Oculus, the parent company which owns the recently released VR Headset Oculus Quest, has been making headlines due to apparently blocking independent developers own initiatives.
Guy Gordin, the creator of the Oculus Quest app Virtual Desktop, took to reddit yesterday to explain that Oculus does not want an updated version of Virtual Desktop which added a feature to stream SteamVR games into their headset.
Gordin stated that after developing VR tech for more than five years, he saw an opportunity with his app to give people more access to their own PC libraries. "I worked on this for months and was eager to improve the functionality as I received your feedback over the last few days but according to Oculus, I am hurting Quest." stated Gordin.
Website Engadget spoke with an Oculus representative on the sudden issue, and stated that their store application submission system is "designed to help ensure that our devices deliver a consistent, comfortable experience to customers." No official comment was made regarding Gordin's app, and no clarification was given in regards to how the app was hurting Oculus Quest.
Oculus, officially known as Facebook Technologies LLC, has already raked in big bucks for Oculus Quest, with a reported $5 million worth of content in just the first two weeks of launch.
Gordin has stated that he is not planning on giving up the SteamVR feature from Virtual Desktop just yet. On Reddit, he explained his plans to offer the feature as part of a separate application that is sideloaded into Oculus Quest, thereby bypassing the strict requirements set by Oculus. He has also suggested to Oculus to consider it as an opt-in feature for the Virtual Desktop due to its early stages of development.
What are your thoughts on all of this? Is Oculus too quick to restrict innovation? Leave your comments below.
