Well, someone was going to attempt it eventually, and there was a 33 per cent chance that it was going to be Sony. The platform holder rolled out Dr. Richard Marks to demo PlayStation VR live on stage during its PlayStation Experience press conference earlier today, and as you can probably imagine, things didn't go especially well.
While it wasn't the fault of either of the unfortunate presenters, the reality is that virtual reality just doesn't work vicariously. We've tried PlayStation VR ourselves, and there's so much potential for this peripheral that it's insane, but we don't expect you to take our word for it β you've got to try it for yourselves.
Dump the dodgy stage demos, Sony β focus on getting the technology on people's heads instead.
Comments 27
I thought it was pretty funny and added to the entertainment factor, but that's just me.
@InsertNameHere Don't get me wrong, I'm not losing any sleep over it; sometimes demos go wrong and the presenters covered admirably. I'd just rather not see Sony try again - like I say, you can't really "show" VR.
The demo has me less interested on VR than I was before so yah they should stop doing this kind of demos
I think it was more so the actual demo. I mean, it didn't look like they were really trying or knew what they were doing. I thought they set it up well but chose the wrong game and didn't execute.
The best part of the whole VR presentation was Psychonauts spoofing the TIME cover.
@ztpayne7 It doesn't even look like this is a game to me, it's just a tech demo they've put together for the presser. Which, yeah, again β really weird!
The irony is that the only way to sell people on it is if they have their own VR headset, but they won't get one until they're sold on it. At the moment it's like trying to demo Ultra HD in an advert shown on an old black-and-white CRT TV.
@Matroska - Yep. I think it's going to bomb. I mean don't get me wrong I think it could be really cool but getting people to take a chance on it is going to be really hard.
I mean... It has to be presented somehow... I didn't really find that much issue with it.
@Splat I think at the very minimum, you'll get this fanning out effect where a certain number of people will buy it, either they're familiar with VR from other sources, they've tried out PSVR specifically or they're just willing to take a chance. Then their friends will play it, like it and get one, their friends will try it out and then get one, etc. It's just a case of if that process can reach critical mass soon enough.
The biggest hurdle, honestly, is the dodgy history of VR, going back to the 80s, and then the various other truly crappy peripherals that people bought, used for a few games, and then never touched again, like the Wiimote, Balance Board, Kinect, Move, Eyetoy, Power Glove and so on. Plus, pretty much any lightgun ever. Maybe the 5 people who bought ROB for the SNES are still alive and will also be put off PSVR.
@get2sammyb hey, at least it doesn't look as awkward as that wonderbook presentation....
@Matroska " The biggest hurdle, honestly, is the dodgy history of VR, going back to the 80s, and then the various other truly crappy peripherals that people bought, used for a few games, and then never touched again, "
You have forgot about the cool peripherals though. Scroll wheel mice, joypads, variable resolution monitors, ergonomic keyboards etc. VR will fail though, people play games for more reasons than immersion.
It failed because this VR is just another gimmick, it failed here and it will fail when it's launched. I might still buy one though >.<
I don't get the selection of aesthetics in this demo. 90's VR is not cool. It didn't take off then so shouldn't they avoid any resemblance to the failed VRs of yesteryear?
@Biolan yeah all the demos were quirky. VR doesn't lend itself well to demos but surely if they'd shown something like Gran Turismo with someone just racing but being able to look around into the mirrors /sides of the car whilst driving people would have been excited.
Instead we got lawn mower man....
I do think they are damned if they do, damned if they don't... BUT choose them demos well surely?!?
@Cron_13 Couldn't agree more, buddy. Why didn't they just demo something that we can all relate to? Gran Turismo β or any driving game, for that matter β is a great example of that.
I watched the event with my brother, and within two minutes of the VR segment, we simply totally switched off. Literally!
I agree not matter how you try and demo this tech its never going to look that good. Its all about immersion and that's a hard thing to show. This tech is going to be good and been ,looking forward to it since I watched dungeon master as a kid on tv.
Sony just need to get the product out there at as many places as possible. I remember when little big planet was being launched they took over shops and had big sofas where you could come and play the game and ask questions. The hypes can be realised for this product once people try it.
It was OK and fun to watch, but I still have no interest in it.
Feels like VR has been in the media for 5 years and its just not in shops or general release. Taking a very long time to me.
For me it's simple really: Whether it is called PlayStation VR or Oculus or Microsoft's device, I simply cannot see myself sitting in the living room and putting on a helmet to play a game which most of the time will require you to stand up by the way. I had bought the PS Move and yeah, it was on a shelf a month later.
@AlexKidd Maybe the PS Move wasn't for you, but you seriously missed out. Which games did you play? And did you play them with friends?
@naruball Mostly the demos that were out, like table tennis or volleyball and nah, I don't have enough room to fit 2 people standing up next to each other waving their arms. Off topic but bonus points for your Lucy Lawless / Xena avatar.
@AlexKidd
Haha. Good to know there are still people who appreciate Xena/Lucy after all these years.
I used to live in a small flat so I totally get it. Though I had tons of fun playing vball with my vball friends, it wasn't very convenient.
Last question, I swear. Did you ever play any of the House of the Dead games with ps Move? They were awesome, especially if you have a friend and play co-op. You don't even need much space.
@naruball hah, you can ask as many questions, this is what the comments are for. Uh no I didn't but I know the type of game, it's an aim-and-shoot type where you mostly control just your aim and defeat hordes of zombies. I actually never bought a PS Move game, I just tried the demos. The best "peripheral", if it can be called like that, that I bought has always been the Vita.
@AlexKidd Oh, I see. Well it's a shame but at least you know not to bother with VR. Though I'm excited for it, I don't see it doing well at all.
I will definatly get VR hopefully day one. Never tried move there was a boxing game that looked fun
I don't think I'm in the minority here but I think a lot of gamers nowadays have family or wives/girlfriend that we sit and chat to a bit whilst playing...I know that I'd never get to use a VR because it would totally isolate me from the outside world. Whilst I'm sure some will buy it, I think too many gamers need the ability to interact with both game world, and real world at the same time.
PS. VR demo was awful in my opinion.
I dont understand why they decided to show off a multiplayer game to advertise the PSVR. People aren't going to wear a view obstructing helmet when playing with their friends, and besides, who's going to buy two PSVRs? One will be pricey enough.
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