The stand-alone gaming experience of the Meta/Oculus Quest 2, Quest 3, and Quest Pro is impressive, but Meta's platform can only go so far. While impressive for the cost of entry, the Quest's hardware is still limited. Thankfully, Meta's headset has a secret weapon: PVCR compatibility.
There's no denying that the best VR experiences will stem from the PCVR market, which offers top-tier graphics, smoother performance, and a wider selection of titles to enjoy. That's why the Meta/Oculus Quest headsets have been ideal devices for a best-of-both-worlds approach to VR.
Steam Link: Bypassing your headset hurdles
However, just because PCVR gaming has been possible, doesn't mean it's been easy. More often than not Quest users have had to strike the perfect balance of making use of SteamVR, the not-particularly-splendid Oculus PC client, and the actually splendid Virtual Desktop made by developer Guy Godin. And not to mention forking out up to $80 on a reliable link cable.
Until now that is. Valve has recently released Steam Link for all Quest headsets, your one-stop solution to wireless PCVR gaming. Steam Link is now available for free on the Oculus/Meta store and will allow users to directly stream SteamVR titles from their PC or laptop directly to their Quest headset quickly and easily.
To make use of Steam Link both devices need to be on the same 5Ghz network (to avoid any unnecessary lag, make sure that your laptop or PC is connected by ethernet to your wireless router), you need to have a machine outfitted with a GTX970 or better GPU, and be running Windows 10 or above.
Outlook
With SteamVR installed on your host machine and Steam Link on your Quest headset, you'll be able to stream your favorite PVCR titles instantly and effortlessly. There's no better time to give this a shot either, as today marks the opening of Steam's VR Fest — a week-long celebration of PCVR gaming featuring incredible discounts and demos kicking off at 1 p.m. ET.
The launch of Steam Link on Quest is great news for aspiring PCVR gamers, and brings about one of the most direct ways to enjoy top titles on Meta's VR headset without needing to jump through any hoops along the way. It's been a long time coming, but as Quest owners we can finally enjoy a direct feed to our VR library in the easiest way possible.
