Meta's virtual reality dreams: Why gamers are still unconvinced

Contrary to predictions, VR (Virtual Reality) has not gained traction in the gaming market. Sony has lowered the price of PlayStation VR2, but it has not released a new game since the device's launch. Nintendo made only a minor attempt with a cardboard set. Microsoft has not engaged with this technology at all.

Meta bought Oculus VR technology in 2014. The attempt to make Meta Quest a mainstream hit cost CAD 11.5 billion this year alone. Despite the lack of enthusiasm from gamers, Mark Zuckerberg does not plan to give up. Since the end of 2020, Oculus VR, rebranded as Reality Labs, has accumulated around CAD 70 billion losses. These are not final amounts; the latest results are even worse than in the first quarter 2024.

Despite the obvious lack of success, Meta is neither giving up nor even slowing down. Even though efforts in this technology unrelated to gaming have become the subject of jokes, such as Mark Zuckerberg's infamous VR selfie. The entire Metaverse concept is currently rarely mentioned, although there is no indication that Meta plans to abandon it.

It seems that the main problem with VR is not necessarily the quality of its content but the fact that one has to wear such large devices to use it. Meta Quest 3 is efficient and does not need to connect to another device to work, but it still seems to require too much. PlayStation creator Ken Kutaragi said in an interview with bloomberg.com in 2022, "Headsets are simply annoying."

Similarly, a laconic diagnosis was given by those commenting on the current situation in the VR market on reddit.com. One of them wrote, "Equipment is bulking and annoying - people don't want to wear a bucket on their head." Many people also agreed with another statement: "Roomscale VR will never be mainstream due to the physical requirement to play. At best, VR HMDs will replace the monitor/screen you sit in front of with your controller/kbm and game with."