We’re all used to playing virtual reality (VR) videogames online with friends, but locally, that’s a different matter. Unlike consoles with their split screen modes, VR headsets don’t tend to offer anything similar – PSVR excluded. That’s all changed for week, with Meta rolling out Shared Spatial Anchors support enabling Quest 2 local multiplayer.
Meta revealed Spatial Anchors last year, allowing developers to lock virtual content to specific location in the in the real world. Initially rolled out to Quest Pro in December, with the release of software update v49, Quest 2 and PC Link can now utilise Shared Spatial Anchors.
Shared Spatial Anchors work by allowing one user to share anchored content with others, so everyone can enjoy a digital game around a coffee table, for example. As you’ve probably worked out already, this system is utilised for mixed reality (MR) experiences rather than VR. Hence why Quest Pro got it first.
That’s not to say it hasn’t been tested, with Resolution Games’ Spatial Ops a prime example of that. If you want to try Quest 2 mixed reality at home then give I Expect You To Die: Home Sweet Home a try. Hopefully, with the technology now available more developers will look at implementing it on a regular basis.
We expect what this is really gearing up for is Meta Quest 3. The company has been open with the fact that it is due in 2023 and will have MR features. In fact, CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently said the headset would included the Meta Reality system, providing full-colour, passthrough facilities in a similar vein to Quest Pro.
Have you tried mixed reality on Quest 2? Does Quest 2 local multiplayer sound interesting? Tell us what you think.