HTC’s ‘One More Thing’ at their One M9 announcement in Spain at Mobile World Congress – took the tech world by storm. The announcement of the HTC Re Vive Virtual Reality headset was completely unexpected, as was their partnership with world-class software developer and distributor Valve. The HTC Vive developer program was announced at the event, and Valve has just announced that they are now accepting applications for developers – all of whom will receive a Vive Developer Edition for free.
The Vive VR Consumer Edition headset will launch for consumers later this year – HTC says by Christmas – which makes getting Developer Edition headsets into the hands of developers all the more important, because in this day and age: Content is King.
HTC and Valve are looking for serious developers, with preferably a team behind them, with signups for the SteamVR developer program asking for a fair bit of information, including details such as Team Size and Company name. But, if you’re a small, independent developer, but with a great idea, don’t be deterred, Valve spokesperson Doug Lombardi told Ars Techncia that ‘all interested developers, big and small’ should feel welcome to apply.
Developer Edition of the HTC Vive should begin shipping shortly, with units – which we are assuming will include the hand controllers – shipping out in waves every couple of weeks. But even with companies like HTC and Valve involved, supplies will be limited, so you can guarantee that developer sign-ups will be scrutinised closely.
The HTC Vive isn’t Android related, it will run on a desktop PC, but as a HTC product it’s exciting to see the company branching out. The Vive headset, and the Steam VR platform and demos I saw at MWC, blew me away. I’ve tried all the current VR platforms and the Vive is hands-down the best. You can read all about the hands-on experience I had at MWC here.
