Let’s talk about VR for a second. If you were to listen to some of the bigwigs making VR headsets or those who are going all in on some of its software, you’d swear that VR is the next big thing that’ll sweep over gamers and take us to another level in terms of what games can do. Given the popularity of the PS VR and other comparable headsets, more and more people are interested in trying the tech out. While more people might take the dive in the future, right now the VR stage is still pretty niche. There are only a handful of people making the hardware, and the software in terms of video games is still pretty light. However, it’s clear that Sony has plans to change this with the PS VR 2.
The headset is scheduled to head to the market in 2023, and during a recent event, PlayStation Head of Independent Developer Initiative Shuhei Yoshida noted that he personally felt that not only would there be more games on the PS VR 2, but there will be plenty more from the indie market.
“There are big games like Horizon: Call of the Mountain and Resident Evil Village and yes, they’re amazing, but it’s the indies, in my mind, that really take the risk because they want to make games on VR.”
He went on to note that he really does feel like indie devs are waiting on a boom in the VR market, even name-dropping the creator of Rez, who noted earlier in the year that he would indeed love to work on the new VR headset that Sony is making. So that indeed may show some hope for the future.
The catch is that even with all of this progress, Yoshida himself is still willing to admit that the market for VR headsets and their software is still niche. He states that Meta is helping fix this in part, but when you compare the sales of the things like the PS VR to things like the PS4, it’s not even a comparison.
For those who don’t know the numbers, the PS4 sold well over 100 million units and continues to sell. The original PS VR has sold about 5 million units. A good number, but not exactly enough to call it a full-on revolution in the gaming market.
So what could fix this? Well, more people would have to be willing to get a VR headset, and many have reservations or restrictions that would limit such a purchase. Plus, the games available on the VR aren’t always the most in-depth, or are more limited in terms of genre.
Perhaps with the PS VR 2, the company be able to change the perception around VR gaming. We’ll just have to wait and see.
Source: VGC
