Oculus VR launched their motion-controller solution for the Oculus Rift, Oculus Touch, late last year. The expense of the device didn’t deter early adopters, however a price cut a few months after launch saw Oculus Touch bundles with the original Oculus Rift package at no extra cost. As such, the Oculus Touch is essentially part of the standard bundle moving forward.
Oculus Touch Launch & Price
The Oculus Touch launched on 6th December 2016, priced at £199 GBP for the pair of controllers. However, the controllers are now available £99, and included with the Oculus Rift bundle for £598. This essentially means that the Oculus Touch controllers are now included with an Oculus Rift at no extra cost based on the head-mounted display’s (HMD) original launch price.
Indeed, you can no longer purchase the Oculus Rift without Oculus Touch when using Oculus VR’s own online store. However external retail partners do still offer the solo packages.
How to Use the Oculus Touch Controllers
The Oculus Touch controllers use an additional Constellation tracker for standard input. This tracker is desk mounted, and comes included with the purchase of Oculus Touch. However, an additional tracker can be purchased for a wider tracking space; directly competing with the HTC Vive’s roomscale technology. Information on how to set this wider tracking volume up is available on Oculus VR’s own website.
Apps and Games Compatible with Oculus Touch
The Oculus Touch has a rapidly growing library of compatible videogames and applications. More than 100 titles are already available, and of course the Oculus Store highlights the controller compatibility for each title. The Oculus Touch also has a special section for motion-controller compatibility on Steam.
Long term application of the Oculus Touch
The Oculus Touch has the longest lifespan of any of the input solutions for Oculus Rift. Motion-control is deemed a necessity for true immersion in virtual reality (VR) experiences by many, and Oculus Touch is arguably the most ergonomic and precise controller ever created for such an application.
via Mint VR