Microsoft’s development of augmented reality and “mixed reality” technology over the last few years had us hopeful that the Xbox One would eventually be home to VR games even more impressive than what Sony offers with PlayStation VR. It no longer looks like that will be the case.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, chief marketing officer for gaming Mike Nichols revealed that Microsoft doesn’t feel consoles are the best fit for the technology.
“Our perspective [on virtual reality] has been and continues to be that the PC is probably the best platform for more immersive VR and MR,” Nichols added. “As an open platform, it just allows faster, more rapid iteration.”
Nichols also mentioned that augmented reality technology was a particularly poor fit for consoles, and has much more viability on mobile devices. We’ve certainly seen this with the success of Pokémon Go, but his remarks are somewhat disappointing when considering what Microsoft’s HoloLens technology has promised.
Back at E3 2015, Microsoft demonstrated HoloLens with Minecraft, showing a customizable world on a table that could be manipulated in augmented reality. We’d still love to see this on Xbox systems, as it could offer an experience far different from that on PlayStation, mobile, or Nintendo Switch.
Of course, as Microsoft also develops Windows 10, it can afford to let some of its players game on PC exclusively. The company announced the turn-based strategy title Gears Tactics at E3, and despite the Gears of War franchise’s history on Xbox 360 and Xbox One, it will be skipping consoles completely. Microsoft has effectively stopped releasing exclusives for the Xbox One altogether, instead offering them as “Xbox Play Anywhere” titles with digital cross-buy for PC and Xbox One.
This generation, the PlayStation 4 is the only console that offers virtual reality support of any kind, and it does it at a price much lower than its PC competitors. Games like Moss and Farpoint offer truly unique experiences, and with bundles going for only $300, it’s the perfect time to jump into VR. Just make sure you take it slowly when you begin, as the dreaded “VR sweats” can pop up during even the most benign moments.
Acer’s Predator Atlas 8 finally has a US release date and price, several months after the company first showed off the handheld in May. The highlight is the Intel Arc G3 Extreme chip inside, which has been adopted by only a couple of other consoles besides the Atlas 8. This version will go on sale exclusively at Best Buy on November 1 for $1,299.99.
Acer originally said the Atlas 8 would arrive in North America in October, but left pricing open at the time. The launch came amid the ongoing DRAM crunch, which has made memory more expensive across the PC industry and complicated pricing for hardware makers.
Gaming laptops and I have a complicated relationship. One of my first gaming rigs was an Acer Predator that was already outdated when I bought it. I was a broke college kid, and that was the best I could afford. So trying out high-end gaming laptops is always fun. But ASUS' ROG Zephyrus G14 is a lot more than a laptop that can run AAA games. It is portable, so you're not lugging around a 2.5kg machine everywhere you go. It is built well, none of that plastic chassis, and can even function as a normal laptop outside of just gaming.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.