Minecraft:Virtual reality

View of the Minecraft world through the perspective of a VR headset

Virtual reality (VR) was a mode exclusive to Template:El for Template:W (formerly Minecraft:Windows 10 Edition) and Template:W. It was used with the Template:W, Template:W (via Link and Air Link), Template:W, and all Template:W compatible headsets.

On September 17, 2024, with the release of 1.21.30, Minecraft:Mojang Studios announced that support for PlayStation VR will be discontinued in March 2025.<ref name=1.21.30>https://feedback.minecraft.net/hc/en-us/articles/30220110283533-Minecraft-1-21-30-Bedrock</ref> This announcement was later extended to all VR devices on October 22, 2024, with the release of 1.21.40.<ref name=1.21.40>https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/article/minecraft-1-21-40-bedrock-changelog</ref> After players received the final update, they would still receive updates and their Minecraft:Marketplace purchases will continue to be available, but they will no longer be able to play Minecraft with a VR headset.<ref name=1.21.30 /><ref name=1.21.40 /> VR support was ultimately removed with the release of 1.21.80.

Launching

In order to launch Minecraft:Bedrock Edition on Windows systems in VR mode, the creation of a custom application shortcut was required.<ref>https://help.minecraft.net/hc/en-us/articles/360057619052</ref> This was achieved by following these steps:

Right-click on desktop menu, select New from the dropdown, and choose to create a new Shortcut.
For the location of the item enter minecraft://Mode/?OpenXR=true. This is case-sensitive and needs to match exactly.
On the next screen, a custom name such as Template:Cd can be applied.
The shortcut should appear on the desktop and it should automatically display the Minecraft icon if set up correctly.
To play the game in VR, the VR headset must have been connected to the computer and turned on. The game can be launched by clicking the newly created shortcut.

Gameplay

Template:Incomplete section Two different VR modes were available, namely the Living Room Mode and Immersive Mode.<ref name="vr">Template:Citation</ref> The player could toggle between both modes by pressing the Template:Tooltip.Template:Info needed

Living Room Mode

File:VR living room.jpg

The living room in Living Room Mode

The Living Room Mode was selected by default when entering the game. The player was placed in a static environment in form of a dimly lit living room built from Minecraft assets. The viewpoint was still in VR and the player could look around the room but the gameplay was fixed on the virtual screen in front of them, resulting in an experience similar to playing Minecraft on a normal screen without VR.

Immersive Mode

File:VR gameplay.jpg

Gameplay in Immersive Mode.

In Immersive Mode, the player assumed the perspective of the player entity in first person, with the game world surrounding them in 360°. The game had full 6DoF support when played with a supported motion controller.<ref name="vr" /><ref name="psvr-review">Template:Citation</ref> This allowed players to freely move in the Minecraft world by walking in the real world and reflected their hand movement on virtual hands displayed in-game. When played with a regular controller or with mouse and keyboard, the VR experience was limited to head tracking.

Controls

Template:Main Template:Incomplete section In addition to input devices like mouse & keyboard and controllers, that were compatible with regular Template:BE gameplay, VR mode allowed the usage of selected motion controllers like Oculus Touch controllers. PlayStation Move controllers were not supported by the game.<ref name="psvr-review" />

VR options

File:VR Settings screen.png

The VR Settings menu.

To reduce motion sickness, various VR options were available to modify the experience. Some options were only available when a motion controller is used as input.

Living Room Mode

Option	Description
Center Cursor	Toggled to set the cursor to the center

Immersive Mode

Option	Description
Camera Movement	Snap Allowed to turn the camera by periodic steps. Classic Allowed the player to move the camera freely. Wheel Allowed to turn the camera by rotating Right Stick in a circle. Snap Wheel Allowed to turn the camera in pre-determined angles by rotating Right Stick in a circle.
Snap Angle	Toggles the size of each camera movement.
Variable Snap Angle	Toggles if the size of each camera movement should change based on how far the player pushed the Right Stick.
Snap Sound	Toggles playing a sound each time the camera direction is changed.
Movement	Linear When turned on, the player's velocity is constant with all acceleration/deceleration disabled. Classic The player accelerated/decelerated normally in VR mode.
Jump	Linear All acceleration/deceleration is removed from the jump. The jump height is also reduced so that it is the same height as a block instead of slightly higher. Classic The player jumped normally in VR mode.
Immersive Mode Auto-Jump	Toggles the auto-jump feature, while on Immersive Mode.
Head Steering	Follow Gaze The player's direction of motion followed the player Follow Player Angle The direction of motion is independent of the player viewpoint.
Sticky Mining	Lock-On Mining is locked to a specific block when the player started mining. Disabled The cursor moved freely in the environment as the player shifted the gaze while mining.
HUD Position	Drift The HUD is allowed to “float” for comfort. Fixed The HUD is fixed on the screen. Offhand The HUD is fixed to the player's offhand
HUD Distance	Controlled how far from the center of the player's vision the HUD displayed.
Hand Controller Controls Item