Oculus could be in trouble, and these are the 6 things that could potentially save them
"Nintendo Switch 2 is a safe and solid follow-up in many respects but it has its issues, including the Virtual Game Card system and an aging UI."
- Stuart Cullen, TechStomper
Windows Central writes: "CEO of Microsoft Gaming, Phil Spencer, had previously been vocally opposed to the idea of a native Xbox headset, stating in 2019 that 'nobody's asking for VR' on Xbox. However, Microsoft's marketing strategy for the Xbox Series X|S generation has shifted with the rise of Xbox Cloud Gaming and the 'This is an Xbox' marketing."
Ah, a contributing factor to Meta dropping PSVR2 support for Beat sabre! Microsoft’s always stuck with the modus operandi of “if you want an original idea steal someone else’s” and try to destroy markets they cannot win in. They are doing to to console gaming and now trying VR!
It's like a rich kid who pays the smart kid to do his homework for him.
*Yea, such a shame about Beat Saber dropping Playstation support btw. :\
Why would this deal with Xbox cause meta to end beat Saber support for the psvr2 when the game isn't even available on Xbox?
It is more likely that psvr2 is under performing and they feel it is time to end support. The psvr2 headset only sells whenever there is a sale to make it competitive with the meta headset.
The XBox way. Hardware, even game development companies.... let them do the hard work of building things, throw them some money, then slap an XBox logo on it!
This is probably nothing more than a branding attempt to show Xbox really is on all platforms. The Quest already has the Xbox Cloud app that supposedly works great. Would be cool if Microsoft actually entered the VR space in a larger capacity but if they was doing that, I imagine they'd have showcased it at their summer showcase.
Yeah, it's basically the same idea as the ROG Ally Xbox. Just a regular device that gives you access to the Xbox library and carries the brand, but nothing really special or groundbreaking beyond that. It’s not some custom Xbox hardware, just a repackage of existing tech with a logo and some software perks.
Now, when it comes to VR, Microsoft actually made a pretty serious attempt with something called Windows Mixed Reality. It wasn’t just a headset, they were aiming for an open ecosystem. They had APIs for developers, support baked into Windows, and even tools to convert regular desktop content into VR environments. On paper, it was a solid play. But it never caught on, third part support was half-baked and basically only Samsung headsets were worth anything. After about five years of trying to push it, they gave up and shelved the whole thing.
The bigger issue here is that VR just isn't ready for the mainstream. People love to hype it up, but at the end of the day, it’s a hard sell unless it’s cheap enough to feel like an impulse buy and even when you can do that, you need to support it with software. Making it a extremelly expensive segment for any company, just look at Meta, bleeding literal billions every years trying to get this stuff off the ground, and they are the market leaders.
The Nintendo Switch 2 has proved to be a success the world over, however, one nation which is particularly keen on the Nintendo’s latest platform is naturally Japan. Recent sales data has shown that…
Replies(7)
yeah nothing is gonna dethrone nintendo in japan, especially if there's a handheld involved.
Wow… Nintendo is champ in Japan, but the speed of sale is remarkable.
Proves that console gaming isn’t dead yet not by a long shot.
Replies(2)I guess the resistance against always online and digital only consoles is BS. The people have voted with their wallets.
What are you talking about? Switch 2 is neither always online nor digital only.
Nintendo can literally block your Switch 2 console from accessing their online services at any time. When that happens, it becomes a brick. You won't even be able to play those games that use game key cards that are not installed on the console. Some users who have been blocked tried factory resetting their system, and when they tried to boot it up with a new account, they are stuck.
Speaking of game key cards, the majority of third party publishers have opted to use those instead of loading their full game on those cartridges. Imagine having a library of game key card games and going on a long trip but not being able to play a particular game because you need to connect to Nintendo servers to download the game first. It is not like the old days where you just plug in and play.
Game key cards make sense for large games like GTA, Red Dead, or COD, but I don't see why publishers who have games with sizes less than 32 GB need to use that option.
If you try to mod your system it could get banned from online play like every single system since the ps3 and xbox
The Rift isn't in trouble, nor does it need to be, "saved".
It's a high quality toy, not for children or dude bro's. It by definition cannot sell 40 million copies.
Every copy it sells is a long term investment, every developer who makes games for it, is content. It's the birth of a new entertainment, one that's not going away.
The Oculus is nowhere near in trouble. Facebook owns it and could implement it all kinds of ways. It's on the PC and will be on the Scorpio. So it's the smart investment being multiplat. Smh these articles downplay anything related to Xbox.
Oculus can't do anything to "save" the Rift aside from getting the production costs down so they can lower the price and build the user base. The Rift will live or die on developer support, and if no one's buying the headset then no one's buying the games and pretty soon no one will be making games. Despite what some people like to think, right now VR is just the new techie thing, just like 3D and motion controls were in the not too distant past. There's a very good possibility it'll be basically dead within three or four years.
I hate false narratives, Oculus is doing fine shipping issues aside which have improved a lot.
My biggest complaint with the Rift was that it was originally suppose to be an open market for VR. Just last year Palmer Lucky was quoted that it would be an open system.
http://www.mcvuk.com/news/r...
Here we are less than a year later and an update cancels out Revive.
http://www.theverge.com/201...