Affordable virtual reality gaming arrives

Oculus Rift, the virtual reality headset developed by a subsidiary of Facebook, is now on sale at retail outlets in the U.S. , Canada and Europe

2011: Palmer Luckey, age 18, builds first Oculus Rift headset prototype in his parents’ garage

Mar 25, 2014: Mark Zuckerberg says Facebook has bought Oculus VR for $2bn

Shell

Infra-red LEDs: Hidden behind fabric shell. Tracked by Sensor

Built-in headphones: Give audio sense of depth

Lenses

Face padding

Cost: $599

Twin screens: One for each eye. High refresh rate and low-persistence display for high fidelity

Interface: Headset comes with XBox One controller that works with native Windows 10 Rift games. Future plans for XBox One to stream Oculus Rift games from Windows 10

Optional interface (due later this year): Oculus Touch controller for even greater immersion

In the box:

Rift headset

Sensor

Xbox One controller

Oculus Remote

Oculus Touch: Pair of tracked controllers that effectively give player virtual arms for holding in-game objects

Sensor: Tracks movement of LEDs on headset and Touch controllers so PC can replicate them in game

Sources: Oculus VR, Fortune, wire agencies

Pictures: Oculus VR, Microsoft