On the occasion of the extensive “Sandboxxer” update, I finally took the time to take a closer look at Underdogs. The VR title from One Hamsa transports me to a dark future where only one human city still exists: New Brakka. To get in there, I have to prove myself in illegal mech fights and earn the respect of the street.

In Underdogs, I slip into the role of one of the two brothers who have to flee their homeland. My younger brother King always stands by my side with advice and support. At least when he's not busy hacking my enemies to pieces while I smash opponents in my multi-ton mech named Rilla. The relationship between the brothers is one of the core elements of the story and contributes a lot to the dense atmosphere of the game.

My conclusion on Underdogs is completely positive. The game is a successful mix of sweat-inducing action, roguelike-typical progress and a lot of style. If you've always wanted to take a seat in a mech yourself and really dish it out, there's no way around Underdogs.

With the “Sandboxxer” update, the title has what it takes to be one of the best VR games of the year. The sheer endless possibilities to create your own content and share it with friends promise long-lasting fun. In addition, the new achievements and the open battle mode provide additional motivation. Creative minds and action fans can access it without hesitation — Underdogs is simply a lot of fun and, not the least thanks to the big update, has a lot to offer. Brattas and Sistas, grab your mech and dive into the fray!

I’m a big survival game fan. I love punching trees or picking up rocks and sticks to make tools. However, these games often discount the greatest tools humans were ever gifted with: your own two hands. Fortunately, Bootstrap Island makes full use of them.

At Gamescom, I played the latest version of this early access SteamVR game from Maru VR Productions. The studio recently added a simple building mechanic, though you can only make fences and gates right now. There are plans to expand this mechanic while adding features like food spoilage, boots, and new bosses this fall.

Like many survival games, I find myself stranded on a desert island. I love pirates, so I like to think I'm one who got blasted overboard during a ship capture gone awry. Unlike most survival games, rather than gathering resources to build tools, I can use my hands to do everything I want.

If I need to drink, I can smash a coconut against a boulder and rip its rind off if I need to drink. Then I'll bash it into the boulder again to split the coconut in two, drinking the sweet water within by holding it up to my face. I could also poke holes in the top with a knife I found in a locked chest. This method stopped any water from spilling out when it cracked open. I could also eat the flesh, piece-by-piece with my hands, by holding it up to my gob.

Opening the locked chest involves finding a rock to whack it open. Seeing the sparks flying off the metal gave me an idea. I gathered the spent coconut rind and placed some nearby sticks and planks on top of it, then got the rock in one hand, locked chest in another, and created sparks until I had a roaring bonfire going. That’s the beauty of creating intuitive systems like this.

Ember Souls takes you into a fantastic world full of adventure and danger. As the last immortal, you must face an ultimate battle against the mysterious Shadow Sultan in this VR hack-and-slash game. This involves not only sword fights, but also parkour, climbing and tricky environmental puzzles. Find out how the demo of the title inspired by Prince of Persia and Assassin's Creed plays in this article.

A magnificent palace full of mystery My adventure begins on a boat, slowly drifting towards an island. Even from a distance, I can see magnificent buildings with golden domes that remind me of the architecture in Prince of Persia and immediately catch my attention. I disembark at a jetty, grab a sword and make my way to an imposing palace.

Standing in front of a closed gate, a shimmering blue bird invites me to pet it. In a brief conversation, it tells me how to get over the walls and into the palace. On my way there, I smash barrels and vases and find a useful sign — an incentive to explore my surroundings further.

Spin Rhythm XD, Thumper, Pistol Whip, Ragnarock, & Synth Riders. Rhythm and dance games are perfect for VR, offering a truly immersive experience—enjoy great games while supporting Direct Relief!

Exactly one year later after the controversial policy was initially revealed, it's now being scrapped "effective immediately." In a new statement, CEO Matthew Bromberg confirmed that the Unity Game Engine will revert back to a seat-based subscription model, which means one person can use an individual subscription across limitless devices.

On September 25 and 26, Meta will unveil new products that will shape the future of the XR industry.

Meta Connect (formerly Oculus Connect) celebrates its 10th anniversary this year and will be the most important Connect since the launch of Quest 2 four years ago, perhaps the most important ever.

Meta Quest 3S: Can it surpass the success of Quest 2?

The stakes are high for Meta. On the VR front, Meta will announce the Meta Quest 3S, a more affordable version of the Quest 3, which is aimed at the mainstream. The device is the successor to the Quest 2, which is expected to have sold over 20 million units by now. The Quest 3S needs to sell at least as many units to be considered a success and grow the industry.

After the failure of the Playstation VR 2 and the lukewarm response to Apple Vision Pro, it's up to Meta to get consumers excited about VR, with mixed reality and exclusive software. Ad

A major VR focus of the conference will be Meta Horizon. We will probably see improved avatars for Horizon Worlds. We should also get a look at new APIs for Horizon OS, the operating system of Meta Quest, such as the spatial app framework. Hopefully, there will also be an update on the planned OEM headsets based on Horizon OS. First look at Meta's AR vision

We also expect major announcements in the AR space. After more than ten years of R&D, Meta will finally unveil a prototype of full-fledged AR glasses. The device, codenamed Orion, will not become a product because it is too expensive to manufacture. For now, the AR glasses are something else entirely: a vision of the future to appease investors, inspire tech enthusiasts, and encourage developers to create the first applications for Meta's upcoming AR platform.

Hopefully, Meta will provide a glimpse into the AR roadmap for the next few years, both in terms of hardware and software. Even if it will be a long time before affordable AR glasses hit the market: It's time for Meta to get real. The hype around AR glasses has been dead for many years, and Meta has a chance to revive it with Orion.

What's already here and affordable are AI-powered smart glasses with useful features. The Ray-Ban Meta Smart Glasses are also part of Meta's AR future and are likely to play an important role at the conference, especially as they have been a surprise success and an ideal form factor for artificial intelligence. Although no new iteration of the glasses is expected this year, Meta is likely to unveil far-reaching new AI features for the smart glasses.

It's time to check out the FINAL production version of the super high end Somnium VR1 PCVR Headset. Has my opinion changed? Let's find out...

The Somnium VR1 is available NOW HERE: https://store.somniumspace.com/

In a recent Q&A on Instagram, Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth was asked if Meta was working on motion trackers for Meta Quest. He denied it, saying that Pico would have to be successful with its devices before Meta would consider a similar product.

Here is his full answer:

"No. Those Pico trackers seem cool, and I think it's fun that they're doing that. I haven't had a chance to play with any of the new stuff out of there, but it's great to see people continuing to push and innovate and try different things.

I think there's just not that many use cases where people need that high of a degree of precision on extremities. It's not zero, if you're a dance enthusiast in VRChat and you want to show off those moves, it's great. I'm glad people have a chance to do that, and they have a path for that.

But for getting these things to be mainstream where we make this something that way more people use, I'm not sure that the juice is worth the squeeze. And I don't mean that from a business standpoint, I mean even for the consumer in terms of what they get out of it. I hope it goes so well for them, and they prove me wrong, and then we'll have to do it."

Developed by No Brakes Games and published by Curve Games (Lawn Mowing Simulator VR), Human Fall Flat VR adapts the 2016 physics-based flatscreen game with a new control scheme. Each controller represents the respective "wobbly" arms of your avatar, and each level takes place across different environments.

In a press release, Curve Games states the VR adaptation is a "completely new experience" from the original game that uses a third-person view. Though solo gameplay is supported, Human Fall Flat VR supports co-op for up to three friends as you tackle various challenges. All the original levels are included alongside a selection of "Extra Dreams" crafted by the community.

"Together, you'll navigate tricky traps and solve mind-bending physics puzzles, all while laughing at the unpredictable antics along the way. Imagine yourself wobbling through whimsical dreamscapes, now with the power to flail your arms in every direction, just like a real-life ragdoll. Whether you're swinging from ledges or pulling levers, the all-new VR control system lets you reach out and touch the madness," states the studio in a press release.

A specific release date remains unconfirmed, but Human Fall Flat VR is "coming soon" for $13 to the Meta Quest platform, Steam, and PlayStation VR2.

You may wonder at this point how you can compare the Vive trackers with the Pico ones. Well, to me the comparison feels more or less like the one between SteamVR headsets and standalone ones: the first offer the premium expensive experience that works in all the cases, while the second ones work in most of the useful cases and are much cheaper.

Vive trackers relying on SteamVR offer very precise and reliable tracking, and thanks to the use of multiple base stations, they are usually not occluded. But they require an expensive SteamVR setup. The Vive Ultimate Tracker lets you get rid of the base stations and is able to track in all conditions without occlusions thanks to its onboard cameras. But they both cost around $130-150 each, a price to which you have to add the cost of the straps to wear them.

A Pico Motion Tracker is very cheap ($80 for a couple) and already comes with the strap to wear it. But it requires to be seen by a Pico 4 Ultra headset to work: if it is occluded, the tracking fails. Plus the accuracy is probably less than the sub-mm offered by SteamVR. But in most cases, like doing full-body VR in VRChat, Pico Motion Tracker is good enough, so its advantages overcome its shortcomings. A setup with a SteamVR headset, basestations, and 2-3 Vive Trackers, worth more than $1300, could be substituted by a Pico 4 Ultra and a couple of trackers, which are half of the price! This can truly be a game changer.

Meta has leaked an image of the supposed Quest 3S via an update to its PC software, showing off what is likely the upcoming cheaper alternative to Quest 3.

As first spotted by Reddit user ‘Gary_the_mememachine‘, the image of can be found in the files of Meta Quest Link client for PC.

At the time of this writing, Meta hasn’t removed the image from its latest software update. Provided your client is updated, you can find it yourself by following this pathway:

C:\Program Files\Oculus\Support\oculus-dash\dash\data\js\assets\src\apps\dash\asset_files\experience-panels

The headset, like many in the ‘experience-panels’ folder, is referred to by its codename, which is labeled as ‘Panther’. The codename was first spotted by serial dataminer Luna when digging through the v65 UX files in the Quest software.

All signs currently point to an imminent launch of Quest 3S, as a new Meta headset was recently certified by the FCC, which is now just a few weeks before Meta Connect 2024, taking place September 25th – 26th.

PSVR 2 games could benefit from the PS5 Pro in several ways, provided developers deliver visual upgrades:

A higher frame rate: Particularly performance-hungry PSVR 2 games use reprojection to artificially double the frame rate. Sony's reprojection technology is controversial, however, as it can cause unwanted visual effects and even nausea. With the PS5 Pro, some titles may be able to avoid reprojection and render natively at a higher frame rate.

A higher resolution: Developers could use the power for a higher resolution, making games look much sharper.

Better 3D models, textures, and effects: The most elaborate way for developers to use the PS5 Pro would be to improve graphical assets.

PSVR 2 games could theoretically improve in all three areas, but it remains to be seen what improvements will be announced in the coming weeks.

Subside is an immersive aquatic VR experience with multiple areas to explore and lifelike aquatic creatures to interact with. Crafted with unparalleled realism, it aims to replicate the nuances of real-life swimming and diving in shallow waters.

Augmented World Expo (AWE), Europe's leading conference and exhibition for augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality, has announced the program for AWE EU 2024 in Vienna. The event will take place on October 29 and 30 at the Austria Center Vienna and will bring together experts, companies, developers, and investors from all over the world.

Over the two days, more than 125 presentations are expected from industry leaders including Meta, Siemens, Audi, ESA, P&G, Niantic, the World Economic Forum, Volvo, Boeing, KLM and Novo Nordisk. Highlights include:

Martin Rademacher from AUDI AG will discuss challenges and solutions for implementing mixed reality in automotive manufacturing.

Gersa Tome and Bastian Fibi from the Austrian Institute of Technology will show how XR can be used to visualize GreenTech solutions.

Ben Widdowson from Siemens will discuss the role of XR technologies in the product development and manufacturing of the future.

Kit Gilbert from Niantic will present the latest developments in spatial computing and the possibilities of XR experiences.

Other contributions will come from Neha Singh (Obsess), Johan Cruse (Volvo Trucks), Lionel Ferra (ESA) and Andy Fidel (Spatial Networks). AWE EU 2024 will conclude with the Auggie Awards ceremony, recognizing the winners of the Best in Show and Start-Up to Watch categories.

The full program is available on the AWE website.

Samsung has been working on some form of mixed-reality platform since at least February of 2023, when the Korean company announced a partnership with tech giants Google and Qualcomm.

The trio of companies presumably were working on a mixed-reality headset that would rival the Apple Vision Pro. Google announced a special version of the Android operating system for AR, VR and XR interfaces.

"Now we believe that we have reached a certain threshold," Samsung CEO TM Roh said in 2023. He explained that Google, Samsung and Qualcomm will play similar roles in this partnership as they do when building phones together, supplying chips and software to power Samsung's hardware. In a recent interview with CNBC, Qualcomm's CEO Cristiano Amon said that the partnership is exploring a set of mixed-reality smart glasses that would link to a smartphone instead of a headset. It's a much different approach than the rumored headset.

Announced last year with optional PC VR support, Vestiges: Fallen Tribes from WanadevStudio (Ragnarock, Propagation: Paradise Hotel) takes place in a tribal sci-fi universe based on Ancient Egyptian civilization. As you fight for water on a desert planet, you'll need to build a deck of 20 cards and place figurines across the board, which will then automatically engage the other army until one side wins.

Tundra Trackers will be back in stock Monday, September 9th at 11am CST! They plan to have limited quantities of trackers coming every two weeks! Each Tundra Tracker will come with: SteamVR Dongle EOZ USB-C Magnetic Cable Order two or more trackers and receive the EOZ Tracker Case for FREE! Already have trackers, but want the EOZ Case? They are now offering that too! If you want the trackers a day earlier they will be re-stocked on http://eozvr.com on Sep 8 2024: 10pm China Time 4pm CEST 10am EDT

There will be 3-Trackers and 4-Trackers bundles available.

Does anybody know if Arizona Sunshine 2 supports cross-play between different platforms? e.g. Can players on Quest/Pico/Steam play together?

Play For Dream MR was announced back in June, but at the time the company only confirmed it was launching in China soon, Singapore and Malaysia in October, and then Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Japan sometime in 2025.

Now, the company plans to bring the headset to "anywhere in the world" via Kickstarter. Play For Dream was formerly called YVR and is an established headset company in China.The campaign goal is set to the equivalent of around just $5000 and offers significant discounts on the headset, suggesting Kickstarter isn't being used to fund the headset's development, but instead as a marketing and sales channel.

A Fisherman’s Tale studio InnerspaceVR today revealed its next game: One True Path, a narrative-driven VR adventure coming to Quest 3 and PC VR headsets starting this month.

InnerspaceVR calls One True Path its “most ambitious title to date,” which is slated to follow the studio’s patently mind-bending narrative style.

Here’s how the studio describes it:

After the end times. Beyond the badlands. Discover a post apocalyptic western introducing a fresh take on the VR shooter genre.

“You find yourself in a post-apocalyptic penitentiary… and you’re busting out. In one hand: a fistful of lightning! In the other, six shots of hot justice. Based on the bestselling ‘Prisoners of the Cyber-Hounds’ from the Fiendish Fates© gamebook series by Jack Stevenson, a new dimension of deranged adventure awaits… if you dare…”

‘Part 1’ of the game is coming to Meta Quest 3 and SteamVR headsets in early access later this month, however there’s still plenty to learn about One True Path.

Here is a Pico 4 Ultra review. To sum it up they blew it. They did not upgrade their lenses or LCDs for their ultra product. This is an unforgivable mistake.

Publisher MyDearest will soon be releasing its robot action VR game "Mecha Force" for PC VR. The game is already available for Meta Quest and will also be released on SteamVR later this year. Mecha Force lets you climb into the cockpit of a giant robot and combines mecha action with roguelite elements. You can customize your mech and fight against evolving opponents. The Steam page is live and those interested can now add Mecha Force to their wishlist.