Unreal now supports SteamVR

Epic Games announced it will ship support for Valve's upcoming SteamVR platform with next week's Unreal Engine 4.8 preview. 

This is a big deal for VR-curious developers, as they can now get a first-hand look -- and work out how to best make games for -- SteamVR features like Valve's Lighthouse laser-based positional tracking system and its VR controllers.

"We work closely with Valve to ensure Unreal Engine 4 is highly optimized for the latest SteamVR features, with particular focus on minimized latency," stated Epic Games engineer Nick Whiting in a press release detailing the engine's new official SteamVR toolset.

Of course, there are already multiple Unreal Engine VR games in development for VR platforms like the Oculus Rift. Select developers -- including Epic -- have already begun making SteamVR games and experiences, some of which have been used to demonstrate prototype versions of the SteamVR system and its first supported headset, the upcoming HTC Vive. If you weren't among them, Valve recently began accepting applications for free Vive dev kits.

Gamasutra editor-in-chief Kris Graft checked out a few of these experiences at GDC earlier this year, and his hands-on impressions offer more insight into the state of SteamVR. For more details on the latest UE4 update, head over to the Unreal Engine blog.