Facebook in 3D

What’s going on?

            Mark Zuckerberg has done it again. He paid for something that may rake some serious cash down the road. Facebook acquired something called Oculus Virtual Reality ^TM for two billion dollars. Now some of you are asking what makes Oculus such a big deal. Oculus is a previously indie company focused on creating the future of playing video games, namely virtual reality (VR). They have made a product called the Oculus Rift, which is a headset that simulates life-like vision while playing a game (basically a monitor on your face). This product is still in development and not available to the public. Now, Mark has stated that he sees VR as the future of social media and thus purchased the company. This has caused an uproar on internet (which I will elaborate on later). This article also mentions the future of VR predicted in books years ago, so you may want to read them.

I have an opinion?

            Yes! But first, let’s talk about the situation. Oculus VR is an indie company that has its roots in Kickstarter, a website that allows individuals and groups to start a project through crowd-funding. Kickstarter has an array of many projects ranging from books to video games. Oculus VR started here and raised a whopping 2.4 million dollars through this crowd-funding. Now, the owner of the Oculus VR, Palmer Luckey, stated that he would never sell out to any big companies. However, with two billion dollars waving in his face(book), how could he resist? Palmer said he would put the money solely to work on the project. Still, selling out did not make the internet very happy. Many people are unhappy that they put money toward something they believed in, but ended up getting taken away from them. I can kind of understand them, but still, when people go asking for money back and some money from Facebook, that’s where I stop. Firstly, Kickstarter is not an investment, it is more of a donation. You are donating to someone so that they will deliver on a product; however, that someone is not required to give you anything. While sometimes people give rewards to backers, there are cases where someone takes the money and runs. Funny thing is that this is completely legal. So I don’t understand why people want their money back because they are not entitled to anything.

The general internet populous is not the only responder. Notch, the ever benevolent creator of Minecraft and deity-like being in the gaming world, was stated that he will no longer be adding support for the Oculus Rift to Minecraft because as he states, “Facebook creeps me out.” While this is understandable, he could have gone about rejecting the notion of the acquisition in a better way.

Augmented Reality would be convenient 

*huff… puff* So what do I think? Well personally I believe that VR is the future gaming. However, I do not see VR as a social media giant. I do see augmented reality as much more viable means of social interaction through technology (see AR pictures to right to understand a bit more). While VR might not be the best solution for social media, the main draw of the acquisition is the money involved. Two billion dollars is not a laughing matter. In fact, this might be the best outcome for Oculus VR. The overwhelming amount of money would allow for a faster production and research speed in the VR field. The only foreseeable problems are Facebook using Oculus Rift as an advertising tool and product placement.

Best part of all of this, it makes no sense, but the most sense for Facebook. Facebook has a horrible track record with hardware. I am totally sure we all remember the Facebook cell phone right?... probably not. In fact, the phone did so poorly that within a short amount of time the phone started selling for a couple of dollars. Facebook also just recently acquired Whatsapp for somewhere within 17 billion dollars (correct me if I am wrong). So it makes no sense that Mark would try for hardware again right after spending a lot of money. But Mark has a point. Work in VR is work in AR (essentially) and will be the future of social interactions. The acquisition of Oculus VR only allows Facebook to be the first in this field. In the long run, Facebook might be the leader in technological advancements, or they might be ahead of their time.

Looks comfortable right?

           So what do you think? Was Mark in the right? Or was Palmer in the wrong? Should the internet stop crying? Should Notch assert his power in a better way? Is VR the future? I would love to hear what you guys think.



Link to the article HERE!
Other article you might want to read - 
Computer & Videogames dot com
Eurogamer
IGN
Kotaku (1)
Kotaku (2)
Joystiq

*Note - some swearing, but still a great way to understand the situation

APB Can't be Reloaded

http://www.gamesbrief.com/2010/08/hubris-ambition-and-mismanagement-the-first-post-mortem-of-realtime-worlds/ - Link to the Article

Summing it all up:

The writer of this article, Nicholas Lovell, is explaining why the online video game APB failed. Starting in 2005, APB was a hugely ambitious game aspiring to be Counter-Strike in a World of Warcraft like Massively-multiplayer-online game setting; however, when the game released in 2010, APB sold roughly 4-5 thousand units and landed a Metacritic score of 58 out of 100. Besides looking at the games mechanics, many problems plagued the game. First and foremost, the game had no business model, or at least one that was not worked on. Second, the game took way too long to make, thus forcing the company to spend over $25 million on staff cost alone. Next, APB, like many other MMOs, had a try-fail-iterate model, which is releasing a game, having the community state the problems, and changing accordingly. The main problem is not the model, but that the game was released 5 years after development instead of earlier in development, allowing for less wasted money on changes. Lastly, the game had almost every feature the developers wanted, instead of making small changes over a long period of time. While sounding great at the time development started, this overly ambitious game tried to change too much while providing little the consumer would enjoy.

What do I think?

I remember following APB’s release and looking into the game. The game had the most extensive customization system out of any game made to date. The general gameplay was solid and enjoyable (to watch). Really, I could not see what the problem was with the game, then I saw the “business model.” I would prefer not to go into detail, but they payment was far too expensive for a MMO at the time. Not long after releasing the game, it was removed from the market. I fully understand why after reading this article. Even after the game was re-released as a free-to-play, I still agree with the majority of complaints. The world was too big to be enjoyable, the general mechanics of the game felt clunky, and the new business model was horrid. The only enjoyment I got from the game was the broken mechanics, making stupidly annoying moments for my friends to scream at. So, having played the game for myself, this article soundly states the problems plaguing this extremely ambitious game.

Me, right?

Hello me. Yes me, come over here. That’s right me, I am great. But what about you? Do you know what I am talking about? I am talking about me. That is why you came here right? For me? Have not you come to listen to my blabber? Be that or not, listen well to who I am. A male, 5’11”… no too simple. What about my love for cartoons? I have probably spent more time watching anime (or Japanese cartoons, you uncultured person) than the hours I slept. You have not lived until you’re watching the shows Attack on Titan, Angel Beats, Blue Exorcist, and anything that escapes me… Basically I am a Japanese culture nut. More so than that, I am a gamer. Owning 11 systems within the short time span of 4 years old to now, I have played just about every genre and type (give or take a few). This attraction to video games brings me to share my moments with the world, so I got into Youtube. Video editing can be much harder work than anything a teacher assigns to me (4 hours of work and still not satisfied). I hate sports. The philosophical questions of today, yesterday, and tomorrow intrigue my curiosity.  Generally I am inclined to vote for science as opposed to guessing, regardless of my everlasting Christianity, however, a conundrum incites my passion greater than an answer.

So, what do you think? Still want to go on? How about subjects everyone knows about now? I used to play piano, but classical music is a rarity. Normally pop is not allowed to be retained within memory, unless it is from Japan. Classic rock and techno infused with my imagination is the only “trip” I will ever go on. The usual Frank Sinatra (couldn’t have anything greater) is love. Physics are great. On the clubs' side of things, I am currently enrolled in Science Club, Campus Ministry Technology Committee, and Speech & Debate. Maybe in the future Math Club, Vex Robotics, and/or Yearbook could become a thing. Did you ever ponder about my achievements? Neither did I. Seriously though, if you find a cute picture of an anime character, send it to me. And remember to leave politics out of the discussions.

The End, Question Mark?