Update: We asked Bethesda how John Carmack's new position at Oculus Rift will affect id Software and whether it will garner a partnership to develop virtual reality games together, but we only received the following statement:
"John has long been interested in the work at Oculus VR and wishes to spend time on that project. The technical leadership he provides for games in development at id Software is unaffected."
Seems like Bethesda would prefer to stick wi and keep quiet on the gaming front, which is understandable since Carmack's job title is still fresh.
Original article ....
The Oculus Rift team just got a whole lot bigger, and it sounds like everyone is a happy camper with their latest member.
John Carmack - the legendary lead programmer on Wolfenstein 3D, Doom and the Quake series - will join the Kickstarter-funded project as Chief Technology Officer.
Carmack was the first developer to integrate a game with the Oculus and has been an ardent fan since the Rift was just a prototype.
What's more, it looks like he's ready to keep on working with the team to get users their own virtual reality device.
The Oculus Rift blog is rife with praise for Carmack calling him "one of the brightest minds of our generation" and Camack sounds equally ecstatic.
"Now is a special time," he said in statement. "I believe that VR will have a huge impact in the coming years ... there is a lot more work to do, and there are problems we don't even know about that will need to be solved, but I am eager to work on them. It's going to be awesome!"
Carmack's worlds collide
Surprisingly, in addition to working at Oculus Rift, Carmack will remain at Bethesda-owned id Software as well as Armadillo Aerospace, making his plate pretty darn full. "My time division is now Oculus over id over Armadillo. Busy busy busy," says Carmack on his Twitter.
He's joining Oculus Rift at a crucial time as more orders for the development kit are shipping in September, though there's no date slated for a consumer version quite yet.
But hopefully with the added weight and brains of Carmack, we'll start seeing more news about virtual reality sets for the home within the next year, and maybe even more big gaming titles being added to the Rift roster thanks to his current ties.
