Battlefield 3 could be getting Oculus Rift support along with future titles from EA-owned developer DICE. According to a recent internship posting, EA and DICE are looking for someone to “investigate and implement support for Occulus Rift SDK in the Frostbite Engine” which powers many of the company’s games, including Battlefield 3. MTBS3D spoke with Frostbite Creative Director Frank Vitz who says he’s “really eager to see how the Oculus Rift works with Frostbite.”
Battlefield 3 Oculus Rift Support?
EA and DICE haven’t made any official comments regarding Oculus Rift support outright, but Frank Vitz says that there’s a small community of developers at DICE who are excited to see what can be done with the HMD. Vitz notes that Battlefield 3 already fully supports stereoscopic 3D and that the current version of Frostbite also retains that functionality — not many steps should be needed for preliminary Oculus Rift support. DICE could potentially released a mod to add Oculus Rift support to Battlefield 3 for PC, assuming it performs to their satisfaction.
See our list of Oculus Rift Games
DICE recently posted details of a virtual reality related internship the company is offering. The listing requests someone with a very specific skillset:
Master Thesis: VR technology in games
The master thesis will focus on next generation VR technology and how to best implement support in video games. This requires adding basic support in existing technology. Other areas of interest include modifications to better fit first person games, reducing latency, stereoscopic issues.
Applicant should have experience in C++ programming. Knowledge about VR technology and rendering is recommended.
Task include:
- Explore existing research for relevant subjects
- Investigate and implement support for Occulus Rift SDK in the Frostbite Engine
- Investigate and implement techniques for improving user experience
The Master Thesis is a non-paid and temporarily employment . The Master Thesis needs to be associated with a University education or any other type of education that has an Master Thesis period planned into the education plan. Please consider this before applying and potentially move [sic] to Stockholm, Sweden.
So, not too much doubt as to what this lucky student might find her/himself doing after they’ve made the decision to up sticks and move to Stockholm. The chance to work for one of the world’s top game developers and publishers, investigating the pitfalls and the possibilities of VR and how they might shape current and future EA games is pretty enticing.
Enter Frank Vitz, Creative Director of Frostbite
MTBS3D founder Neil Schneider was the first to speak with Creative Director for Frostbite Frank Vitz regarding the internship posting:
Be honest… did you have something to do with this? [Linking to the Internship Ad]
Vitz responded:
Yes, I am behind this or at least one of the guys on the frostbite team pushing hard for it. I am really eager to see how the Oculus Rift works with Frostbite.
…
The point of the Thesis work is NOT the basic interface with Frostbite…
(we think that part will be pretty straight forward and quick depending upon how the Rift SDK works) the thesis work will be about how to make it work really well.
Vitz further noted that “there are multiple titles in the works that would be awesome with the Rift. Of course it will be the responsibility of each game team to ensure that their game works in [stereoscopic 3D] and with the Rift if it proves to be viable.” We’d love to see Mirror’s Edge 2 in VR!
A refreshingly open response, perhaps hinting that EA and DICE will work on Oculus Rift integration for present and future games. Although absolutely nothing specific has been confirmed here, you hardly have to let your imagination run away with you to see what this might mean for the future of virtual reality gaming.