In a surprising move, Meta has announced the opening of the operating system behind its Quest mixed-reality headset. This means third-party hardware makers will be able to create their own mixed reality headsets; in fact, ASUS has already announced it is developing a high-performance gaming headset. S.Y. Hsu, Co-CEO of ASUS, said in a statement:
We’ve been inspired by the incredible gaming community that has formed around virtual and mixed reality, and we know that the most passionate gamers want high-performance hardware. With Meta Horizon OS, ASUS and Republic of Gamers will build the gaming headset of the next generation.
For its part, Lenovo will design mixed-reality devices targeting productivity, learning, and entertainment. Yuanqing Yang, Chair & CEO at Lenovo, said:
Mixed reality is transforming how people interface with computers by integrating digital experiences and physical spaces to reach new levels of productivity, learning, and play. Building from our past successful partnership, Lenovo is bringing together Meta Horizon OS with our leadership and innovation in personal computing to accelerate the adoption of new user scenarios in mixed reality like virtual screens, remote presence, content consumption, and immersive training.
Lastly, Meta announced a partnership with Xbox to create a limited-edition Quest inspired by Xbox.
This open ecosystem extends to the software side. The Meta Quest Store will be renamed Meta Horizon Store, and the mobile companion app will be renamed accordingly. Moreover, users will be freely able to access other stores:
Because we don’t restrict users to titles from our own app store, there are multiple ways to access great content on Meta Horizon OS, including popular gaming services like Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or through Steam Link or our Air Link system for wirelessly streaming PC software to headsets. And we encourage the Google Play 2D app store to come to Meta Horizon OS, where it can operate with the same economic model it does on other platforms.
Are you excited about these changes to the mixed reality ecosystem? Let us know below.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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