We think it's one of the best VR headsets on the market, and it seems the players think so too – just five months after its launch, the Oculus Quest 2 has raced to the top of the hardware charts, becoming the most-used virtual reality headset among Steam users.
The February 2021 edition of Valve's regular survey of its PC gaming platform's users' hardware reveals that the Facebook-built headset now makes up 22.91% of all virtual reality headsets being used to play Steam games.
That's a jump of 5.52% over January's position, and sees the Quest 2 beating out headsets that have been on sale much longer, including the Oculus Rift S and top-of-the-line Valve Index.
In fact, the Oculus family of virtual reality devices, which also includes the original Oculus Rift, original Oculus Quest and the ageing Oculus Rift DK2 is leagues ahead of other manufacturers' VR efforts, making up 58% of all VR use on Steam. And this doesn't take into account the players on Oculus's own platform, where that percentage will be exponentially higher.
- Check out our Oculus Quest 2 review
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- The best Oculus Quest 2 games in 2021
Oculus popularity
So what's driving the popularity of the Quest, and the Oculus family as a whole?
For starters, Oculus by this point likely has the best brand recognition when it comes to virtual reality, having been in the game from the start of this modern resurgence of the format. We're not quite at a point where the word 'Oculus' is synonymous with VR in the same way 'Nintendo' was with all of gaming back in the 1980s, but it's getting that way.
Secondly, price and availability – the Oculus Quest 2 is not only a quality headset, but you can actually buy one, and at an affordable price, too. The Valve Index may be our top pick for the very best VR experience, but it's hardly ever in stock, and comes at a much higher premium price.
And then there's the headset's flexibility – interestingly, the Oculus Quest 2 isn't even primarily intended for PC VR use. It's an untethered mobile headset first and foremost. But it's easily possible to hook it up to a PC using a single USB-C connection, offering the best of both worlds in VR.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg (remember, Oculus is owned by Facebook) may have said that the Oculus has yet to go "mainstream", but it's certainly heading that way. No wonder the company is already eyeing up an Oculus Quest 3.
- Best VR games: what to play next on your Oculus headset
