Oculus are partnering up with Microsoft; the Oculus Rift headset will come with an Xbox One controller, allowing you to stream your Xbox One games to the Rift. For some, this partnership probably seems unexpected. However, you’ve got to remember that Microsoft have their fingers in some pretty impressive pies… Including Facebook, which owns Oculus. Bad luck Sony.
Chief executive of Oculus VR, Brendan Iribe, announced on Wednesday’s press conference that despite being largely expected to produce a controller for just the Rift (as we’ve seen from Steam and Valve) they’ve chosen to package the headset with the Xbox One controllers – at least for now. Along with the headset, you’ll get a controller and wireless adapter to connect it to your PC.
Rift isn’t just getting the Microsoft touch with a controller, as Xbox boss Phil Spencer explained, the Oculus Rift will also offer native support for the upcoming Windows 10. The most important thing about this is that Windows 10 is going to allow players to stream games from their Xbox One to a PC and therefore, by extension, to the Oculus Rift. Don’t get too excited though, that doesn’t mean you’ll be playing Halo in full VR, it’ll be more like gaming on a screen in a ‘virtual cinema’.
The details are unclear as to the extent which Oculus technology – besides having yourself fully immersed in the game by having the screen right there – will actually be used in games. A video showing gameplay of Forza Horizon 2 would suggest that the only added extra you’ll get that will differ from couch and PC gaming is the head-tracking support, enabling you to adjust the camera by moving your head.
Still, this is exciting news for Microsoft, we’ll know more at E3 on Monday.