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It's a fad, but I think most companies are well aware of this.

For them, it's an excuse to sell a proprietary bit of hardware and to differentiate their offering from their competitors. It's pretty much what Nintendo have done since the Wii - they couldn't compete on power, so they used gimmicks to differentiate their games from their competitors. They lose out on the mainstream market and numerous third-party games, but they deliver enough quality to sustain a console throughout its lifetime, even if you only buy Nintendo games.

Some fads stick around. Nintendo created the rumble pak, and now all controllers rumble. Some don't, like VR and motion sensing. What matters is that they sell.

With VR you are seeing a new form of entertainment in its very early stages. It's not fad. The right games have not come out for it yet.

I've been playing video games consoles since the creation of Coleco Pong in 1977. In the late 70s and throughout the 80s critics were saying the same things about video games that you are saying about VR. The thing is that back then the video gaming culture was still very young.

VR game developers are just starting to find their way. They are learning how to create games that are good for the platform. I feel that Sony is leading the way with Playstation VR, which is the first affordable VR gaming system with head tracking and really quality game titles.

I own almost all of the Playstation VR titles, and there are some that are almost unplayable due to the limitations of the human body and mind in handling the effects that come from poorly conceived titles. Actually, I feel like games like Skyrim VR and Resident Evil 7, while amazing in presentation are ultimately unplayable for several different reasons.

That being said, there are standouts that are amazing to experience but have had little press. Games like Sony's Wipeout Omega Collection and Rez: Infinite will be considered classic VR games that really set the bar for the VR experiences that will come in the future. And the soon to be released VR title Tetris Effect will be the one game that brings VR into the mainstream. That game is due out in a couple of months.

I really think VR is here to stay.

VR hardware has plenty of room for improvement today, and the fact that it hasn't caught on in past years doesn't feel to me to be a helpful indicator, because the immersiveness of VR is highly dependent on the quality of the hardware.

But one could say the same for mobile gaming. Once computers were advanced enough to fit on an iPhone, mobile gaming blew up far, far bigger than what the GameBoy was ever able to capture. Your assertion that "[VR] never actually improved playing performance" doesn't make much sense to me. VR doesn't have to succeed by performing well as yet another gaming platform -- I bought Skyrim VR and have played no more than 20 minutes of it (though to be fair, I've only played a few hours of the plain Skyrim before getting bored). VR opens up new potential for gameplay that developers are only beginning to take advantage.

I've owned a PSVR and while I have logged more hours on traditional PS4 gaming, it's only because there are far more and better developed games on it compared to VR. But even with the VR hardware's limitations, and the inconvenience of having to put on the helmet, I've still had plenty of fun experiences with VR that can't be emulated on non-VR. The best game of all that I've played so far is ironically, the free-to-play Rec Room.

I think we haven't started to graze the surface of what VR games could be. We need game developers to be more creative and explorative.

Agreed. Once the cost comes down the technology will become more readily available. Gaming is a massive industry but there are other applications outside of gaming.

And don't forget the chicken-egg problem. People see it as a fad because the majority of games are smaller 'tech-demo' types, but of course very few companies will invest much money in something available to only 5% of the gaming market.

Resident Evil 7 is the exception, and my God is it an amazing experience.

I think at least in Europe the Switch will be much bigger than VR just because of the space requirement.

Here you are lucky if you have a large flat let alone a whole room to use for VR and this is even more true in the younger groups (say less than 30 years old) that might typically buy the new high-tech gadget.

For example, many Millenials are sharing flats and if your roommate wants to watch TV you can just pick up your Switch and go play somewhere else. How many people will have the space required for VR?

Justin Kan may be partially responsible for this ;)

The rise of Twitch has shifted the participatory culture around gaming. I look at the community building around Nintendo's Super Smash Brothers Ultimate for the Switch. A game that doesn't even come out until November mind you. And I see an industry that is designing LAN party style experiences into gameplay from the get go. Obviously much trickier to do in VR.

Games, and star players, even have their own fandoms, just like popstars. There are cosplayers. Memes. Entire startups built around the transmission of short-form video "headshots" from live replays.

For VR, an intrinsically solitary experience. It feels like swimming against the tide. Some colleagues of mine started an actual bricks-and-mortar style VR Arcade at a large suburban mall. They even have the full sensory deprivation pods for total immersion. And while they get quite a lot of foot traffic from curious spectacle seekers willing to experience the shock of the new. Its a completely different customer base than the old school PC cafes of yore. Where teenagers would rent a tower and 24" CRT monitor for hours to play Counter-Strike or Starcraft.

One interesting historic event for VR coming up on the horizon is the debut at SIGGRAPH of Disney Animation's first foray into the medium.

Disney Animation’s First VR Film, ‘Cycles,’ Set to Premiere

https://variety.com/2018/digital/news/disney-first-vr-film-c...

>We tend to forget, hardcore gamers makeup a large audience of the whole industry.

This isn't really the case. Especially if you talk about pure revenue.

Hardcore gamers love overestimating their relevance.

You talk about keyboard and mouse. That's an even smaller segment compared to mobile. Or even console.

Motion contrails have stuck around in mobile, for example steering cars.

And there's are room scale VR experiences like that Starwars one.

https://www.thevoid.com/dimensions/starwars/secretsoftheempi...

There's even Mario kart VR:

https://www.theverge.com/2017/10/17/16487714/mario-kart-vr-a...

My theory is that its for the same reason 3d TV's never took hold. They don't want to sink their own money into equipment but they might go see a 3d movie or play a VR like game in an arcade.

It feels gimmicky. It feels weird to put on something covering your eyes when you just want to sit and relax. We don't need that much immersion to get a feel for whatever fictional escape it is (3d movie, VR game).

There may be commercial applications for it though.

I've had a PSVR since release.

I don't use it all the time. It takes extra effort and energy to set up and 'get into' a VR game that sometimes I just don't want to expend. And it's a very singular experience.

HOWEVER, without a doubt it has provided some of the most amazing experiences I've ever had in gaming. Get your VR legs and play through Resident Evil 7 and Skyrim VR and tell me that it's just a gimmick. No way.

A day later, now that this thread is dead, I'll add this point: It's natural that society would reject VR because they are not ready for it yet mentally and physically.

Daily use of VR causes a change in awareness. Scientists and doctors just haven't figured this out yet.

I agree. All of the VR gaming experiences I've had have been very unimpressive, and really just a gimmick (although a cool one I will admit)

Suggesting that VR Gaming is only a fad is like saying Mobile devices will not impact gaming back in 2007. Of course, people will still do traditional gaming with a mouse and keyboard and there's nothing wrong with that. But Mobile opened up a whole new arena for gaming and so will Virtual Reality and Mixed Reality.

We are entering the next wave of the Digital Revolution which will be based on presence and agency. Gaming will be profoundly transformed - as will everything else that we currently do online. Don't look at the technology where it is now - what you see in Oculus and HTC is nothing like what we will have in a decade. VR will be transformative.

VR Gaming is a fad