The National Football League (NFL) is coming into virtual reality with the announcement of a new, officially-licensed VR game. It's currently being developed in partnership with sports technology company StatusPRO. What's more, it's not going to be a one-off, as the NFL is planning to make it into a series, just like EA's Madden NFL franchise.
As of today, football fans don't have that many options to play their favorite sports in VR. They can opt to play games like 2MD: VR Football or MVP Football - The Patrick Mahomes Experience with their cartoony looks, or just give up, put the VR headset down, and play Madden NFL 22 instead. With this new VR game, the intention is to provide a more authentic experience that can make players feel like a professional football player.
In order to achieve that, the NFL is turning to StatusPRO. Founded by former NFL receiver Andrew Hawkins and former collegiate quarterback Troy Jones, StatusPRO currently develops virtual and augmented reality services that are used by actual NFL teams. According to the NFL's press release, this new first-person 3D simulation game is going to be available on Meta Quest and PlayStation VR, but confusingly, there is no mention whether that means the upcoming PSVR 2.
Meta Quest, for those unfamiliar, is actually just the new name of Oculus Quest that was given when Facebook rebranded into Meta last October. Currently, the device is on its second iteration, and rumor has it that Quest 2 might get a body tracking feature sometime in the future, which sounds like it would be a great fit for an NFL game.
Other than information regarding the expected VR platforms, sadly there aren't many details about the game yet. The NFL hasn't yet given it a title, which might suggest that it's still very far off. However, that actually doesn't stop the NFL from saying that the new VR game is set to be an annual release, and that it's going to complement the NFL's current offerings that are available on the market, such as the aforementioned Madden NFL.
A new licensed VR football game that focuses on giving a realistic experience is sure to excite many football fans around the world, even if it is likely still a long way away. It's possible that the NFL and StatusPRO are simply waiting for Sony to launch the PSVR 2 before giving out details regarding gameplay features, which more often that not, are tied into the device capability in VR world. For now, though, Madden NFL 22 is still the best bet for football enthusiasts.
A new NFL VR game is in development.