Oculus Rift co-founder and lead developer Andrew Reisse has been tragically killedĀ in Santa Ana after being hit by a car involved in a police chase on Thursday evening.
Reisse was struck down at a pedestrian crossing as the police chased three gang members in what has been described as a high-speed pursuit. The speeding car passed through red lights when Reisse was struck down.
The gang members were all on probation with oustanding warrants for their arrest.
Oculus released the following statement after the news was made public:
Andrew was a brilliant computer graphics engineer, an avid photographer and hiker who loved nature, a true loyal friend, and a founding member of our close-knit Oculus family.
Some of us have known Andrew since college, and have worked with him at multiple companies beginning with Scaleform in Maryland which he helped start at age 19, then at Gaikai in Aliso Viejo which brought him out to California, and finally at Oculus where he was a co-founder and lead engineer.
Andrew’s contributions span far and wide in the video game industry. His code is embedded in thousands of games played by millions of people around the world.
Words can not express how sorely he will be missed or how deeply our sympathy runs for his family
Andrew will always be in our thoughts and will never be forgotten. We love you Reisse.
ABC News coveredĀ the events and the report states that one of the three gang members was named as a Victor Sanchez. The District Attorney will likely press for a murder charge according to the report.
A truly horrific and tragic piece of news and the passing of Reisse is a real loss to the videogame industry and Oculus VR.
