Facebook unveils Oculus Quest: A $399 VR system for games


If you've been waiting to explore the world of virtual reality, now may be the time.
Facebook on Wednesday announced the Oculus Quest, a new $399 VR system shipping in 2019, per The Verge. Like the Oculus Go, the system is standalone, meaning you won't need to connect it to an expensive computer in order for it to work, as is necessary with the Oculus Rift.
The head of Oculus VR notes that the Quest will be "made for games," The Verge reports, and it will be able to track movement up to 4,000 square feet. The wide berth will allow players to physically walk around in games in addition to looking up and down, with cameras placed on the device itself keeping tabs on the user's movements, TechCrunch reports. Other VR systems rely on external trackers placed around the room.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Per Wired, the goal is for this new system to help bring VR more into the mainstream, with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg aiming to eventually attract 1 billion users. Oculus is also hoping the entertainment factor will entice consumers; the device will launch with more than 50 compatible games, including a new Star Wars VR experience called Vader Immortal. The system will launch sometime in spring 2019.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
5 low ratings cartoons about the Late Show cancellation
Cartoons Artists take on early warning signs, the Gen Z stare, and more
-
Connie Francis: Superstar of the early 1960s pop scene
In the Spotlight The 'Pretty Little Baby' and 'Stupid Cupid' singer has died aged 87
-
Crossword: July 26, 2025
The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
Nvidia hits $4 trillion milestone
Speed Read The success of the chipmaker has been buoyed by demand for artificial intelligence
-
X CEO Yaccarino quits after two years
Speed Read Elon Musk hired Linda Yaccarino to run X in 2023
-
Musk chatbot Grok praises Hitler on X
Speed Read Grok made antisemitic comments and referred to itself as 'MechaHitler'
-
Disney, Universal sue AI firm over 'plagiarism'
Speed Read The studios say that Midjourney copied characters from their most famous franchises
-
Amazon launches 1st Kuiper internet satellites
Speed Read The battle of billionaires continues in space
-
Test flight of orbital rocket from Europe explodes
Speed Read Isar Aerospace conducted the first test flight of the Spectrum orbital rocket, which crashed after takeoff
-
Apple pledges $500B in US spending over 4 years
Speed Read This is a win for Trump, who has pushed to move manufacturing back to the US
-
Microsoft unveils quantum computing breakthrough
Speed Read Researchers say this advance could lead to faster and more powerful computers