Road to VR

NOVEMBER 29, 2019

Australian publication Stevivor recently sat down with Xbox head Phil Spencer to broach the subject of whether or not the company’s upcoming next-gen console would be matching Sony’s continued VR ambitions with PlayStation 5. I've played some great VR games, I got to play HL:Alyx in the summer, amazing.

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Road to VR

JUNE 20, 2023

Amid mounting pressure from Sony with the recent launch of its PSVR 2 headset for PlayStation 5, Microsoft again affirmed that it’s still waiting for the technology to mature before offering any sort of dedicated VR software or hardware for Xbox. “I think for us, it’s just a bit of wait until there’s an audience there.

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The Ghost Howls

MARCH 21, 2021

Image by Sony Interactive Entertainment). Sony unveils the new controllers of the PSVR2. One month after the reveal of a “next-gen VR headset for the Playstation” (whose name is not known, but I guess it will be PSVR2), Sony has revealed one important detail of its new VR system: the controllers. It will so have inside-out tracking.

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The Ghost Howls

MARCH 1, 2021

Image by Sony). Sony officially states it is going to launch the PSVR 2. PlayStation VR has been the most successful headset until now (if we exclude the crappy mobile viewers), but now it is pretty dated and people were wondering what Sony was going to do. Some people started to think that Sony could have abandoned VR.

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Road to VR

MARCH 17, 2021

Microsoft says however that the error message was inaccurate, and that VR for Xbox is still not a happening. Some prognosticated that Microsoft has mistakenly leaked VR support for Xbox, something it has repeatedly rebuked in the past. This tracks with Microsoft’s long-term stance on VR for Xbox consoles going back to Xbox One.

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The Ghost Howls

JANUARY 21, 2025

This week we had many news confirming my previous impressions: The studio behind PowerWash Simulator VR announced the end of the updates to the game , just 14 months after the launch, because the development is costing more than the revenues. I already talked about this in a previous article where I assess the current situation of our space.

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UploadVR Between Realities podcast

JUNE 13, 2017

We’ve seen a routinely strong showing for the tech at the games industry’s biggest event over the past few years, but it hasn’t yet truly dominated the conversation. Press conferences have been light on jaw dropping announcements and games are running a little thin on originality and inspiration.

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Upload VR

JANUARY 7, 2025

Sony branded its standalone headset XYN, and we went hands-on with the latest prototype. UploadVR's Don Hopper is on site at CES 2025, and attended Sony's formal announcement of its XYN headset, pronounced "zin", which the company still describes as a prototype.

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Road to VR

OCTOBER 14, 2019

Ginza Sony Park, the Japanese tech giant’s Tokyo-based hub for Sony brand promotion, is now playing host to a new Ghostbusters -themed multiplayer experience using a newly revealed Sony AR headset prototype. And yes, they’re shooting proton energy from their hands. Otherwise you can sign up here (Japanese).

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Road to VR

NOVEMBER 2, 2017

Khronos Group , the consortium behind the OpenXR project which aims to standardize the way applications communicate with AR and VR headsets, just added Microsoft to its ranks. Among its count of members, the OpenXR working group consisted of nearly every major player in the industry except Microsoft until now.

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ARPost

FEBRUARY 14, 2020

The ecosystem of digital game development is all about using the latest technologies to attract and engage gamers all over the world. Games, as one of the prime sources of entertainment, could be more prominent by becoming more interactive and immersive. Some VR Gaming Market Trends Which Determine Its Consistent Growth.

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The Ghost Howls

NOVEMBER 7, 2022

(Image by Sony Interactive Entertainment). Sony announces price and release date for PSVR 2. Sony Interactive Entertainment has finally announced that PSVR 2 will be launched on February 22nd, 2023 for $549. The collaboration between Microsoft and Samsung is now over. What will be important, anyway, will be the content.

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Road to VR

JUNE 22, 2018

Back at E3 2016, Microsoft’s Head of Xbox Phil Spencer announced on stage that the Xbox One X (then ‘Project Scorpio’) would become the industry’s next VR-compatible console, positioning the platform to compete with Sony’s PSVR with what Spencer called “high fidelity VR.” Trouble in paradise?

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Road to VR

AUGUST 21, 2019

Sony Interactive Entertainment announced Monday that the company is acquiring Insomniac Games, a storied game studio and one of the most experienced in VR development anywhere in the world. Image courtesy Insomniac Games. Image courtesy Insomniac Games. SEE ALSO Xbox Game Studios Has (inadvertently?)

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Road to VR

OCTOBER 2, 2024

XR Games, the Leeds, UK-based studio known for Hitman 3 VR: Reloaded (2024) and Zombieland VR: Headshot Fever (2021), have laid off a reported 86 percent of its staff. The information was shared by María Fernanda Díez Huerta via LinkedIn , who was Head of Production at XR Games from 2021 – 2023.

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Road to VR

JUNE 18, 2019

A year ago, in response to Sony consistently delivering high-quality exclusives for PS4, Microsoft made a commitment to rejuvenating its first-party game development efforts and went on a shopping spree, acquiring a handful of respected studios to bolster its first-party game development talent under the Xbox Game Studios banner.

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Road to VR

JUNE 22, 2023

At least from the outside, it appears Microsoft isn’t actively competing for a seat at the XR table, which is fairly odd coming from a company that pioneered enterprise AR while simultaneously wrangling some of its top OEM partners to make a fleet of PC VR headsets for consumers in 2017. If Microsoft goes in half-cocked, maybe.

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The Ghost Howls

FEBRUARY 18, 2025

More info (Mentra and Vuzix partner on AugmentOS) More info (AugmentOS official website) News worth a mention (Image by Sony Interactive Entertainment) PSVR 2 had great holiday sales numbers Thanks to the huge price discount from $550 to $350, the sales of PSVR 2 had a huge boost in 2024.

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Road to VR

MAY 4, 2021

Epic Games, the creators of Unreal Engine, said it would consider building a launch title for Sony’s “next VR platform” during negotiations about Fortnite cross-play on PlayStation in 2018. And though Epic hasn’t made any VR games since then, it seems that in 2018 it was still ready and willing.

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UploadVR Between Realities podcast

MAY 19, 2017

For Microsoft it’s the Halo and Gears of War games. But for Sony, it’s changed with each console generation. Most of those games wouldn’t really be that great of a fit for VR you’d think. They’re all third-person action games. “So this is 2009, 2010,” Marks said.

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Road to VR

SEPTEMBER 17, 2024

The Farnborough, UK-based studio maintains in the LinkenIn announcement that layoffs are in response to “a challenging VR games market, situated within a tough gaming landscape more broadly.” In 2023, Stockholm, Sweden-based gaming group Aonic acquired nDreams for $110 million.

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The Ghost Howls

MAY 30, 2023

Top news of the week (Image by Brad Lynch) Bloomberg got a preview of the Quest 3 Last week I predicted that Meta could have given us a glimpse of the Quest 3 during the Gaming Showcase on June, 1st, so that to create attention around its device before the announcement of the Apple headset.

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The Ghost Howls

MARCH 4, 2025

Gabe Follower also maintains Valve is also set to ship games or demos that are already done specifically for Deckard. And indeed the device should be able to play SteamDeck flatscreen games, but on a big screen in VR. Fast Travel Games just made Mannequin free to play. 400 seems like a good price for it, in my opinion.

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Road to VR

NOVEMBER 2, 2017

VR may still be young, and adoption still low compared to the world of traditional gaming, but it can’t be ignored that mounting sales of the Playstation VR headset—effectively a very expensive accessory for the PS4—is adding up to considerable revenue. VR and AR intelligence firm Greenlight Insights estimates that Sony has sold 1.5

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Road to VR

OCTOBER 8, 2019

A Microsoft patent application for a ‘virtual reality floor mat’ describes a special mat which defines a virtual playspace and can be used for tracking. The artwork in the patent clearly suggests a living room environment where the VR experience is powered by a game console. Image courtesy Microsoft.

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VRScout

FEBRUARY 10, 2020

It appears as though Xbox is playing the long game. Compared to competing gaming platforms, Xbox is way behind the curve in terms of VR. Meanwhile, Sony is effectively dominating the console VR space with the Playstation VR. Image Credit: Microsoft Xbox. Even Nintendo has gotten in on the action via Nintendo Labo VR.

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Upload VR

OCTOBER 30, 2024

From Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 to Metro Awakening, November's another busy month for new VR games. Following the Quest 3S launch, October has been an unquestionably hectic month for new VR games with Batman: Arkham Shadow leading the charge. Here are our monthly upcoming highlights.

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The Ghost Howls

MARCH 20, 2023

First of all, Sony CFO Hiroki Totoki has said that he thinks that PSVR 2 may sell more than the 5–6 million units that the original PSVR sold. This shows that Sony is pretty bullish about its device, and it is confident that it will be appreciated by a good share of its base market. How ironic.

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The Ghost Howls

JUNE 23, 2020

Star Wars: Squadron is the new AAA VR game we are all waiting for. Out of the blue, EA has announced a new amazing game called Star Wars: Squadron, developed by its studio Motive. This game has born with VR in mind, and people with VR and Desktop PC can play together. The Upload VR Showcase gave us many news on VR games.

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XR Today - Virtual Reality

APRIL 26, 2023

Today, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) blocked Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard, which provides the “ building blocks ” for its Metaverse. Microsoft first announced its acquisition in 2022.

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UploadVR Between Realities podcast

NOVEMBER 9, 2016

For some developers, porting an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive game to PlayStation VR is easier said than done. Sports Bar VR and Job Simulator both came from Vive to PS VR with a good degree of success, while games like The Brookhaven Experiment have only made small compromises to make it onto the platform. DiRT Rally, from Codemasters.

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Road to VR

JUNE 17, 2018

Image courtesy Sony Japan Studio. Featuring the cute bots first seen in The Playroom (2013) , Sony Japan Studio’s upcoming platformer Astro Bot Rescue Mission uses similar controls and gameplay mechanics as any other 3D platformer, but it has been created from the ground up with VR in mind. Image courtesy Squanch Games.

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The Ghost Howls

JANUARY 17, 2022

The news of the week is that Meta is poaching talents from all the other companies : in particular, it has been able to “steal” 100 employees from the HoloLens team in Microsoft. Beat Games). Many great XR games are controlled by Meta. Image by Sony). The most bullish of them is, of course, Meta. Other relevant news.

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The Ghost Howls

APRIL 4, 2022

Meta Quest Gaming Showcase is coming on April, 20th. Meta is back with its Gaming Showcase, and this year, it is going to be aired on April, 20th at 10 am PT. Last year, it was still called Oculus Gaming Showcase, and it featured important updates on games like Pistol Whip, The Climb 2, I Expect You To Die 2, and Resident Evil 4 VR.

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Road to VR

SEPTEMBER 18, 2024

Mojang, the Microsoft-owned studio behind Minecraft , announced it’s dropping support for the original PSVR next year, leaving any hope for PSVR 2 support firmly at (bed)rock bottom. Then, there’s Mojang’s parent company Microsoft, which has been fairly wary of VR gaming in general over the years.

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Road to VR

JUNE 21, 2022

.” The so-called Metaverse Standards Forum was founded by platform holders, hardware companies, engine/tool creators, and users, with participants including companies such as Adobe, Autodesk, Epic Games, Unity, Meta, Microsoft, nVidia, OTOY, Qualcomm, and Sony. ” Image courtesy Metaverse Standards Forum.

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VRScout

MARCH 3, 2017

Microsoft is showing some commitment to the idea of Windows Mixed Reality (formally known as Windows Holographic) with not just a single headset, but with five headsets. Back in February, Sony announced that they sold 915,000 PlayStation VR headsets since it launched in mid-October, while Microsoft focused on their HoloLens MR headset.

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