Third-party Oculus Quest games can use hand tracking starting this month

What you need to know

• Oculus Quest hand tracking is now generally available.
• Hand tracking has been an experimental feature for a year.
• Third-party games can include hand tracking starting on May 28, 2020.

Oculus announced a slew of updates and bits of information to celebrate the anniversary of the Oculus Quest and Oculus Rift S. One of the largest changes is that hand tracking is now generally available. The feature has been classified as an experimental feature for the last year but is now fully available on the Oculus Quest. Oculus will start accepting third-party titles that include hand tracking on May 28, 2020.

Developers have now had a year to work with the hand tracking SDK, and Oculus has had long enough to improve the feature to roll it out to the public. Later this month, several apps and games will gain hand tracking support. Here's the list that Oculus shares in its blog:

• Elixir: Explore an unstable alchemy lab to obtain new and powerful hands, cast spells, mix potions, and poke a nauseated dragon. All of which will have an—unexpected—effect on the anatomy of your fingers, and it's nobody's fault but your own.
• The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets: Help your grandfather solve the mystery of the stolen pets by exploring wonderful miniature worlds crafted from the ground up for VR. Every world is unique, full of interactions and colorful life.
• Waltz of the Wizard: An experience that lets you feel what it's like to have magical powers! Combine arcane ingredients into a cauldron, unleashing creative or destructive wizardry upon a fully interactive world designed to feel believable.
• Two award-winning immersive experiences are launching as the Cinematic Narratives Set, both with hand tracking enabled on Quest. Featuring the voice of Colin Farrell, Gloomy Eyes tells the story of a zombie kid and a mortal girl who fall in love, forging a deep connection that not even the most powerful man in town can destroy. The Line portrays a world of miniatures where routine is paramount and everything is always the same—until it's not. Get your hands on these interactive films May 28.

Fast Travel Games recently teased hand tracking support for The Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets. At the time the company simply teased it with "Coming Soon. #Oculus Quest." Now we know that hand tracking support is on the way later this month for third-party games.

Hand tracking support is a unique feature that opens up new doors for the Oculus Quest. We'll have to wait and see to see which developers add it to their titles.