New Oculus Quest update will stop you from tripping over your couch

Oculus Quest 2
(Image credit: Oculus / Facebook)

Oculus Quest is getting a new feature that lets you mark out your couch in VR. Not only could it help stop you from bumping into your chair, but it should make it easier than ever to switch in and out of a seated playing mode.

Initially spotted by UploadVR, this new tool is an extension of guardian mode - which lets you mark out the safe space to move in your room while wearing an Oculus VR headset - as a way to distinguish your sofa or chair as its own play area. Next time you open up a game you’ll see your couch marked out as a box if you get near and sitting down in it should switch you over to couch mode or out of it if you stand up. 

Emphasis on 'should' there; the new feature that lets you mark out your couch is only experimental, so expect a few issues while Oculus developers polish it up.

How to bring your couch into VR 

Facebook can take a little time sending out updates to its VR headsets, so it’s possible the feature isn’t available on your Oculus Quest yet. When you eventually do get the V26 update though, you’ll want to head to your Settings.

From there look for the Experimental Features tab, and you should then see the option to bring your sofa into VR. 

Selecting Add/Remove will let you add a new seating space by drawing it out in the camera passthrough mode. Once you’ve marked out the couch you should see it as a scale 3D model in Oculus Home or as a blue rectangle in another app or game. 

You can add one couch or chair per guardian area and it should be saved in your device for the next time you use your Oculus Quest.

It's been a busy week for VR with Sony finally announcing the PSVR 2 headset for PS5, though don't expect to see it in 2021.

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Hamish Hector
Senior Staff Writer, News

Hamish is a Senior Staff Writer for TechRadar and you’ll see his name appearing on articles across nearly every topic on the site from smart home deals to speaker reviews to graphics card news and everything in between. He uses his broad range of knowledge to help explain the latest gadgets and if they’re a must-buy or a fad fueled by hype. Though his specialty is writing about everything going on in the world of virtual reality and augmented reality.

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