Xbox Co-Creator Calls VR 'Disappointing' As Sony Slashes Price Of PSVR2

VR won't be relevant until we have the Holodeck with a Playboy Mansion app.

I have friends using the PC version, headaches and motion sickness seem to be a common theme.

It might be that VR always will be niche due to cost, a bit more effort when playing compared to just sitting relaxed in the sofa/chair, motion sickness etc but imo its a shame as some of the best experiences in gaming have been VR games for me. So from a business standpoint I understand them. But Halo, Forza etc would be awesome in VR.

A man can dream 🙂

@johnK such cases are not that often and it depends on how often do you use the VR overall. After buying PS VR2 I've never had any signs of sickness / headache / etc., even after playing it for hours. At the same time my wife has always had a weak and sensitive vestibular system, it was rather difficult for her to start using VR. But after a week or so she adapted and now has no signs of any problems even during long gaming sessions. It is a very fun and different experience with another level of immersion compared to flat gaming, but I can not disagree that you won't be playing VR titles only straight one after another or use it daily for a long time — VR games are way behind AAA games in may aspects and this won't change until VR goes into real masses.

For me the tech is brilliant and utterly transformative in the appropriate game.

I wish PSVR2 had Half Life on it but otherwise the £300 i spent on it has been a joy.

However, as a business decision, I totally agree that Xbox was right not to head down that route because it hasn't quite taken off and to be fair in that period Xbox weren't getting normal console games out let alone a bunch of VR ones as well.

I highly recommend playing VR if you haven't though. I dare you to play pistol whip and not be entertained!

Don’t know a single person with VR but many with consoles and PCs.
It’s a little niche market in the UK at least.

Ironic given Xbox is kinda in the same waters.

I easily use my VR more than Xbox. Especially because I have a VR treadmill and can do cardio at the same time.

Xbox isn't giving me reasons to spend on it, or even use it TBH.

@Medic_alert Pistol Whip is one of the best gaming experiences I have ever had and a great example of the pure joy VR can bring when done right. I love seeing my gamer friends play it for the first time, especially when they have no prior VR experience. It blows their minds.

I just wish I had more space in my gamer den to play proper room scale games without the fear of punching a hole in my tv.

Way too expensive for what it offers.

@GeeEssEff yeah I have to lie to my playstation for it to let me play room scale games... the sofa gets in the way!

In my experience there have only been a few legitimate good experiences with vr that were more than just a gimmick. Oddly enough a lot of those good experiences were vr versions of full games like skyrim, fallout 4, doom, resident evil. Light gun games also translate really well.

There are a few shining moments for vr over the last decade but it's rare. I think it's a combination of the tech and physical limitations, people are probably never going to want to play more than 30 to 60 minutes at a time for vr.

Yeah I think this is just one of those niche markets that serve a dedicated base, and maybe some curious newcomers, but not much past that.

@Medic_alert pistol whip is incredible, especially the Western levels, but I enjoyed it so much more on the quest 2 than psvr2. Its games like these where the cable is a right pain in the arse.

Astro bot and re7 were the killer apps for me on the psvr 1 and the psvr 2 had re8 and re4 for me too, but honestly these days my psvr 2 gets used as a pc vr head set for the most part. I feel like I got my money's worth, but it's not for everyone.

@Deljo the cable has never bothered me to be honest. It sits behind my shoulder and I never notice it once I'm in game.

VR is too restrictive, too expensive and won't be as accessible for everyone. I personally don't want to have my eyesight covered up by a screen not enabling me to see my surroundings and/or others in my environment.

Movement isn't exactly 'great' in VR and can lead to Motion Sickness or break any immersion as you don't move like the visuals you receive. VR doesn't provide the rest of the feedback you'd expect so it ends up being more like playing a game in 3D (remember the era of 3D TV's) - just strapped to your eyes instead and removing your peripheral vision and/or distractions of your room.

VR to me won't 'work' until you can get the feedback you expect to get in 'interacting' in that world. Go 'up' a step, you expect to feel that 'step'. Walking a tightrope may 'look' scary but no feedback from the rope or from your inner ear balance, feeling of 'floor' beneath your feet etc breaks the experience.

I'd be OK with watching VR experiences. For example, I'd use VR to watch a Live Concert or Sports event from the position of the best 'seat' in the stadium. I think they could make some more 'immersive' viewing experiences - especially for 'live' events. If you can't get to E3, Gamescom, World/European Cup Finals etc, being able to watch on a VR headset in '3D' from the best seat in the house would be more immersive than just the 'flatscreen' TV option...

I'm a huge fan of VR and have been since I got my PSVR1. For me there have been plenty of killer apps. Astro Bot, Until Dawn: Rush of Blood, Beat Saber, Blood and Truth, Wipeout Omega Collection, Batman: Arkham Shadow, Walking Dead Saints and Sinners 1&2, Pistol Whip, Half-Life Alyx, Behemoth, Asgard's Wrath 2.

I'm forgetting a load more but you get the drift.

Oddly, the killer apps might be on competing platforms.

Halo VR would sell great, but imagine...

Mario Kart VR. Sony's reluctance to invest in 1st person games is a small part of the problem.

That being said for that new price...I miiiiiiight be in....maybe.

I don’t know. What does ‘not really taken off” mean? There are many more VR sets sold than for example a Steamdeck, yet the Steamdeck seems to be discussed as if its a raging succes and everyone wants to go the PC handheld route.

I know PX is talking about PSVR2 here, which in that particular case might be true, that it hasn’t really taken off. But the quoted article talks about VR in general it seems to me, and while it might not be a raging succes, VR definitely has a market

It's excellent, I still use my Quest 2 through my PC. Or apps like Netflix. There is a significant selection of games on Steam. The Quest 2 wasn't particularly expensive when I bought it.

I think it is underutilised, VR would make an excellent teaching tool but isn't used very well. Fitness is great as well, but you need an expensive treadmill, and by expensive I mean overpriced, to really get use out of it.

I did get motion sickness at first but soon got used to it.

His take feels out of touch. "No killer app", maybe not in the blockbuster sense but when you look at pcvr, particularly sims, is hard not to say there's no killer app. Id go as far as to say msfs is easily the vr killer app, along with dcs, iracing, ams2, elite dangerous. There's killer apps. But it's not in the "pop culture smash hit" context. I like blackley but thinking of content on a context of narrative being the purpose and not freedom feels weirdly like a Sony mindset and not at all like a Microsoft one. Ms has the majority of vrs killer apps, or apps with killer vr potential. Msfs easily. Everything Bethesda including Indiana Jones which is amazing with a Luke Ross vr mod. Avowed is good in uevr but I'm holding off because I'm betting Luke releases the mod for that in a month or two and his is much better performance.

The irony is that if Ms wanted to push vr they're sitting on more vr selling software potential than any other publisher.

Though even 3rd person can be great. Playing Jedi Fallen Order via uevr it feels like a game made for VR.

I had PSVR1 for years and really enjoyed it with no issues whatsoever. I then bought PSVR2 on launch day, and within 30 minutes it gave me such terrible vertigo that I couldn't move for three days. I sold the damn thing a week later. Never looked back.

Total nonsense. I was a VR skeptic for years, I returned both psvr and psvr 2 after two week trials. Despite being impressed by a few of the titles I did get motion sick and didn't think the cost of entry worth it at the time. Fast forward to having owned a Quest 3 for 14 months and some of my best all time gaming experiences since the 80's have been with VR. I never get motion sick anymore (switch to snap turning makes the world of difference even if other movement locomotion is smooth). The Quest alone has a fantastic library but add in PCVR and you've got a thoroughly outstanding selection of games/experiences to choose from.

Half Life Alyx
Metro Awakening
Batman Arkham Shadow
Assassin's Creed
Asgards Wrath 1+2
Lone Echo 1+2
Red Matter 1+2
Microsoft Flight Simulator
Resident Evil 4/7/8
Walkabout Mini Golf
Moss 1+2

My personal favourites Eye of the Temple and the utterly incredible Alien Isolation VR mod speaking of which you can already play Indiana Jones in VR as well as RoboCop, Avatar and Cyberpunk among many others if you have a PC.

I haven't even mentioned legions of indie titles, puzzle games, music/virtual instrument games, educational titles...

I think Microsoft didn't take the plunge because they correctly think most people aren't aware of how far VR has come. Sony killed psvr by not getting the support it needed from both first and third party.

@LMN118 the Art and Design high school I work at utilizes VR for a range of subjects. I think it'll become more prevalent, at least in countries that fund education effectively. My dream is to learn languages with AI NPCs who respond, teach and correct in real time.

@armondo36 There is a VR mod for Halo Combat Evolved - its incredible but the cost of entry is steep if you don't have a PC or headset to begin with. Its nevertheless a worthwhile investment at this point in time in my opinion.

It's not doing great.

Agree that VR is going the way of the 3D TV. But I have both and I’m happy I do!

I would say he is way out of touch, VR has been pretty successful overall when you take into account all different headsets for PS, Quest or PC. There are also loads of killer apps for it

No Mans Sky
GT7
Half Life Alyx
Resident Evil
Walkabout Mini Golf

Even the smaller little puzzle games are massively enhanced by exploring in a proper 3d space.

It's only going to be mainstream once Nintendo can successfully do it. They failed in the 90s and I am such a big fan of them saying they don't do: AR, VR or the Metaverse because they design things around the player's experience. If it's not a good compelling experience then they won't do it. The Metaverse is a great example, I'm so happy Facebook is struggling there as they tried to do boxing apps and stuff like this. Just box with your friend at that point (light taps as you prefer ), go to a martial arts class, play ARMS or play Wii Sports. I still don't get what they're aiming at when watching video content on a high fidelity screen can give you the same content as with a fully immersive headset. I've played VR games over the years at Comic Con, watched at Gamescon and they've always been gimmicky. I'm all for it if it is a compelling trick experience that isn't super uncomfortable

@16BitHero I like the industrial applications of the light AR-ware that helps mechanics kind of troubleshoot over video calls or get instructions on fixing something. Obviously they need indepth training too but have loved exploring the concepts in the business world

@Kilamanjaro VR will also have more widespread application in the medical industry too. I think it's here to stay in various applications meaning that hopefully it'll stick around for gaming too.

Game taste is subjective but I find tons of niche games on any failed or popular platforms to play. So I never have issues. It doesn't have to be a Borderlands/Skyrim or Half Life Alyx all the time. People just don't want to look. I don't have to be a child to have an open mind, but many adults seem to not in their line of work or as customers.

Devs/players are too reality brained and not fiction/anything can be possible mentality enough in jobs/games or any media's possibilities. So we get safe story/camera angles, worlds, gameplay, tone, etc.

It took from PSP to Portal to get people to understand it. Think about that. People still may not understand it. Price was high sure PS5 & PSVR2 but I mean, Meta and downgraded games, or a PC headset and PC specs. Come on. Different audiences/money they will put forward, yet may PS5 Pro, or another smartphone after a few years besides plans.

Kinect/VR sure, medical or non gaming but it's also because devs/gamers don't have any ideas and I get frustrated as I always have some for games. I play old games because I get inspired, modern games inspire me to talk movesets/modes for them they lack because old games had their better ideas and not to copy paste old games, but new ideas because of the experimentation they have I get inspired with random ideas. If I can do it a developer can. But doesn't and we get repeating history Indie garbage. Or AAA trend following garbage.

Games or any media builds up to popular/effective it isn't magically big, they afraid of niche/building things up again nowadays are they? You can't 100% know how to engineer the perfect appealing game can you. You can try whatever worked in the past or understood enough ideas and spin them off, or something completely new but people are just too lazy to. Polls or just appealing enough with any random ideas.

People having time sure but I can have time between busy periods and still come up with random gameplay ideas for games while they make dull games. It's how I use my mind that they don't. I just like to research gameplay or developers, publishers, mechanics, I put the research effort in. They are too lazy to develop anything good enough so we see casual dumbed down games or reality focused nonsense because they can't think up even anything with magical properties enough. Lime come on you can animate or program anything, yet can't be bothered.

Seriously. It's hilarious some creative industry people that just can't be bothered and complain. Or will go that doesn't make sense, well it's better then your non-ideas coming out isn't it. If context is key and it's explained well anything is possible. It's fiction. Anything can happen. XD

If I as a collector among other collects can tell quality gameplay/worlds and more apart between games, their budget, do they actually land enough and many times yes for competition or on it's own and others can't or aren't willing to research that's on them. If devs can't come up with ideas they need to think more in the constraints they have.

Just because gamers/developers have their expectations set higher is up to them.

When you get responses like oh a cockpit works, we can't come up with any good ideas. It's a load of nonsense, they aren't creative enough to use fiction.

Part 2:
If I can think up Foamstars and foam/surfboard modes (building contest, foam clean up, surfboard races/others, chemicals/traps on maps and more) by watching the trailer it means I have a creative mind and they don't and need to do better because if a customer can think it up with a good enough game logic to apply and they put 2 done to death modes other games have done & want money. That's on them.

But I'd be classed as got my head in the clouds or I don't work for them. Well that's just stupid because I came up with something as suggestions, players want worlds not gameplay it shows in the garbage/repetitive gameplay we see and world/story push all the time I'm sick to death of, they clearly should on the job and aren't. I'm not getting paid for it yet I can swap between creative state and customer state. It's not that hard. If people can casual and professional how is it any different.

Just because most players don't come up with suggestions for games to be better. Expect them to be good and read our minds somehow. XD

VR can be anything of apps and games, make a time travel app, make experiences, but no devs complain and go waaah only a cockpit works (as if other games have proven possiblities to releplay or control this and even badly used motion controls and I can play Wii/Move games and adapt to the weird VR controls because I have a brain and like to think about what games have done structurally for gameplay. It's why I can sound like a mean harsh person but it's because I care and they aren't pushing their potential enough I know can happen they just choose not to or it's too costly and make up excuses).

No it doesn't some people just don't have the tech or creativity mentality, stuck and don't have an imagination to dream bigger, smaller, balanced ideas. Bunch of uncreative hypocrites.

But devs have no ideas, we aren't in the PS2/Xbox era where all platforms had gimmicks but still experimental game design to adapt to sticks or rumble or other things. Yet the Wii comes around and people go oh this gimmick ew get it away when the others were natural over time and going oh a d-pad/sticks oh this is different.

Chicken and egg of publishers/devs that make garbage games/are too lazy/won't spend the money to build an audience and have no fictional imagination anymore just look we recreated a city or the same generic stuff for audiences and their passion for it for 20+ years of PS3/360 it's hilarious the people that grew up, are past their teens/20s and are boring aged people with no imagination anymore.

You get the odd ones that are but most seem to be so stagnant. Publishers/execs demands is one thing but veteran devs that split off make this clear as well. Too much into their own past IPs, make the same thing different license, very few make anything new. Sure the risks but come on, your making the same thing but salty about it. What imagination/trend following/repeated passion and I'm still not going to buy their games. There is comfort, live service/other publisher game design demands, and sprinkling something else to their games.

Like come on.

I think the closest thing VR has to a killer app is Beat Saber, not Alyx. VR is less like a AAA PC and more like a Wii in what it appeals to.