Everything You Missed at Today’s Facebook Connect 2020 Event
Today’s Facebook Connect kicked off with a two-hour talk detailing the company’s latest developments in virtual and augmented reality. Product announcements, new apps and games, and compelling insights into some speculative technology were presented. Let’s summarize for those who did not have time to watch the presentation live.
Oculus Quest 2
Everyone expected this, but the Oculus Quest 2 was Facebook’s big announcement. Like its predecessor, Quest 2 is a standalone virtual reality headset – it doesn’t require an external game console or PC (with matching bulky cables and sensors) – but this iteration offers some big improvements over Facebook’s first attempt.
Quest 2 features a single LCD panel in the headset with a resolution of 1832 x 1920 pixels per eye and 50% higher pixel density than the 1440 x 1600 pixels per eye in the first Quest. The screen has a 72Hz refresh rate for now, but this will be bumped up to 90Hz via a post-launch software update.
The headset includes a dedicated Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 processor that has 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage in the base model (a 256GB model is also available). It is also 10% lighter than the Quest.
The Quest 2 controllers have been redesigned with more ergonomic designs, improved tactile feedback and increased battery life.
These are clear improvements to the original Quest, but Facebook expects Quest 2 to replace the Rift as well. An optional $ 79 Link cable allows users to connect the Quest 2 headset to a computer to play high-quality VR games through the new Oculus Link app, effectively undermining the Rift’s entire raison d’être. VR in general.
While Quest 2 can be cable-free, users will need a Facebook account to use it. This is not a prohibitive requirement, but perhaps not everyone will want to digest it. However, the lower price point and the ability to play Rift games through a simpler setup could help Quest 2 go mainstream.
The Oculus Quest 2 launches on October 13 at $ 299 for the 64GB model and $ 399 for the 256GB model. Pre-orders are available on the Oculus online store . Several accessories are also available, including the Logitech headphones and the Elite strap with extended battery.
New games and applications
Games are VR’s biggest attraction right now, and Facebook has highlighted several new ones that are compatible with Quest 2. One of the biggest announcements was that Ubisoft is developing new VR-focused Assassin’s Creed and Splinter Cell games from scratch. No gameplay has been shown for any of the games, so they are probably in early stages of development, but the idea of exclusive games from popular franchises like these is likely to interest more Quest 2 people.
In addition to the upcoming VR games from Ubisoft, several other games have also been announced, including:
- New scenario ” Star Wars at Galaxy’s Edge”, which takes place on the planet Batuu.
- Population 1, battle royale from Big Box games
- New Beat Saber Multiplayer Mode
- Rise 2
- Jurassic World: Aftermath, a game in the genre of action-survival, which takes place in Jurassic Park, with stylized images of the comics.
- Warhammer 40k: Battle Sister
- Pistol whip 2089
- Myst VR
- The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners
- Sniper Elite VR
- Kizuna
- Rez Infinite VR
- Space Channel 5 VR
- Little Witch Academy: VR Broomstick Racing
- Altdeus: Beyond Chronos
- Bobble VR Puzzle
- Medal of Honor: Higher and Higher
Several new apps have also been announced for the Oculus platform and other VR and AR products from Facebook:
- Infinite Office: The Quest virtual reality collaboration suite.
- Messenger: Facebook Messenger will soon be available as the Quest VR app.
- Oculus Challenges: Cross-platform scoreboard and achievement system for Oculus.
- New Spark AR Features : Smithsonian, NYT and New Storytime Books for Facebook
- Oculus Link: Oculus Link lets you play Rift games from your gaming PC to your Oculus Quest 2 via a connecting cable.
- Oculus Move: Built-in cross-app fitness tracker for Quest 2 due later this year. ( Beat Saber support was demonstrated in the main demo.)
- New customizable Oculus avatars : These updated avatars will replace those in Horizon and other Facebook apps. Developers can also use them in their games and applications.
Research projects
Along with the Oculus Quest 2 and its upcoming software, Facebook has also showcased several speculative AR and VR technologies.
The first was Project Aria, a research product that Facebook is using to plan its future smart glasses technology . Basically, a group of Facebook employees will be wearing glasses that can collect data around the world. Facebook talked a little about research ethics and how and when Project Aria will collect data.
Another technology demo was the EMG wristband, a wrist-mounted interface that lets you use your hands to control AR and VR apps without a handheld controller. It also offers “neural” feedback – mostly tactile feedback through the bracelet – to simulate touch. Facebook is also using this technology to see if users can be trained to use their brains to control “extra” fingers and limbs. Facebook acquired the bracelet company, CTRL-labs, in 2019 , but this is the first of its technologies we’ve seen in conjunction with Facebook’s VR technology.
Project Aria and the EMG bracelet are still in the testing and research phases and are not products yet (if they ever will be), but Facebook is clearly firm on them as they devoted most of the two-hour talk to showcasing them away.