PortalVR Motion: Turn Any VR Content into 2D with 3D-Tracked Joy-Cons

Remember when you put a cardboard box on your head and pretended you were in space? PortalVR Motion makes that experience slightly more techy — without the need to sell a kidney for a headset.

The startup PortalVR has announced Motion — software that emulates VR controllers using Nintendo Switch Joy-Cons. Yes, those very ones gathering dust after you finished Zelda. Now they become your hands in the virtual world, even on a plain monitor.

How It Works

• No headset required: all you need is a PC and a pair of Joy-Cons (left, right — doesn't matter).
• Any VR content: SteamVR, games, apps — Motion intercepts the tracking and projects it onto a 2D screen.
• 3D tracking: Joy-Cons are tracked in space, so you wave your arms like in real VR, but you're staring at a monitor.

Sounds like magic? It's actually a clever piece of software that tricks the system into thinking you have a full VR controller. Of course, without a headset, immersion isn't complete, but for prototyping, indie games, or budget-saving — it's perfect.

METABYTE studio comment: We love saving money too, but we'd rather write code for real VR than flail our arms in front of a monitor. Still, if a client needs a quick-and-dirty prototype, PortalVR Motion is a decent duct-tape solution.