Interesting Factoids I Bet You Never Knew About VR Games

Over the previous few years, we have seen an array of news posts about how virtual reality was going to conserve the timeless arcade. The idea goes that the VR indoor playground equipment is too expensive for home users, therefore it creates an chance for operators to pony up the big bucks to buy it and make their money back by charging per match to play it. Even Nolan Bushnell, the inventor of Pong, is trying to hype the technology as the industry's savior.
"While several high-end headsets were released annually which may bring virtual-reality experiences to your living space, adoption of the technology remains in its earliest days to get a bunch of reasons--it is still bulky, pricey, and there isn't all that much to do once you've got it on your face. Over two million cans were shipped globally in 2016, according to an estimate from market researcher Canalys, but this figure pales in comparison to the prevalence of, say, video game consoles (sales of the leading one, Sony's PS4, topped six million during the 2016 holiday season ). Consumer virtual reality will probably catch on as costs come down and cans improve. Meanwhile, though, a number of businesses are betting that consumers may be happy to pay a much smaller amount to try out the technology with their buddies at, say, an arcade, theme park, or bowling alley"
It's tempting to fall into this snare, but in the operator's standpoint VR is a terrible thing. Aside from purchasing a brand-new car and driving it a time, I can't think of a way you could eliminate money faster between what you pay and what you'll have the ability to get for it down the street.
Another limitation for most operators is that while you may be able to provide a space for VR people to wander around in now, as fresh VR technology is unveiled, we're going to find the stage expanded from 100 square feet to the entire world. Rather than viewing just the games in your headset, you'll realize the true world with sport play overlayed. Children can visit the park and relive the knights of the round table or parking garages to take aliens. As the tech allows more real world places to be explored, it's going to make a cramped arcade look pretty feeble in comparison.
VR is already heading for mass market acceptance, however it's demand is not being driven by gamers who wish to pay big buck to play with video games, but like the BETAMAX that came before it, by individuals who want to watch porn in their houses.
Even when an operator can make just a bit of money for the next few years, once VR achieves critical mass, it is going to crush whatever revenue stream that operators are dreaming of. Do not believe me? Just check out what is going on in China.
This past year, an eye popping 35,000 virtual reality arcades opened in China. A year later 22,000 of these have closed.
That is an unbelievable failure rate over such a short period of time and one which should serve as a sharp warning to anyone contemplating investing in the VR games. Perhaps Dave and Busters can afford to take losses over the games more than Chinese startup arcades, but I doubt that most North American operators will fare much better using the tech in their game rooms and will just end up in debt in the close of the day.
The issue basically boils down to consumers not being willing to pay a premium to the encounter. Tech In Asia, clarifies the problem perfectly in their article, on that the Chinese VR boom and bust.

"Enterprising shop owners jumped into VR are finding it impossible to charge fees akin to cinemas or bowling alleys to get a VR experience. 1 VR arcade owner told iHeima that he saw eager queues when charging US$1.50 for a 30-minute session, but everybody disappeared when it climbed to US$5. From that kind of revenue it's not possible to pay the lease."
Even if the match was sold out all day, at $1.50 a half hour they're just earning $30 per day. With retail rents in North America running $1 -- $2 a square foot, there is no way to make the math work, even if you suppose that Americans will pay more to play the games.
The real world information streaming in from China must function as a canary in the quarter plantations of North America. Operators who spend large amounts of money on fancy VR setups will probably find their small VR rooms being replaced by the whole world for a stage. As the setups get cheaper, smaller and more mobile, the digital arcades will seem more expensive, bulky and limited.