Part of Oculus Rift CTO John Carmack’s job is to sound off on how awesome his product is, so it’s not surprising that the former id Software man is doing just that, saying that people who try out the VR kit for the first time “walk out a believer.”
In an interview with Fortune, Carmack discussed the development process for the Oculus, and explained his reasons for wanting to be at the forefront of the new technology.
“It’s not crappy stuff that doesn’t work and makes everybody sick,” says Carmack of the latest Oculus build. “When you experience Oculus technology, it’s like getting religion on contact. People that try it walk out a believer.”
It’s hard not to get a little excited when Carmack espouses the importance of VR, even if you’re someone like me who’s only tried it out very briefly. The industry legend says that the truly exciting thing that the Oculus allows is the ability to detach yourself from actual reality and jump into a new world, like some kind of cut-price Neo.
“At its very core, virtual reality is about being freed from the limitations of actual reality,” he explains slightly more eloquently than I just did. “Carrying your virtual reality with you, and being able to jump into it whenever and wherever you want, qualitatively changes the experience for the better. Experiencing mobile VR is like when you first tried a decent desktop VR experience. There is a sense that you are glimpsing something from the future. This is science fiction made real, and it’s only just the beginning.”
