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In a huge move for the mixed reality industry, Meta announced today that it's opening the Quest's operating system to third-party companies, allowing them to build headsets of their own. Think of it like moving the Quest's ecosystem from an Apple model, where one company builds both the hardware and software, to more of a hardware free-for-all like Android. The Quest OS is being rebranded to "Meta Horizon OS," and at this point it seems to have found two early adopters. ASUS's Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand is working on a new "performance gaming" headsets, while Lenovo is working on devices for "productivity, learning and entertainment." (Don't forget, Lenovo also built the poorly-received Oculus Rift S.) As part of the news, Meta says it's also working on a limited-edition Xbox "inspired" Quest headset. (Microsoft and Meta also worked together recently to bring Xbox cloud gaming to the Quest.) Meta is also calling on Google to bring over the Google Play 2D app store to Meta Horizon OS. And, in an effort to bring more content to the Horizon ecosystem, software developed through the Quest App Lab will be featured in the Horizon Store. The company is also developing a new spatial framework to let mobile developers created mixed reality apps. Mixed reality is transforming how people interface with computers by integrating digital experiences and physical spaces to reach new levels of productivity, learning and play," Lenovo Chair & CEO, Yuanqing Yang, said in a statement. "Building from our past successful partnership, Lenovo is bringing together Meta Horizon OS with our leadership and innovation in personal computing to accelerate adoption of new user scenarios in mixed reality like virtual screens, remote presence, content consumption, and immersive training.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/meta-opens-quest-os-to-third-parties-including-asus-and-lenovo-163127396.html?src=rss
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In Tolkien's Middle-earth of orcs and Nazgl, "cozy" isn't exactly the first word that springs to mind. And yet, Tales of the Shire is an upcoming cozy life sim set in the universe of The Lord of the Rings. Several months after the game was announced, developer Weta Workshop (which worked on the special effects for all six of Peter Jackson's Middle-earth films) and publisher Private Division have offered a first proper look at it with a new trailer. The clip opens with a narration noting that, while Hobbits have been known for "tales of courage and brave deeds in dark times," things will be much lighter here. You and your Hobbit will explore Bywater, decorate a home, make friends, cook, grow crops, go fishing (of course) and much more. You'll get to enjoy what appears to be a very chill existence in The Shire. The stylized, cartoony art style lends itself to the warm atmosphere that Weta Workshop is trying to project. Tales of the Shire is coming to PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S later this year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/tales-of-the-shire-trailer-shows-what-life-as-a-regular-hobbit-looks-like-163041185.html?src=rss
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Its never good to recommend a comedy by saying it makes you weep, but somehow Bluey, a comedy for kids, feels more real and more truthful than anything else on TV. I see so much of myself in Bandits triumphs and failures as he tries to parent his two daughters. I nod along to all of his unsuccessful parenting tactics that, Ill admit, Ive also tried on my own two kids. And then, at the end of so many episodes, Ill realize that the front of my t-shirt is wet with tears because I've been crying. There cant be many people unfamiliar with Bluey, the biggest kids TV series on the planet, if not the biggest series overall. Each seven-minute episode is a slice-of-life sitcom about the Heelers, a family of anthropomorphic dogs living in Brisbane, Australia. Bluey and her younger sister Bingo live with parents Bandit and Chilli. The show started out focused on the playtimes the kids would have with each other or their parents. But it quickly sprawled out to create a rich world in the vein of The Simpsons, with a whole citys worth of storylines. It can now regularly relegate the Heelers to the background to focus on the shows deep cast of characters. It closed out its third season with last Sunday's The Sign, a (comparatively) epic 28-minute episode and this week with Surprise, a sweet little postscript. The formers long running time was described as a dry-run for any potential Bluey movie, wrapping up a number of the shows storylines. It focuses on a wedding taking place at the Heelers home in the shadow of the familys plan to relocate to another city. I wont spoil too much beyond saying The Sign is a story about the bigness of change and how that affects parents and kids alike. Much of it focused on Bandits decision to move for a better-paid job and the way that impacted Chilli and the two girls. Its a complicated issue, especially because it highlights that parents often just want to do whats best for the kids. Ludo Studio Surprise, meanwhile, focuses more on the mundane struggle of Bandit trying to play two different games with his daughters at the same time. Much as Bluey wants to be just seven minutes of silly fun, it cant quite help but be honest about the emotional and physical labor of parenting. All Bandit wants to do is sit down and watch sport on the TV but his daughters wont allow him that luxury. Hes chased around the house, forced to pretend to teach a tennis ball to ride a bike and then pelted with ping pong balls fired from a toy launcher. (Blueys happy to highlight how often Bandit will get hit in the groin as a consequence of whatever game the girls are playing.) The payoff to all of that effort comes in the final half minute of the episode, which is when I started sobbing. As much as it may be pitched as a palate cleanser after the scale and emotional heft of the previous episode, the final moments offer a real (if pleasant) punch to the gut. I cant help but feel plenty of parallels in Blueys life and that of my own (similarly-aged) daughter, and feel a lot of kinship with Bandit as well. If Im one one-hundredth as good a parent as this silly cartoon dog who often gets it wrong, then Ill feel like Ive done a good job. Theres been speculation that this third season may be the end for Bluey. Bloomberg reported the uncertainty around creator Joe Brumms future with the show, although producer Sam Moor has said it will continue in some form. Any delay would also risk that the child actors who remain anonymous for their own safety will age out of being able to play their roles. But in many ways, Bluey cant not continue given the show is now a multi-billion dollar cash cow for the BBC, which owns a big chunk of the shows rights. I dont want to say goodbye to Bluey and the Heelers, and Id prefer they kept the cast as-is and let them grow up alongside Bandit and Chilli. That, to me, would be an honest thing to do, rather than indulging in the fakery that dogs so many TV shows which face this problem. But if they have to go, Ill choose to remember Blueys three perfect seasons through the highs and lows of parenting.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/what-we-watched-blueys-joyful-finales-161527282.html?src=rss
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