An off-by-default section of the store for "Experimental Apps" with less strict curation
While I completely understand Oculus' desire to avoid shovelware and low-quality experiences in the Oculus Quest store, there are a lot of less polished experiences which, while they may not live up to Oculus' strict quality standards, are nonetheless interesting enough to me that I'd still like the option of purchasing them on Quest.
As a compromise, I'd like to propose a section for "Experimental Apps" in the Oculus Quest store. The section could be hidden by default and only shown to users who acknowledge that apps found there are experimental and don't necessarily represent the best that Quest has to offer, but may be enjoyable nonetheless. Apps in that section of the store would undergo must less strict curation, allowing users to access content that would otherwise be unavailable on Quest.
Note: If you have an example of a game you'd like to play on Quest which you know was rejected due to the store's curation process (e.g. it would probably have been allowed on Rift, but isn't on Quest), feel free to post it in the comments below as evidence that this feature is something you would like to see.
Ajedi32
shared this idea
6 comments
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trankillity
commented
Just wanted to pass on my disappointment that your curation policy for content on the Quest has no clear guidelines and gives no feedback as to why a game gets rejected. Making this process and the reasons for rejection more transparent would go a LONG way to ensuring the best possible content for the Quest.
The most recent disappointment in this area was Ancient Dungeon VR which I recently Kickstarted (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2067257743/ancient-dungeon-vr/).
It's sad that games like this are forced to use other distribution platforms other than Oculus Home due to your vague curation policy - and it means that Oculus miss out on your cut of the sales too.
This idea would help solve this rather annoying problem, and should be given more visibility.
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Abdulmoiz Ali commented
Basically there are no apps / games on Oculus Quest. A handful and that's it no variety at all, and the so called polished experiences also have really bad textures or muddy textures. I keep going back for beat saber and table tennis other then that every game is actually a minigame. FYI I have 6+ paid games already
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LennyQ
commented
I think Climbey would be great fit. The developer has said that the game is ready for quest if it were only accepted.
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Derek
commented
The number of experiences on the Quest store is incredibly small and growing at a snail's pace. A growing number of games/experiences many users want are not making it onto the platform which force the devs to either abandon developing for the Quest or put them on SideQuest which is not easily accessible for everyone (and is proving to be quite popular). A second store or section within the store for these would be welcomed as not everyone agrees with the seemingly strict and confusing curation process.
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Paul Maidment commented
I completely agree with this suggestion. I think that the quest needs an official channel where indie developers can get a "look in" without having to find their commercial feet just yet.
There are lots of creative people who want to share and even sell their work through official channels to other users.
I understand that the majority of users need heavily curated content however I think you will miss out on the engagement of developers who wish to be more creative.
I am aware of the shovelware issue, I had a GearVR and found a lot of experiences to be underwhelming, however some of the problem was in part caused by the lack of "freedom" 3DOF provides. 6DOF introduces new challenges and makes quality even more important for a number of reasons but you should trust folks to come up with ideas.
The x86 platform was very open when games like Doom (which, no word of a lie, encouraged me to get my first PC) came out.
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Ajedi32
commented
To-the-top is a good example of an experience like this. ALVR and VRidge might also be able to benefit.