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Valve Index is the company's entrance into the VR HMD market

Valve is finally getting into virtual reality hardware, as the company teases a new VR HMD called Valve Index.
Ozzie Mejia
Ozzie Mejia
8

Valve has been rumored to be getting into the virtual reality game for quite a while. So as the gaming world spends its weekend at PAX East, the publisher quietly decided to confirm its intention to step into the VR space. On Friday, Valve officially teased its own VR headset, which is being coined the Valve Index.

Valve posted a teaser image over on Steam, but it's light on details. There's only what appears to be brand new hardware, with the name "Valve Index" on it with a nebulous May 2019 date. However, slightly more details were issued in a report by Ars Technica. They point out that the image matches one from UploadVR back in November, with the site reporting a rumored headset that would offer a 135-degree FOV.

The Valve Index's reveal comes years after Gabe Newell announced Valve's interest in entering the virtual reality market. It also comes roughly a week after the unveiling of the Oculus Rift S at GDC 2019. That HMD is set to release sometime in the spring, as is the Oculus Quest. The new Oculus hardware and Valve's new headset could potentially be on a collision course this May, with release dates possibly coming within weeks of one another.

But outside of Friday's initial tease, there are still many unknowns regarding Valve's new hardware. There are no hardware details, no specs, and no word on any accompanying software. Though it should be noted that Valve has certainly discussed the possibility of getting into VR software in the recent past. Valve certainly has a handful of IPs to work with, which includes anything from 2018 acquisition Campo Santo and maybe something in the Portal universe, but don't expect too much on software until we know more about the hardware itself. Stay tuned for any further updates, as we continue to monitor this developing story.

Senior Editor
Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?

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