Oculus Home
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| Oculus Home | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Type | Launcher |
| Industry | Virtual reality |
| Developer | Oculus VR |
| Operating System | Windows, Android |
| Supported Devices | Samsung Gear VR, Oculus Rift |
| Release Date | December 2014 (Gear VR Innovator Edition); March 28, 2016 (Rift) |
Oculus Home was the official Virtual Reality Portal and community hub for the Oculus Rift (Platform). It was the central place where users browsed, bought and launched apps and interacted with other users.[1] Oculus Home ran on the Samsung Gear VR and on Rift VR Devices, including the consumer CV1. When the 1.3 PC SDK shipped, Oculus said DK2 units were not supported as consumer devices but would remain functional as development kits that year.[2] It had a head-tracked interface built for use inside an HMD: on the Rift, games and applications could be browsed in VR without taking the headset off.[3] Putting on the Rift automatically launched Oculus Home inside the headset.[4] Oculus Home also had a 2D interface that could be accessed on PC or mobile, without an HMD; on PC this was the Oculus desktop app, which Oculus offered for people who preferred to shop outside VR.[5]
Oculus Home first appeared as the launcher on the Gear VR Innovator Edition in 2014, where it connected users to the Oculus Store.[6] Until the Rift launched, Oculus Home could only be accessed on Samsung smartphones compatible with Samsung Gear VR. PC and Rift versions were scheduled for release with the Rift in the first quarter of 2016,[7][3] and the Rift version arrived with the headset on March 28, 2016.[1] A redesigned, customizable Home for the Rift, part of the "Rift Core 2.0" software update, entered beta in December 2017 and left beta in October 2018.[8][9] Meta stopped supporting that Home experience in the Rift PC software in 2023.[10]
Features
Friend list and interacting with other users
2D interface on PC and mobile devices.
On the Gear VR Innovator Edition, Oculus described Home as "a simple interface for connecting to the Oculus Store, where you can discover, download, and launch VR content." Oculus Cinema, a virtual movie theater for 2D and 3D films, and Oculus 360 Videos and 360 Photos, which play back panoramic content, were the launch applications Oculus built for that device.[6] The store inside Home, called the Oculus VR Store, opened alongside the Innovator Edition in December 2014, and all of its initial content was free.[11]
The Rift version shown in June 2015 had a social sidebar for friends, and the Road to VR report noted that it shared a lineage with the identically named Gear VR launcher.[3] At the same event, Oculus CEO Brendan Iribe told TechCrunch that apps distributed through the Rift store would need approval first and would carry comfort ratings.[12] After the 2018 update, Home also let friends visit each other's spaces as avatars.[13]
Interface
When the Rift launched in March 2016, putting on the headset opened a version of the Oculus desktop app inside VR, and pressing the home button on the Oculus Remote returned the user to it. In its launch review, Engadget called the desktop app "clean and well designed".[4] Oculus required Rift applications to let customers "return Home and see Oculus platform overlays and notifications, including the health and safety notice." Content from outside the store could be run by enabling the "Unknown Sources" setting in the desktop app.[2]
The original Rift Home was a static environment that worked as a store and library browser.[8] In the Rift Core 2.0 update it became a room the user could decorate, and a separate overlay called Dash, designed for the Oculus Touch controllers, replaced the earlier Universal Menu. Dash floated in front of the user inside any application and could show desktop windows from the PC in VR.[8] Engadget reported that Dash ran on Windows 7 or later, but that Windows 10 was needed for the full dashboard overlay.[14]
History
Gear VR (2014-2015)
Oculus VR and Samsung announced the Gear VR Innovator Edition in September 2014. Owners who downloaded the Oculus software to their phone received Home along with the Store, Cinema, and 360 Videos and Photos applications.[6] The Innovator Edition went on sale to developers in the United States on December 8, 2014, through Samsung's website.[11]
Rift launch (2015-2016)
Oculus showed the Rift version of Home at its press event in San Francisco on June 11, 2015. Road to VR reported that it was "completely VR enabled," so users could shop, download and preview content without leaving the headset.[3] On March 16, 2016, Oculus introduced "the new Oculus Home on Rift", saying it had designed Home "from the ground up for VR" and that it had "evolved significantly since its launch on Gear VR."[1] The Rift and its 30 launch titles arrived on March 28, 2016.[1][5]
Rift Core 2.0 (2017-2018)
Oculus announced Rift Core 2.0 at Oculus Connect 4 in October 2017.[15] TechCrunch reported that users could furnish the new Home with items such as art, seating and toys, and that Oculus planned to let friends hang out together there in the future.[16] The beta became available on December 6, 2017, as a free update for users who opted in to the Public Test Channel in the Oculus desktop app.[14][8] In the beta, users could change the room's look and the outside environment, place furniture and interactive objects such as bows and light guns, and unlock new objects by playing certain games; unlocked items were redeemed from a menu that presented a small loot box. The first beta had no way for two friends to share a Home.[8]
On April 4, 2018, Oculus said that users would be able to join friends' avatars in Home that summer, explore libraries together and launch into multiplayer apps, which would work automatically for developers who had integrated its Coordinated App Launch feature. It also announced import of custom assets as GLB models (the format Facebook used for 3D posts, with support for PBR materials) and 3D sculpts from Oculus Medium.[17] The social update reached the Public Test Channel in June 2018: up to eight people could be in the same Home at once, and the Home was locked for editing while visitors were present.[13]
At Oculus Connect 5 in September 2018, Oculus told developers that Core 2.0 was out of beta and that it had replaced "the static storefront" with "a new customizable social space called Home", with hundreds of themed items and environments. Developers could also offer custom items as rewards for in-game achievements.[18] Oculus's October 2018 platform update said Core 2.0 had "officially exited beta and is rolling out to everyone now".[9] UploadVR reported that the new Home used Unreal Engine with dynamic lighting and physically based rendering, which looked more realistic but cost performance, and that users could import their own models from Medium or their PC. The developers of Superhot VR, Moss, Echo Arena, Job Simulator, OrbusVR and Arizona Sunshine had already added unlockable Home items.[15] In May 2019, Oculus raised the number of Homes a user could have to 12 and suggested converting .obj models to .glb for import.[19]
End of support (2023)
Oculus Home was the default home environment on PC for the Rift and Oculus Rift S, and for Quest headsets connected through Oculus Link.[10] According to UploadVR, Meta removed access in stages in 2023. In April, some users reported that the button that opened Home had disappeared, while reinstalling the software restored it for others, at least temporarily; a later update to the desktop app removed access entirely. A Meta support agent said the company had "stopped supporting the older Oculus Home experience within the Rift software". On Quest headsets, the native home at the time was Horizon Home, which let users switch between predetermined environments and, according to UploadVR, did not approach the level of personalization Oculus Home had.[10]
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| September 3, 2014 | Gear VR Innovator Edition announced with Home, Store, Cinema, and 360 Videos and Photos[6] |
| December 8, 2014 | Innovator Edition and the Oculus VR Store go on sale in the US[11] |
| June 11, 2015 | Rift version of Home shown at the Oculus press event[3] |
| March 28, 2016 | Rift launches with Oculus Home[1] |
| December 6, 2017 | Rift Core 2.0 beta with customizable Home and Touch-based Dash[8] |
| June 2018 | Social Home for up to eight people in the Public Test Channel[13] |
| October 2018 | Core 2.0 exits beta and rolls out to all Rift owners[9] |
| May 2019 | Limit raised to 12 Homes per user[19] |
| 2023 | Meta ends support for Oculus Home in the Rift PC software[10] |
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Introducing 30 Games Coming to Oculus on March 28". Oculus Blog. Oculus VR. 2016-03-16. https://www.meta.com/blog/introducing-30-games-coming-to-oculus-on-march-28/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Oculus PC SDK 1.3 Now Available". Meta Horizon Developers Blog. Oculus VR. 2016-03-28. https://developers.meta.com/horizon/blog/oculus-pc-sdk-1-3-now-available/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Paul James (2015-06-11). "Oculus 'Home' Brings VR Enabled Games Portal to the Consumer Rift". Road to VR. https://www.roadtovr.com/oculus-home-brings-vr-enabled-games-portal-to-the-consumer-rift/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Devindra Hardawar (2016-03-28). "Oculus Rift review: High-end VR is here -- if you can pay". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2016-03-28-oculus-rift-review.html. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Jared Newman (2016-03-16). "Oculus Rift launch: Here are the 30 VR games you can play on day one". PCWorld. https://www.pcworld.com/article/420111/oculus-rift-launch-here-are-the-30-vr-games-you-can-play-on-day-one.html. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Introducing the Samsung Gear VR Innovator Edition". Oculus Blog. Oculus VR. 2014-09-03. https://www.meta.com/blog/introducing-the-samsung-gear-vr-innovator-edition/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ "First Look at the Rift, Shipping Q1 2016". Oculus Blog. Oculus VR. 2015-05-06. https://www.meta.com/blog/first-look-at-the-rift-shipping-q1-2016/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 Ben Lang (2017-12-06). "Oculus Rift Core 2.0 Update Now Available in Beta - Hands-on with Home & Dash". Road to VR. https://roadtovr.com/oculus-rift-core-2-0-update-now-available-beta-hands-home-dash/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "October Platform Updates: Rift's Updated Core Software Experience, Plus Some Halloween Treats". Oculus Blog. Oculus VR. 2018-10-10. https://www.meta.com/blog/october-platform-updates-rifts-updated-core-software-experience-plus-some-halloween-treats/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 Harry Baker (2023-05-20). "Meta Evicts PC VR Users From Their Customized Oculus Homes". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/meta-ends-oculus-home-support/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 "Gear VR Innovator Edition Now Available". Oculus Blog. Oculus VR. 2014-12-08. https://www.meta.com/blog/gear-vr-innovator-edition-now-available/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ Josh Constine (2015-06-12). "Oculus App Store Will Require Pre-Approvals, Comfort Ratings, Tax". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2015/06/12/oculus-app-store/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Swapna Krishna (2017-12-06). "Oculus Rift Core 2.0 update is now available in beta". Engadget. https://www.engadget.com/2017/12/06/oculus-rift-core-2-update-beta/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 David Heaney (2018-10-11). "Oculus Home 2.0 And Dash Exit Beta, Now Rolling Out To All Rift Owners". UploadVR. https://www.uploadvr.com/oculus-home-2-0-and-dash-exit-beta-now-rolling-out-to-all-rift-owners/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ Josh Constine (2017-10-11). "Oculus 'Dash' replaces your computer monitor with VR". TechCrunch. https://techcrunch.com/2017/10/11/oculus-dash. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ "Welcome Home: Introducing New Features Coming to the Oculus Platform on Rift". Oculus Blog. Oculus VR. 2018-04-04. https://www.meta.com/blog/welcome-home-introducing-new-features-coming-to-the-oculus-platform-on-rift/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ "Rift Updates at OC5: New Support and Core Software". Meta Horizon Developers Blog. Oculus VR. 2018-09-26. https://developers.meta.com/horizon/blog/rift-updates-at-oc5-new-support-and-core-software/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 "Rift Creation Spotlight: Building Oculus Home with Custom Objects and Models". Oculus Blog. Oculus VR. 2019-05-15. https://www.meta.com/blog/rift-creation-spotlight-building-oculus-home-with-custom-objects-and-models/. Retrieved 2026-09-27.