Facebook has acquired Oculus VR.

Hmm, yeah.

VR DOA

"He explains about the Oculus Rift that it allows users to " enter a completely immersive computer-generated environment, like a game or a movie scene or a place far away. The incredible thing about the technology is that you feel like you're actually present in another place with other people. People who try it say it's different from anything they've ever experienced in their lives."

Mark Zuckerberg acknowledges that immersive gaming experiences are at the moment the main reason to use an Oculus Rift but he also envisions a future where the same technology will be used to simply bring people together in the virtual space."

Not rhetoric, you are just being a drama queen. I don't see much of an issue with this. Virtual reality is virtual reality wether you apply it to watching a basketball game, communicating with others, and playing games. If anything, it would take a step back in other mediums, not games. So whats the issue?

Oculus is dead in the water. I don't see socially defunct hermits signing up for a FB-account to play on/with Oculus. Sony will save gaming once again with Morpheus.

Why won't Facebook just die already?!

Twitter is a riot right now lol

@Locutus_Picard:

http://www.psnation.com/2014/03/19/movies-and-nasa-coming-to-sony-headset/

lol Nasa

What is Oculus Rift? Is it some kind of new Transformer action figure?

They wouldn't invest so many years and research into it, and announce it as their next big thing if it just a prototype that was never being released. The prototype was in 2010, the actual product may look different or the specs are tweaked, but they will release it.

Shame about the death of Occulus however. Games already being cancelled, don't even need a meeting to know they want to get as far away from this as possible. Ouch.

you mean signing in with the facebook accounts we already have? Oh wait nevermind you are trolling. Carry on.

Odd that Facebook bought it. But you could see something like that happening, most tech start-ups are made only to be sold after one or two years and enrich the creator and it's investors. It's remarkable that Facebook can spend so much money in acquisitions. It's possibly going on a shopping spree while it's stocks are highly priced after it's recent profit surge.

@Desmonic:

ok so basically Sony can't guarantee to bring a product they are showing guess I guess fanboys shouldn't get there hopes up

lol VR in general....

It doesn't make any sense. Facebook is not a game company. The most they've done with games is hosted them on their website, that's about it. They've never made a game or invested into video games at all. I knew Oculus was going to get bought out but I never figured Facebook would be the one to do it. Oh well.

If you think this means the Rift will have mandatory Facebook integration you're really overblowing this and not thinking it through. Don't be daft. That would kill the product before it hits shelves. Hate Facebook all you want, but they aren't idiots. They won't kill their product like that.

I'll see how it plays out. If the deal works out Oculus just got a HUGE influx of cash and could end up making an even better product.

@mr-powers:

So one cancelled game support so where are all the killer games for Sony VR

@Desmonic:

Well a least we know Oculus Rift is coming its not like people at FB are run by idiots. They wouldn't be making making money unlike some companies who struggle to lol

The way I see it, they simply identified this as the future and are trying to get in before the rest.

they only make money because they violate your privacy

Lol I'm amazed at you people Sony has failed at a lot of things why do you think the company is selling buildings for. You guys think Facebook is run by morons who don't know anything about business. I beat everyone here has a facebook account if the company was so bad people wouldn't bother using it.

@Desmonic: I don't know why you think it's wishful thinking. That's exactly what is going to happen.

Why would Facebook spend 2 billion to kill a product? Why? Why do people think this? Facebook hasn't ruined anything they touched. They buy stuff all of the time and the quality of that product doesn't fall at all. It just keeps going on doing what it was doing. There are numerous examples of this. Hell Facebook doesn't ruin anything, company's insistence on loading up their software with Facebook connection is what ruins things. Facebook has nothing to do with that itself.

Are people worried that VR games are going to turn into Farmville? Do people realize that Facebook had nothing to do with any of those games created? They merely hosted them and kept doing what they wanted with Facebook. The cash-grabbing came from companies abusing social media, not from Facebook injecting their crap.

I feel that Facebook is just hated on because it's Facebook and popular to hate on. It's a weird pairing, Oculus and Facebook, but considering Facebook's history I don't really see anything to be seriously alarmed by.

If Facebook had a habit of buying companies and destroying them like EA or Microsoft does, then I would be worried. They don't have that history though.

@Wasdie:

Amazes me when Sony is laying off people and selling its divisions yet people think somehow Sony VR will be automatically successful and Oculus Rift will fail because it was bought by Facebook when they haven't done anything to show its a terrible company.

They ruined facebook

"Bringing you the latest in NSA spying techniques: disguised retinal scans, and knowledge of your brain functions operating in a 'virtual reality what-if scenario'!"

I would say I no longer have an interest, but that would be a lie because I never had an interest.

The way I see it, Facebook is simply trying to pull a google and acquire anything that has to do with tech. I really hope Facebook isn't pulling the strings now.

That said, how can anyone say Morpheus is better than OR? Morpheus is just a prototype that is currently at where OR was at 1 or 2 years ago.

Also, side note. How would someone spy on you with OR. All they could see are your eyes...

@Flubbbs:

well NASA is coming to Sony VR so yea

Be ready for fking AXE ads.

@silversix_:

More baseless assumption I see wondering what's NASA doing on Sony VR

lol cows are loving this news.

The funniest thing to read is the comments section on Rifts website, a whole load of negativity all being posted...via Facebook.

It's making them a little too cocky. I've seen too many "PS4 is superior to PC" posts recently. I know it's gone too far when they've started to say PS4 games have better graphics (see the "PS4 PC graphics debate has got to end" thread)

So basically its a bad thing FB bought it I mean what exactly have they done really seem to me people are just hating on FB for no reason. Now cows all think Sony VR is going to be better for some odd reason you guys really think Sony hasn't failed at selling their products at times I wouldn't put so much confidence in a company that is struggling.

Wat. -.-

Holy shit internet. (me responding to the whole backlash on the internet) Facebook did not make Farmville. Facebook did not integrate itself in every aspect of our lives. Facebook didn't ruin anything ever. Facebook, the company, has owned and operated a website that has been a flexible platform and has enabled developers to easily integrate with the Facebook API if they so choose. Facebook didn't force itself into games and other applications. Facebook's popularity led companies to abuse Facebook integration.

At this point I'm convinced that people are hating on this just because they hate on Facebook because Facebook is popular. The amount of idiocy I see on the internet right now is probably at an all time high. Facebook is pulling a Google here and diversifying their investments. This really only ensures that the Oculus Rift will have the financial support it needs to be great. It's up to Facebook how they want to use it but they've never really ruined a product before. Instagram is still Instagram despite the acquisition a few years ago. They didn't dismantle it and kill it.

Thing is, this is nothing to celebrate, this is a technology in a delicate position that could lead to something good, a change in gaming. Whose going to do that? Sony and their VR thing? Oh please, Sony don't lead or revolutionise, they don't even try. Any tech they make, they sort of just leave out there to die, if Sony actually actively support this VR thing it'll be a first, let alone make it work and lead gaming in a new direction.

How is this bad news? FB didn't ruin anything they acquired so far instagram became better after FB acquisition and what's app is still as good is it was before the acquisition if anything this is a good news now OR is being backed by a giant tech company and the chances of its success are higher than before

@Desmonic: They aren't the first people who wanted to use it for other stuff. Already many other companies have been eyeing it up for various uses. A social media integration was a logical use.

Facebook is an odd company to say the least, they buy a lot of things for a lot of money. This acquisition is weird but it's not really spelling doom for the product initially. I can see them making a more social media focused device from the tech while still supporting the gaming tech. They can't deny that gamers are a huge source of revenue and I bet they've been wanting a piece of it for awhile but had no real way to do that other than just hosting games on their website. Of course that got overrun by the cash grabbing schemes before mobile development picked up.

If anything this is Facebook diversifying. They aren't going to put out a bad product that forces developer's hands. That will kill the software support and will be the death of the Rift. If anything this will ensure a better product is delivered.

The one thing this does is kill any real chance for the Oculus Rift's API to go open. It was already closed and I think they were going to retract the whole open idea when they started getting tens of millions in investments. I really hope something like OpenVR or whatnot comes along which is an open API that can do VR on all of the future devices so that games don't have to individually support each device. I've been worried that close API is going to harm VR more and more lately.

the term Facebook now takes on a whole new meaning.

I don't know how to feel about this. OR will have more resources available behind it, but then again be at the whim of FB, the most irritating, useless social media site in existence. This will more than likely take a large focus off of gaming (despite what they say in their PR), maybe not at first but eventually. All in all I think this is bad news. At least there's still Morpheus.

Well, I see them saying they still intend to start with games, but I didn't read anything guaranteeing this is still an open source platform. It's new territory for the company - would be for about anyone - but they haven't ever struck me as an "open source" type of Mega Conglomerate.

Could just be me...

Some people including cows are spinning it off as if FB is going ruin it for some odd reason when the owner said nothing will change and Oculus Rift will continue to do there thing. It will only help Oculus Rift get the necessary backing it need with a major company support.

....and this is the worst part and more than likely will end up being the case. You're going to need to be a member of FB to use it. **** man, I hate that goddamn site and people constantly begging me to join to I can hear 50 times a day about mundane shit I couldn't give two shits less about.

@MirkoS77: \Even Sony VR is looking at other possibilities that's why Nasa is on it