While the Oculus Rift is poised to invade the homes of gamers, we’re increasingly seeing the DK1 and DK2 used in promotional ‘out-of-home’ venues. Immersion-Vrelia have announced a new division dedicated to developing a VR headset designed for out-of-home use in venues like arcades and theme parks.
Immersion-Vrelia, who recently joined together in a partnership, say in a press release their newly announced commercial entertainment division is the result of a partnership between ImmersiON-VRelia and International Immersion Industries and will primarily focus on developing the ‘Pro Blue Sky‘ VR headset.
“The PRO Blue Sky is a ruggedized head mounted display designed to meet the unique needs of entertainment and promotional applications based outside the home,” says the company. The Pro Blue Sky will have a 120-degree field of view and use dual 1920×1080 displays, according to Immersion-Vrelia.
The company says that the headset will have “reinforced construction” with “appropriate warranties and technical support for commercial usage” to meet the needs of demanding out-of-home use such in venues such as arcades and theme parks. Immersion-Vrelia’s site indicates that a beta version of the Pro Blue Sky headset will begin production in November, 2014, with the ‘G1’ version being released in August, 2015. The company is aiming for a $550 price point.
Although Oculus VR hasn’t yet made available a consumer version of their Rift VR headset, development kits have made their way into a bevy of promotional uses.
Full Disclosure: Kevin Williams, a guest contributor to Road to VR, is Chairman of International Immersion Industries