-oculus-rift/1100-6418568/, but let's not be naive - their objective is to make money from data-mining behaviour and displaying advertising. Oculus gives them eye-tracking to study what people are looking at, where they're looking and for how long. Product placement optimisation anyone?

Facebook now owns Oculus VR, which means they can do what they like. In two years whose to say they won't can Oculus in its entirety? Being independent (though with investors) meant Oculus VR controlled their own destiny, at least for a few years until those backers made back their investment by flipping the company (FB has bought them all off now, so that's already happened). As it stands now, Oculus is simply another project within a large, hungry, untrustworthy advertising company.

Butthurt aside, this acquisition may prove to be a boon for the Oculus Rift and for the future of VR, but at the moment there's simply no way to spin this news in a positive light. Zuckerberg's motives may be altruistic, but this guy has a history of stabbing people in the back, enough so to make a movie about him. As I said in the OP, the road to hell is paved with good intentions...

This is worth listening to to get a better understanding of the long-term goals of Facebook for Oculus and VR - http://www.shareholder.com/visitors/event/build3/stage/stage.cfm?mediaid=63723&mediauserid=0.

It's about using Oculus as a tool to build a platform for media distribution and advertising. IF VR takes off (and it's a big if), FB wants to be the next Steam or Apple or NetFlix for content distribution. I think a large part of the negative backlash is that none of us really understand what that long game is going to be, so our reaction is to worry about how this is going to impact us now. The Oculus Rift will make it to market and it'll be primarily a gaming device, of that I have little doubt, but I keep hearing the word "social", which bothers the shit out of me.

Edited by ant1th3s1s
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Oculus basically revived the whole Virtual Reality Fad, which some people liked the idea so in turn forced Xbox, Playstation and many others to also make one to beat the competetion

 

Yeah, i had to Google it. When i think of virtual reality i always remember this. I like virtual reality in those arcade places, but i wouldn't buy one of those glasses or whatever just to "feel" i'm in the game. Same with 3D movies, some do it right, but most are not needed at all.

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HOLY CRAP :o Julie & Jack was correct. The best use of Virtual Reality will be a dating service. Now we just have to have ghosts transmitting their memories onto the Internet so they can haunt dating websites and the world will be complete

 

 

Oh yeah...spoilers :ninja:

Edited by Dr_Mayus
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I still have trouble seeing a market for VR (except for a few niches)

 

If FB bought it, they see a point. it's decent backing for the product itself, but I do feel VR will be as usefull as 3D

VR is the kind of thing you need to experience first hand. It's difficult to really convey in words what its appeal is. Games like Armored Core, or Titanfall, for example, making you truly feel like you're inside a giant mech wreaking havoc on a battlefield. An RPG like Skyrim, making you feel like you're actually brandishing that sword or casting spells - more than just a Kinect mimicking your moves on a disconnected screen - you see your hands directly in front of you. The sword in your hand.

It might be a niche market - but no more niche than, say, steering wheels for racing games. Especially if it isn't any more expensive than those peripherals.

Which you could couple with the VR tech - putting yourself in the driver's seat of whatever car you want, with a wheel physically in your hands.

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VR is the kind of thing you need to experience first hand. It's difficult to really convey in words what its appeal is. Games like Armored Core, or Titanfall, for example, making you truly feel like you're inside a giant mech wreaking havoc on a battlefield. An RPG like Skyrim, making you feel like you're actually brandishing that sword or casting spells - more than just a Kinect mimicking your moves on a disconnected screen - you see your hands directly in front of you. The sword in your hand.

It might be a niche market - but no more niche than, say, steering wheels for racing games. Especially if it isn't any more expensive than those peripherals.

Which you could couple with the VR tech - putting yourself in the driver's seat of whatever car you want, with a wheel physically in your hands.

But that is only if companies want to develop for it. What will end up happening is 1st party games will probably work really well but 3rd party won't put the effort into it because they won't sink resources into something that is only going to work on 1 system.

 

Sony has tried this in the past with, EYEtoy, Six-axis gaming, Move, 3D gaming, the 3D Display (where you could see split-screen as full screen) etc.

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