Exciting New Tools for Meta Quest Development Now Accessible in Godot

Top Story: Enhancements to Godot for Meta Quest Development

The engine known as Godot has made significant strides in its support for Meta Quest development.

• Why Does This Matter? While Unity has long dominated the XR (Extended Reality) landscape, Godot has emerged as an appealing alternative. It offers both flexibility in its licensing model and a suite of enhanced development tools that could attract more developers looking for new possibilities.
• What Are the Latest Updates? The introduction of composition layers, simulator support, and advanced passthrough functionalities are noteworthy additions that can lead to more versatile and powerful development experiences.

What’s Happening Elsewhere in the XR Space?

• Apple: Reports suggest that Apple may be rolling out a more affordable version of its Vision Pro headset next year.
• Game Launch: A new fun-filled game titled Balloon Bats is now available on VRChat, showcasing the extraordinary creativity of developers in the VR gaming realm.
• Learn to Dance: The Dance Reality initiative has launched The New Salsa Academy, a fantastic opportunity for users to learn salsa dancing in a virtual environment.
• Awards Recognition: The 8th International AIXR XR Awards has announced its finalists, celebrating the top talent in the XR industry.
• Changes at Meta: In a surprising turn of events, Meta has allegedly cancelled its plans for a high-end mixed reality headset, raising questions about the company’s future direction in the VR market.
• PICO 4 Ultra: The PICO company has unveiled its latest headset, featuring the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 chipset and a robust 12GB of RAM, promising developers impressive performance capabilities.
• Rendever’s Report: Rendever has released intriguing statistics regarding virtual reality usage among senior care providers, shedding light on the growing integration of VR in healthcare.
• New Game for PICO: Excitement is building around Spatial Ops, which is set to be available for PICO 4 Ultra users later this year.
• Venice Immersive Festival: The Venice Immersive event is slated to commence in late August, showcasing groundbreaking works in immersive arts.
• XR Hack Competition: The winners of the XR Hack competition have been announced, highlighting innovative projects within the webXR space.

Note: Tom Ffiske, who runs the Immersive Wire, is also part of Accenture’s metaverse group. The opinions expressed in this newsletter are not necessarily reflective of Accenture’s views.