170°

Virtual Reality For Gaming is Going to be a Fad - Michael Pachter

"Managing Director of Equity Research at Wedbush Securities Michael Pachter is a man of many opinions, many based in analytic reasoning but controversial for some all the same."

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gamingbolt.com
THC CELL3672d ago

Mp should retire looking a little old for gaming

gameseveryday3672d ago

I know am probably going to receive a few disagrees but I have to agree with him on this one. I don't think there is enough ground work for VR at the moment. May be after 5 years but definitely not now.

PCGamingNoobs3672d ago (Edited 3672d ago )

have you tried it?

*EDIT* apparently people disagree with me asking a simple question out of interest... i asked as he stated he doesn't think there is enough ground work for VR at the moment. i was simply wondering if his opinion was from experience or blind opinion.

Baka-akaB3672d ago (Edited 3672d ago )

I'm not yet a fan of any kind of VR , but the simple facts so many people funded so "easily" something like the Rift , and made it noticeable enough to be immediately purchased by a bigger company tell a different story imo .

Some people just keep having unrealistic expectations . No one said anything yet about it being such a mainstream success it would be the new king in gaming world . It's just there to fulfill a demand for a particuliar audience .

We heard the same crap about 3d , and people still act as if it disappeared , when it's the opposite . It's now such a default feature in a few modern devices , that's there is no need to pretend it's hype . It's silently there and still growing , so who cares about the rest and making headlines ?

stuna13672d ago

As much as I wasn't for the whole Oculus buyout hoopla, upon futher thought, I can't help but think that Facebook is perhaps the greatest boon for Virtual Reality! Simply put, a full scale marketing blitz through a social media venue such as Facebook could definitely help with market penetration.

darx3672d ago

As long as you have to wear those douchey head sets I will be taking a pass.

FriedGoat3672d ago

I think he is right if he is talking about occulous rift alone. The problem with Occulous is that the mainstream don't like fiddling with crap to get it working. Installing drivers and tweaking secondary applications to get Occulous running correctly is going to be too much for the people who make the big sales.

Morpheus on the other hand is a different story, if it's plug and play etc it will be alot more accessible for the casuals etc = big sales.

AceBlazer133672d ago

I think it'll be nothing more than a stepping stone toward full game integration SAO style just like Motion Control and 3D. Only difference is this step is gonna be enjoyable, unlike the other 2.

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caseh3672d ago

To be honest, if you listen to his reasoning as to why it's a fad it sounds about right:

- physically demanding
- niche approach, wider application beyond gaming
- hard to develop for
- high price tag

Can anyone say 'Kinect'...

Mr Pumblechook3672d ago

Pachter is always against any Sony product. I remember around E3 last year he was talking about how he was 'blown away' by Kinect on Xbone! I find him entertaining but bias and often wrong. He knows how to read current video game company financial stats well but he doesnt know what will be big in the future and doesn't really know games.

AgentSmithPS43672d ago

None are so blind as those who will not see. You can't help but think "What's wrong with these people?"

When we finally get VR all these strange anti-future rants will become an old joke.

Boody-Bandit3672d ago

"MP should retire looking a little old for gaming"

You're never too old for gamming. I plan to still be gaming until I drop.

Funantic13672d ago

Patcher is right this time. People are in denial if they disagree. Not many developers are going to create games dedicated to virtual headsets. The headsets are not ideal if you want to play with multiple people. Forget co-op. Big screens are always going to be more preferred. I wouldn't want to share headsets either and get someone else acne oil and bacteria on my face. And all people can't use the virtual headsets because it causes motion sickness. I wouldn't be surprised if the headsets caused more cases of epileptic seizures from the direct light flashing. Can you say fad?

Ogygian3672d ago

Really? Splitscreen co-op is dead anyway, and with a Rift/Morpheus, people can just bring their headsets over for offline play (no screen-watching for FPS fans). Also, you're probably willing to share controllers, and I assure you that someone's face is generally cleaner than the part of their body they wipe their ass with (you can never be sure people wash their hands well enough); not to mention the perpetual issue of greasy controllers from the hands of "crisp-eaters". I doubt a Rift would be hard to clean anyway.

As for the epilepsy, only 0.97% people have it, which isn't a huge market loss (and I'm sure the problems will go away as the tech gets better).

And Sony will be creating a few exclusives, as we'd expect, as will Oculus (twice the support of Kinect). And then, consider that unlike the Kinect, VR has a PC-focused product (the Rift), which already has considerable indie support. If you look at the power of indie games on the PC, you'll see how big a deal that is (oh, and EA seem to be excited about VR too).

Once many PC indie games come with VR (and PC gamers will mostly adopt it, given a Rift will cost about half to three quarters the price of a good GPU), we'll see these flooding through to PS4, and consequently increasing the attractiveness of the Morpheus.

And once two of the three major hardcore gaming platforms have a strong VR integration, we can expect Microsoft to follow suit.

This has way too much financial and community backing to be "just a fad". Pachter is wrong.

DigitalRaptor3671d ago

"Not many developers are going to create games dedicated to virtual headsets."

You're not basing this on anything. It still depends on how much market penetration and attention it gets, but with Facebook and Sony now backing the technology, your assessment is a bit weak.
-------

"The headsets are not ideal if you want to play with multiple people. Forget co-op. Big screens are always going to be more preferred"

Incorrect. http://www.techradar.com/ne...

See this is where research gets you. from the article:
"There's an HDMI output and USB port, which gives wearers the ability to mirror what they're seeing to a TV screen and opens the door to multiplayer with people who don't have a headset of their own. "
--------

"I wouldn't want to share headsets either and get someone else acne oil and bacteria on my face."

Ever kissed a girl? More bacteria in someone's mouth than on their face, you can be sure of that.
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"And all people can't use the virtual headsets because it causes motion sickness"

And all people can't ride in vehicles cause they get travel sickness. I'm sure that's caused issues to the automotive industry.
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"I wouldn't be surprised if the headsets caused more cases of epileptic seizures from the direct light flashing."

You only get epileptic seizures if you have epilepsy, genius.
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"Can you say fad?"

You, Pachter and the Xbox fanboys can. Meanwhile, I'll be reaping the benefits of increased immersion, which is where the gaming industry has always been moving towards. There's no better solution for increased engagement in games than VR.

Muzikguy3672d ago

I have to admit, I'm not sold on the VR idea. I usually don't agree with Pachter at ALL, but this time I do. All his reasons do make sense. I also think that as soon as VR is out and games are released that people were cry "been there done that" with following games. Games will have to always be original and always be different or they won't sell. PF course, this is just my opinion. Of course originality and being different is good, but how many different times can you do it? I hope to see some interesting VR games though that's for sure!!

Ogygian3672d ago

True, but going back to gaming on a flat screen will be like returning to black and white TV.

Indeed, the novelty value will wear off, but it will then just become standard, as colour TV is today (once, colour TV was seen as a fad, but after an initial novelty period, it just became the norm).

Muzikguy3672d ago

I understand all that. I can see where going back to black and white after having color doesn't work just like going back to "subHD" after experiencing HD is hard to do. I don't like anything that isn't HD or in color myself, I just believe this VR thing falls into a different category. It will sell I'm sure, but I do believe it's a fad for all the reasons stated including my own

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3672d ago Replies(1)
S2Killinit3672d ago

If it was MS exclusive, it wouldnt be a fad.

Baka-akaB3672d ago

is there anything that wasnt a fad for Pachter ?

Ares84HU3672d ago

I never agree with this guy but I think he is right this time. People didn't like 3D because they had to wear glasses. Now imagine this big bulky thing on your head.

3672d ago Replies(1)
Dfooster3672d ago (Edited 3672d ago )

To be fair cinema will always cater to a broader demographic than gaming. Trying to convince old people to adapt to wearing 3D glasses is a harder sell than saying to anyone who's ever played a first person shooter, "here's a devise that puts you inside the game for only £250".

I think Sony studios have to release maybe three or four killer Morpheus only titles to move this into mainstream territory and they have to be ready to go as soon as this thing goes on sale. If they bring out a shit your pants horror game, a shooter or role player like skyrim and maybe a space sim and racing game like GT7 (Morpheus edition) and really encourage third party studios to develop for it I can see it doing quite well.

If it follows the move and kinect formula of lazy development then it will fail, but I think the technology is way cooler than the above mentioned peripherals and developers brain storming sessions will be overloading with great ways to use VR.

joeorc3672d ago

@Dfooster

100% agreement, before this even went public key note speakers hat at siggraph for the past decade talked about VR being able to increase the depth of interactive graphics media not like it has been in the past but Now with the technology being enough to really make a go at it, why do you think Move work by design with the ps3 the way Dr marks talked in his key note demo back in 2000 about this kind of interactive optical isage for in depth motion gaming to not see move+VR = one of the most praticle grounded designs, not just for proof of concept but to really show a true ready or close for market release of such interactive computer entertainment with a low wnough price point to make it feasable add in move an you have a real close active feeling for a VR simulator that 25 years ago would cost way more with less accurate results to boot.

Oculus rift like project morpheus just shows that even if VR concepts are nothing new they can infact be completely improved in and maybe at a consumer friendly price point..wink

jhoward5853672d ago (Edited 3672d ago )

@Ares84HU

I don't agree because any wearable device will feel uncomfortable at first, but you eventually get use to it after a while.

I remember when I first put a Bluetooth ear piece in my ear. It felt uncomfortable at first. but I got use it didn't hurt anymore ,and now I wear it all the time with out any discomfort.

EDIT:
Don't let the size of the oculus fool you...there not much component inside the VR casing. So it won't be heavy.

Ares84HU3672d ago

You can disagree all you want but any time I talked to anyone who didn't like 3D, one of their points was always that they have to wear glasses. This fact is conviniently forgotten now. I also find this very funny and laughable. When VR gaming will take off, you will recognize people who use it by their huge neck muscles. Hahahahaha

jhoward5853672d ago

@Ares84HU

I'm not going to get too technical. But VR are not the same as wearing 3d glasses at the movies.

Our eyes are very depended on light to see. 3d Glasses block some of the light and most viewers won't experience the movie to the fullest.

In VR world the screen are directly in front of your eyes, with out any lost of light. The gray tint from 3d glasses alone are annoying.

user56695103672d ago (Edited 3672d ago )

what he says still stand tho. its going to be a lot of people that are going to get turned off by wearing these no matter what the experiences is. people seem to think all games are like them, especially since you posting on a gaming website mean your more of a hardcore gamer than most. most people dont want to wear extra thing to get a better experience. buying extra hardware for over $250 to experience it is going to be another tough sell.

i wonder if sony didnt announce their vr how many people would be saying the same thing. people started hopping on the vr bandwagon when the sony vr rumors started coming out. now everyone for it and half the site has tested it(funny seeing how console only gamers say they dont know any pc gamers). pc gamers had to defended ORift on every article before.

jhoward5853672d ago (Edited 3672d ago )

@Consoleslateagain

First of all,I believe Sony got in to the VR business because the oculus was doing well. Plus, I'm pretty sure Sony did some research on how people felt about the oculus.
And, Those who've already brought/tried the oculus dev kit say it's good. Young and old.

That alone is enough of a reason to say there a market for VR.
But on the flip side, People reject things they don't fully understand. now Don't get me wrong, I'm Not saying people don't understand VR technology. I'm saying people don't fully know what VR experiences brings to the table. So, its practically normal that people reject VR if they haven't tried before. The same thing happened with the internet/computers when it was first introduced back in the 80's.

I think VR will excel faster than the internet because there no other know technology that I know can give us the experience as close to the real thing. I would never get a chance to walk on the moon simply because to too expensive or too dangerous. It cost apox 10 thousand dollar a pound to left man in to orbit.

So I turn to VR and I'm sure there many people out there who wants to experience walking on the moon like I do.

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70°

Xbox's Handling Of Hellblade 2 Is Casting A Huge Doubt Over Future Of Ninja Theory

Xbox's handling of the marketing for Senua's Saga: Hellblade 2 is casting a huge doubt over the future of its developer, Ninja Theory.

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twistedvoxel.com
anast28m ago(Edited 27m ago)

They should be worried. They we told they were free to be creative to dev. a walking sim, and now Phil and the Lady are walking that back.

80°

Helldivers 2 Dev Wants It To Be Available Worldwide, Restrictions Are From PlayStation & Not Steam

The lack of worldwide availability of Arrowhead Studios' Helldivers 2 on Steam is due to restrictions from PlayStation, not Valve.

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twistedvoxel.com
thorstein23h ago

To be clear though, Steam does not restrict use of their platform in any country. So, to say that Sony delisted games in Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, and other similar regions is disingenuous. The taliban doesn't allow video games in Afghanistan.

There are many restrictions in many countries. Painting this as a false dichotomy of Sony or Valve ignores all other layers of what is going on.

Just be honest in your journalism about what countries are left out. Those countries should a) have internet access b) allow the game.

17h ago
H942m ago

There's literally almost 170 countries and mentioned 3, and Taliban banned PUBG only, do you seriously think that these countries that had games all this time, suddenly decided to ban games when Sony wanted to put PSN as a restriction

anast33m ago

Sony would be stupid to let valve run the show. They would be bad at business if they did that.

100°

Why Xbox believes it must cut costs and close studios

Companies, particularly public companies like Microsoft, need to grow.

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eurogamer.net
gold_drake4h ago

i mean its pretty simple, they spent close to 30 billion in acquiring activision, they thought they'd make it bk no problem, and that didnt happen.

its just shit that because of MS's miscalculation alot of people lost their jobs.

Jingsing30m ago

This is exactly what many people said would happen including the CMA and FTC. Lies lies and more lies and they allowed a $69 billion buy out to happen.

gold_drake22m ago

oh yeh it was 70 billion. that was my bad haha even worse.

thesoftware73020m ago(Edited 15m ago)

gold,

You can't be serious, right?

Do you think that MS thought they would make 80bill in a year & Half? They haven't even released titles under MS yet, lol.

But in fact, that A/B revenue is already paying off, look at the last earnings call. That $80 billion is long-term money, my guy, no sane person/company would think they would make that back in any short-term situation, it's a long-term investment.

Let's play silly then. If MS's reason for laying off staff and closing studios was due(which it really was not) to the A/B deal, tell me what Sony's reason was for past studio closures, the recent 900-person layoffs, closing Sony London, shutting down Dreams, and closing Japan Studio? Zipper? Psygnosis? cuts at all their internal studios.

Keep in mind, you are claiming MS's reason is because of the A/B deal; please explain Sony's reason.

Hofstaderman11m ago

You actually still defending them? Sheesh.....

gold_drake9m ago

this is not a sony vs MS debate. dont make it something it isnt.

and of course not, but im pretty sure they thought they'd make more money after the deal. they didnt, and closed off some studios.

its pretty insane to think there is any other reason for the closure of studios in this case.

romulus232m ago(Edited 2m ago)

(It really was) due to the Activision Blizzard deal and the loss of physical sales due to gamepass. You keep bringing up Sony in all your posts about this, stop deflecting and trying to change the topic, this is about MS and what they are doing.

anast31m ago

They are going to use AI for a large portion of the game development process. Upper management need bonuses and the shareholders need more money. So, people will lose their jobs.

Skuletor21m ago

Maybe they were already using AI to make business decisions, which would explain why they closed Hi-Fi Rush's studio, then said they need more games like Hi-Fi Rush not long after that announcement.