The worlds of high finance and and gaming have collided in a story that may amount to nothing or change the world as we know it. Anytime a company gets bought in a deal valued at over $2billion, people take notice. Gamers have long been watching the Oculus Rift as it works to reshape our opinions of Virtual Reality. Now the biggest monster of them all, Mark Zuckerberg’s social networking toy known as Facebook, has purchased the gaming innovator. Zuckerberg sees virtual reality as something more than a gaming fad. He sees it as a “new communication platform.” Oculus doesn’t have an actual product yet, though it has presold headsets to the tune of $26million (75,000 units at $350 a piece). The deal is $400million in cash, plus 23.1 million shares of Facebook’s stock. Those shares mean something along the lines of $1.6billion. Facebook’s plan for Oculus, and its 75 employees, is to let it run independently. However, games are not the end of the line for Facebook’s vision.
According to Zuckerberg, “After games, we’re going to make Oculus a platform for many other experiences. Imagine enjoying a court side seat at a game, studying in a classroom of students and teachers all over the world or consulting with a doctor face-to-face — just by putting on goggles in your home.”
Oculus Rift has been on the radar of many gamers as the next big thing. On the other hand, virtual reality has long been written off as a joke. Now, as we see technology requiring more and deeper innovation, we may not be looking at just a gaming device. If Zuckerberg’s idea bears fruit (let’s be honest, we can’t ignore his crazy notions), this could be the future of communication, interactivity, gaming, innovation, and everyday existence. I don’t want to overstate the situation, but if you haven’t read Ernest Cline’s “Ready Player One,” you really should. The science fiction could be science fact before you expect.