Today, we will begin rolling out (as experimental features) two long-requested additions to Oculus Quest: Multi-User accounts and App Sharing.
VR is a social experience, and that doesn’t just mean online multiplayer. We know Quest has become a shared device for many of you. We want to make it easier to share your Quest with the people you care about, whether with a partner, a roommate, family, or friends. After all, how many first-time VR experiences start with someone saying “Hey, check this out” and passing the headset? But letting other people use your Quest and try VR for the first time shouldn’t mean they have unfettered access to your account details, to say nothing of your hard-won Pistol Whip high scores.
With Multi-User and App Sharing, you’ll be able to log multiple accounts into a single headset, and share Oculus Store apps you’ve purchased with those additional accounts. Game progress and achievements will be unique to each account, so no more “Hey, are you done playing that game so I can start it over?” situations. You’ll also be able to maintain your own friend lists, browser history, privacy settings, and more—and can lock your account with an unlock pattern before handing your headset to friends or family.
We’re initially rolling Multi-User and App Sharing out to people on Quest 2 as experimental features, so we can continue to refine the experience. Eventually, we’ll enable Multi-User and App Sharing for all Quest users. We hope Multi-User and App Sharing will make it easier for you to share your Quest with the people you care about.
Here’s the fine print:
- For now, the admin account (a.k.a. the account you used to set up your headset) can add up to three additional accounts and enable App Sharing on a single device. Remember, this is experimental—it might change as more households begin to own multiple Quest devices.
- To use Multi-User and App Sharing, the admin and additional account holders must each log in to the shared device with their respective Facebook accounts.
- Additional account holders can only access the admin account holder’s shared apps on the device where App Sharing is enabled. If the additional account holder purchases their own device or already has their own device, they won’t be able to access the admin account’s shared apps on their own headset.
- Additional account holders may purchase their own apps and content on shared devices, but these apps won’t be shared with either the admin account or other additional accounts.
- You can still log in to multiple devices at the same time. However, you will not be able to use the same account to run the same app across multiple devices simultaneously. Different accounts can concurrently access a shared app on multiple headsets, keeping in mind that you can only enable App Sharing on a single device at the moment.
- The admin account cannot be changed without a factory reset. The admin account can add additional accounts, but additional accounts cannot add other accounts.
- Need tips on keeping your headset clean? You’ll find them here.
App Sharing applies automatically to all new apps in the Oculus Quest Store from this date forward. As of today, a limited number of existing games will not yet be available through App Sharing unless players purchase their own copy, but over time we expect most of these apps to support additional users as well. For more information on Multi-User and App Sharing, you can visit our support center.
We think Multi-User and App Sharing will prove beneficial to both users and developers. Whether spurring each other to new heights in Pistol Whip, uncovering the secrets of Lies Beneath at the same pace, or just feeling empowered to hand your headset to friends for a quick “Hey, check this out” demo, we hope this will help everyone get the most out of their Quest. Be sure to let us know your thoughts on the Oculus UserVoice channel.