The DeanBeat: Virtual-reality startups like Survios are moving into Oculus Rift’s slipstream

I had a little epiphany while shooting zombies in a demo that virtual-reality startup Survios staged. I could point my guns in different directions, like a hero in a John Woo action movie, shooting enemies that were coming from all sides. That was something I could never do in a video game, where I would have to point my guns forward at the limited field of view in a TV screen. Virtual reality delivered an experience that I couldn’t get any other way. And that’s pretty cool.

Virtual reality startups have momentum in the wake of Facebook’s $2 billion acquisition of virtual-reality headset maker Oculus VR. Now, VR isn’t a fantasy. It’s a real business with a growing ecosystem, even though Oculus VR hasn’t released its commercial product yet.