For virtual reality (VR) to really take off, the developers that will create new content for the kit have to believe in the tech themselves. In the west, the belief in VR has been growing rapidly, especially over the past year. But what about over in Japan? Does the country that the entire videogame industry owes so much to really think that VR will take off in a big way? According to a recent survey from Japanese publication Famitsu, it may be that developers still need some convincing when it comes to the tech’s prospects.
DualShockers managed to translate the survey in which 25 developers were quizzed about their thoughts on VR. Developers that took part included Tekken’s Katsuhiro Harada, Senran Kagura’s Kenichiro Takagi and Resident Evil: Revelations‘ Masachika Kawada. They were asked seven questions in total, with the first being a simple ‘Are you interested in VR?’ to which 94% responded ‘Yes’ and 6% responded ‘No’. Next up was ‘Are you developing or researching on VR?’, with 67% saying they were, 22% saying they weren’t and 6% offering no comment.
When it comes to releasing actual VR software, 61% of those surveyed said they were considering it, 22% said no, 11% said yes, and 6% again had no comment. 88% said that the Oculus Rift’s $599 USD price tag was high while 12% didn’t comment on it. Price wise, 11% hoped PlayStation VR would cost 50,000¥ – 59,999¥ (JPY), which DualShockers points out is equal to around $441 – $529. 6% said 40,000¥ – 49,999¥ ($353 – $441), 27% said 30,000¥ – 39,999¥ ($264 – $353), 22% said 20,000¥ – 29,999¥, 17% said 10,000¥ – 19,999¥ ($88 – $176), while 17% again didn’t comment.
Perhaps the defining question of the survey was if developers believed VR would become mainstream. A massive 66% said no, with 33% saying yes. Finally, 37% said that content would be most important to VR, 26% said price, 7% said marketing, 19% said gameplay environment, 4% said form factor and 7% said other.
PlayStation VR’s price and release date is yet to be revealed. Keep reading VRFocus for the latest updates on the tech.
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