Friday, January 4th 2019

2018 Was the Year of VR Headsets - Except it Wasn't, According to Steam Hardware Survey
Steam, being the most widely used games platform for the PC ecosystem, has proven weight on current hardware employed by gamers. While not wholly representative, let's just say it caters to enough of the PC gaming population that we can infer some broad strokes of the current state of the market. And for all the hailing for a newcoming of VR in 2018, it would seem that happened, with a doubling of the attachment rate for VR headsets on Steam's hardware surveys. If we're only speaking relatively, that is.
More interesting and important than the "doubling" in VR headset attachment rate to Steam's user's is the fact that this only increased said attachment rate to around 0.8% of Steam's user base. Of these 0.8%, 0.37% of Steam users who took part in the December survey carry an Oculus Rift, with HTC Vive close behind at 0.33%. The overall increase in usage for each of these headsets was 85% and 65% throughout 2018, respectively - still definitely a far cry from the kind of market penetration that was expected of this latest generation of VR. As for Windows Mixed Reality products? They make-up 0.07% of the Steam survey's results.
Sources:
Games Industry, Steam HW Survey
More interesting and important than the "doubling" in VR headset attachment rate to Steam's user's is the fact that this only increased said attachment rate to around 0.8% of Steam's user base. Of these 0.8%, 0.37% of Steam users who took part in the December survey carry an Oculus Rift, with HTC Vive close behind at 0.33%. The overall increase in usage for each of these headsets was 85% and 65% throughout 2018, respectively - still definitely a far cry from the kind of market penetration that was expected of this latest generation of VR. As for Windows Mixed Reality products? They make-up 0.07% of the Steam survey's results.
82 Comments on 2018 Was the Year of VR Headsets - Except it Wasn't, According to Steam Hardware Survey
There are some VR titles that I find exceptionally entertaining. I keep going back to Doom VFR and RoboRecall as they are my top favorite games. I just bought Star Trek Bridge Crew with the expansion late last year when it was on sale via Steam. Firewall Zero Hour (PSVR) is a blast to play. Echo Arena is fun too.
When People say there are no VR games I see that more as them saying they are unsure of what they would play in VR if they had a chance. Either that or they are easily bored with games and have a very high turnover rate so nothing will keep them entertained for very long.
There are some games I have not had a chance to play but would like to. Such as:
Lone Echo
Echo Combat
Space Junkies
Stormland
The Persistence
And more like:
SkyRim VR and Fallout VR as well as Borderlands 2 VR.
I'm unlikely to buy any titles from the Oculus store though. Exclusive titles for PC is just off putting for me which is why I prefer to buy from Steam. Reworked games for VR such as SkyRim, Fallout and Borderlands 2 are quasi acceptable but not at ~$50 USD and the like,.....especially so if I already own these "Old" titles in my Steam library. So I'll wait on those,...
I usually don't keep my Oculus Rift plugged in as it tends to get warm even when not in use. So I plug it in when I am going to use it.
Also, while I may be assuming incorrectly, one would think that the "Steam's hardware survey" is optional and one must opt in. I've never bothered with the hardware survey and I would bet many others have not either. If that is indeed the case then Steam would have no way of knowing my hardware topology.
Generally speaking I see it as skewed numbers in terms of their data gathering.
I get it, some people love to come into just about any thread with VR in the title so they can count the ways that VR has failed in their eyes and opine about how VR was dead before it even started.
But the whole couple percent of people who enjoy it can call the 98 percent that don't haters.... Must be tough being such a victim, the rest of us won't buy crap we don't like to make it cheaper and more mainstream for the few who do like it. Sucks to suck.
You see, that is just it. There are all sorts of different types of games overall. Platformers, FPS, Rol-playing games and so on. People tend to know what they like out of experiences but not always as trying something different can change your mind from time to time.
I don't really like rhythm games like Guitar Hero but who knows I might have a different outlook at some point. I'm willing to try it though.
I really like "Space Pirate Trainer" though. That is a really fun VR game.
I can't comment on any kind of experience using VR on PC, but if it's not much more than what the PS4 can offer in terms of games you can color me not impressed.
I guess I'm still waiting for the day when you can plug yourself into the VR system like you're in the matrix....or have something that functions like in the move Ready Player One. Right now, VR is still very young and has a long way to go.
I have a Vive Pro. Recently I got to try an original Vive ... hate to say it but I think it's more comfy. But, for sure text is harder to read when that happens. But I feel that the Pro wands track better in Beat Saber.
Closest thing google could find.
- Couch gaming is impossible / not very feasible
- Its more comfortable to not wear the HMD
- You are completely closed off from your surroundings
- Various requirements such as play room without obstacles
This already makes it a niche for most gaming and that makes the initial investment problematic. Its going to have to get a whole lot cheaper but it also needs even better HMDs - not a very good mix.
I have to ask, what VR games did you try?
Its incorrect to suggest that PSVR shooters are all on rails. Some are but others aren't and some have different options as to locomotion. So for example, Doom VFR has the option to move via teleportation or free-movement if not both at the same time. Doom VFR can also use the DualShock controllers or the Movie controllers as well as the Aim controller which can effect how the game is played. Borderlands 2 VR definitely has the option to use both teleportation and free-movement or both simultaneously. No Aim controller support though. The PSVR is fairly good technically but its on the entry level side with respect to a 6 degree of freedom HMD and tracking. Both the Rift and Vive as well as Vive Pro have better tracking and a higher resolution then the PSVR. I'm certainly not going to pay ~$800 USD for a Vive or ~$1000 USD for a Vive Pro but ~$350 to ~$400 for a Rift doesn't seem that bad IMO. ~$200 for the PSVR doesn't sound that bad either IMO but it depends on the individual.
VR is not for everyone anymore then platforms or FPS are for everyone. This is irrespective of how the tech may change over time or even if it will survive.
Glad you added that option though.
I mean sorry the market didn't respond. As far as I can see, they just report.
Im talking about BIG games from BIG developers with fully fleshed out campaigns and storylines, voice actors and full on animation.
However, many Steam users may not provide hardware info in the survey unless its compulsory data mining about user hardware. If its elective its hard to say if the numbers are actually accurately represented given the gathering methods.
Also there may be an overall flawed premise being implied. There are many different types of games and gaming platforms / hardware. There are also different types of gamers.
There are gamers that are PC purists and there are console gamers. There are mobile gamers and arcade gamers. And so on,.... (obviously there can be overlap).
There are people that would never consider using / buying something like a Nintendo 3DS and conversely there are people that would never consider spending ~$1000+ USD on a PC for PC gaming.
VR is a subset of the given platform of choice and as such there is no reason to expect numbers to approach or overtake the numbers of a given platform.
How many years has PC gaming been around? How many years has console gaming been around? How about mobile gaming? The PSVR, Oculus Rift and Vive are gen 1 and they are supposed to match or exceed the numbers of well established industries in a couple of years?
That may never happen and VR may be abandoned but if we don't even know what realistic expectations should look like then we probably shouldn't even be asking the question.