Oculus Rift developer kits now shipping

Oculus Rift developer kits have begun shipping, manufacturer Oculus VR announced today.

"We actually started shipping on Wednesday, but we haven't shared tracking information yet because the team is still tied up at GDC in San Francisco," said Oculus Rift creator Palmer Luckey. That means the Rift may arrive for some customers before they even receive a tracking number. When the company announced last November that it would miss its original estimate ship date of December, it set a new date for the end of March 2013.

Oculus VR has more than 10,000 headsets to ship, so not everyone will receive their unit within the first shipment. Luckey said, "Hold fast — they're coming."

Luckey also thanked those who have purchased an Oculus Rift, saying, "We'd like to thank you again for your patience, support, and enthusiasm for virtual reality! We couldn't have gotten here without you."

Now that the Rift has begun shipping, Oculus VR has opened up the Oculus Developer Center, an online resource for developers to begin building virtual reality experiences and putting them in their games. The site includes the Oculus software development kit, as well as the previously announced Unity engine and Unreal Engine integrations. In addition, developers can find resources such as documentation, videos and community forums.

For now, Rift owners can jump into Team Fortress 2 and Hawken, which already support the headset. Check out our hands-on with the Rift from GDC 2013, as well as our interview with Oculus VR officials, for more details.