Oculus Quest 2’s potential to educate kids is held back by its design

Almost instantly after loading into Lost Recipes , you realize that immense care was taken to ensure this VR experience was designed to be as accessible as possible.

The cooking simulator focuses on an easy-to-recognize activity and couples it with simple yet well-executed controls that ensure even the most gaming illiterate individual could slip a headset on and feel at home in its virtual environments.

When we had the chance to speak to Melanie Harke, the title’s Creative Director, she explained that this was an intentional design choice in order to appeal to VR’s changing demographics. It’s no longer just for gaming enthusiasts, but a progressively more common tool that is becoming a part of people’s everyday lives.

However, hardware limitations act as a massive barrier for some who want to try out these exciting new gaming opportunities. And no, we aren’t talking in terms of RAM and GPUs , but instead the headset’s weight and design.

If we want to see the medium become more accessible to new users, and fulfill its potential as an incredible educational tool, then someone at Meta desperately needs to think of the children when designing the Quest 3 .

Bringing history to life

History wasn’t my favorite subject at school. While great teachers (shout out to Mr Jones) did their best to bring the subject to life, I frequently found it hard to relate to these long-ago eras - let alone retain any of the information I was taught about them.

Yet, at the same time, titles like Assassin’s Cree d are some of my favorite games, and I adore learning about the historical details that are woven into its stories. Similarly, musicals like Six and Hamilton - with their iconic songs you can’t help but sing along to - have once again done more for my understanding of history than most traditional classes.

Schell Games’ Lost Recipes had an identical impact when it was teaching me about its historical details, and as Harke explained this was the expected effect.

“It’s hard learning about something from a book or a screen right? You feel detached from it all and it's hard to retain anything about an experience you aren’t connected to. But when you’re physically involved in the experience and taking a more tactile approach then those ideas and that information feels more real.”

And what activity is more tactile than cooking? You have to chop up vegetables and slice up meat, prepare marinades by mixing together different liquids, prepare the dough and work it into the correct shapes for baking, and then carefully handle pots and pans as you work to cook it all into a meal.

You’re no longer just seeing a classic recipe from the era you’re visiting, you’re putting the work in yourself to make it, and using the tools and ingredients these civilizations had access to. Out go the air fryer and induction hob and in come traditional woks and wood-heated ovens.

These kinds of experiences are perfect for VR because, as Harke puts it, the medium “excels at bringing to life these tactile environments.”

But cooking is also an incredibly approachable activity which gave Harke and the Schell Games team another great reason to use it in Lost Recipes.

“[Cooking]’s a sort of universal topic,” said Harke, “Everyone cooks at some point and so when we’re trying to introduce people to new locations and cultures they might not be familiar with, it’s really helpful for them to have this recognizable element that they can understand.”

Because, with the growing popularity of the Meta Quest 2, VR is steadily becoming an activity that’s no longer reserved for gaming enthusiasts. Beat Saber has become a part of people’s regular workout routines, and VR multiplayer has become a key part of people’s social interaction - especially after 2020 and 2021 saw people unable to go to gyms or congregate together.

As such, the experiences that players have access to also have to change. Enthusiast options like Half-Life Alyx and Resident Evil 4 VR won’t be going away anytime soon, but games like Walkabout Mini-Golf and Lost Recipes offer something for people regardless of their familiarity with games.

In particular, as Schell Games has shown with its library of education-focused titles, there’s awesome potential for the medium to serve as an educational tool - but the hardware holds it back.

VR's awesome educational potential is held back

While the Quest 2 feels manageable for most adults, the weight can be a lot for younger and older players. Further, even with less heavy headsets that rely on PC processing rather than in-built components, the straps just aren’t designed to fit on smaller heads.

To allow her niece to enjoy a VR game , Hawke explained that she “had to put a shoe in the strap so that [the headset] fit on her head”.

If VR is going to live up to its potential as an educational tool, then this unfortunately can’t be the long-term solution. The precarious shoe-in-the-strap method of immersing someone in VR could very easily lead to a lot of smashed headsets.

Going forward Meta and other headset developers would be smart to think of ways to ensure younger audiences can immerse themselves in the ecosystems they’re creating - starting with straps that can suit a wider variety of head sizes.

Because when trying out Lost Recipes and other educational offerings on VR I’m constantly thinking how incredible it would have been to have access to these tools when I was at school - especially to help with subjects I wasn’t so keen on.

Imagine if you could have gone on a Magic School Bus-like ride through the human body to learn about biology, or could instantly visit a far-away land to explore its unique geography for yourself? With tools like these school could feel less like a chore and instead become an environment more people enjoy and find fulfilling.

Plus, outside of traditional learning, if VR is to continue to grow and develop we’ll need to inspire younger generations so that they can find inventive new ways to push the technology forward.

So hopefully, when Meta is finally ready to unveil a Quest 3, Apple showcases its rumored MR headset or Valve launches a Valve Index 2 they’ll spare a thought for kids. The software is already there waiting for them, all they need is a headset that fits.

GTA 5 PS5 and Xbox Series X: upgrades, guides and news

GTA 5 PS5 and Xbox Series X has officially been released, bringing an 'expanded and enhanced' version of the hugely popular Grand Theft Auto 5 to the latest generation of consoles.

Having originally released on Xbox 360 and PS3, GTA 5 is now around nine years old but this new version of the game and its online counterpart, GTA Online, makes the most of the power of the PS5 and Xbox Series X .

What do the most powerful consoles on the market allow for? Well, you can expect new graphics modes ( three in total ), HDR options, ray-tracing, faster load times, 3D audio, and more. If that's enough to tempt you to make the jump from Xbox One and PS4, then you'll also be pleased to know that you can transfer your existing saves so that you're not starting from scratch all over again.

Now that development of GTA 6 has finally been confirmed as being “well underway”, you might be wondering why Rockstar has even bothered with this release. Well, GTA 5 and GTA Online are still hugely successful for Rockstar, so it’s not shocking that the studio would want to bring that success to a third console generation if it has the power to do so.

Plus, while GTA 6 is definitely in development, we have no idea when it’ll release, so this expanded and enhanced edition of GTA 5 could still be the only new-gen GTA adventure we have for a while yet.

Want to know more? Read on for everything we know about GTA 5 PS5 and Xbox Series X, including all the guides you need for your next outing in Los Santos, what upgrades you can expect with the enhanced versions, all the latest news and our own impressions.

GTA 5 PS5 and Xbox Series X: cut to the chase

We've already spent some time with GTA 5 on PS5 and have been extremely impressed by the upgraded version's graphics. We feel like Rockstar has done enough to make GTA 5 actually worth buying again and, in our impressions piece, our Hardware Editor Adam Vjestica said:

"GTA 5’s new lighting engine is what struck me first. It has a transformative effect on almost every element of the game, and it’s hard to imagine what the bustling streets of Los Santos were like without it. From the neon-lit signs at night to the searing hot sun that hangs in the sky over Vespucci Beach, I've found myself awestruck at times at just how aesthetically pleasing it all looks."

We've also had fun setting up an organization in GTA Online , with Adam Vjestica writing:

"To my surprise, when I was asked to name my new evil empire in GTA Online, it was actually reflected in-game . Not just on menu screens, but as an actual in-game asset for the world to see. Whenever I enter my swanky high-rise office, sitting above my dutiful receptionist is my organization’s name: Shiba Inc. Why Shiba Inc.? Well, my real life is run by a Japanese Shiba Inu, so it made sense."

Ready to jump into GTA 5 on PS5 and Xbox Series X? Or maybe you simply want a GTA 5 refresher? We're here to help. Below, we've collated all our GTA 5 PS5 and Xbox Series X guides to help you in your latest Los Santos adventure:

GTA 5 on PS5 and Xbox Series X officially released on March 15 and there's already plenty of buzz around the latest version of Grand Theft Auto. Below, you've find the latest GTA 5 PS5 and Xbox Series X news:

Grand Theft Auto 5 and GTA Online on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S benefit from a range of technical improvements, visual upgrades, and performance enhancements to "take full advantage of the latest hardware".

In a blog post , Rockstar Games confirmed that both titles feature "new graphics modes with up to 4K resolution, up to 60 frames per second, texture and draw distance upgrades, HDR options, and ray-tracing, as well as offering the technical advancements of the latest console generation with faster loading times, immersive 3D audio, platform-specific features like advanced haptic feedback, and much more."

Another welcome feature is that you can transfer your save data from the PS4 and Xbox One to more modern consoles, including your GTA Online characters.

In a follow-up post in early March, Rockstar dug into the enhancements with a little more specificity, detailing three graphics settings that allow players to “tailor your gameplay experience for what matters most to you."

The first mode is Fidelity Mode, which is “tuned for the highest visual quality”. In this mode, PS5 and Xbox Series X players get native 4K resolution and ray-tracing at 30 FPS, while Xbox Series S players get the same but with upscaled 4K resolution, rather than native.

Performance Mode is for those looking for “the most responsive gameplay experience”. It targets 60 FPS, with support for upscaled 4K resolution on PS5 and Xbox Series X, with 1080p resolution for the Series S.

Finally, the PS5 and Xbox Series X boast Performance RT mode. This is a hybrid of Performance and Fidelity modes, “supporting upscaled 4K resolution with ray tracing enabled and targeting 60 FPS.”

GTA 5 on PS5 and Xbox Series X also includes “across-the-board improvements including faster loading times, increased population and traffic variety, increased vegetation density, improved lighting quality across shadows, water reflections, and other elements. Plus improved anti-aliasing, motion-blur, highly detailed new explosions, fire, and much more.”

If you're playing on PS5, then you'll find the game makes use of the console’s DualSense controller , with “new levels of responsiveness with Haptic Feedback and dynamic resistance” via the controller’s adaptive triggers. This means “new sensations to weather effects, directional damage, rough road surfaces, explosions and much more.”

In addition, the new version of GTA Online features "a range of improvements", including the ability to skip the GTA 5 Story Mode prologue before jumping into Online and a new GTA Online Tutorial.

This makes jumping into GTA Online much easier for newbies, with new GTA Online players now able to enter Career Builder. This is "designed expressly for new players – or anyone who wants to reset their character and get a fresh start" and gives them a helpful leg up in the criminal underworld of Los Santos. With this system, you get a GTA $4,000,000 windfall to select essentials including Business Properties, Vehicles, and Weapons.

GTA 6 has now officially been announced by Rockstar Games. It doesn't have a release date just yet but you can check out our GTA 6 guide for all the juicy details we have on the next Grand Theft Auto game.

One of the most annoying Xbox Series X problems has now been solved

A new Xbox Series X update is on the way that addresses one of the console’s most annoying problems: games not launching properly when they require an update.

Xbox Alpha and Alpha Skip Ahead Insiders will now be prompted immediately when an Xbox Series X game needs an update, which means you shouldn’t encounter the all-too-common issue that rudely boots you back to the dashboard, or have to launch a game multiple times before the update prompt appears.

That’s a huge improvement over the current situation as it can take up to 15 seconds for the Xbox to show a user that an update is ready and needs to install. The problem, it seems, was that the notification wouldn’t show up until the console had determined the size of the update, hence the delay. Now, though, users will be notified that a game needs an update right away, and the file size will follow along shortly.

This isn’t the first Xbox Series X update that improves the way the console handles game updates . The console now scans your game library quicker for updates when in ‘My Games & Apps’, meaning titles should appear sooner.

Want the latest Xbox updates right now?

If you’re interested in becoming an Xbox Insider , it’s easy to get involved. Simply download the Xbox Insider Hub app , which is available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Better still, you don’t need to opt-in for each preview going, you can choose which ones you’re interested in.

Some previews aren’t available to all Insiders, either, as there are five “rings” by which Insiders are classified: Alpha Skip-Ahead, Alpha, Beta, Delta, and Omega. You'll also likely encounter bugs and issues as part of being an Insider, as you're testing beta features, after all. You can find out more on the official FAQ .

One of the best things about modern-day consoles and gaming hardware, in general, is that manufacturers continue to improve a product after launch via system updates. The PS5 has recently received VRR support and Nintendo Switch got an update that fans have waited five years to see .

The Xbox Series X|S have both continued to receive notable improvements, too, such as support for Dolby Vision gaming and pleasing audio upgrades .