The Oculus Quest is no stranger to streaming services, and Prime Video only adds to the ever-growing list. ESPN, Netflix, YouTube, and even HBO Showtime have made their apps virtual reality compatible. It comes as a surprise that Prime Video is making its way to the Oculus Go and Gear VR as well, but owners of those headsets are going to be happy with the inclusion of this latest release.
The library that Amazon is bringing to the standalone headsets is full of regular content, but the 3D 360° video library is looking a little slim. Right now there is only ten 360° titles at launch today, but Amazon promises to “continue to add new VR-specific titles” in the near future. Below you can see the three titles that Amazon highlighted in their official release today.
- INVASION!: This Emmy-award- winning VR experience tells the story of menacing aliens who try to take over Earth and destroy anyone trying to stop them. The citizens of Earth are able to rise up and defeat the invaders – but these citizens aren’t humans. They’re two of the cutest, sweetest, cuddliest creatures of our planet: two little white bunnies, and in this story, you’re one of them!
- Return to Chernobyl: Go on a haunting journey inside the ruins of Chernobyl, guided by Aleksander Sirota — who was just 9 years old when he survived the disaster. Today, he is a tour guide bringing throngs of visitors through his notorious hometown, despite the still dangerous levels of radiation.
- Greenland Melting: To understand why Greenland’s glaciers are melting faster and faster, FRONTLINE and NOVA, two flagship PBS series, teamed up with Emblematic Group, xRez Studio and Realtra to bring this story to life as never before. Stand in front of glaciers, fly at low altitudes over some of the world’s most stunning scenery, and dive beneath the ocean’s surface to learn what NASA’s studies are revealing.
Amazon has always been savvy with this marketing, and todays release is another testament of that. Not only adding this streaming service with the new Venues app, but doing it while still releasing ten original titles as well. Amazon Prime Video is in greta position to compete with YouTube, Netflix, and Hulu as the top streaming services inside of virtual reality. If all goes well, we will see the Amazon library be updated and refreshed just as often as the regular phone and desktop versions.
Streaming inside of VR is everything you would hope for. When you first launch the Netflix app, you are inside of a virtual living room with a nice sized TV in front of you. You are then guided to sign in. From there you are able to do anything you wish to do inside of the app. This is very similar to every other streaming service. Don’t be fooled, if the video is optimized for a flat screen, that is how it is going to be inside your headset. If you put the headset on while watching The Office, you aren’t going to be immersed in their conference room. You will be sitting on the couch while you watch.
While the VR industry is trying to pump out more 360° videos, the flat versions of TV shows and movies will do just fine for now. With the release of Amazon Prime Video now on Oculus devices, there is no shortage of titles you are going to be able to stream inside of your headset. For more VR news and updates, make sure to check back at VRGear.com.
