The market is oversaturated with titles, big and small, and because of that it is sometimes nice to step back from everything for a moment and explore projects that may be unheard of and tiny in scope, but as ambitious as their larger counterparts – giving us a glimpse of what, under the right circumstances, could be. One of such projects is ARC. It is a first person shooter running on Unreal Engine 4 and built by a core team of four former Vancouver Film School (VFS) students, who under four months managed to create a title with potential. Notice the fours? Anyhow, what sets ARC apart from other similar projects is the execution and how everything comes together. Despite its short length, the project feels very professional and offers and interesting setting – a deserted living spaceship. I came across the game by chance, going online through some comments, and found it intriguing enough to try it myself. But that didn’t suffice, because I ended up wanting to know more about it and...
MonsterVine: "Consortium: The Tower is a single player first-person sim with RPG elements designed to let players decide the outcome through their choices and actions. The team caught up with Greg MacMartin, CEO and Creative Director of Interdimensional Games, or iDGi for short to talk about the recent crowdfunding efforts leading up to the current Fig campaign, its inspirations and highlighting what gamers can expect from this truly ambitious project."
WCCFtech has spoken with some developers about PlayStation VR, and they were very excited about it especially because of PS4's install base.
There will be over 40 million PS4 units sold before the PSVR release so that is a huge potential market for VR developers.
I think the estimates of 1.9 million PSVR untis sold in it's first year will be exceeded. Consider that during the Christmas holidasy alone, Sony sold 5 Million PS4 units.
With an install base of nearly 40million, it is not far fetched to consider that upto 5% of the install base will buy a PSVR; and that equates to 2million untils sold in its first year.
Chances are that Sony will make a sweet PS4/PSVR bundle deal during this year's Black Friday.
That's a super optimistic estimate in my opinion. Unless PSVR is expandable to PC, I don't think everyone will be as interested due to the constraints that await the product. That's just me though.
Who estimats 1.9 million PS VR Unit sold in 2016?
Even Oculus at it's most optimistic expects 1 million unit sold and that is on a platform that is used to paying more than a $1000 for a gaming PC. Heck they are paying at least $300 for a graphics card.
In comparison, PS4 consumers are paying $300 for a console, and is sensitive to a $50 price drop to pick up a console. How are they paying $400-500 for a VR unit that has two handful of games, and questionable future support?
On top of that, Oculus has three times the software support of PS VR, and HTC Vive.
I just don't see 1.9 million units. Heck, I question if they will reach that first million, and after that unless the prices drop rapidly and content increases significantly, sales will drop once the hype is over.
I think it might explode and have that potential, but Sony said they are planning for low sales to ensure that it's not a hit or miss launch.
They might not even produce that much but I would certainly be glad to see it. Hopefully production will be fast enough to keep up demand if it takes off that well. I've been wanting a VR experience since PS2 days and I was still in grade school. They need to add a sliding analog, like the 3DS and PSP, onto the Move controller and adjust it a little bit. I hate having to pick and chose. I was thinking to make the nub of the analog a kind of ring that wraps around your thumb so you can lift up on it for jump and push down on it for crouch or sprint. Anyways, want an Elder Scrolls kind of game with motion tracking and I hate aiming at the sides of the screen to turn my camera.
Funny how people bring up the number of games (as if it's small) and how much support VR will have based on games alone and ignore that it can also be used for movies. I want movie support too, things like Cloverfield would be pretty cool but a movie developed with VR in mind would be amazing.
I'm not about to make a first year sales estimate yet, I'd need to know a confirmed price first just to guess.
People like to draw all these conclusions based on one option... We ONLY know the price point for one of the 3 major options that are going to hit the market...
the Rift has more support for software by virtue that they were further along the process, They had dev kits and developers onboard almost 2 years before Sony announced and had a platform kit ready.
The Sony is in a position where they can play reactionary based on moves and tones set by consumer feedback on the other options out there. we already know That Occulus is expensive and priced for early adopters. The Price of PSVR could very well undercut and propel the platform to highest market penetration.
And given that Occulus is going on a 2 year refresh it will always be the one that is set for enthusist, while the PSVR will likely be the fixed machine tailored to the specs of the PS4 giving a consistent VR experience.
Lets not laugh at speculations because I honestly think the PC community will show that Put the Occulus on good footing, I'm sure they'll sell about 2 million.
And if they can pull that off then the PS4 and PSVR can do that if Sony markets it right with demo units, convincing software and gamer centric message and a reasonable price point, especially one that undercuts it's competitors.
The fact that there are 3 major players means we have a 3 way race much like the console race, One is bound to take the lead and we have no idea what that lead will look like but there is no way all will fail.
when you give an option, consumers chose and the choices create the market.
I disagree. A majority of the people who own PS4s wont know about Playstation VR. Couple that with the fact that virtual reality is currently strictly for a niche consumer, you have a lower possibility of that happening. Combine that with the possible price point of another console and you're not getting 2 million sales.
I think those are conservative estimates. I think it'll sell through its supply and exceed expectations. It'll be sold out.
ArchangelMike
i think psvr will do much much better than oculus. it will have a better price and less requirements. with oculus you need a $1200-1500 pc
Codewow
brother if vr hype is real than psvr will do just fine on ps4
donthate
you do realize that many ps4 and xbox one gamers also have a gaming pc or are pc gamers. so this argument of yours doesn't hold much value. gamers will buy if they see value
and at present time psvr will be much more successful than oculus just on price alone(now whether that means sony will make any profit on psvr hardware is a different story)
FamilyGuy
awesome name lol
i agree with you 100%. these VR's hold more value elsewhere than just gaming. Porn will be huge hit with VR
and i am sure both sony and oculus are looking into expanding the support
@dothate
You are assuming that PS4 owners choose to console game because of cost. I'm in my mid 30s I have a good job and disposable income. I console game for exclusives and convenience. The other adults I game with didn't choose PS4 because it was cheaper than a gamng PC.
showtimefolks & unwanted:
I didn't "assume", I based it on MS and Sony's target market for PS4 and XB1!
Yeah, there are some people that will have a gaming PC, or multiple consoles, but that percentage is small and irrelevant. In the case that it is not, the value proposition favors PC, because why would you pay $400-500 for PS VR when you can pay $600 Oculus Rift to get the best experience with the best software support?
Clearly you don't mind the price, because you own a thousand dollar gaming PC, and at least one console!
Die hard fans to a platform do not need to apply, because you are a minority. Short story is, because it applies to you do not mean it applies to the general public, which is the market that Sony and MS is vying for.
I stand by my comment.
And most importantly - they will work the same.
Make it work on your development PS4 and it should work on the complete installed base...
Make a PC game work on your specific setup - will it work anywhere else? CPUs have different strength, GPUs too and disks...
=> different areas will work best/worst depending on setup.
It's certainly handy that the PS4 has a large base, but will the PSVR have such a big base? Remains to be seen. I think VR will finally have it's day now, it's finally come time and tech has reached that level - price is going to be a huge point though, but it always is with new tech.
I guess the argument is if only 5% of PS4 users are interested in VR that's still 2 million potential customers.
I do agree that VR seems to be coming in at a better time.
I still think the PSVR is going to be more expensive than some people on this site are willing to admit.
I think PSVR will sell about 2million untis in its first year, but I think Sony will price it just under the launch price of the PS4. They can't afford to take too much of a loss on thw hardware, as it still has to be a profitable enterprise for the company.
2 million is a big risk though too. If you're making a VR exclusive title at a budget of a regular game, the risk of losing money is far greater because the chances are you will NOT hit all 2 million buyers of the headset. VR games are going to be very niche early on as devs start getting the hang of what people want/like.
I think there is a difference between "interest" and willing to pay $400-500 when you initially only paid $300-350 for your console.
I have an interest in Ferrari, but I'm buying a budget Toyota (and that is also why I can afford a Porsche easily).
oh absolutely Codewow. I was only throwing around numbers. I have no clue what % of PS4 owners are interested in VR vs how many would actually pay. That number will go up or down based on the final price of the unit.
Even if the unit was $300 though, I still have no clue how many people would end up buying the thing.
Yeah, me too. I personally hope it won't be anymore than $/€ 300, otherwise I believe it'll be a tough sell.
This is going to be absolutely the most important factor for them at this point. It doesn't matter how good it is or what's on offer, the market needs to be able to afford it.
Sony has already said it's going to be $400.
http://www.psu.com/News/291...
This is why they're using deceptive marketing and calling it a "platform" instead of a peripheral, like it truly is.
This is the type of misinformation that contributes to widespread acceptance of hearsay by unreliable secondary sources.
In light of your obvious anti Sony bias you so often share with the comments section, I ask that you abstain from being "that guy", especially when it deals with obvious trolling and spreading speculation from someone who, in any other case, you would probably call a hack.
I estimated weeks ago (before patchter) like many others on here, that it will be 350 to 450 tops, based off Sony comments (it will be priced like a console). We didnt need patcher to infer that, nor is Patcher in the know how, he usually doesnt have any inside source when it comes to Sony things.
Ugh, all you have to do is go "Oh well the PS4 was $400, eh it's dropped a bit and this is a HUD/external PU lets call it the same" Boom analyst.
I have to laugh... You really should read a link before you post it. Dear Patcher is like an inaccurate Mystic Meg!!
Sony is doing an outstanding job planning out this Gen with the PS4/PSVR/PSN.
I honestly think it is too soon for PS VR. I think one more year, and drop the price to at least $300 will be a much better, but even then it is questionable as the unit will cost as much as the console.
Once the VR device drops and flops, you aren't going to turn that ship around. You got one chance....
Certainly, it should. Sony needs to remember that having an install base is great, but it's no guarantee that people will all buy certain software. It simply means you have that many people who MIGHT. So if 2 million out of 40 million buy it, that's a great start. They just need to be sure that a good number of those 2 million are into buying up software, but then there's software pricing which brings me to my next point.
I think that, for VR to be successful, they shouldn't follow the traditional pricing scheme of $60 USD. Let that be the price cap, but let games be cheaper if they're not premium experiences. Like if they're sort of pet projects. The Modern Zombie Taxi Co., for example, really shouldn't be $60. Robinson: The Journey, however, is a better candidate for that. It's like PC where, once you spend a ton on hardware, you should be able to expect more reasonable prices for software. That, in the end, will be Sony's biggest concern if you ask me. After hardware price, of course.
Outlets that have tried PSVR seem very positive and I'm optimistic about its success. Just get the kiosks out there and convince people that they want it, Sony.
Don't see the disagreements here as you're argument is quite reasonable, however, if you're making a game you have to recoup your costs. If your game cost 10 million (avg cost for single platform development) and you only have an audience of 2 million (super optimistic for initial purchases) with say an attach rate of 4.4 (last estimate I read for the PS4) out of the 88 games for release that's a 5% chance a gamer buys your game (all things equal).
So we're looking at 100,000 copies sold (5% of 2 million gamers). Technically to break even you'd need to sell at $100 (10,000,000 dev cost / 100,000 sales) and that's not even including Sony's cut.
Now, that's if it's a classical AAA game developed as they are for PS4 (obv some top 30mill and above like UC4 etc and some are much lower like many indie games and this will skew attach rate and sales req.) If games are simpler than this and dev costs are lower then games can come down.
No real 'point' to this post except I agree that games like the zombie taxi should cost nowhere near 10 mill and so shouldn't be $60 but we do need devs to recoup and see a return. No good having all the sales if each one was $1 and you go broke, where that sweet spot is I don't think we'll see until the first gen of games go out. I predict they'll aim higher first to see if gamers as a whole are used to the pricing model. If not they can go on sale.
No one is going in at rock bottom cost hoping they make it back on huge volume. You can lower prices over time, you can't raise them.
