Road to VR
| Road to VR | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Type | Website |
| Industry | Online media, Virtual reality journalism |
| Founded | October 2011 |
| Founder | Ben Lang, Paul James |
| Notable Personnel | Ben Lang (Co-founder and Executive Editor), Scott Hayden (Editor), Paul James (Co-founder) |
| Website | https://www.roadtovr.com |
Road to VR is an independent online news publication that covers the consumer Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, and XR industry. It was founded in October 2011 by Ben Lang, roughly a year before the Oculus Rift Kickstarter campaign that helped restart commercial interest in VR, which makes it one of the oldest news outlets dedicated to the field. The site describes itself as the world's leading independent news publication focused on the consumer virtual reality industry.[1]
Lang started the site as a side project to document VR hardware and software at a time when no commercial headset was available to buy. Paul James, who ran a separate VR blog called RiftVR.com, joined as co-founder when his site merged into Road to VR in October 2012.[2] As of 2026 the publication is still active, run by a small editorial team, and reports on headsets, software, and companies across platforms including Meta Quest, PC VR, PlayStation VR2, and Apple Vision Pro.[3]
History
Founding (2011)
Ben Lang launched Road to VR in October 2011. He had spent several years in technology journalism, mostly covering mobile and consumer tech, before starting the site as a personal project.[1] In a later interview he described the original site as a "total bare-bones" WordPress.com page that began as a way to follow his own interest in virtual reality.[4]
Lang has said he started the site because he believed the underlying technology for compelling VR existed but that no company had yet combined the parts into a consumer product, noting that at the time "you couldn't just go to the store and buy a system and enjoy virtual reality for yourself unless you were one of these hacker maker types." In its early research the site followed VR discussion on enthusiast forums such as MTBS3D (Meant to be Seen 3D), where the development of the Oculus Rift was being tracked before its public launch.[4] Road to VR was founded roughly a year before the Oculus Rift Kickstarter, which launched in August 2012.[1][4]
The name reflected Lang's framing of VR as a long technical journey. In a retrospective the site described the concept as "a journey between 'no VR' and 'perfect VR'," the latter meaning an experience indistinguishable from reality.[5]
Merger with RiftVR.com and growth
Paul James, based in the United Kingdom, had started his own VR blog, RiftVR.com, to follow the emerging Oculus Rift. On October 12, 2012, Road to VR announced that the two sites would combine, with James joining the publication and RiftVR.com being phased out.[2] James became a co-founder and partner and took on much of the site's technical upkeep.[1]
The site covered several early milestones of the modern VR era, including Oculus Rift developer kit coverage and a live blog of Sony's Project Morpheus (later PlayStation VR) reveal at the Game Developers Conference in 2014.[5] By its third anniversary in November 2014, Road to VR described itself as the largest independent VR news website worldwide.[5]
Current status
As of 2026 Road to VR continues to publish daily coverage of VR and AR hardware, software, and companies, with recent reporting on devices such as Valve's Steam Frame and upcoming Pico and Qualcomm Snapdragon XR hardware.[3] In an October 2025 interview, Lang said the outlet was approaching its 15th anniversary and that he and editor Scott Hayden form its editorial core, producing most of the site's content.[6]
Editorial approach
Road to VR is run by a small team rather than a large newsroom. Ben Lang holds the title of Executive Editor and has written more than 3,500 articles for the site; Scott Hayden is the site's Editor and has written more than 5,000.[1] The publication says it covers virtual reality, augmented reality, and human-computer interaction.[1]
Lang has described an editorial policy that emphasizes reporting over influencer marketing. In the October 2025 interview he said the site has declined sponsorship money and promotional arrangements that were not directly tied to its coverage, stating "We've passed up tons of money over the years in deals," and that the publication tries to "steer Road to VR toward more journalism and reporting versus influencer marketing." He acknowledged that this independence makes the business harder to sustain financially.[6]
Reception and influence
Road to VR is one of the most frequently cited specialist outlets covering the VR and AR industry, alongside publications such as UploadVR. Its founding in 2011, before the Oculus Rift Kickstarter, is often noted as evidence that it predates the modern consumer VR market.[1][4] Ben Lang has appeared as a guest on industry podcasts including Voices of VR to discuss the history of the site and the state of VR technology.[4]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 "About Road to VR". https://www.roadtovr.com/contact-send-a-tip/.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "RiftVR.com to Merge with Road to Virtual Reality". October 12, 2012. https://roadtovr.com/riftvr-com-to-merge-with-road-to-virtual-reality/.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Road to VR - Virtual Reality News". June 12, 2026. https://roadtovr.com/.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 "#16: Ben Lang on creating Road to VR and prospecting the potential of VR before the Oculus Rift". https://voicesofvr.com/16-ben-lang-on-creating-road-to-vr-prospecting-the-potential-of-vr-before-the-oculus-rift-state-of-vr-tech/.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Road to VR is Three Years Old, We Take a Look Back". November 2014. https://www.roadtovr.com/road-vr-3-years-old-take-look-back/.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Ben Lang gives us great lessons about XR journalism, marketing, and technology". October 8, 2025. https://skarredghost.com/2025/10/08/ben-lang-interview-xr-journalism-marketing/.