Facebook Buys Oculus Rift For $2 Billion

By DrunknMunky
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Grand Master

HawkMan

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You gave him a call and found this out?

 

 

No I read what he wrote, the same thing you just quoted. 

You gave him a call and found this out?

 

 

Because "our people" definitely doesn't mean one or two guys in my vocabulary. Especially not for a studio with 39 people.

 

Minecraft for OR is Minecraft for OR. Are you going to now say the console versions of Minecraft aren't really Minecraft because the PC version is superior? Sure they're different versions but it's still Minecraft.

 

Interested to see what else you throw at this argument to somehow say Notch is lying and Minecraft was never planned for Occulus.

 

Did you just call the PI edition the same as the console versions... 

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Athernar

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Has Valve said that they are going to produce a VR headset for retail?

I knew about the prototype and that is was rumored to be better than OR, but I didn't see them say they were pushing that prototype towards a release.

 

Not thus far, but with this event that may change depending on the overall view Abrash et al have regarding the Facebook acquision.

 

Like with the Steambox, Valve's modus operandi is to do the R&D and innovate with the tech, but then pass off the product work to a 3rd party.

 

I would think the most likely outcome as far as Valve is concerned is jumpstarting any new startups that occur as a result of these events.

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Grand Master

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No I read what he wrote, the same thing you just quoted. 

 

Did you just call the PI edition the same as the console versions... 

 

Nope, just that anything Mojang release with Minecraft in it's title is a Minecraft game. Whatever Notch has withdrawn is Minecraft in some shape or form, so to say he wasn't at some point in a Minecraft project for OR is just silly.

 

To be honest I really don't know why you're arguing against the titles own creator to try and say he's lying and not really doing what he said. I mean, what can make someone go down that path? Do you have stock in Facebook or something?  :/

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Grand Master

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Apparently Facebook is not rebranding the Oculus Rift...

 

http://www.theverge.com/2014/3/26/5549186/facebook-rebrand-oculus-rift-headset

 

And the OR creator

 

WH0nKh2.jpg

 

He can be done all he wants though, FB own it, they can do what they want and he can pack his bags just as he's threatening if he doesn't like it.

 

edit: I've misread that, the "If I ever..." parts are other peoples questions/statements. His answers come after the "I'm done". part.

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Ironman273

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From Zuckerberg's mouth (and an answer to those saying Facebook bought OR because they could make money selling hardware):

When it came to Oculus' business model, he (Zuckerberg) said Facebook wasn't interested in making money on the Oculus Rift hardware; the revenue, he said, would come from other places. "We view this as a software and services thing," he said. "If this becomes a network where people can be communicating and buying things and virtual goods, and there might be advertising in the world, but we need to figure that out down the line." Zuckerberg didn't go into specifics, but it's easy to imagine shopping malls popping up in the virtual landscape.

 

Source: Engadget "Can Oculus survive the Facebook effect?"

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Grand Master

Ironman273

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So Facebook's goals for VR aren't even in the same hemisphere as gaming.

Nope.  And I think that's how Zuckerberg sold it to the board.  Then he sold it completely differently to Palmer.  Palmer still believes it'll be the same company (poor guy).

 

And as for the "success" of Instagram's buyout and its 200 million users.  That's exactly wehat Facebook wanted to buy!!!!!  That's 200 million more points of data Facebook has.

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Athernar

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The Polygon article had a line that reminded me of another similar series of events.

 

"Seeing the numbers involved, my first thoughts is that it will probably mean Oculus now has almost 'unlimited' resources, which I guess could accelerate the research and development process, and how fast they are able to put a product into the consumer's hands,"

 

Does anyone else remember what "unlimited resources" did to Bioware after EA acquired them? If testimonies from various (ex-)employees are accurate it was said resources rather than EA meddling.

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DrunknMunky Veteran

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I dont get it, Minecraft already works with the Rift?

 

 

Via mod, not official support.

 

Either way, the comments about Minecraft and an OR release come straight from Notch. There is no debate. They were talking about releasing a version to work with it and now they're not. Splitting hairs over the number of employees involved, who would port it and which version is irrelevant.

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HawkMan

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Nope. And I think that's how Zuckerberg sold it to the board. Then he sold it completely differently to Palmer. Palmer still believes it'll be the same company (poor guy).

And as for the "success" of Instagram's buyout and its 200 million users. That's exactly wehat Facebook wanted to buy!!!!! That's 200 million more points of data Facebook has.

What Facebook does with OR doesn't in the slightest affect what other game devs use it for. Facebook wants to maybe build their own thing around it(imagine an actual useful version of that PS3 thing) but that doesn't prevent it's use in other games.

Via mod, not official support.

Either way, the comments about Minecraft and an OR release come straight from Notch. There is no debate. They were talking about releasing a version to work with it and now they're not. Splitting hairs over the number of employees involved, who would port it and which version is irrelevant.

Except calling the pi version of minecraft for minecraft is kind of like calling the mobile AC game for assassins creed, technically correct, but ... Oh so wrong.

Also the mod shows that notch is wrong and that it works just fine with OR and VR.

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Grand Master

DrunknMunky Veteran

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What Facebook does with OR doesn't in the slightest affect what other game devs use it for. Facebook wants to maybe build their own thing around it(imagine an actual useful version of that PS3 thing) but that doesn't prevent it's use in other games.

Except calling the pi version of minecraft for minecraft is kind of like calling the mobile AC game for assassins creed, technically correct, but ... Oh so wrong.

Also the mod shows that notch is wrong and that it works just fine with OR and VR.

 

If it turned into a sidescroller or anything departing from classic Minecraft gameplay I'd agree with you (typically what happens when they port cheap mobile phone versions). Minecraft didn't do that when it was ported to Pocket Edition so why phone it in now. We won't get to see it, so there's no point going down that road of unknown speculating.

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So Facebook's goals for VR aren't even in the same hemisphere as gaming.

Yeah, that's the biggest issue with it, they sold a "gaming peripheral" to a social media company that wants nothing to do with gaming, outside of putting ads into games.

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spaceelf

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http://techreport.com/news/26229/updated-oculus-headset-may-get-facebook-rebrand-price-cut 

 We have not gotten into all the details yet, but a lot of the news is coming. The key points:
1) We can make custom hardware, not rely on the scraps of the mobile phone industry. That is insanely expensive, think hundreds of millions of dollars. More news soon.
2) We can afford to hire everyone we need, the best people that fit into our culture of excellence in all aspects.
3) We can make huge investments in content. More news soon.

 

Luckey went on to note, "This deal specifically lets us greatly lower the price of the Rift."

I thought I posted this in here already, but I guess not.

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DarkyDan

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Yeah, that's the biggest issue with it, they sold a "gaming peripheral" to a social media company that wants nothing to do with gaming, outside of putting ads into games.

 

You say that.. but on the flip side this could be their first proper foray outside of that domain.. an acquisition that will still prosper after the death of Facebook dotcom.  I'm skeptical, but if they are leaving the Oculus team to keep doing their thing but supplying them with resources to do it quicker and better.. What's the issue?

 

It amounts to assumption, and tall poppy syndrome.  I hate Facebook.com, but let's differentiate the website from the company for a second.

 

I agree with the people drawing parallels to Google's acquisition of Android, They were a search/ad provider investing in a mobile operating system, but that has worked out for the better, it seems.

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HawkMan

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Yeah look at all the thousands of OR DK pre order devs who have gone out and announced that because of this they are no longer making OR VR games...

 

err... wait... that didn't happen. there's still thousands of VR games being made for the OR. this doesn't seem to have changed ANYTHING on the game dev front.... how strange.... 

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Jarrichvdv

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Well... I'm gonna go full Sony on this one.

That's a bit early to decide.

Yeah, that's the biggest issue with it, they sold a "gaming peripheral" to a social media company that wants nothing to do with gaming, outside of putting ads into games.

So you already know their plans?

Don't try to act like you're on the board of Facebook, making all the decisions for future unannounced projects.

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That's a bit early to decide.

So you already know their plans?

Don't try to act like you're on the board of Facebook, making all the decisions for future unannounced projects.

 

Plus Sony's probably won't come to the PC, at least not originally. Those saying they'll go with Sony have to realize Sony are currently the only option on a console lol.

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Cliff sure to gain some more internet love from this

 

Industry veteran Cliff Bleszinski, who most notably worked at Epic Games for 20 years, has written a lengthy blog post addressing the $2 billion Oculus/Facebook deal wherein he also calls Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson a "pouty kid" for canceling the virtual reality version of the sandbox game.
 
Bleszinski made clear upfront that he participated in an early round of venture capital funding for Oculus VR and said he stands to make a "very sizable chunk of money" from Facebook's buyout. With that out of the way, Bleszinski said he was a believer in VR when he first saw the tech and he remains one today.
 
"When that dust settles my heart says that I really, genuinely care about VR and I want to experience and enjoy it myself, and I have faith that it will still happen, and it will be better than ever," Bleszinski said.
 
Many have criticized Facebook in the past for being intrusive with regards to the private information it collects from users. Zuckerberg is not blind to this concern, but said the "Internet Outrage Machine loves to pile on something like this."
 
"Maybe Zuck sees what everyone else has seen--the future--and wants to make sure it's more than just great games and saw that it would add value to his business?" he said.

 

 

Lastly, Bleszinski took a shot at Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson, who canceled a VR version of the sandbox game in the wake of the sale.
 
"Notch, your cancelling Minecraft makes you look like a pouty kid who is taking his ball and going home. It's a bratty and petty move and it saddens me greatly," he said.

 

 

Source: http://dudehugespeaks.tumblr.com/post/80832803371/riftbook

 

Guess its all about this Cliff!

 

Bleszinski made clear upfront that he participated in an early round of venture capital funding for Oculus VR and said he stands to make a "very sizable chunk of money" from Facebook's buyout. With that out of the way, Bleszinski said he was a believer in VR when he first saw the tech and he remains one today.

 

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