is a senior editor and author of Notepad , who has been covering all things Microsoft, PC, and tech for over 20 years.
Microsoft and Meta announced an Xbox-branded Quest VR headset last year, and it’s going on sale today for $399.99. The Meta Quest 3S Xbox Edition is a custom colorway VR headset that comes bundled with an Xbox wireless controller, matching Touch Plus controllers, and three months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.
I’ve been using the Quest 3S Xbox Edition over the past week, and I was surprised to see that Meta has actually tweaked its Quest setup process to incorporate the carbon black and green styling of this headset and controllers into the UI. This Xbox Edition VR headset is even pre-paired with the Xbox controller and boots directly into the Xbox app.
Streaming Forza Horizon 5 in the Quest Xbox app.
The Xbox app on the Quest 3S Xbox Edition is the same one found on other Meta VR headsets, and it lets you stream games from Xbox Cloud Gaming. You’ll need an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription to do this, but Microsoft has thrown in a three-month code that works for new and existing Game Pass subscribers.
I played a variety of games on this headset, both in the immersive Xbox app experience with a 26-foot virtual display and in the pass-through view that turns an Xbox game into an augmented reality object that sits in the real-world environment around you.
I liked the ability to curve or flatten the virtual display, but I found the fully immersive display showed off some of the flaws of Xbox Cloud Gaming’s low bitrate and resolution. Forza Horizon 5 looked a little blocky at times, but I never experienced much noticeable lag while playing games.
The controllers share the same Xbox styling. Photo: Tom Warren / The Verge There’s even a little Xbox logo on the side of the VR headset. Photo: Tom Warren / The Verge A subtle ring of green at the front of the Quest 3S Xbox Edition. Photo: Tom Warren / The Verge
The hardware itself is very much just a custom colorway, with a green band around the front of the VR headset and a little green Xbox logo on the side. The Xbox controller has that same black and green styling, which also extends to Meta’s own Touch Plus controllers. It all matches surprisingly well.
Naturally, Microsoft will market this as an “Xbox” in the same way that it calls laptops, TVs, and phones an Xbox if they’re capable of streaming games from Xbox Cloud Gaming. Microsoft has never done an Xbox VR headset, and this is clearly as close as we’re getting to one.
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