Facebook's acquisition of Oculus Rift was not met with universal acclaim. You may recall, for instance, that Markus "Notch" Persson canceled a planned Oculus version of Minecraft, saying the Facebook deal "creeps me out". (He later relented.) But Oculus VR CEO Brendan Iribe says the company opted to join with Facebook, instead of Microsoft or Sony, specifically to avoid the limitations of an existing platform.

"If we were going to partner with somebody, because this is a long road ahead... We were thinking the whole time that we wouldn't partner with Microsoft or Sony," Iribe said during an address at the Business Insider's Ignition conference. Google was out as well, according to the Business Insider report, because of its lack of focus. "We didn't know how much time we'd get from the leadership team," he said.

The social aspects of Facebook, on the other hand, fit well with what Iribe sees as the Oculus Rift's great potential as a social platform. "Your brain just believes you're there," he said. "The next step is to feel like you're there with other people."

Facebook dropped $2 billion (yes, billion) to acquire Oculus VR earlier this year, an especially remarkable amount of money given than Oculus hasn't actually released a product yet. And Notch wasn't the only one who was unhappy about it:  Our reactions in the immediate aftermath of the buyout weren't entirely and unrelentingly upbeat either, though we've been consistently impressed by the tech itself. Here are the most recent hands-on, (or, indeed, 'eyes-in'), impressions from our hardware guru Wes. 

This week, Zowie Gear launched the FK2, expanding the company's FK line of FPS gaming mice.

Zowie is a smaller player in the gaming mouse space compared to the likes of Razer, Logitech, and Steelseries, but the company's FK1 gaming mice are a hit among Counter-Strike players and other twitch-click enthusiasts due to its light body, low lift-off distance, and performance at low DPI sensitivities. It's also a dead simple ambidextrous mouse without the distracting bells and whistles (aka unnecessary buttons) of many other gaming mice.

The FK2 is nearly identical to the FK1, save for a slightly smaller body. The ambidextrous design has two thumb buttons on both sides and easy switchability between right- and left-hand functionality. DPI can be adjusted to 400, 800, 1600, and 3200, and USB report rate to 125, 500, and 1000 Hz. Counter-Strike players who swear by 400 DPI love the Zowie FK's crazy-low lift-off distance of 1.5-1.8mm.

Zowie says the FK2 is currently on its way to distributors worldwide, and should be available for purchase within the next few weeks. If the price lines up with the FK1, the FK2 will cost about $60.

ASUS has announced the PB279Q monitor, a 27-inch, 4K monitor that is says is "designed for prosumers and gamers."

The latest addition to the ASUS 4K/UHD line of monitors, the PB279Q has a native 3840 x 2160 resolution (16:9 aspect ratio), 163 ppi pixel density, and a 5ms grey-to-grey pixel response time. That's fast for an IPS display, which is why the technology isn't often used in gaming monitors. The actual response time, and the added delay of input lag, often deviates from the spec manufacturers list for their monitors, but if the PB279Q is actually that fast, it should be ghosting-free for 60 Hz gaming.

At a price of $799, this is definitely not a budget IPS monitor—but it doesn't have budget specs, either. The PB279Q supports a 100% sRGB color gamut with 10-bit color, where most monitors opt for 8-bit or 6-bit+FRC. 10-bit is usually reserved for monitors aimed at professional photographers and graphic designers, so the panel should look even better than the average IPS display, which are known for color quality and viewing angles above and beyond cheaper TN panels. The viewing angles and color depth will set this monitor apart from other 4K displays in the $500 range.

Video outputs include one DisplayPort 1.2 and one Mini DisplayPort (mDP) 1.2 for 60Hz refresh rates. The monitor also sports four HDMI/MHL ports—useful for picture-by-picture mode, which splits the screen to accommodate for up to four separate video inputs. Unfortunately, the PB279Q doesn't seem to be supporting the latest HDMI spec, as HDMI can only support the 3840x2160 resolution at 30 Hz. DisplayPort allows for 4K 60 Hz output.

Physically, the PB279Q has a slim design with a 9mm bezel. It's VESA mount-compatible, and has a full range of swivel, tilt, pivot, and height adjustment capabilities. The monitor should be available in mid-December for $799.

In news that will make at least some of you feel terribly old, it's been 15 years since the launch of Quake III: Arena. With Unreal Tournament, Quake III remains one of the defining early multiplayer FPSes of the late-'90s, and it's also one of the first shooters to be played as an e-sport. Its free-to-play spin-off is also still getting updates, including a big one that arrived yesterday.

The update includes 11 Steam trading cards featuring some very lovely art—the full set can be seen on the Bethesda Blog—that can be traded, sold, or crafted into badges that earn emoticons, profile backgrounds, and Steam coupons. There are also nine new arenas and one that's been "renovated," a new in-game medal earned by telefragging an enemy, changes to the announcer voiceovers, and various smaller updates and fixes. The nine new arenas, it bears mentioning, do not include any that were "trimmed out" in the August update, but the renovated one—"Sorrow"—is.

Quake Live debuted in 2010 but it didn't actually go to Steam until September of this year. Prior to that, it underwent some fairly fundamental changes designed to make it more accessible to newcomers—15-year-old game, remember—which did not go over well with quite a number of non-newcomers.

Techland has revealed that it will offer a season pass for its zombie survival game Dying Light. The pass will cover three DLC packs featuring new missions, weapons, skins, and a competitive game mode.

An image on the GameStop Google Plus page says the season pass will include "The Bozak Horde", which has a new map and gameplay mode, the "Ultimate Survivor Bundle" of new outfits and weapons, and "Cuisine and Cargo," which brings new hardcore zones.

It isn't currently listed for sale on the GameStop website, however, and the Steam entry isn't much more informative: "This Season Pass will bring you three exciting DLC packs. Put your skills to the ultimate test in the exclusive Cuisine & Cargo challenge missions, get your hands on additional weapons and skins, and take part in The Zombie Games - a brand-new competitive game mode." Techland tweeted to confirm the season pass but hasn't detailed exactly what it will include.

The DYING LIGHT SEASON PASS by the numbers - 1 new map - 2 hardcore missions - 3 special skins - 4 outrageous weapons pic.twitter.com/VYetTUzre5

— Dying Light (@DyingLightGame) December 3, 2014

The Dying Light season pass normally goes for $20 but it can be had prior to January 2 for $12. It's also included as part of the Dying Light Ultimate Edition, although by all appearances that's just Dying Light and the season pass mashed together for the same price as buying them separately. Dying Light comes out on January 27.

There is a trick to Fallout 3 s open world that I don t think any other game has successfully replicated. It s the act of showing the player something in the distance in the Capital Wasteland, whether it s a distinctive-looking building, advertising prop, silhouette or some vague geometry that encourages me to uncover exactly what it is, to see if there s anyone there or maybe a story to uncover. It s definitely not the only game to attempt this—but the context of Fallout 3 s desolated landscape makes the horizon an effective device. In this world where there s nowhere and nothing left, you want to see everything.

Skyrim is almost as good at doing this, but it s really the difference in fiction that makes Fallout 3 pull ahead for me. I ve always preferred Fallout 3 over Skyrim, and that s no slight to the scale or detail of the 2011 RPG—it s certainly a more refined game, particularly in combat and progression. It s the more human premise. As fanciful and pulpy as the various storylines are, the scenario of a nuclear strike is a real world concern (especially in decades past), which has a more powerful narrative draw to me than high fantasy.

I ve always preferred Fallout 3 over Skyrim, and that s no slight to the scale or detail of the 2011 RPG

You re experiencing, in first-person, a detailed interpretation of what happens to a populated real-life city in the aftermath of nuclear war. Making that environment into something that players want to explore, when working within those parameters, is a testament to Bethesda s ability to make the grey remnants of human life look extraordinary—and the horizon is the best tool the game has to show that off.

When I first leave Vault 101, I can see the Capitol Building and the Washington Monument off in the distance. When I reach the river, I can make out the statues on the Anchorage memorial. Tenpenny Tower is usually a sign I m going in the wrong direction. I m never in the middle of nowhere in Fallout 3—Bethesda mapped the landscape so it s very difficult to see nothing in all directions. This layout feeds your sense of exploration. Following the main storyline is a good way to get a tourist s snapshot of each quadrant of the world, but wandering without a waypoint is the way to properly experience that world. When I first played through Fallout 3 years ago, it was following the skyline that randomly led me to the Oasis side quest with a nuclear tree man and his insane followers, probably the game s best. Objects and quests are not randomly placed in this world—but their locations aren t clearly spelled out for you, either. It s a delicate balance of encouraging the player to explore and not making it too hard to further the narrative. No-one is better at finding the point in between than Bethesda.

The success of the Capital Wasteland as an environment is based equally in art direction and design. A friend of mine once observed that the difference between the art direction of Fallout 3 compared with that of a more colourful, otherworldly locale like something from Final Fantasy XIII is the level of challenge involved in what s being created. I ve thought about that a lot when replaying Fallout 3. Bethesda draws beautiful imagery out of the destruction of the real world—there is some out-there sci-fi iconography in the robot and creature design, but Washington DC is a familiar place and is treated as such. It s designed to provoke us through our images of everyday life, and what that would look like if it was suddenly taken away. My friend posited that creating a gorgeous and exciting backdrop out of a nuked real world location is way harder than building one where there are seemingly no rules as to how colour palette must be used. Replaying Fallout 3 now, I agree with him. There s rubble, destroyed cars, greying fields, no fauna—but it s amazing to look at, even now.

Fallout 3 s world is rougher in detail than I remember it, but that urge to explore is the same to me, even though I remember where a lot of the places are. I look up, and I see a rock face in an interesting shape, a broken freeway, a small abandoned town, a centaur wandering by the waterside, some kind of factory—the sky is a grim colour, and all the people are gone, but I still want to keep following that horizon.

Creative Assembly has announced Total War Battles: Kingdom; a veritable hodge-podge of words that, when placed together, describe an upcoming free-to-play strategy for PC and tablets.

It's being developed by the team responsible for Total War Battles: Shogun—a sort of tower-defence-style strategy that was primarily designed for a mobile interface. This new game is set at the turn of the 10th Century, and will be more familiar in structure to Total War fans—with both realm building and tactical battles.

"Players will find themselves managing the needs of their own fiefdom as they marshal formidable armies with which to duel against neighbouring kingdoms," explains Sega's press release. "Ultimately, players will be able to join in massed multiplayer wars against other lords in a fight for the throne. Deception, spying and outright betrayal against enemies and friends alike will see the devious player rewarded."

A PC closed beta will happen early next year. Head here if you'd like to register for that.

Edit: Oh yeah, there's a trailer too:

Dying Light's combination of zombie killing and parkour sounds like it would be ideal for a VR experience, and so it's nice to hear that the game will support the Oculus Rift when the long-awaited VR headset is finally released to the public. There's still work to be done, but lead designer Maciej Binkowski says it's already playable, and it's actually pretty good.

That's what you'd expect him to say, of course, but in this case he's referring to the progress made on overcoming the technical challenges of getting the game to work well on the Rift. "There's still stuff we need to adapt, like how the camera works and the UI, stuff like that," Binkowski told PCGamesN. But the effort is being well-supported by Oculus, and he expects it will ultimately be a big part of the Dying Light experience.

The big question, then, is when will the Oculus Rift be released to the public? Oculus VR CEO Brendan Iribe hasn't offered much to go on, saying in October that it will be "more than a few months, less than a few years," and Binkowski unfortunately doesn't have any insight into the matter. "We don t really know how long it s going to take to release Oculus, and we release in January," he said. "But if they re ready, we re going to be ready."

Technland announced earlier today that a season pass for Dying Light, including three DLC packs, is now available. Dying Light comes out on January 27.

This article contains story spoilers for Spec Ops: The Line.

Spec Ops: The Line is clearly a smart game written by smart people. While as an adaptation of Heart of Darkness it s never as successfully weird or iconic as Apocalypse Now (despite making similar creative decisions), it s daring and ambitious in the way it portrays US military intervention in the midst of escalating chaos. I ve thought about the story a lot since I completed it recently. But what I interpret as its central conceit—that the player is the one making the decision to push forward and cause every conflict, and is thus the villain of the story—isn t really supported by the game itself. This is especially highlighted by the notorious white phosphorus scene halfway through, where protagonist Captain Walker and his two squadmates accidentally wipe out civilians with a real life weapon that burns flesh to the bone.

Spec Ops wants to make a BioShocklike message about human behaviour and choice, but in this key moment, there is no choice to be made. I m at the top of a building looking down into an enclosed bowl where an army of enemies is about to be ambushed by one of the worst weapons on this planet. I man the artillery, which triggers a bird s-eye targeting camera, and bring fire down upon scores of enemy troops. I figure out where the civilians are cowering, in a trench near the back of the field of conflict, and aim around them—but it doesn t matter. The radius of the white phosphorus impact automatically extends to scorch the group of innocents, and while this is a story beat that s technically interactive, it needs to happen no matter what. I tried not to hit them, but I was always going to.

The cutscene that follows shows the full extent of the carnage: charred corpses everywhere and the distressing image of a dead mother hugging her child, both burnt alive. If Call of Duty did this, there d be uproar. It s to the credit of Yager, the developer, that the context justifies the horror in this case.

But the fact remains that I didn t kill those civilians—Yager forced that outcome. While the aftermath still makes me uncomfortable, the fact that I was aiming around the civilians absolves me of guilt as a player—and I m not sure that was the intent. There s a strong narrative emphasis on the escalating madness in Dubai being of Walker s making, but lacking choice, I start to grow apart from that character.

The only choice I get to make comes in the aftermath, as I slowly tread through the blackened corpses and stick a bullet in anyone unfortunate enough to have survived. That s power put back into my hands as a player—I choose to kill those civilians to make up for Walker s poor choice with the white phosphorus. But again: that was his decision, not mine. It was Spec Ops most important narrative moment and they took it out of my hands. The impact is extraordinary, but had they genuinely hoodwinked me into killing civilians, it could ve lived with me forever.

And unlike BioShock, where the entire game is built to support a killer twist for the ages, in Spec Ops it becomes increasingly obvious that these are not my choices. Consequently, inspiring an equal reaction is impossible—Captain Walker is not me. I am grateful that Yager tried to do something so different with a military shooter, exploring an angle that makes every modern FPS seem gaudy to me in the way they present war, even with that clash between player and character in mind. I only hold this story to a higher standard than I usually would because I feel the developers have earned it.

I love patch notes. I especially love dry and flavourless patch notes. Games are neither dry nor flavourless, and that means these words contain secrets. For instance take a look at the new mechanics introduced in DayZ's latest stable patch:

• Vehicles
• Vehicles refueling
• Prion Disease
• New crafting recipes
• Updated heat transfer
• Watering plants

Ooh, nice, vehicles are in. And we've got some new crafting recipes. And... what's this? Neurodegenerative diseases? What's that all about?

For explanation, we can turn to the update's added items:

• V3S
• Ghillie Suite (Hood, Bushrag, Top)
• Ghillie Weapon Wrap
• Jerry can
• Military Tent
• Human Flesh
• Netting
• Steyr Aug
• MP133 with pistol grip
• Burlap strips

Yup, you read that right: burlap strips. Also: human flesh.

Essentially, you can now chomp down on a man steak. The functionality was originally introduced last month through an experimental update. Now it's in the game proper, along with the associated chance of catching Kuru if consumed raw.

Which means, while you may have to suffer the indignity of being eaten by your killer, at least there's a chance you'll give him a degenerative disease—thus claiming revenge from beyond the game. Stay safe out there, folks.

Patch 0.51.125720 is now live. You can see the full patch notes over at the DayZ forums.