Oculus VR has finally given us an expected launch window for the anticipated consumer release of its Rift virtual reality headset.

We've seen some amazing things done with the Oculus Rift so far, like being able to play Grand Theft Auto V on it, and it's still not even available for the masses yet. Finally, Oculus VR has revealed when it intends to launch the consumer version of the Rift headset for consumers to enjoy. The wait has been long, but we have a feeling it will be worth it. Don't forget that Facebook acquired Oculus VR for $2 billion, and we have a feeling the company intends on making every cent back and them some with the Rift.

Here's what Oculus VR representatives had to say about this big announcement:

Since the earliest days of the Oculus Kickstarter, the Rift has been shaped by gamers, backers, developers, and enthusiasts around the world. Today, we’re incredibly excited to announce that the Oculus Rift will be shipping to consumers in Q1 2016, with pre-orders later this year.

The Rift delivers on the dream of consumer VR with compelling content, a full ecosystem, and a fully-integrated hardware/software tech stack designed specifically for virtual reality. It’s a system designed by a team of extremely passionate gamers, developers, and engineers to reimagine what gaming can be.

The Oculus Rift builds on the presence, immersion, and comfort of the Crescent Bay prototype with an improved tracking system that supports both seated and standing experiences, as well as a highly refined industrial design, and updated ergonomics for a more natural fit.

In the weeks ahead, we’ll be revealing the details around hardware, software, input, and many of our unannounced made-for-VR games and experiences coming to the Rift. Next week, we’ll share more of the technical specifications here on the Oculus blog.

Virtual reality is going to transform gaming, film, entertainment, communication, and much more. If you’re interested in building a next-generation VR game or application, everything you need to start developing for the Rift is available at the Oculus Developer Center.

E3 is just around the corner — this is only the beginning.

– The Oculus Team

While this doesn't say whether or not the Rift will be available at retailers and video game stores, we have a feeling that it will, especially considering how much Facebook invested into the project. We should note that just last week, Facebook CFO David Wehrner revealed that the Oculus Rift would likely not be launching in 2015, suggesting that a large scale retail launch by the end of the year would be unlikely and maintained an adamant "it'll launch when it's ready" mentality.

With Valve hoping to launch the HTC Vive by Nov. 2015 and PlayStation's Project Morpheus headset expecting to launch in late 2015 or early 2016, the team at Oculus VR has their work cut out for them. We can't wait to see how much of an impact virtual reality tech makes at E3 next month.

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Oculus VR
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