This week in gaming, Soulja Boy takes on Nintendo (and loses), a new standalone VR headset is on the horizon and there's a new free service offering a game every day.

A specialized virtual reality treatment may be able to reduce the frequency and intensity of nightmares, according to a pilot study published in the journal Dreaming. “Current treatments for nightmares required too much time or taking a drug that essentially knocked you out for awhile, so we needed a treatment that was short, non-toxic and effective,” said study author Patrick McNamara of the Boston University School of Medicine.

Researchers and autistic artists are exploring immersive visuals to study and simulate autism traits

What were they thinking?! These erroneous guesses about tech in 2018 would shatter any crystal ball.

Online classes are convenient, but they don't feel like college. The Rumii app could fix that.

The Smithsonian teams with Intel to virtualize Burning Man art.

Chinese drug rehab centers are using VR eye tracking to determine whether or not addicts are receptive to treatment.

About 65% of patients with schizophrenia experience verbal auditory hallucinations, which are characterized by harsh voices that emanate from body-less “others.” Usually, these “others” fit a common profile – they're domineering, derogatory and unremittingly hostile, making an already-burdensome condition even more painful for those who suffer from it.

Sony CEO Kenichiro Yoshida is confident that issues with current VR headsets will be improved upon in the future. Speaking to The Independent at the IFA technology conference in Berlin last week, Yoshida outlined many of the common problems with early VR headsets like the company’s own PlayStation VR (PSVR), noting that the tech was “still evolving” at the moment.

If you walk in on someone exercising with with a VR headset on on, they might look pretty ridiculous. Perhaps you’d silently judge them for what might seem like random, awkward movements. If this describes you, a study published in Psychology of Sport and Exercise may make you regret that snap judgment: The findings suggest that VR can actually play a powerful role in exercise performance, helping people push through physical discomfort.

After years of speculation, some mockery, and more than a little befuddlement, the Magic Leap augmented headset is arriving in the hands of developers and users — and its first product is a somewhat janky piece of magic.

At this early stage, virtual reality is basically a cool new high-tech toy. But researchers are discovering it can confer real-world benefits, including reducing pain and boosting creativity. A new study examines a particularly promising use for the immersive technology: increasing empathy. It finds that, compared to traditional approaches, using VR to experience the precarious life of a homeless person creates more, and longer-lasting, understanding and compassion for that often-ignored population.

In an industry marred by its lack of self-awareness, one project is creating a more inclusive vision of the world. By Cecilia Keating.

As workplace technology continues to improve, read how artificial intelligence, smart data and the gig economy will continue to transform the future of work.

Unreal Engine 4 recreations are nothing new, however the Star Wars Mos Eisley spaceport project—which comes courtesy of a group of Obsidian developers—is pretty impressive. Headed by Jason Lewis, a total of 17 devs of varying rank are using the project to learn more about the engine, but of course being self-confessed “super Star Wars nerds” makes the undertaking that bit easier. Speaking to 80.lv, Lewis says he first started out with the desire to craft a three dimensional Millennium Falcon, however things quickly spiralled as the project grew in scope.

Today, we’re excited to announce the new PlayStation VR Borderlands 2 VR and Beat Saber Bundle that will give you access to two action-packed VR games. Borderlands 2 VR is the latest blockbuster experience to come to the immersive platform, bringing the iconic shooting-looting world of Pandora to life like never before. Virtually become a treasure-seeking Vault Hunter facing off against the galaxy’s most charming psychopathic dictator — Handsome Jack — with nothing but your wits and your arsenal of 87 bazillion guns.

Since launch, PS VR has propelled us into fantastical worlds and experiences with unparalleled immersion. And from today you can get more of those experiences for less with the PS VR Mega Pack*. This hardware bundle includes a PS VR headset, PS Camera and voucher codes** for five acclaimed PS VR games, including hit platformer Astro Bot Rescue Mission, the blisteringly-fast WipEout Omega Collection, open-world adventure The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR, hellish shooter Doom VFR, and PlayStation VR Worlds.

Review Of Top VR Development Companies In 2018

In Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One, humanity escapes a gritty dystopia by donning VR goggles and entering a virtual world called OASIS. Back here in a comparatively rosy 2013, we don’t have a fully immersive virtual experience—yet. But virtual reality is undergoing a renaissance. And while Oculus develops a consumer-ready virtual reality headset, Second Life creator, Philip Rosedale, and his latest startup, High Fidelity, are hard at work constructing a next-generation global virtual world.

In May 2012, a programmer named John Carmack tweeted a picture of what looked like steampunk bifocals made out of a black shoebox. “This is a lot cooler than it looks,” read the caption. He was right. Since then, that awkward contraption—now more streamlined, and known as the Oculus Rift—has become the most anticipated new product in gaming since the Nintendo Wii got people off the couch.

Virtual reality has a come a long way since the 1990s, the heady days of Lawnmower Man and epic battles with evil triangles and squares. But with the arrival of the Oculus Rift headset, VR is poised to change the way we play, work and learn. That may sound like hyperbole, but I assure you that it's entirely justified.

It's been a week and I still can't get my experience with the latest Oculus Rift prototype at CES 2014 out of my mind. The Oculus Rift, which made its debut at CES 2013 and then further enchanted reporters at E3 2013, is undoubtedly one of the coolest pieces of technology I've ever seen.

Very soon, advances in neuroscience and technology are going to allow us to create virtual experiences that are far more fun and meaningful than real-world experiences—what happens then?

Virtual Reality is coming. As in, actual, good, user-friendly virtual reality. The stuff sci-fi has promised us for decades. Don’t take my word for it...

The most exciting aspect of contemporary virtual reality is its implications. Even using Oculus VR's early duct taped-prototype, most users immediately

We've figured out what affordable VR hardware will be capable of within a couple of years, and assembled a prototype that reveals that that level of VR hardware is capable of stunning VR experiences. That hardware is almost certainly going to appear in that timeframe, and it will be worth starting to develop for it now. This talk will discuss what that hardware is, and what it makes possible.

Sony's Oculus competitor is almost ready for its big unveiling, and it's said to be impressively good.

VRFocus reports on Oculus VR suspending sales of its Oculus Rift virtual reality (VR) headset development kits. This could be to make way for a new version.

This is a VR clone of The Legend of Zelda for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). The gameplay and artwork are virtually identical to the original NES classic, however in this version you see the world through Link's eyes, in all of it's virtual 3D 8-bit glory. Explore the world, find weapons, kill enemies, collect items, discover secrets, buy upgrades, delve into dungeons, defeat bosses, restore the Triforce, and rescue Princess Zelda from the evil Ganon.

Oculus Gearing Up to Host its Own VR Convention

Developer Michael Blix has created an Oculus Rift Simulator web app which gives an idea of what an Oculus Rift could look like equipped with a 1080p, 2k, and 4k screen. The demo also features simulated ‘low-persistence’ which helps users see how the new tech improves the virtual reality experience. Road to VR’s editors are… Read the full article …

For those with a rift, you can actually download that ZeldaVR game that's making its way around the web right now.

“Deep inside you know it’s not your body, but you feel like it is,” says Philippe Bertrand.

Valve has been vocal in its support of virtual reality technology, saying that "compelling, consumer-priced VR hardware" could "transform the entertainment industry." Valve says it has offered help to Oculus as it works on the Rift headset, but the Bellevue-based developer is also apparently working on its own virtual reality hardware. A poster on gaming super-forum NeoGAF says he was invited to see and use that prototype after it was shown to a few game developers.

VRFocus reports on the release of Spirited Away The Boiler Room on the Oculus VR Share Beta. The demo allows users to tour a scene from the classic film.