STAR WARS Jedi Knight Outcast and Jedi Academy now in VR on Meta Quest

You can now play Jedi Knight Outcast and Jedi Academy in VR on Meta Quest — no PCVR needed!  That means the apps run on the Quest itself, and not through a PC.  You do need one-time access to a Windows PC to install the games on your Quest.

Jedi Knight Outcast and Jedi Academy are now playable in VR on Meta Quest, standalone (no PC needed to run it) — with full motion controls (you can swing your light saber and use force powers).  This VR port was made possible by Team Beef.

What is Jedi Knight like in VR?

Team Beef did an incredible job porting these two games to VR.  They feel almost like native VR games except during cut scenes where the cuts are a little too fast for VR, and some camera angles are too high or too low.  Remarkably, it has 6DOF motion controls with Quest Touch controller: you can swing or throw your lightsaber, aim your blaster, and use Force Push or Force Pull with your Quest Touch.

You can look around in any direction with your Quest.  To move around, you use the Quest’s thumbstick (there’s no teleporting).  It’s a bit less comfortable than teleporting but on the plus side, this is a game that you can play in a stationary position.

What you need:

• Meta Quest, Meta Quest 2, or Meta Quest 3
• SideQuest (free)
• Jedi Outcast and/or Jedi Academy for PC ($9.99 each or currently on sale for $3.49 each until January 4)
• JK XR app for SideQuest (free).  Although it’s free, you can support Team Beef on Patreon.

How to install Jedi Knight on Quest

Step 1: Install SideQuest Advanced Installer.  Instructions here.  Sidequest is a utility for finding and installing apps on the Quest that are on App Labs or are otherwise not on the Quest app store.

• Register for a Meta developer account here.
• Enable Developer mode on the Quest mobile app.
  • tap on Menu on bottom right.
  • tap on Devices.
  • tap on your headset.
  • tap on Headset Settings.  (If it is grayed out, wear your headset to take it out of standby mode.)
  • tap on Developer Mode and then toggle Debug mode.
• Install Sidequest Advanced Installer on your PC.

Step 2: Install JK XR app.  JK XR app is not Jedi Knight itself.  It’s an app that converts Jedi Knight to VR.

• Run Sidequest and connect your Quest to your PC via USB.  Sidequest should show a green circle that shows your Quest is connected.  Alternatively, if you have Sidequest VR, you can use that instead.
• Look for JK XR app on Sidequest and click on the Sideload button.  This will install the JK XR app on your Quest.
• Disconnect your Quest.
• On your Quest, go to the Apps tab, click on the drop down box (default says “All”) and show Unknown Sources.  You’ll see sideloaded apps including the JK XR app.  Run the JK XR app.  This will create a JKXR folder on your Quest, including the files it needs.  After a few seconds, the app will close automatically.

Step 3: Install Jedi Knight.  To play Jedi Knight on Quest, you’ll need the original Jedi Knight Outcast and/or Jedi Knight Academy.

• Download and install Jedi Knight Outcast and/or Jedi Knight Academy on your PC.
• Copy some of the files from Jedi Knight Outcast and/or Academy on your PC to your Quest:
  • Connect your Quest to your PC via USB.  On your Quest, click on notifications, and click the USB notification.  Your Quest should now appear on your Windows File Explorer.
  • Go to the drive where you installed Jedi Knight and copy files to your Quest.
    • Outcast: Go to the folder \SteamLibrary\steamapps\common\Jedi Outcast\Gamedata\base and copy all the files ending in .pk3 and paste into the Quest directory called JKXR\JK2\base
    • Academy: Go to the folder \SteamLibrary\steamapps\common\Jedi Academy\Gamedata\base and copy all the files ending in .pk3 and paste into the Quest directory called JKXR\JK3\base
• Disconnect your Quest from your PC.

How to launch Jedi Knight Outcast or Academy

• On your Quest, go to the apps tab and click on the drop down box to show Unknown Sources.  If you want to play Outcast, just click on JK XR.  If  you want to play Academy, click on the JK XR Companion App, wait for the menu and select Jedi Knight Academy, then click the Launch button.
• The title scenes are in 2D, but the game itself is in VR.
• To learn the controls, go to Controls and click on JKXR Help then Show Control Defaults.

How do I find more games like this?

There are other non-VR games that are being converted into VR.  These are called “flat2VR” games and the mods for converting non-VR games into VR games are called “VR mods.” In fact, Jedi Fallen Order is another Star Wars flat2vr game that will be coming soon thanks to a VR mod called UEVR by Praydog.  Find out more here.