Oculus VR CTO John Carmack: "We didn't have a really clear strategy at Go launch"

Oculus CTO John Carmack took the stage during OC5 for a live keynote and started things off by focusing on the inexpensive standalone VR HMD Oculus Go. One interesting statement involved the Oculus Go's launch, as Carmack revealed that the team didn't have a target demographic for the device.

"We didn't have a really clear strategy at Go launch" Carmack said when talking about who the headset was supposed to be for. This followed up a breakdown of some of the most criticized aspects of the VR HMD:

Battery doesn't last long enough
Doesn't charge fast enough
Limited expression within the virtual space

It wasn't said plainly, but it seems like he was alluding to device's opportunities being somewhat the result of not exactly knowing who this virtual reality device was being created for. He then followed up by addressing a few things that the company can improve on when it comes to Go, like comfort, battery life, etc. Improvements across the board are likely a high priority for Oculus now, especially considering Carmack pointing out that VR user retention on the Go is close to the high-retention of the more powerful Oculus Rift. He may also simply be alluding to the Oculus Quest and all of its improvements on the standalone VR HMD. Stay tuned to Shacknews for additional updates.