We’ve reached the pinnacle of civilization. Someone has made a virtual-reality version of Luke Skywalker’s trench-run attack on the Death Star from Star Wars: Episode IV — A New Hope, and that’s where I want to live out the rest of my days.
The Trench Run demo for the Oculus Rift VR headset puts players in the cockpit of an X-wing fighter from the Star Wars universe (via Rock Paper Shotgun). Using an Xbox 360 controller, players can fly down the trenches of the Empire’s superweapon in an effort to destroy it.
Check it out in action:
The demo uses the Unity Engine to re-create the Death Star. It looks real enough. This is likely similar to the types of experiences that developers will focus on when the Oculus VR company finalizes its Rift device for consumer use. Currently, Oculus only has a developer version of the hardware that still has some minor latency issues and a very low resolution. The company is working toward a final product that it will release in stores soon.
Eve Online developer CCP games is working on a game called Eve: Valkyrie that, like this Star Wars demo, puts players in the cockpit of a space fighter. It is a spaceship dogfighting game set in the Eve Online universe.