There are quite a few much-loved franchises in developer Rockstar Games catalog, but few have the cultural cache and general fandom that Grand Theft Auto does.
Even Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of Facebook, is a fan. He said as much on Thursday, announcing that the 2004 entry in the series will get the full VR treatment.
That’s right, GTA: San Andreas is coming to the Oculus Quest 2, Facebook’s VR headset.
“This new version of what I think is one of the greatest games ever made will offer players an entirely new way to experience this iconic open world in virtual reality,” Zuckerberg said at an event.
Over on the Oculus blog, the company said that it had spent years working on the new version of the game.”Get a new perspective on Los Santos, San Fierro, and Las Venturas as you experience (again or for the first time) one of gaming’s most iconic open worlds.”
The company is very excited about VR and wants to see its popularity grow.
“VR gaming continues to grow, and we’re investing heavily in building a healthy ecosystem for both developers and players—for the long term. In gaming, we see the seeds of what will one day become the metaverse, and we’re excited to help build that along with all of you.”
There’s also an update to the popular music game Beat Saber on the way.
Updating older games for VR has become a new way to experience classics, especially for those who missed them the first time around. The horror classic Resident Evil 4 was recently released on the VR format, and it’s been well received.
The company didn’t completely redo the whole game, but instead added VR elements and cut scenes to the experience. It seems like Oculus knows what people want and is trying to give it to them, so there’s hope that the remake will be a good one.