One more block.
One more block.
Just one more block!
It’s a rare occasion that someone hasn’t heard about the addicting gameplay of Minecraft. The sandbox allows players the freedom to build, explore, and battle throughout a nearly infinite and randomly generated world of blocks. So how could it get any better? By playing it in the first person perspective via virtual reality, of course!
The Oculus blog has officially announced today that Minecraft is available for the Samsung Gear VR. Officially called Minecraft: Gear VR Edition in the Oculus Store, Samsung users everywhere will be clamoring to get their hands on the low-cost virtual experience.
Minecraft was originally created by an upstart company named Mojang. Nearly two years ago, Microsoft bought Mojang and the one-hit wonder for a $2.5 billion deal. The intention: to bring the sandbox to virtual reality with Microsoft HoloLens technology. In fact, it was a year ago at E3 that Microsoft had a demo for the game with HoloLens. So why bring it out on Gear VR?
John Carmack, chief technology officer at Oculus, said:
“Minecraft is a game that you can both figuratively and literally lose yourself in. In fact, my strongest memories of being inside VR are from the time I’ve spent exploring Minecraft on Gear VR. Experiencing it in virtual reality changes it from an abstract activity to a visceral one – it goes from a sense of playing the game to one of being inside your world, and spinning around to find a creeper sneaking up on you leaves a powerful impression. Infinite worlds have been explored, shaped, and shared by millions of people, and now in VR; that sounds a bit like the fabled Metaverse.”
The Minecraft: Gear VR Edition can be purchased on the Oculus Store for $6.99 and includes all the features of Minecraft:Pocket Edition. With the default theater view, players are able to play Minecraft as though a 2D monitor was sitting in front of them. However, slipping into the first-person view lets the user experience a more immersive playstyle.
To play the virtual reality version of Minecraft, players will also need a Bluetooth wireless gamepad to interact and move in the world. The Oculus blog recommends one such as the SteelSeries Stratus XL that can be used for both Windows + Android, Samsung Gear VR, and Oculus.
