Watch John Carmack Speak at Oculus Connect 2014

GC -"Who doesn’t love John Carmack and his speeches. He has spoken at Oculus Connect 2014 and says some interesting things about VR.

Speech starts from 2:00."

[gamerfan0909]

I like Carmack Doom, Wolfenstein, and Quake are my all time favorite games. I just don't see how VR is gonna sell. I just don't see the draw in it. It's a niche product at best and even then how many people are gonna drop 250 bucks for an accessory with little to no AAA software to back it up? How many legit AAA studios are going to build games from the ground up for VR headsets?

I wish him and the guys at Oculus a lot of luck, but I don't see any VR selling unless they're dirt cheap. 99 bucks is the highest I see a retail VR machine selling decently at and even then the software would still have to be good.

[starchild]

Have you used any version of the Oculus Rift or Morpheus HMD? If you haven't actually experienced VR then you are really just speaking out of ignorance. I don't mean offense, it's just something that has to be experienced.

In any case, I highly disagree with you. I have little doubt that once VR finally launches at the quality it needs to be at it will change the world. Hyperbolic I know, but I really believe that. It will definitely have a big impact on gaming.

[gamerfan0909]

So the average consumer is going to drop down the 250 bucks these people are ball parking right now for an accesory with little to no AAA games being built from the ground up for it? You think mainstream people are going to buy this? What's the selling point? How do I as the consumer get any gain from it that would warrant a 250 dollar purchase on TOP of a camera and a decent PC or gaming console.

Call me ignorant but before I got into real estate I worked 4 years selling these type of consumer items. I know what sells and I know what doesn't. If your main selling point of something is you have to experience it before buying it, then that's not going to sell anything.

[Pandamobile]

There's going to be a VR device on display in every Best Buy, Walmart and game store around the world within the next few years.

Do you really think Facebook is gonna pony up $2 billion to watch their investment fail to get consumers interested?

Do you really think that Sony is going to risk something like this if they're not confident in what they're making is commercially viable at a time when the company is seemingly circling the drain.

Do you really think that Google and Samsung and Apple, etc aren't all evaluating ways to capitalize on the level immersion that feeling present in a digital world will bring?

The VR content might not be there yet, but there's already tons of support on PC for third-party applications and experiences. VR on consoles might falter due to the restrictive ecosystem and underpowered hardware, but tech enthusiasts will flock to it regardless of platform. If it makes big enough waves at the beginning (which it already has in a lot of ways), consumers WILL pay attention.

The stars are nearly aligned on the decades-old dream of technologists, gamers and people everywhere. The technology required to make it works is nearly there. We have high-density screens, machines that can push high resolutions at high frame rates with no perceptible lag. We have sensors and algorithms that can determine position to within a fraction of an inch at 60+ FPS.

Virtual reality is happening whether you think it'll catch on or not. You're gonna look pretty silly in a couple years if you look back on this comment after seeing VR devices gain some marketshare and create whole industries around it.

[WeAreLegion]

Thousands and thousands of developers are creating games for it. This is not like Kinect, Move, or the Wii. This is going to be big. Very big.

I suggest trying VR if you get the chance. It's an incredible feeling. This is the next step.

[gamerfan0909]

Thousands of developers? You mean indie devs that very little will make it past selling a couple of copies on steam or any marketplace that's selling these specific games? I don't doubt the product will be good, I doubt it's going to be big whatsoever. I've yet to see the selling point in VR. Right now it's a very expensive accessory that they're trying to pass off as a gaming device. Fact of the matter is you need a OR or Morpheus, a camera, a decent PC or PS4, and games for this thing to work. That's potentially 400 dollars at a minimum and upwards of 800 bucks at a maximum. This is a niche product.

[Mr Tretton]

VR is a huge part of the future of our species for many reasons. It's going to be huge. At first it will just do pretty good, but eventually, any home with a basic income will have one just like they have a TV or a computing device.

[AgentSmithPS4]

It doesn't need to be 'cheap' to do well, it just needs to be done right and advertised properly and people will gladly throw money at it. People preorder disappointing games for $60 all the time so '$200+' for a bundle and a proven headset (with a game and demos probably thrown in) is nothing. Some people might have to wait for 'xmas' or whatever but once they try it most will want it.

Allegedly Carmack is a genius so unless he's gone senile or corrupt why do you think he's involved with VR?

They say Sony has all these 1st, 2nd, etc parties so of course there'll be games for it, not including the indies which will make the lazier AAA folks look bad for not supporting it sooner. They better give me a VR game soon so I can chop things up with swords.

[Agent_hitman]

What I like so far about his work and collaboration is Samsung+Oculus Gear VR. I like it a lot.

[ibrake4naps]

These will be awesome to watch my 3d blurays on as well! :-D

[KakashiHotake]

Just listening to Carmack discuss the hurdles and difficulties they're having working with Samsung and mobile technology leads me to believe that Sony's not as far behind in the race for VR as some people think. There is a clear benefit to working with dedicated hardware and while it may not be as powerful as PC, the unchanging nature of consoles should make it easier to do VR than say a Samsung Galaxy. The PS4 is powerful enough for an enjoyable experience, and they already have motion trackers in PS Move. So many of the hurdles Oculus is dealing with Sony already has their solution.

[DARK_SOLDIER101]

JC should help id to bring Oculus VR to DOOM 4

[Codey47]

Just no...watching Carmack speak brings on narcolepsy within my person.

I have a lot of respect for the guy...but he's not the number one guy I'd pick for a best man speech.

@Starchild
He's only interesting.... if you happen to masturbate to binary code. Unfortunately I don't.

He's just not that charismatic... I can get technical, tis not the point
I'd rather listen to Stephen Hawking sing Tragedy by the Bee Gee's.

[starchild]

Really? I find him to be one of the most fascinating speakers to watch and listen to. Maybe the concepts and technical lingo go over your head and so it's like listening to garbled nonsense to you?

[cyhm3112]

I doubt many people would want to wear that thing for a long period of time after the first few times when it is still fun. Just like kinect.

[Pandamobile]

How is the Oculus Rift at all comparable to the Kinect...?