Dev Update #60 - Beta Android 11 bug fixes.

 

Minor VRidge update.

Hello RiftCats. It's been some time since the last time we wrote.

Today, we have released a Beta update for VRidge. The update focused on addressing several bug fixes that came up with the release of newest phones and Android 11.

New changes in Android VRidge version 2.7.9 include:

• App should no longer start with black screen on Samsung devices.
• App should now correctly support high refresh rate displays (e.g. 120Hz)
• Devices with Variable Refresh Rate should now switch to highest available refresh rate for better and smoother experience.

To test the Beta features, learn how to join Beta channels by reading THIS guide. After testing this release on a Beta channel for some time, we will push it to everyone.

What's going on at RiftCat?

You might have noticed that we didn't make too many VRidge releases over the past several months. The reason for that is that we consider VRidge to be everything we ever wanted it to be from the very beginning:

• It's an inexpensive entry point to PC VR using simple Google Cardboard headset using any mobile operating system (Android, iOS) and any VR ready PC configuration (NVidia, AMD graphics cards).
• We have created our own stable backend with reprojection that provides smooth 3DOF headtracking experience.
• It supports various standalone headsets like HTC Vive Focus, Oculus Quest, GearVR and other headsets that came and went away throughout the years. Most of these headsets start to rollout their own streaming solutions now so we are not pushing there further.
• VRidge supports various plugins and extensions that increase its capabilities further.
• Everything in an easy to use package with tutorials, quite good UX, generally pretty optimal experience and active support at support@riftcat.com 

With this in mind, we consider VRidge to be a software product that is complete. We could make a new minor feature here and there but it would not change the overall perception of it. We simply consider VRidge to be in "the maintenance mode" where we are making sure that VRidge works and is operational. There are other factors for this decision which some of you might have read about in detail at this Reddit post. We might of course release something big when a new technology will come up but for now nothing major is planned.

In short, VRidge will still work - it is a good product that we'll make sure is operational :)

What's next?

VR market is still being shaped by the major players. We had several of huge corporations in this space, before they cancelled their VR products (Google Daydream) or switched to enterprise VR solutions (HTC). The whole landscape of VR became unsustainable for such small company as RiftCat, so we need to make some strategic change or we would fade into nothing with time.

Gaming is what brought us to the VR in the first place, that's why we made a decision to shift to something we always dreamed of - game development. We are working on our first game designed for mobile with aspiration of being as fresh in mobile gaming space as VRidge was for VR industry when it first came out.

It is still quite early in development, but the game will be of a tycoon/strategic type, heavily influenced by games like Transport Tycoon: Deluxe, Anno series and Industry Giant. We cannot wait to show you what we came up with so await more news from our team!