With no need for a PC or mobile phone to jump into VR, Facebook’s Oculus Go is one of the most accessible headsets on the market right now. But there’s plans to make it even easier to use, specifically for watching VR videos.
There’s an Oculus Go controller-free mode in the works, according to Oculus technical leader John Carmack. Asked if there were any plans to decouple Go from its controller for certain apps, he confirmed that it’s in the works, sort of. This optional feature will apparently “allow app auto-launch” on Go headsets.
That means users will be able to jump into gaze-only VR apps without having to use a controller to select them.
Yes, there are plans to have a setting to disable the controller centering dialog and allow app auto-launch, which could then be purely gaze based.
— John Carmack (@ID_AA_Carmack) January 2, 2019
Imagine a first-time VR user trying a VR video at a museum. Eliminating the controller gives users one less thing to be overwhelmed by. You can simply look at buttons to launch content without the need to get to grips with another new piece of hardware. It’s also simply an inconvenience to be holding a controller in an app that doesn’t use them. That said, this probably won’t be a feature you’ll use on your regular Oculus Go kit at home.
Carmack didn’t say when this feature would arrive.
Featured image at the top of this post shows Oculus Go with its single 3DoF controller.
