The Oculus Quest (later known as Meta Quest following the discontinuation of Oculus's name in November 2021), released in May 2019 for $399, is a standalone virtual reality headset, meaning that the headset itself contains all the electronics needed to drive it; it does not need to be connected to a phone or PC. Unlike its standalone predecessor, the Oculus Go, it has full positional tracking with two hand controllers, replicating the tracking capabilities of its PC VR cousin, the Oculus Rift. In early prototype incarnations it was known as Santa Cruz. Its launch was received with wide acclaim from press and enthusiasts alike, with Mashable rating it the "#1 Best Tech of 2019 (so far)".
It accomplishes all this without the use of any external sensors by using four small cameras and advanced computer vision processing to map your environment and track precisely where you are in it as you move around. The two hand controllers have a ring of invisible infrared LEDs that are also seen by the camera, allowing it to track them precisely through space, as long as the cameras can see them (they will temporarily lose tracking if placed behind your back, or too close to the headset). The Quest can be used almost anywhere except in direct sunlight or in complete darkness, and supports play spaces up to 25 by 25 feet. The Quest internally uses the same Snapdragon 835 mobile graphics chipset as the Google Pixel 2 phone, but with an active cooling system and a custom VR OS that allows it to effectively perform at a much higher level.
The second product in the Quest line, the aptly titled Quest 2, was released on October 13, 2020. The Quest 2 boasts better resolution, a higher refresh rate (once enabled; the default 72Hz is the same as the original's), 2GB more RAM, a faster processor (Snapdragon XR2) and either a lower price or better storage than the original. The 128GB model (64GB on launch, this capacity was phased out within the year) sold for $299, while the model with bigger storage was 256GB and $399 this time around. All of this did come with a few compromises, as the Quest 2's strap and interpupillary distance controls were noticeably downgraded from the previous model (though the strap is designed to be replaceable, meaning aftermarket straps are much more viable than they were for the Quest 1). The Quest 2 experienced some controversy at launch as it was the first Oculus device that required a full-fledged Facebook account to operate; an Oculus account would not do on its own. A VR port of Resident Evil 4 was the first official release that required a Quest 2, though the game does work when sideloaded onto a Quest 1.
The business and enthusiast-centric Quest Pro, which was released on October 25, 2022 for $1499, features the slimer profile due to the use of pancake lenses. Although the resolution per-eye of 1800x1920 and refresh rate of 90Hz is lower than that of Quest 2, the LCD panels are quantum dot displays and have local dimming. The Quest Pro is powered by the improved variant of Snapdragon XR2 Gen 1 SoC, and has 12GB or RAM and has a single 256GB storage configuration. Unlike the Quest 2, the Quest Pro has a hi-resolution color camera on the center for color passthrough. The Quest Pro comes with its own Touch Pro controllers which remove the tracking rings and has on-board motion tracking using the embedded cameras. The Touch Pro controllers were powered by the Snapdragon 662 SoC and, unlike the regular Touch controllers, are powered by the non-removable rechargeable batteries. The Touch Pro controllers are also available on their own, and are compatible with Quest 2.
Following the Quest Pro, a more consumer-oriented successor to the Quest 2 was released, the Quest 3. Carrying over a variety of improvements made to the Quest Pro, the Quest 3 brings additional graphical horsepower, powered by a Snapdragon XR 2, and mixed reality experiences made possible by a far more sophisticated range of cameras and sensors on the front of the headset, at a somewhat more affordable minimum cost of $499. The controllers were once more redesigned, though only slightly. The overall shape is identical to the Quest Pro's controllers, leaving behind the ring of tracking IR lights as well as the on-controller sensors, and reintroducing interchangeable batteries.
The flagship launch title of the Quest is Beat Saber, a mega-popular VR rhythm game where you slice cubes with light sabers in time to music. It launched with about 50 other titles, many of them ports from existing PC VR games. Additionally, it can stream VR games from a gaming PC over USB or wifi, allowing it to play any existing PC VR title.
As of March 2021, the Quest 2 was the most popular virtual reality headset on Steam VR. This does not count Quest owners who don't use Steam VR, particularly those without gaming PCs at all. Immediately after this information was released, The Climb 2 became the first series to transition from a PCVR franchise with a Quest port to a Quest exclusive.
The Quest has an extensive modding and homebrew scene. In addition to the main Oculus store, experimental games are available via the AppLab platform, serving as a roughly analogous marketplace to Steam Early Access. There is also a dedicated side-loading community called SideQuest, featuring unofficial content (primarily original games, mods, and unofficial ports).
The Quest has a subreddit
and a Facebook group. The app catalog is viewable in an web browser.
Notable Games with Oculus Quest support:
- Acron Attack Of The Squirrels
- Apex Construct
- Arizona Sunshine
- Asgard's Wrath II
- Assassin's Creed Nexus
- Beat Saber
- The Climb
- Creed: Rise to Glory
- Dance Central
- Dead and Buried II
- Epic Roller Coasters
- Five Nights At Freddys VR Help Wanted
- Fruit Ninja VR
- Fuji
- Gorn: Visceral Reality
- Ghost Giant
- Half + Half
- I Expect You To Die
- Job Simulator
- Jurassic World Aftermath
- Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
- Myst
- Onward
- Operation Wolf Returns: First Mission
- Moss
- Pistol Whip
- Rec Room
- Roblox
- Resident Evil 4 (Quest 2+ only)
- Robo Recall: Unplugged
- Sam & Max: This Time It’s Virtual!
- Shadowgate VR: The Mines of Mythrok
- Shadow Point
- Space Pirate Trainer
- Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy's Edge
- SUPERHOT VR
- Tetris Effect
- Trover Saves the Universe
- Vacation Simulator
- Vader Immortal
Other apps of note:
- Firefox Reality (web browser)
- Mission: ISS (simulation)
- Nature Treks (meditation)
- Oculus Browser (web browser)
- Tilt Brush (3-D painting)
- Virtual Desktop (local PC streaming, including PCVR)
360 Video Players:
- Within
- YouTube VR
- Samsung VR Videos
- Wander
Flat video players:
- Netflix
- Amazon Prime Video
- Bigscreen Beta
Social VR apps:
- AltspaceVR
- Oculus Venues
- Rec Room
- VRChat
Notable Websites with VR Content Suitable for the Quest:
- Mozilla Hubs Social VR
- Moon Rider Game
- Spot the Surveillance Surveillance Awareness
- Streetmix 3D Urban Planning
- Barista Express Simulation Game
- Vuppets Toy
- halloVReen Game
- VR Planets Simulation
- Notes on Blindness Documentary
- Elfland Glider Game
Games with unofficial Oculus Quest support currently available through sideloading:
- Doom³
- Five Nights at Freddy's: Sister Location
- Half-Life (as Lambda1VR)
- Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
- Minecraft (Bedrock Edition; by sideloading Oculus Go version)
- Quake
- Quake II
- Return to Castle Wolfenstein (All available via sideloading a free version of the game's engine made to work on the Quest plus asset files from a PC copy.)
- Slender: The Eight Pages
