Streaming PC VR content to an iPhone is finally possible thanks to RiftCat.
The company this week launched the long-promised iOS version of its VRidge software. Available on Android since 2016, VRidge streams PC VR content straight to your phone. You can then insert your phone into a VR viewer like a Google Cardboard headset. It’s a low-cost workaround to access PC VR games, though it’s far from perfect. While players will lose positional tracking, they can still tilt their head to look around.
Now, obviously, you’re not going to be playing tracking-heavy games like Vacation Simulator or Superhot VR. But RiftCat does reason that the platform is good for sampling seated VR experiences like Subnautica, Elite Dangerous and Project Cars. You can see some of those apps in action in the short video below.
Recently RiftCat also added the ability to use other smartphones as three degrees of freedom (3DOF) motion controllers. So, if you have three smartphones to hand, you could theoretically play the likes of Beat Saber with the software. We did just that in an Oculus Go, actually.
It’s a fun experiment but in no way a proper replacement for a real PC VR headset. It’s also worth noting that the rise of standalone VR headsets like the soon-to-release Oculus Quest is providing cheaper ways to get into high-quality VR. How RiftCat copes with the increase in affordable VR will be an interesting story to follow. VRidge is available for free in 10 minute sessions, but a one-time payment of $14.99 also gets you unlimited access.
