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Digital application distribution platform

mateuszica
Honored Guest
I propose the creation of a digital application distribution platform for games and non-game software exclusively made for Oculus Rift.
Something similar to Google Play or Windows Store.
Some benefits :

1 -Be easy to publish and share your software. Easy to update to newer versions. Much better to get feedback and critics because it will be all in one page .
-Today we have to create a thread in the forum, and put and the information in the post, and as the app/game evolve we tend to show this new information and downloads of new versions in new posts creating a fragmented information.

2- Be easy for developers the Early adopters of the rift to see the complete collection of software being developed to Rift. The apps could be classified by genre and state of development (wip,demo,beta,release,etc) .We would be able see clearly how the development for Rift is growing, also see the trends in development and new category of software/game being create that was not possible without the rift.
-Today we have to digg deep in a giant list of threads (without any genre classification) to discover what is new in VR scene and most of the times lose important updates.

---------------

And it is very easy to create, you could allocate on or two WebDesigners/Programmers to create this and then let the developers add their software/games made for rift

Cybereality i know that you are a active user in this forum and work at Oculus VR, please , if you like this idea use your supreme power to influence the creation of this tool for developers.
17 REPLIES 17

mateuszica
Honored Guest
Until the rift is not released you could allow the publishing of any kind of software/game for Rift even if it is in the early alpha.
And when the rift is release you allow only Final versions of software/games.

I think it is important for the company because, when you Release the consumer version of the rift you will have a Tested site with a huge collection of games for rift.

Jose
Heroic Explorer
I agree with you in that there needs to be an app store or distribution platform of some sort.

From what I've read on the internet so far, Oculus doesn't mention an app store at all. So I'm pretty sure they're not going to build one. Perhaps they will make one after the VR jam? Who knows. I doubt it though.

There doesn't appear to be any community efforts for creating an app store. But there are app databases. These are the three that I'm aware of:

http://stv.re/
http://www.riftenabled.com/
http://theriftlist.com/

The most complete listing of apps so far (I believe) is contained in 2eyeguy's package released on bittorrent.

A third party app store of some sort might emerge at one point. There's definitely interest in it. But no one has announced anything. And I'm not surprised, because hosting content is very expensive. Maybe someone really creative will make use of a decentralized distribution system like bittorrent to reduce the cost of hosting an app store?

Or maybe Steam will open up their platform, and add Rift compatibility and that will become the official (or most popular) VR app store? I think it's possible. I've watched interviews with Gabe Newell where he says that he wants Steam to eventually be an open platform where anyone can submit a game. And Steam has been expanding with non-game products.

Jose
Heroic Explorer
And it is very easy to create, you could allocate on or two WebDesigners/Programmers to create this and then let the developers add their software/games made for rift


I don't think it's that easy. Because, while the app store will have a web component to it, it will need to have a "viewer" application that is usable in the Rift, so that people can make purchases and downloads while inside the Rift.

This is new territory. How does one design a checkout and download process that works entirely from inside the HMD?

Edit:

On second (and third) thought, a web checkout process that is designed for low resolution smartphones might be usable in the Rift. Valve says something like there's a 320x320 square in the current Rift Devkit in which text is readable. And older smartphones did have 320x480 resolution. So something pre-existing might be able to be shoehorned into the Rift. One problem with that though, is how does the customer type in his/her credit card number or paypal password while wearing the Rift? Should this info be pre-entered from outside the Rift?

But then another problem is, how do we (the community) standardize our applications so that they can be launched from a separate launcher application while still maintaining a coherent experience?

mateuszica
Honored Guest
"Jose" wrote:

I don't think it's that easy. Because, while the app store will have a web component to it, it will need to have a "viewer" application that is usable in the Rift, so that people can make purchases and downloads while inside the Rift.

This is new territory. How does one design a checkout and download process that works entirely from inside the HMD?


Jose, when i said it was easy i said it because i thought of a store in a website without the need to use the rift, in the site you gonna see screenshots, videos, text about the game.
While at the site you decide to download or buy and THEN you open the application wear the rift and play it.

I really think there is no need to create a VIRTUAL REALITY 3D store. What is the advantage of it?

Jose
Heroic Explorer
"mateuszica" wrote:
I really think there is no need to create a VIRTUAL REALITY 3D store. What is the advantage of it?


The advantage is that you don't have to leave the device in order to make purchases and launch applications.

When you buy apps for your smartphone, you don't have to leave the device to make a purchase. You could buy all your smartphone apps on a normal web browser on a computer if you want, but you shouldn't be forced to. That's how it should be for the Rift.

I'm not talking about creating a virtual mall of sorts where you walk around in 3D space to make purchases. The buying and browsing process can be visually similar to the web store, it just needs to be accessible from within the Rift itself. No need to switch contexts.

mateuszica
Honored Guest
"Jose" wrote:

The advantage is that you don't have to leave the device in order to make purchases and launch applications.

I'm not talking about creating a virtual mall of sorts where you walk around in 3D space to make purchases. The buying and browsing process can be visually similar to the web store, it just needs to be accessible from within the Rift itself. No need to switch contexts.


I think the Smartphone example is not comparable with this rift situation because in the smartphone you have a new operational system, so if you do not have a app to purchase on the phone you cant download it.
But with the rift you are alrealdy on a PC, you will be able to buy it wearing it or not.
I dont know if you get my point here.

So you are envisioning a 2d browser like software enabled to browser with the rift on like this : http://youtu.be/QhjTNwa-6f8?t=1m32s just to have the advantage of not removing the device while you buy one or two apps/games?
So lets say you are need to buy a game using the rift, and the game is 1GB in size and the internet connections is slow, so the user will have to wait some hours with the rift on, after the purchase? Or they put the Rift, buy, remove the rift, and the put i after the download? No advantage here.

Jose
Heroic Explorer
"mateuszica" wrote:

I think the Smartphone example is not comparable with this rift situation because in the smartphone you have a new operational system, so if you do not have a app to purchase on the phone you cant download it.
But with the rift you are alrealdy on a PC, you will be able to buy it wearing it or not.
I dont know if you get my point here.


I don't know if I'm misunderstanding your point, but I'm not suggesting that the end user is disallowed from purchasing apps through the PC web browser.


So you are envisioning a 2d browser like software enabled to browser with the rift on like this : http://youtu.be/QhjTNwa-6f8?t=1m32s just to have the advantage of not removing the device while you buy one or two apps/games?


Yes, in an effort to reduce the number of times the end user is required to leave and then re-enter the Rift in order to make use of the Rift.

So lets say you are need to buy a game using the rift, and the game is 1GB in size and the internet connections is slow, so the user will have to wait some hours with the rift on, after the purchase? Or they put the Rift, buy, remove the rift, and the put i after the download? No advantage here.


Ideally, when the game is downloading, she will be able to make use of any other app that she already has, while the game download continues in the background, all without having to leave the Rift.

Vin
Explorer
A Steam competitor? Good luck.

Jose
Heroic Explorer
"vin" wrote:
A Steam competitor? Good luck.


I don't know who you're responding to, or if you've even read my post, but I did write this in my earlier post:

"Jose" wrote:

Or maybe Steam will open up their platform, and add Rift compatibility and that will become the official (or most popular) VR app store? I think it's possible. I've watched interviews with Gabe Newell where he says that he wants Steam to eventually be an open platform where anyone can submit a game. And Steam has been expanding with non-game products.


Steam is in the best position to become the primary VR app store. But only if they lower the barrier of entry to publishing, so that indie devs and self-publishers can submit apps. And also if they add Rift support to their "big picture" mode.

You know those 100+ free VR tech demos that have already been released? There needs to be an "app store" of some sort for those apps. Steam at this point isn't it.