I love E3. It’s a heck of a lot of work, incredibly stressful and relentlessly tiring, but nothing beats the big moments. You know the ones I’m talking about; the surprise reveals and unexpected trailers. They keep me coming back for more. It’s time VR got in on that action. VR has struggled to find a home at E3 in the past few years. Sony’s had some amazing reveals, but it’s skipping this year and PC VR developers haven’t really had anywhere to turn. There are plenty of amazing VR games that deserve just as much of a spotlight as many of today’s popular console titles and they’re just not getting it. We’re planning to change that. So we’re making the Upload E3 VR Showcase. The simplest way to explain it is like a Nintendo Direct or PlayStation State of Play show, but for VR. It’ll be a pre-recorded presentation with a BUNCH of new game reveals, trailers and more. We’re going to be jetting off around the globe to meet VR devs of all shapes and sizes, talk to them about their latest projects and reveal them to you. Expect faces old and new as well as some guest stars from the VR community and beyond. This is our chance to show the world what the future holds for VR. We want to produce something that will excite not just the Rift, Vive, PSVR, Quest and Windows VR owners of the world today but also those that haven’t yet bought a headset. We’ve been talking with developers about this since last year and, trust me, some of these reveals are going to be big. With a lot more work, your support (and a bit of luck), we might just pull this thing off. Be back here on June 10th, 9am PST/12pm EST/6pm CEST for an action-packed presentation of all things VR. You’re not going to want to miss this. Tagged with: The E3 VR Showcase, Upload, uploadvr .special-buttons > * { text-align:left !important; } FacebookTwitterRedditMore The post UploadVR Announces The First Ever E3 VR Showcase appeared first on UploadVR.

A lot of Switch fans are going to get their first taste of Mario in VR this week. Super Mario Odyssey is getting an update that will add three new levels to Nintendo’s beloved platformer. These can be played with the company’s recently-launched Labo VR kit. But that’s not all that’s coming in the update. The official Twitter account for the game (translated from Japanese) confirms that the update will also add a ‘Theater Mode’. From what we can tell, this will allow you to watch the game’s cutscenes with the VR goggles, stretching the world out in 3D. Not a bad little bonus, that. [VRであそぶ] 4/26のアップデートでは、ムービーシーンを見ることができる「シアターモード」も追加されます！「VR ゴーグル」を使えば、オープニングなどの映像を奥行きのある立体的な映像で見ることができちゃいます。クッパのパンチにビックリ！？ pic.twitter.com/HstnsGk8fF — スーパーマリオ オデッセイ (@mario_odysseyJP) April 11, 2019 The account also confirms that the three levels will add more hidden Cat Marios to find, which should be pretty fun using VR’s head-tracking. Oh, and you’ll also be able to play these new levels without the VR headset, but where’s the fun in that? These levels will revisit some of the worlds from the original game from a fresh angle. Think Astro Bot, but replace Sony’s new VR mascot with Nintendo’s iconic plumber. We can’t wait to see Nintendo’s interpretation of what VR brings to the genre. The update arrives on April 26th alongside a free update for another Switch classic, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. That will add full VR support to the original game. Sadly it doesn’t look like Super Mario Odyssey will be getting the same treatment for now. Let’s hope more Switch games are due a VR upgrade, though. Tagged with: Super Mario Odyssey VR .special-buttons > * { text-align:left !important; } FacebookTwitterRedditMore The post Super Mario Odyssey VR Includes 3D Movie Viewer, Hidden Items appeared first on UploadVR.

Facebook’s latest VR headset, the Oculus Quest, is set to be quite different from the Oculus Rift. For starters, it’s an all-in-one device with no need for a PC. But Oculus is also approaching Quest with a stricter content curation policy than on Rift. It calls this a “quality-first approach” that has seen at least one developer have their VR game rejected from Quest’s submission process. Recent comments from VP of Content, Jason Rubin, shed light on this approach. In an interview with MCV, Rubin was asked if a more standardized platform may lead to more experimentation in VR games. “I think a lot of that experimentation will happen on Rift,” he replied. “Then we’ll take the best of the experimentation and bring it to Quest because we believe the Quest user wants to go to the store and say: ‘Everything here is good’.” Indeed, most of the games Oculus has revealed for Quest thus far are ports of some of VR’s most popular titles. Those include the likes of Superhot VR and Beat Saber. Rubin, meanwhile, says that Rift will still be home to initiatives like Early Access games. Rift Remains For VR Enthusiasts “Whereas on Rift, the users are just in love with VR and they want to try everything,” he reasoned. “And we find that people are more than willing to go into half-finished software. Early Access is not really a console mentality. It’s a PC mentality: ‘I know this thing’s busted but I’m buying it anyway.’” It’s true that PC VR is home to plenty of Early Access titles. But we still have questions on what Oculus’ stance on Quest curation means for some developers. Quest will be out later this spring at $399, with a new version of Rift named Rift S expected to arrive in the same timeframe for the same price. Do you agree with Rubin’s comments? Or are you hoping to see the more experimental side of VR reach Quest too? Let us know in the comments below. Tagged with: curation, jason rubin, oculus, Oculus Quest .special-buttons > * { text-align:left !important; } FacebookTwitterRedditMore The post Oculus’ Rubin: We Believe Quest Users Want To Say ‘Everything Here Is Good’ appeared first on UploadVR.

Nothing’s quite as satisfying as swinging a sword in VR. But do you ever wonder where your mighty blade came from? What fires forged its sharp edges? In Fantasy Smith, you’ll find out. Fantasy Smith has quite a novel idea for a VR game. Instead of heading off into dungeons to slay monsters, you make the weapons that other adventurers will use to do just that. It’s a cutesy little VR game developed by a group of Taiwanese students collectively named Gunben3. If the trailer below doesn’t melt your heart then we can’t help you. This looks a little like Job Simulator with a fantasy twist. Customers enter your little workshop and ask you to make them different types of gear. You then use the tools at your disposal to craft them. That includes enchanting items with magic and, of course, hitting them with a big hammer. Once you’ve completed a day’s work you can go out and spend your hard-earned cash on new items. Oh, did I mention the fact that the adventurers are incredibly cute animals? Like a fedora-sporting dog or an armored bear? I can’t take this much cuteness. Environments look to be highly interactive. Customers react to different actions like ringing a bell in their ears or bopping them on the head with items, and enchanting items in certain ways gives them a life of their own. Fantasy Smith is available now on SteamVR with official support for the HTC Vive. It usually costs $12.99 but you can pick it up for the slightly lower price of $11.69 until April 29. Tagged with: crafting, Fantasy Smith .special-buttons > * { text-align:left !important; } FacebookTwitterRedditMore The post In Fantasy Smith, You Make The Weapons Other Adventurers Wield appeared first on UploadVR.

We've got a bunch of great upcoming VR game releases to look forward to this month -- we'll update this as the month goes on. The post VR Game Releases For April 2019 appeared first on UploadVR.

The recent release of the Nintendo Labo VR kit marks the second coming of Nintendo's VR efforts and apparenty it's been planned for some time. The post Nintendo: Labo VR On Switch Was ‘Planned Out From The Very Beginning’ appeared first on UploadVR.

ZED is the story of an artist suffering from dementia — desperately trying to reconnect fragmented memories and you have to piece them together in VR. The post Hands-On: Zed Is An Atmospheric Puzzler About Repairing A Fractured Mind appeared first on UploadVR.

The company behind genre-defining atmospheric puzzle adventure games Myst and Riven, as well as the VR-optional spiritual successor Obduction, have until Friday to clear their Kickstarter goal. Spokane-based Cyan Worlds, Inc. launched its Kickstarter crowdfunding project last month for Firmament — a new VR puzzler that also works on traditional PC screens. The project so far raised support from more than 12,000 people and, as of this writing, those backers promised more than $975,000 to the cause. That’s still quite a bit less than the all-or-nothing funding goal of $1,285,000. Firmament ends its fundraising on Kickstarter Friday, April 26 at 3 pm Pacific time. $30 is the minimum pledge to receive a digital version of the game. More than 4,000 people are backing at that level while another 4,000+ people are opting for exclusive content promised with a $49 pledge. Thousands more are supporting above those levels with $120 or $250 pledges promising physical collectibles and a “proof-of-concept” build of the game. Firmament is slated to arrive in July of next year, though we should note crowdfunding projects often miss delivery targets. We reviewed Obduction highly [8/10] when it debuted in 2016 before the Oculus Rift supported Touch controllers. Though hand control support was added later, Obduction also suffered from some cumbersome controls and performance issues. We first tried an early prototype of Firmament last year and the game was built from the start with VR support in mind although it’s fully playable outside of VR too. A lot is on the line with Firmament. Cyan explains that if this project isn’t funded then the company may run “out of money” in the page’s FAQ section: Blah, blah, blah… here’s the bottom line. Cyan spent the majority of the Myst 25th funds to fulfill the obligations – happy to do it. The leftover funding continued to fuel Cyan, allowing us to optimize Obduction, design Firmament, create a video and proof-of-concept for Firmament, and basically stay in business for a number of months. No private island, no Tesla, no huge bonuses, no shopping sprees – but we get to keep working! So that’s why we are turning back to Kickstarter. We either need to fund Firmament or run ourselves out of money, because (as much as we’d love to) we just don’t have those proverbial buckets of cash. The company added PSVR support as a stretch goal earlier this month if the project clears $1.4 million in funding. Separate from Firmament, Cyan is also publishing VR adventure ZED from developer Eagre Games. Here’s the link again to the Kickstarter page for Firmament. Tagged with: cyan worlds, Firmament .special-buttons > * { text-align:left !important; } FacebookTwitterRedditMore The post Myst Creator’s Firmament Needs Final Push To Clear Kickstarter Goal appeared first on UploadVR.

The Jack Daniel's AR Experience app turns the classic black-and-white front label of any Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey bottle into a matching pop-up book. The post Jack Daniel’s AR App Turns Whiskey Bottles Into Little 3D Dioramas appeared first on UploadVR.

The SeeingVR tools include all sorts of individual effects, ranging from brightness and contrast to traditional magnification and VR bifocal features. The post SeeingVR Is Making ‘VR Bifocals’ To Help Low-Vision Users appeared first on UploadVR.

Next-generation video compression software using the new MPEG-OMAF standard for VR specification enables 360-degree videos to stream over 5G networks. The post Next-Generation Video Compression Enables 360 VR Streams Over 5G Networks appeared first on UploadVR.

When Sony confirmed the existence of the PS5 this week they also confirmed ongoing support for PSVR which paints a bright future for the budding technology. The post Sony Promising PS5 Support For PSVR Gives VR A Clear Future appeared first on UploadVR.

VRTK is a VR framework designed to allow developers to add interactivity to their apps & games without as much coding and v4 makes it even better. The post VRTK v4 Beta Makes The Best Unity VR Framework Even Better appeared first on UploadVR.

Ghost Giant may be bright and colorful with animal characters, but it is definitely not a children's game as it handles heavy topics like depression. The post Ghost Giant: How This Seemingly Cute VR Story Makes Depression Relatable appeared first on UploadVR.