John Carmack thinks virtual reality is the future of
gaming. So much so that this week he joined Oculus VR as their Chief Technology Officer (CTO). In case you didn't know (and how could you not!) Oculus VR is the creator of the Oculus Rift VR headset; the new gaming
headgear designed to give gamers a more immersive experience.
Oculus VR and specifically Rift have taken priority in
Carmack's professional life with Id Software now coming in second place. I suppose it's no surprise considering the lambasting
Id's taken over the delay of Doom 4 and the failure of Rage. Lest we forget Id's parent, Bethesda, who's
been turning up the heat on the developer over the haphazard progress of Doom 4.
At last year's QuakeCon Carmack was an ardent cheerleader
offering up free copies of Doom 3 BFG to Kickstarter supporters of the fledgling
project. Unfortunately the game wasn't ready by the
time the development kits came out. So
investors got a copy of Hawken instead and a choice of "store
credits" or a full refund of their kickstarter pledge.
Carmack's gone "all in" with the Oculus Rift
evidenced by almost every recent photo op showing him wearing the latest
incarnation of the device. Want more
proof?
“I have fond memories of the development work that led to a lot of great
things in modern gaming – the intensity of the first person experience, LAN and
internet play, game mods, and so on. Duct taping a strap and hot gluing sensors
onto Palmer’s early prototype Rift and writing the code to drive it ranks right
up there. Now is a special time. I believe that VR will have a huge impact in
the coming years, but everyone working today is a pioneer. The paradigms that
everyone will take for granted in the future are being figured out today;
probably by people reading this message. It’s certainly not there yet. There is
a lot more work to do, and there are problems we don’t even know about that
will need to be solved, but I am eager to work on them. It’s going to be
awesome!”
Carmack believes that VR for gaming is the next
big thing just like 3D gaming was in the
early 90's. He could be right. I mean at least everyone SEEMS excited about
the prospect of wearing an oversized scuba mask on their head while tripping
over the sofa.
Yes it's true, 100% of people "surveyed"* are
excited about the project and when they try it out 75% of them throw up
immediately afterward.
That's just one of the hurdles the Oculus Rift
has to overcome. Low resolution, bulky
design and limited compatibility with current games are some of the others.
That Carmack has switched gears from dodging
tomatoes over Rage to cutting edge hardware really isn't a surprise. Much like the departure of Bill Gates from
Microsoft (even though he retains his chairman status) there comes a
time when a founder's creation evolves beyond its creator.
In the case of Gates he initially embraced the
role of futurist (remember his book, The Road Ahead?) before settling into philanthropy.
Founders generally aren't your standard cubicle
dwelling types. The fact that they
strike out on their own instead of accepting the confines of someone else's
creation proves it. They have a vision to
bring to fruition. The creative drive
trumps all other concerns.
To hell
with the TPS reports!
That Carmack has so closely aligned himself with
Oculus VR is entirely within character.
It's a chance to invest his energies once again in a more creative
direction than Id could provide. Let's
face it, 3D gaming may not have happened
without him but 20 years later it's been done to death. No matter how good Doom 4 is, it's just
another FPS.
Consider that dragon slain even if Doom 4
doesn't have a ship date. I have a
feeling Id was becoming more cubicle than muse for Carmack. If his VR prognostications come to pass
expect him to move on shortly after the term "VR gaming" becomes
ubiquitous.
* survey respondents consist of Me, myself, I
and a bunch of other people I made up from IGN posts...
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