Oculus Rift to Ship to Customers in March for $599
Pre-orders began Wednesday morning for the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset.
The highly anticipated virtual reality device was expected to hit pre-order this week, but the price was previously unknown.
Oculus Rift headsets will officially cost $599, and they will begin shipping to buyers at the end of March, USA Today reports. Based on a recent stock check of the Oculus online store, those who purchase the device now might have to wait until April before they receive their headsets.
Customers who want to take the chance the Oculus Rift will appear in stores might be able to find the virtual reality headset in "limited locations" at "select retailers" in April.
Loyal Oculus Rift supporters, who have supported the virtual reality device since it first appeared in a Kickstarter campaign back in 2012, will be rewarded. Supporters who pledged enough money for the development edition of the Rift will receive a free headset.
The general pre-order for the Rift will come with a carrying case and a copy of the games Lucky's Tale and EVE: Valkyrie. The headset includes built-in headphones and a microphone, and it will come with an Xbox One controller as well.
Oculus says that more than 20 games will be coming out for the Rift this year. The horror game Edge of Nowhere and a virtual reality edition of Rock Band are both expected in 2016.
Before pre-ordering the Rift from the Oculus Store, customers can check to see if their PCs meet the requirements for the device. Also, pre-orders will not require any money upfront, allowing customers to cancel their orders before shipment.
Most of the games coming out at launch for the Rift will be "seated" virtual reality experiences. In the second half of 2016, Oculus will add Oculus Touch motion controllers for more advanced games featuring motion, The Verge reports.