Valve updates Destinations social VR with quests and trading

Valve Software just released a big update to its Destinations software that could make it a fun place to hang out with friends in virtual reality.

Destinations is evolving steadily and might be blossoming into a social VR platform that could rival those in the works from Facebook, High Fidelity, Linden Lab, Altspace, and others. First launched as a set of tools for creating locations others could visit in VR, Destinations got multiplayer in July amid a steady stream of updates. This latest improvement adds quests for hidden items, rewarding you and fellow travelers with items to customize the way you look. You can even trade with other visitors (no surprise, as trading is built into the Steam platform).

From a blog post about the update:

Travel to various Destinations to find hidden item caches using the new Cache Finder tool. Locate one, and you (along with anyone questing with you) will earn a wearable item or avatar head to customize the way you look. Fancy a different hat than the one you found? Trade with other Destinations players on Steam or head over to the Steam Market. A new set of geocaching quests will appear each week, so get out there and find some caches!

In other words, first Destinations gave you places to visit in virtual reality and the tools to make your own places. Then they added multiplayer so you could visit these places with other people. Now they are giving you things to do in these places, and it isn’t just customizing how you look. The update also includes a variety of props and tools you can use, including a sketching tool and a drone you control by remote.

The update requires hand controllers like the Oculus Touch or Vive wands for the new features. We haven’t tried it yet, but Destinations is looking a lot like Oculus Toybox. Unlike Toybox, however, Destinations works for people wearing the Vive, Rift, “or any other OpenVR compatible headset.”