DICE seeking thesis student to implement Oculus Rift support in Frostbite

DICE has put out a call for a master thesis student capable of implementing support for the Oculus Rift SDK in the Frostbite Engine, meaning the much-hyped VR headset is at least in the developer's periphery. It also answers the question: "Can university life become even further removed from reality?"

The unpaid position requires association with a university's master thesis program, and will also task the student with "modifications to better fit first person games," "reducing latency," and whatever the catch-all problem of "stereoscopic issues" entails.

Aside from Battlefield 4, Dragon Age III: Inquisition and an unnamed Mass Effect game will use the Frostbite Engine, though lack of a first-person perspective probably rules them out of potential support. Most of those who've tried the Rift—myself included—have been impressed, but I worry that the novelty may have a negative effect on performance in a competitive shooter. Nevertheless, plenty of future games will likely use Frostbite, and support from the Big Guys is more good news for Oculus' VR dreams.

Tyler Wilde
Editor-in-Chief, US

Tyler grew up in Silicon Valley during the '80s and '90s, playing games like Zork and Arkanoid on early PCs. He was later captivated by Myst, SimCity, Civilization, Command & Conquer, all the shooters they call "boomer shooters" now, and PS1 classic Bushido Blade (that's right: he had Bleem!). Tyler joined PC Gamer in 2011, and today he's focused on the site's news coverage. His hobbies include amateur boxing and adding to his 1,200-plus hours in Rocket League.