Oculus Rift sells out in less than 15 minutes despite huge price-tag

Gamers can try out the VR headset at retail stores.

The Oculus Rift virtual reality headset has gone on general sale, marking the first time that the general public can buy the device that many think could bring virtual reality to the masses.

Oculus VR set off the current virtual reality boom in 2012, with its successful Kickstarter campaign, raising almost $2.5 million.

Oculus Rift, the virtual reality headset, is available for preorder on Wednesday and is expected to ship beginning March 28, Oculus said on its website.

In the weeks leading up to pre-orders, Palmer Luckey took to Twitter to manage expectations for those expecting budget pricing, saying “VR will become something everyone wants before it becomes something everyone can afford”. Also if you are in the hunt for a new PC, Oculus will be offering a PC and Rift bundle in February starting at $1499 Dollars. Following this the prices are indeed expected to drop as the technology reaches everyday gamers.

The pre-order bundle will come with the headset, which has built in headphones and a mic, a sensor, and thanks to Microsoft’s backing announced at E3 2015, an Xbox One controller.

Digging further on the official Oculus Rift site, we can see that the developers have also revealed the Oculus Rift recommended PC specs. All this, before you consider the high-end PC needed to run the headset.

Oculus has come a long way and on the eve of the pre-order launch, the company has chose to give something back for backers who pledged and supported them at the very beginning.

While the Rift is blazing new trails in how we will play video games in the future, the price comes as a bit of a surprise.