VR FAILING Already?

I recently went into a Microsoft store and tested the Vive. It was amazing. I really hope these things pick up traction. It is seriously way cool and needs to happen.

Honestly this is about what I was expecting with VR especially the current designs of the Vive and Rift.

Right now the Vive as the current advantage with it's bundled controllers, but so far most proof of concept games are just POV stand in one place games. Obviously the sensors can track your general position as you move in the invisible square it generates to allow for 360 degrees of pivot, but that still only accounts for the X and Y. Unless the trackpads can also function like joysticks similar to the steam controller you have a very limited about of range of genres to develop with.

And then there's the Rift and it's lack of release of controllers at launch which creates a split in the market for both consumers and developers. So developers are left in a bind. A: Make a game that doesn't use motion controllers so it can be used for both set-ups, or B. Make a game for one set-up and then possibly release a compatible version later for the other.

Back to games, as I said before most are simply proof of concept games that keep your character fixed in a small area. Extra controllers are handled by the Vive controllers to allow for interaction. The Rift dev kits, controls were usually handled by a mouse and keyboard, or gamepad with the headset just allowing for freedom of looking around, but otherwise the game didn't NEED the VR. Other games that do allow some kind for 3D movement are rail shooters, or other games that still keep your character fixed in one location. Even Hover Junkers a game a lot of people cite as what will be amazing about VR, keeps you on a floating platform and you aim away from your vehicle to steer and control.

I've yet to see any kind of demo where you have direct control over your character's legs. I would this to simply be a case of early development issues. But the fact that nearly every proof of concept demo or full game is just a "simulator" doesn't bode well to me. What about high adventure like Skyrim? Or a tactical FPS like Rainbow Six? Without controls to dictate how you move these games feel impossible.

Now there is a slight silver lining in all this and that is the Playstation VR. It's just a headset, but developers can assume a consumer will either have a Dualshock 4 or Move controllers, which can have access to the Navi controller for directional movement. So games can branch out quicker into other genres that require self-directed movement. This can then lead to development for the Rift and Vive to include similar games as well. And eventually newer versions to include motion controllers like the Move.

So what's the bottom line of all this? At least from my perspective? I'm excited to try and play around with the current VR stuff, but I'm not interested in buying it since the type of games being made currently is a very small genre. The same can probably be said for a lot of people who don't want to just stand in place flailing their arms around. We're going in the right direction in terms of tech, and I hope developers get more creative with the tools they have.

I think it's a little too early to get sceptical with the potential of VR. This is a real first new technology release here as it is an affordable home VR experience. This also means there will be limitations like the amount of games and availability via hardware to sell and ditto hardware to run it. They estimate too much into the one year goal line, it would be more reflective if this was another launch of VR as opposed to the initial launch. To expect such large sales at this early stage seems more like business marketing for investors and stockholders as opposed to actually realistic expectations.

It could sell really well and prove the VR market viability, but for a lot of reasons it's also a large cost driven sale. The market isn't built on buying just a VR headset and so the initial market will not be that large. The key time I think is within the first two years for selling a lot more people on to VR and that they require it in their lives. Then that kind of sales figures will be a realistic goals to achieve from within a one year span.

1st gen Tech is always going to be less than stellar. It's like Ryan said though, the early adopters are the ones that provide the companies the ability to keep pushing forward. It's why I don't regret having the Palm Pre or Pre II. The company and phone may have gone under (bought by LG for their smart TV's), but the OS (webOS) design philosophies can be seen in Android.

It's also why I just bought the Bragi Dash wireless earbuds. Yea, there are cheaper ones that just have a longer battery life and better outdoor BT performance. The Dash has fitness tracking, earbone mic, touch controls, and unlike others, use no wires at all. It has some big downsides (3hr battery life, earbone mic is okay at best, and fitness tracking is just heart rate/steps). I followed the kickstarter and I believe that going forward, they'll be the ones to lead the wireless earbud market.

Point is that VR is also in that early stages. It won't have a good baseline for a couple years. Still it's not how well you do out of the gate, it's how you push through the tough times. If you like trying new tech and don't get real angry and less-than-perfect products, then buy it if you can afford it.

If the Devs for both VR and game makers see the market is going to be a somewhat sluggish start (regardless if it seems ok now or not) long term it is going to work out IF they keep up with updates and GOOD games to play that are not "gimmicky". cough **Job Simulator** cough

In the end, keep supplying good longer lasting games that you can keep coming back too such as Ace Combat and keep the hardware up to date then VR will be fine.

Jinx and ryan are a great combo for the know.

For first year adoption, I will be very impressed if it exceeds 50% 8th gen's first year sales. I'd expect the numbers to be more in line with 7th or 6th gen sales since it is such a new technology and that will take time to spread out to the masses. But that's not the same as failing - a 7th gen sales progression would be incredible for most VR manufacturers.

I'll honestly be shocked if we're still talking about VR in any big way at all two years post-launch.

Anybody remember the Virtual Boy?

No?

Yeah, that's about what I expected.

Also, does anybody else feel like Oculus Rift should've just come out and said what everybody knows is the real truth?

"We don't know how to count."

I mean, "Unexpected component shortages" when trying to fulfill all the pre-orders?! Yeesh.

That evenstar looks good on Ashley

It's amazing to me these corporate ding dongs have been in business this long being so completely out of touch with everything. How do you sell tech? You let people try it before they buy! Put one at GameStops in major cities and let regular Joe experience it. Why is 3DS so successful? Cause you can walk into just about any GameStop or Wal-mart and try one out. Al the time 3D televisions were basically forced down our throats I don't know anyone who has one and I can't say I've ever seen one being used. We need some fresh blood in the sales industry.

I don't want something strapped on my face. Ironically, to many folks that would make me a real fuck face. Face fuck full stop.