Microsoft is working on a virtual reality headset for the Xbox One, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Sources have told the paper than the company is hard at work on the new technology, which will put it in direct competition with the Oculus Rift VR. With every new bit of news about the Oculus Rift it's became increasingly clear that this is the future of gaming, and it would be ridiculous to think that Microsoft didn't have something up their sleeves. After all, Sony is expected to announce their own virtual reality headset for PS4 today at the Game Developers Conference, as rumored last month, so this news was surely timed to take a little sail out of their winds. But developers reportedly have the PS4 kits in their hands already so it will be interesting to see how far along the Xbox One version is.
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The article suggest that this new tech may be an upgraded version of the Fortazela patents that Microsoft filed last year, which showed off a pair of AR (Augmented reality) glasses that would work in combination with the Xbox One.
Even if they rush it out to market, they won't be the first. More and more developers are supporting the Oculus Rift over the last year, and even Valve has teamed up with the developer, so while of course Microsoft and Sony have a lot more money to throw at the project the Rift is already out there in the world and has built up a helluva lot of acclaim and faith in the product since its announcement. They're rumored to be announcing the consumer version at this year's E3 and if Sony does indeed reveal the PS4 headset today you can expect to see much more on it in the months to come.
Whenever it happens, it's obvious that the next war for gamer's dollars will take place in virtual reality.
Via WSJ