The XR Week Peek (2023.02.13): Quest 3 confirmed for 2023, 100+ games in the work for PSVR 2, and more!

Flip-up feature was quite cool

I’m back in Italy! Just the time to eat some homemade pasta and I got a cold, which mixed with the jet lag of the trip from China, means that I’m truly having some great days 😐 But nothing can stop me from writing the roundup of the best AR/VR news of the week for you, my lovely readers! So get ready to read some interesting XR news…

Top news of the week

(Image from Brad Lynch)

Meta to launch Quest 3 in 2023, despite the layoffs

During the latest earning calls, Mark Zuckerberg confirmed that Meta is going to launch a new device, the Quest 3, in 2023. He didn’t say “Quest 3”, but talked about “our next generation consumer headset”… but we know that it will be the Quest 3.
 
 This is an important confirmation to have, because currently Meta is undergoing a heavy restructuring and has just performed big layoffs, with rumors talking about new layoffs coming in March. The confirmed launch of the new headset means that the company is still full steam ahead in pursuing its metaverse dream.

More info (Quest 3 coming in 2023)
More info (New layoffs planned at Meta)

Other relevant news

(Image by Sony Interactive Entertainment)

New information on PSVR 2 is unveiled

Sony Interactive Entertainment is keeping growing the hype for the upcoming launch of the PSVR 2. This week we had for instance the first official unboxing of PSVR 2, so that future customers know exactly what to expect from it. But even more, we had some game developers, like the ones of Pavlov and Pistol Whip, that have detailed how the game runs better on this console than on PCVR. And we had some interesting details, like the fact that the new headset is 7% lighter than the previous model, and that it can work also without the TV connected after it has been configured.
 
 And regarding the lack of content, in a related FAQ, Sony has answered that more than 100+ titles are in development for this console. New players have so just to wait a bit to have new games…

More info (PSVR 2 unboxing)
More info (Pistol Whip on PSVR 2)
More info (Pavlov on PSVR 2)
More info (PSVR 2 works without a TV)
More info (100+ titles are in development for PSVR 2)

Battery certification confirms the Samsung MR headset

We already know that Samsung is working on a headset together with Google and Qualcomm. But now some data about it is starting to be found. The model should be codenamed “SM-I120” and its battery has just been certificated in South Korea. This battery is very small, and measures 45mm x 45mm, but this doesn’t help us in understanding the whole dimension of the device.
 
 It’s not much, but if this data is starting to surface, probably very soon we’ll discover more info about it via patents or hardware certification websites.

More info

News worth a mention

(Image by Within)

Meta finalizes the acquisition of Within

After having won the trial against the FTC, Meta has finalized the acquisition of Within. Supernatural is so now a game of Meta’s, giving the company an official product in the profitable fitness VR market.

More info

Ubisoft to work on the sequel of Assassin’s Creed VR

The most confusing news of the week comes from Insider Gaming, which reports that Ubisoft is already working on the sequel of Assassin’s Creed Nexus, which is the virtual reality game of the Assassin’s Creed saga. The nonsense comes from the fact that the first game has not been launched yet, so it sounds a bit strange that the company is already working on its sequel…

More info

Meta Quest to add direct touch panels

It seems that the v50 of the Quest runtime is finally adding direct touch panels. This means that you will be able to interact with the menus directly with your fingers. In the videos, it seems very cool, but I would like to evaluate it by testing it in VR.

More info

Meta finds the source of its VR leaks

Meta has found the person that was selling information about the upcoming headsets to the YouTuber Brad Lynch. He was an external contractor with which the company has cut all ties, now. I guess the company made sure this information was shared so that to warn other future leakers that they will be found and fired. There was a bit of controversy in this story because Brad has paid the source to reveal these industrial secrets, and it seems that this is not ethical according to journalism standards.

More info

Sony Mocopi may not be ideal for full-body VR

Some weeks ago, Sony revealed Mocopi, a cheap and small system for full body tracking. Many people in the community were hyped for its potential use for full-body VR, but a Redditor has tried it and reported that it is not immune to drift and lag. It seems that Vive Trackers are still the best solution for full-body VR, at this moment.

More info

MyndVR will be covered by a New York insurer

AgeWell New York’s CareWell members will have access to MyndVR products, which provide senior-focused VR digital therapy. This is another proof of the recognition of virtual reality applictions as working therapies in the healthcare sector.

More info

MIT Engineers invent vertical, full-color microscopic LEDs

MIT has recently announced that its engineers have developed a new way to make sharper, defect-free displays, with the invention of vertical, full-color microscopic LEDs. The innovation is the one of stacking the R-G-B components of the pixel not horizontally (with the subpixel one close to the other) but vertically (with the subpixels one on top of the other). Thanks to this innovation, it is possible to increase a lot the density of the pixels of a display, because every pixel occupies one-third of the original horizontal space. This is ideal for XR devices, where the added pixel density can contribute to increased realism.

More info

Some news on content

  • The Light Brigade is an interesting roguelike game that reminds me of In Death: Unchained. It is releasing on February 22nd for $25;
  • Upload has reviewed Barbaria, and praised its great mix of action and tower defense gaming mechanics
  • There is already a VR mod available for the game of the moment, that is Hogwarts: Legacy
  • Mixture releases on February, 23rd for Quest 2
  • Tilt Five is publishing on Steam an AR version of the board game Takenoko later this month

More info (The Light Brigade)
More info (Barbaria)
More info (Hogwarts: Legacy)
More info (Mixture)
More info (Takenoko)

Other news

Meta to open Horizon Worlds to teens to try to increase its numbers

Learn more

The Sandbox VR to host a game inspired by the popular Netflix series Squid Game

Learn more

A new study shows that AR educational experiences may engage students more, but not always offer better retention than traditional methods

Learn more

Sebastian Ang talks about a mindblowing upcoming VR headset

Learn more

Google releases Immersive Stream for XR, which is cloud rendering from the Google Cloud

Learn more

This mix of VR and AI by Andy Bacon is the best thing I’ve seen this week

Learn more

Vermillion now supports overlay mode in Steam VR, letting you paint while you are in another VR game

Learn more

Google’s head of AR/VR Clay Bavor has just left the company

Learn more

News from partners (and friends)

Versy integrates generative AI

My friends at Versy have just added a feature so that you can write a text prompt about the kind of room that you want in the Versy platform, and the system automatically generates that professional space for you.
Learn more

Inseye proposes camera-less eye tracking

Inseye has just announced its eye-tracking solution which doesn’t use cameras but photosensors and AI software. According to the company, this solution is several times cheaper and more efficient than the traditional ones. A Kickstarter about this system is coming soon.
Learn more

Some XR fun

The perfect VR video thumbnail doesn’t exis…
Funny link

This will happens inside many homes on February, 22nd
Funny link

Same same but different
Funny link

Linkedin these days
Funny link

Donate for good

Like last week, also this week in this final paragraph I won’t ask you to donate for my blog, but to the poor people that are facing the consequences of the war. Please donate to the Red Cross to handle the current humanitarian situation in Ukraine. I will leave you the link to do that below.
 
 Let me take a moment before to thank anyway all my Patreon donors for the support they give to me:

  • Alex Gonzalez VR
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  • Matias Nassi

And now here you are the link to donate:

Support The Red Cross in Ukraine

Skarredghost: AR/VR developer, startupper, zombie killer. Sometimes I pretend I can blog, but actually I've no idea what I'm doing. I tried to change the world with my startup Immotionar, offering super-awesome full body virtual reality, but now the dream is over. But I'm not giving up: I've started an AR/VR agency called New Technology Walkers with which help you in realizing your XR dreams with our consultancies (Contact us if you need a project done!)
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