Vive VR developer kits now going out to studios, Valve says

Valve is now shipping the developer edition of the Vive, the virtual reality system it's developing with HTC, the company announced yesterday. The first to receive them range from "major movie studios [and] triple A developers to small indie teams working on their first title."

Chet Faliszek, one of Valve's lead writers, made the announcement on Steam's official forums yesterday. The equipment shipping includes a headset along with two controllers and two of the Lighthouse base stations (pictured above). Faliszek said the package "will allow developers to target the same system consumers will have in their homes later this year."

Earlier this year, Valve said select developers would receive the kits for free, presumably to control who ends up with one and to ensure the hardware doesn't end up in consumer hands or lead to speculation about its retail price. Faliszek said Valve will continue to ship to more developers over the spring and summer.

Only developers may post in the new Steam VR Hardware Group, but interested readers may still follow along there with no restrictions, Faliszek said.

For more, Polygon went hands-on with the Vive back in March, shortly after Valve and HTC announced their partnership to create the device.