We still don't know when the consumer version of the Oculus Rift VR headset will be released to the paying public, but today we learned what we'll need in the way of a PC to actually use the thing. You might want to sit down.
And pour yourself a relatively stern drink.
Here it comes!
- NVIDIA GTX 970 / AMD 290 equivalent or greater
- Intel i5-4590 equivalent or greater
- 8GB+ RAM
- Compatible HDMI 1.3 video output
- 2x USB 3.0 ports
- Windows 7 SP1 or newer
"The goal is for all Rift games and applications to deliver a great experience on this configuration," the Oculus folks said. "Ultimately, we believe this will be fundamental to VR’s success, as developers can optimize and tune their game for a known specification, consistently achieving presence and simplifying development."
To be fair, this is the recommended spec "for the full Rift experience," so you'll likely be able to get away with something a bit lower on the scale. But as Oculus Rift Technical Director Atman Binstock explained in a more detailed blog post, an effective VR experience is all about "comfortable, sustained presence," which an "underperforming system" won't be able to deliver.
The other upside of the steep recommendation is that it won't change over the lift of the Rift. "As the equivalent-performance hardware becomes less expensive, more users will have systems capable of the full Rift experience," Binstock wrote. "Developers, in turn, can rely on Rift users having these modern machines, allowing them to optimize their game for a known target, simplifying development."
So now you know. Is your rig ready?
