ILM's National Geographic: Beyond films Africa in 3D for Meta VR Glasses, Quest 3. Industrial Light & Magic shot 180-degree stereoscopic footage in Africa for a new National Geographic VR app targeting Quest 3, 3S and Meta VR Glasses. NF Nadia Fournier AI reporter · VR games · Sep 26, 2026 · 4 min read #NationalGeographic:Beyond #VRGames * ILM and National Geographic unveiled the app at Meta Connect on September 23 * Footage is stereoscopic 180-degree video filmed on location in Africa * Targeted at Meta Quest 3, Quest 3S and Meta VR Glasses, out spring 2027 at $1,299.99 * No release date, runtime or price has been set for the app itself Industrial Light & Magic has filmed a National Geographic virtual reality experience on location in Africa, built specifically for Meta's headsets. ILM confirmed on its own site that National Geographic: Beyond was created in collaboration with National Geographic, featuring real, 180 degree footage filmed on location in Africa specifically for Meta's devices. The app is one of two immersive projects ILM revealed at Meta Connect on September 23, and it is aimed at Meta Quest 3, Quest 3S and the still unreleased Meta VR Glasses. Meta's own newsroom post from Connect described the app in similar terms, promising extraordinary 180-degree 3D access to African wildlife and the natural world. That puts a second, independent confirmation behind ILM's own description of the shoot, filed the same week from Meta's side of the announcement. Reaction to the reveal split between excitement over wildlife footage shot specifically in 3D for headsets and skepticism about yet another undated VR project: Stereoscopic 180-degree capture, shot for headsets only. ILM is explicit that this is not archival Nat Geo footage repurposed for a headset. The studio's Connect recap states the project builds on National Geographic's tradition of bringing audiences face-to-face with the natural world by using stereoscopic 180-degree footage filmed on location in Africa to give viewers an unprecedented sense of proximity to the wildlife and environments being documented. GamesBeat's writeup of the same press materials confirms the framing, noting the footage places viewers face-to-face with animals and landscapes. Beyond the capture format, ILM has said little. The studio notes the app also explores additional approaches to immersive storytelling, giving audiences new ways to connect with Africa's wildlife and landscapes, without specifying what those additional approaches are. No runtime, region list or price has been attached to the app. Fattouh: "bring fans closer to real places" ILM executive producer Shereif Fattouh framed Beyond and its Connect stablemate, Disney Immersive Cinema by ILM, as part of a wider bet on presence-driven storytelling. In a press release quoted by GamesBeat, Fattouh said "Both experiences reflect our belief that the future of entertainment is about crafting a new canvas for storytelling that allows creators to immerse the audience in ways never before possible. With Meta VR Glasses, we can bring fans closer to real places, beloved characters, and iconic moments that are authentic to the filmmakers' vision." The paired announcement, Disney Immersive Cinema by ILM, takes a different approach: it wraps VR-enhanced staging around existing films rather than shooting new footage. ILM describes it as exploring how immersive technology can extend the cinematic experience beyond the traditional boundaries of the screen, designed as a hub for VR enhanced versions of feature films, while stressing the underlying movie itself is untouched. Three devices, one "in development" Label. ILM lists Beyond as targeting three separate pieces of hardware at once. Its Connect recap states that both experiences are currently in development for Meta VR Glasses and Meta Quest 3 and 3S, with additional details to be announced at a later date. Disney-focused outlet Laughing Place, drawing on the same ILM materials, corroborates that the two apps are currently in development for Meta VR Glasses, Meta Quest 3 and Meta Quest 3S. That single label covers hardware with very different timelines. Quest 3 and 3S have been on sale for years and could theoretically get a version of the app sooner. Meta VR Glasses do not exist yet as a shipping product; Meta's own Connect post confirms the device is launching in Spring 2027, its most advanced device yet, delivering a cinema, courtside seat, workspace, and console, all in a pair of glasses that weigh about 100 grams. Neither ILM nor Meta has said whether the three device versions of Beyond will arrive together or in sequence. Part of a larger 3D push at connect 2026. National Geographic: Beyond did not appear in isolation. Meta's Connect keynote bundled it with a slate of 3D content aimed at the new glasses, including a Draymond Green documentary series and a concert film. Meta's blog post confirms the wider push includes Open Season, giving viewers a seat in the room with four-time NBA champion Draymond Green as he goes to therapy during his 2025-2026 season, launching September 29, followed by Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour, the concert film co-directed by Billie Eilish and James Cameron, exclusively available to buy and rent in 3D on Quest this November. UploadVR's reporting on the Green series lists Beyond among the same Connect batch, noting Meta announced 3D movies from Disney+, new immersive sports broadcasts with "8K streaming and 180-degree views", the upcoming National Geographic: Beyond app with 180-degree 3D footage, and a 3D version of Billie Eilish's Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour concert film. Against that backdrop, ILM's Africa shoot reads less like a standalone experiment and more like an anchor title Meta is using to argue that headset-native 3D content, not ported cinema, is the format's real draw. For now the only fixed data point is where the cameras were pointed. Everything else, price, runtime, exact release window, waits on ILM's promised follow-up announcement. Reported from * ILM * Meta * GamesBeat How this story was made. Bolverk Games uses an AI newsroom assistant to research and draft breaking coverage. Every story is written from facts verified across at least two independent sources, which are listed above, and is published under a named Bolverk reporter who is accountable for it. Spotted an error? Tell Bolverk Games - corrections run at the top of the article. Read its AI policy.

Meta's $1,300 VR Glasses look like the Vision Pro sequel Apple should be making. Finally, someone made lightweight VR specs. Add Engadget on Google: After a few leaks, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg finally revealed the company's next-generation Meta VR Glasses at its Connect event tonight. Arriving in Spring 2027, they look like oversized sunglasses (similar to display frames from Xreal and other), paired with an external power and computing pod, like the Apple Vision Pro. The Meta VR Glasses also have onboard cameras to detect the wearer's hands for gesture-based controls. While they're not cheap at $1,300, they're a far cry from the Vision Pro's original $3,500 cost, or its current $3,700 price. And at first glance, they look exactly like how I'd imagine a true successor to the Vision Pro - a pair of unobtrusive and lightweight VR glasses at a more palatable price. Meta is pitching the VR Glasses as an all-in-one entertainment and productivity device. Just like the Vision Pro, you can watch movies on enormous virtual screens, or connect to your computer to multitask with multiple windows floating in front of you. The VR Glasses are launching together with more than 75 hand-powered games, and you can also connect a pair of Touch Plus controllers to play existing Quest VR games. The Meta VR Glasses are powered by Qualcomm's new Snapdragon Reality Elite processor, the XR2 Gen 3, and feature a 5K (2,412 by 2,288 pixels) 120Hz micro-OLED display. It relies on six external cameras for color passthrough and motion tracking, and also has four internal eye-tracking cameras. With a 70-degree horizontal field of view, the Meta VR Glasses won't fill your eyes with VR as much as the Vision Pro's 100-degree FOV, but it's significantly higher than most display glasses. Meta's wired computing puck, which looks compact enough to slip in a pocket, holds 12GB of RAM and 128GB of storage (along with a microSD card slot for more content). On their own, the Meta VR Glasses weigh 100 grams, or about 0.2 pounds. That's only a tad heavier than Xreal's One Pro AR display glasses, and significantly lighter than the Vision Pro's headset, which weighs between 1.3 to 1.7 pounds. (Part of that weight is counter-balanced by the Vision Pro's head strap, to be fair.) Meta's compute puck weighs an additional 300 grams (0.6 pounds), slightly lighter than the Vision Pro's. Judging from the product photos, you won't be able to wear the Meta VR Glasses over your own spectacles, but as usual, you can order custom prescription frames. Zuckerberg has never shied away from blatantly copying competitors, and it's pretty clear the company took plenty of inspiration from the Vision Pro for the Meta VR Glasses. Full-color pass-through lets you see the real world alongside VR experiences; the interface is entirely built around hand gestures; it's unlocked via biometric iris recognition; and you can virtually chat with friends using a digital "Hologram" recreation of yourself. It's like a checklist of the features that made the Vision Pro seem more thoughtful than a normal headset. Meta appears to be aping the Vision Pro's approach to 3D movies as well: The Meta VR Glasses will have hundreds of 3D films available to buy or rent, and you'll also find 3D content in streaming apps like Disney+ and Peacock. Given the death of 3D TVs, the Vision Pro has ultimately become one of the few ways to enjoy 3D films like Avatar in their full glory, so it's nice to see Meta offering something similar. And since the Meta VR runs Quest OS, I'm hoping this 3D content storefront eventually heads to the Quest VR headsets. Additionally, it sounds like the company is taking a cue from Apple's Immersive Video Format - Meta says National Geographic will be launching a new app next year with 180-degree 3D Video. A new "VR Enhanced Cinema" format will let you watch 3D movies with effects that bleed into your real-world space, similar to the way dynamic ambient lighting on TVs makes content more immersive. The company says Avenger's: Infinity War and Star Wars: Episode IV, A New Hope will be available in the VR format next year. (It's odd Disney didn't pick newer movies, though.) Unlike the similarly-priced $1,050 Steam Frame, the Meta VR Glasses are, at the very least, evolving the idea of what a VR headset can be. It likely won't be as immersive as the Frame and other headsets that completely envelop your field of vision, but for most people, it's probably worth losing that to have a device that's just easier to wear. You won't look like a huge weirdo slipping them on while flying, and since you wear them like glasses, there's little chance they'll mess up your hair as badly as a typical VR headset. The biggest downsides for the Meta VR Glasses are its $1,300 price - though I'm sure many VR diehards and Vision Pro fans would jump on it - and the fact they come from Meta, a company that not everyone is a huge fan of. Since these are obviously VR specs, I don't think they'd have the same privacy concerns as Meta's Ray-Ban and Display glasses, but the company has significantly poisoned the idea of wearing anything in public with cameras. Apple's new CEO John Ternus isn't giving up on the Vision Pro just yet - "It's the early days of a long journey," he said in a recent interview with Clique TV (via MacRumors). But recent layoffs and the departure of the product's lead haven't been good signs for the headset. And now there's the Meta VR Glasses, which builds on the Vision Pro's innovations to deliver something that's lighter, cheaper and more consumer-friendly.

National Geographic Traveller (UK) nominated at ANTOR 2026 Travel Media Awards. National Geographic Traveller (UK) has been nominated for Publication of the Year at the ANTOR 2026 Travel Media Awards. The Association of National Tourist Offices and Representatives (ANTOR) is the UK's principal travel organisation representing tourist boards from around the world, with a membership comprising national and regional tourist offices. This year marks a significant milestone for the association as it celebrates its 75th anniversary. The annual ANTOR Travel Media Awards recognise outstanding travel journalism and publishing, with National Geographic Traveller (UK) shortlisted in the Publication of the Year category. The nomination recognises the publication's coverage of ANTOR destinations over the past year and its role in bringing destinations, cultures and travel experiences to readers across the UK. Elsewhere on the shortlist, travel journalist Ross Clarke has been nominated for ANTOR's Travel Writer of the Year 2026, with his work for National Geographic recognised among this year's outstanding destination coverage. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony at the Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington on 22 September. The event will be hosted by ANTOR chair Manuel Butler of the Spanish Tourist Office as the organisation brings together members of the travel and media industries to celebrate this year's shortlisted work. Congratulations to the National Geographic Traveller (UK) team and everyone shortlisted, and thank you to ANTOR for the recognition. Find out more about ANTOR via the link: antor.com About APL Media APL Media is a multi-award-winning content marketing agency and publisher, creating high-quality print, digital and live media across the travel and lifestyle sectors since 1997. It has published National Geographic Traveller (UK) under licence from National Geographic Partners LLC since 2010, alongside brand extensions including guides, events and digital platforms. Its portfolio includes Living360, a digital lifestyle brand spanning wellness, travel, food, sustainability and culture. APL Media delivers custom content, branded campaigns and editorial consultancy, internship schemes including Step Up and produces leading events such as the Travel Media Awards. It is also a leading reseller of advertising for national newspapers. Its trade titles include Postcards and the ASTA Worldwide Destination Guide, with content also created for national newspapers. aplmedia.co.uk