Articles by Nicholas Sutrich

Zuckerberg waxes poetic on the future of social VR and new Quest Pro hardware.

What you need to know

Quest Pro isn’t coming in 2021, but it will feature enhanced performance and new sensors when it eventually debuts.
Facebook is not currently considering a way for kids to make accounts or to officially use VR headsets, despite the growing userbase.
Facebook Horizon is the company’s big push for how social networking should look and work in VR, and they’re waiting until it “feels right” to open it up to the public.

The Oculus Quest 2 may have debuted only 6 months ago, but Facebook is already thinking ahead to what the future of VR can look like for a broader Oculus Quest ecosystem. In an interview with CNET, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg talked about several topics related to VR, including upcoming Oculus Quest Pro hardware, the possibility of kids Facebook accounts and accompanying hardware, as well as how he views Facebook Horizon’s role in remote work and after-hours playtime….

Bringing back the age of gathering around a table for some fun.

Dungeons and Dragons is one of those experiences I’ve often considered but had never undertaken. Over the years, I’ve played card games like Magic the Gathering, taken part in several Everquest and World of Warcraft LAN parties, and, yet, something as ubiquitous as Dungeons and Dragons has, somehow, always eluded my grasp. I don’t know if it’s the deep commitment that D&D players often find themselves agreeing to — my own brother has a regular D&D group he plays with — or the huge rulebook that seems to change all the time; it’s just never been part of my routine.

Demeo threatens to change all of that — in a very good way, of course — by bringing the feel of Dungeons and Dragons to the world of VR, creating a board game atmosphere in a virtual basement where you and three other teammates can delve deep into dungeons without the need for a commute or a massive commitment. It’s Dungeons and Dragons for th…

Top-grade video doorbell

Ring Video Doorbell Pro

$170 at Amazon

Pros

No battery to recharge
Pre-roll video
Smaller size might be preferable in some cases
Adjustable motion zones
Privacy zones
Slightly more affordable

Cons

Wiring can be a deterrent
Poor Google Assistant integration

The Ring Video Doorbell Pro is still the best way to get the Ring experience. From the incredibly useful pre-roll video features to the convenience that comes from never charging a battery, the Ring Video Doorbell Pro is the single best Ring video doorbell you can buy. Its only real downside is that it has to be hard-wired to power, limiting ownership for renters.

Fantastic wireless choice

Ring Video Doorbell 3

$180 at Amazon

Pros

No wiring required
A bit more affordable
Adjustable motion zones
Privacy zones

Cons

Have to recharge the battery from time-to-time
No pre-roll
Poor Google Assistant integration

Ring Video Doorbell 3 is the third-generation wireless doorbell from Ri…

Another brick in the wall of Facebook’s first-party Oculus Studios.

What you need to know

Facebook continues to bolster its first-party VR development repertoire with another top-tier VR developer.
As with other VR developer acquisitions, Oculus has pledged to continue to support the game on all available platforms.
The news follows a record-setting earnings quarter for Facebook’s AR and VR division.

Facebook is officially announcing its acquisition of Downpour Interactive, the developer behind the massively popular multiplayer military simulator Onward. While Facebook isn’t disclosing the terms of the deal, they did specify that Downpour Interactive will remain an independently operated studio despite joining the umbrella of Oculus Studios. Onward has remained one of the best Quest 2 games since its launch and, indeed, one of the best multiplayer shooters on any VR platform where it’s available. Facebook says that Onward will continue to receive updates and support on all platf…

Oculus Link has come a long way since launching in beta back in 2019. With the Oculus Quest 2 launch in October 2020, Oculus Link graduated from beta, but that doesn’t mean you won’t run into problems here and there. In addition to that, Facebook launched Oculus Air Link with the April v28 Quest update, giving users the ability to ditch the cable and play wireless PC VR games on fast Wi-Fi networks. You’ll need a good gaming PC and a fast Wi-Fi 6 router for the best experience. If you’re still having Oculus Link problems, we’ve got a few solutions for you.

Jump to:

Random disconnections
Incorrect height
Poor image quality on wired Oculus Link
Stuttering on wired Oculus Link
Poor image quality on Oculus Air Link
Stuttering on Oculus Air Link

Oculus Link randomly disconnects

The Oculus Quest or Oculus Quest 2 will often randomly disconnect from the PC and revert to the Oculus Quest home screen. In order to fix this, you need to make sure to deny storage permission when connec…

Wire-free, PC-free sideloading is just a click away.

What you need to know

SideQuest has launched an Android-only mobile app that will allow users to sideload apps and games to their Oculus Quest or Quest 2.
The sideloading process can be used by hooking up a USB cable to your phone and Quest, and can also be configured to transfer via Wi-Fi.
SideQuest is a 3rd-party indie marketplace for Quest apps and games that are generally not found on the Oculus Store.

It’s been a long time coming, but SideQuest has officially launched an Android-only mobile app that will allow you to sideload apps and games from the SideQuest marketplace to your Oculus Quest or Oculus Quest 2. That means you no longer have to use a PC just to load and update apps and games from SideQuest, making the SideQuest marketplace a truly viable alternative to Facebook’s Oculus store in many ways. Sideloading apps and games from the SideQuest mobile app can be done either with a USB cable for Quest or via your home…

Do you find the elastic band that ships with the Quest 2 uncomfortable? Have you had your Quest 2 Elite Strap break? Surprisingly, the best Quest 2 strap isn’t actually any of the official solutions, although you won’t necessarily have to ditch what you’ve got to make it better. Whether you’re looking for a head strap that’ll let you use a mouse and keyboard with your Quest 2 for longer, or you need better weight distribution for when you’re playing the best Quest 2 games, we’ve got several options for you to choose from.

Cradle your cranium

Eyglo Elite Strap

Staff Pick

The Eyglo Elite Strap is probably the single-most comfortable strap on this list, and that’s why it earns the Staff Pick award. Unlike the original strap or even the official Oculus Elite Strap, Eyglo’s model completely hugs the back of your cranium with soft PU-leather foam that’s removable and easy to clean. Like the Elite Strap, the size can be easily adjusted with the simple turn-knob on the back. On top o…

One hour to play. Time to get going!

A few days ago, PS4 and PS5 players got their hands on the Resident Evil Village demo that took place in the village portion of the world. This weekend, beginning on Saturday, April 24, players will get a chance to download a second Resident Evil Village demo, this time taking place in the castle. This demo is only available on PS4 and PS5 this weekend, so PlayStation players need to be sure to sit ready with controllers in hand during this short eight-hour window:

North America 8pm EST/5PM PST on April 24 until 4am EST/1am PST on April 25
Europe 6pm BST/7pm CEST on April 25 until 2am BST/3am CEST on April 26

During the window, you’ll be able to download the castle portion of the Resident Evil Village demo, which lasts 30 minutes from the time you begin, and you’ll have an hour to play it. Make sure you’ve snacked up and taken a quick bathroom break beforehand because after the timeframe above in your respective timezone, these demos will dis…

Oculus is finally catching up to Nintendo’s Mii-level customization.

What you need to know

Oculus’s new avatars are finally launching on April 23, 2021 for all Oculus platforms including Rift and Quest.
These new avatars feature a “quintillion combinations” that can be used to truly customize your avatar to look like you.
Three games are integrating these avatars today, with many more to follow.

If you’re an Oculus gamer — whether that’s Oculus Rift, Oculus Quest, or Oculus Quest 2 — you’ve undoubtedly been disappointed with the avatar that Oculus has you make upon account creation. To be frank, they’ve been terrible up until this point. Oculus acknowledged this a while back and has been teasing its new avatar system since last year. Starting today, April 23, you’ll be able to create a brand new avatar and use it in a select few games and apps, while many of the best Quest 2 games may let you play as these avatars soon.

If you’ve already made an Oculus avatar, you’ll doubtl…

It turns out those fears of the dark weren’t unfounded.

Imagine waking up one day only to find out you’re dead. You’re not exactly sure how it happened, where it happened, if someone killed you, or you just died naturally. Either way, you’re trapped in a space somewhere between Earth and some other ethereal realm. It looks a lot like the last place you recall visiting, Barclay Mansion, but everyone here is… gone? Vanished? A ghost? Maybe they’re just a memory. A figment of your imagination.

Regardless of what they are, you appear to be trapped here, wandering the halls in search of some answers — any clue to what’s going on and why. Memories echo like footsteps in the halls, people you’ve met before take on a haunting new look, and everything seems to be connected to one single event that happened in the last few days of your mortal life. Will you survive long enough to capture the truth about your life, or will you be cast into Oblivion for all eternity? That is the quest in W…