Xbox and Oculus Partner to Change the Face of Virtual Reality

Today we announced a new partnership between Microsoft and virtual reality pioneer Oculus VR. Earlier today, at an Oculus event in San Francisco, Head of Xbox Phil Spencer joined Oculus CEO Brendan Iribe on stage to share some details on what fans can expect to see when the Oculus Rift launches in 2016.

The Xbox One controller will be included with every Oculus Rift at launch. The Xbox One controller is designed for gamers, by gamers, for interchangeable gaming between Xbox One and Windows 10 PCs and tablets, with fine-tuned impulse triggers to offer precise haptic fingertip feedback and a D-pad engineered to deliver greater responsiveness. And, with the new Xbox Wireless Adapter for Windows that we unveiled last week included, you can play games on the Rift using the Xbox One controller wirelessly right out of the box.

Xbox One games will be playable on Oculus Rift. We’re happy to announce that we’re bringing the same Xbox One streaming capability to the Rift, a feature that’s only possible through Windows 10. You can play your favorite Xbox One games, like Halo, Forza, Sunset Overdrive and more, on your own virtual reality cinema screen.

Windows 10 is the best platform for playing games on the Oculus Rift. The Rift will work natively with Windows 10 to make it easy to set up, jump in, and have an incredible VR gaming experience. Combined with DirectX 12 technology that unlocks the full capabilities of new Windows 10 graphics hardware, made-for-VR games on Windows 10 will have the fastest frame rates and top performance.

Above all, we want to give gaming fans choices. Windows 10 is an open ecosystem that includes boundless opportunities for alternate realities, which is why we see the virtual reality of Oculus Rift as a perfect complement to the mixed reality offered by Microsoft HoloLens. For more on mixed reality, virtual reality, Windows 10 gaming and more, be sure to watch my interview with CVP of Next Gen Experiences Kudo Tsunoda below.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTDnVQgICl4]We’re really excited about today’s announcement and what it means for fans of both Xbox and Oculus. You’ll be hearing more about this great news in the future, so stay tuned to Xbox Wire.