Well to be fair he did already address some of these things earlier.

Computers and some of the other things listed took so long to become popular because they werent at mass market prices.

Those 90s smartphones were well over $1000 with inflation and i dont think they had all the subsidized options like they do today.

I suppose you could still make that argument about VR though, its $600 for a PS4+PSVR and likely higher for a PC+Oculus/Vive.

So because no VR headset made it to market pretty much in the 00's, we just get to pretend the industry restored itself to factory settings and it's starting new? If one or two headsets made it to market in that period and failed just as the others before it did, would that make the VR's history somehow count in your eyes?

No offence Potato Hamster, but you also claimed the NX (Switch) couldn't be a hybrid I believe and that PS4 Pro and XB1X would never happen because it would be a disaster that developers couldn't handle making games at different settings. 

VR is still taking its baby steps, its like saying "well Dreamcast failed with online, so guess that's curtains for online gaming with consoles". And modems for online connection had been tried for decades prior, the Famicom had a modem, so did Atari. 

VR is a legit experience, it's only going to get cheaper, more convenient (less wires), and much higher quality (better graphics, FOV, feedback) devices as time goes on.

Also VR will eventually become something Nintendo and MS are in on too, it's not just a "Sony thing". 

I have used an Oculus Rift and a PSVR and have over 50 hours use between the two units. What is it with VR fans and their insistence that anyone who doesn't buy in like it's the greatest thing to ever hit gaming history mustn't have played it? It's completely off base, and frankly at this point, probably should be put under consideration for moderation. It's completely derailing and its happened again and again and again and again.



You don't have any evidence that Oculus Rift and HTC Vive did't sell more than 700K each in their first six months? Let's try basic logic and reasoning. HTC Vive had an estimate 250K sales in 2016, Oculus had an estimated 400K. The Oculus Rift came out in March 2016, the HTC Vive came out in April. So if HTC Vive only sold 250K in 2016, and they released in April 2016, they sold 250K units in 8 months. If Oculus Rift came out in March, and sold 400K in 2016, the Oculus Rift sold 400K units in 9 months. Now, I don't know about you, but I find it difficult to compute how a each company can sell less than 700K combined in all of 2016, which well includes the first six months of release for each, but still somehow not be able to figure that the Virtual Boy outsold each unit in its six months it was on the market. If you want to explain that math to me I'm all ears, but I'm pretty that reasoning is more solid than the VR industry. Here's my source by the way:

https://haptic.al/latest-virtual-reality-headset-sales-so-far-9553e42f60b5

Yeah, Facebook spent $2Billion on Oculus.At the time of the sale, industry veterans predicted Oculus could net Facebook $7 Billion in sales per year by 2020. What are the odds they meet those lofty goals? In fact I'd bet if facebook sold Oculus off now they'd be selling it for a  far chunk less than $2 Bullion they bought it for.  Perhaps that's why they slashed prices in 2017, because you know, sales weren't meeting expectations. But don't take my word for it.

https://business.financialpost.com/technology/facebook-realizes-vr-is-still-a-tough-sell-slashes-prices-on-oculus-headset

No, I claimed the NX wasn't going to be more than one device (it isn't) and I said the PS4 Pro and XB1X would never happen unless they created the ability to play regular PS4/X1 games without patching and required developers to put in minimal effort, and thus neutering the potential of such a hardware upgrade (they did). I said third party developers would never support them as extra development platforms (they didn't). When I said both of these things I actually had seen and used development kits for both the Switch, and had seen the first documentation for the PS4 Pro. I can assure you that the policy Sony had in place or PS4 Pro support and the policy they had in place when the PS4 Pro had changed dramatically, since, you know, developers refused to support these consoles the way Sony wanted them to.

I was right about both.

How much longer is VR going to take "baby steps"? Is thirty years of baby steps not enough? Is 30 years of hearing "the next generation is going to be the one that breaks through" enough? And your Dreamcast example is piss poor, since the Dreamcast's demise had nothing to do with its online service.

Like I get it. You love VR. You think it's a "legit experience". Sure it's going to get cheaper and better, the same way that racing wheels have gotten cheaper and better over the years. Yet, I bet racing wheels aren't going to be anything more than a niche product ever. Why is that?

Sure, MS might give it a college try, they have done AR tech demos at E3 regularly. But it's never translated into anything great, and I don't think Sony's numbers with VR are exactly encouraging. Also, what makes you think Nintendo is going to get in on VR? What are the chances they're looking at what Sony is doing with VR and having a good chuckle? Nintendo is not exactly known for its powerful hardware. What are the odds they can offer a VR experience that can even go head to head with the PSVR before we see a Switch successor?

How many of those family members have $800 smart phones or dropped $800-$1000 on LCD TVs? I'm betting close to all of them. If that is the case, isn't it interesting that they see the value of spending $800 on a smart phone or $800 on a TV, but see $600 ($400 on Black Friday) and balk at the idea?

Better yet, how many of them bought a Wii at $200 and watched it collect dust after 6 months? How come no one is still claiming that motion controls are the future of gaming? How come the PS4 and X1 shipped with standard controllers?

3 million? For the most popular headset on the market? Wow, sorry, no, that is not an impressive accomplishment. VR was even more overblown that I thought. Nintendo was right to stay away for this round. I'm sure the age of VR is coming, but it seems the market has decided that it is definitely not here yet.

I don't agree you were right about your predictions there, but agree to disagree. I remember telling you straight up developers wouldn't have a big problem with it because they already do different settings for different PC graphics cards. 

VR can take as long as it wants. Is it a race? The VR on PS5 will be a large step up from the VR that exists today, the VR 10-12 years now will be light years ahead. The visuals will be getting closer to photorealism, the headsets will be far lighter, cheaper, and without fewer or no wires at all. 

Every company can contribute to the progression of VR. Nintendo and Apple likely would bring user ease/user friendliness to the table because that's how they design products first and foremost from that POV. I don't think a Switch neccessarily needs a successor to get there, it will have its own Pro model in a few years IMO. 

For Nintendo what I suspect has happened is they are working on VR for their Universal Studios theme park attractions. Miyamoto said they would like to try to use the tech for amusement parks. I'm guessing whatever they have come up with is probably pretty impressive because in the last little while they've eased their comments on VR from a "no we're not doing that" to "uh ... maybe but nothing to announce now". We also know flat out they basically patented a Switch VR visor.

Some people may not like it but VR also has another killer app -- porn and VR sex. That industry is also just taking its early steps, in 10-15 years where that could be ... well use your imagination a little bit. You'll have light/discreet headsets that can display visuals and a FOV/resolution waaaaaaay past what exists today but I think you are also going to get into (ahem) physical feedback devices.

There's no doubt porn was a driving force behind the internet and home video becoming standardized, gaming doesn't have to do all the heavy lifting. 

Yeah, you were kinda right, but for the wrong reasons. Developers do not have a big problem with it, not because it's anything like doing different settings for PC graphics cards (because it isn't) but because all they have to do is take a couple devs, give them a couple weeks,and build in PS4 Pro support into their games. They don't have to build in fully fleshed out modes. They don't need to create higher poly count models, or higher quality testures, or more fluid animations. All they need to do is make the game run on the PS4 Pro. That's it. To be clear, this does make every PS4 game perform slightly worse because the PS4 exists. This was not what Sony expected of developers when they told them of the PS4 Pro at first. Developers refused to do it and pushed back. I was 100% right there.

VR Can take as it wants? Okay. Well then why are kicking up a stink when I say the technology, price and experience isn't there yet? If it's still taking it's time, then the VR experience isn't ready for mainstream, and won't be for some time, if ever, correct?   If this technology is 10-15-20 years away from maybe having a chance at becoming mainstream, then you are in agreement with me.

You do realize people are arguing with me because I said that VR as it is today is still niche and will be for the forseeable future, right?

I don't think it will take that long. In 10 years I think it will be fairly mainstream and common place, much like how many people were playing online games in 1998 versus 2008? 

Basically no one had the internet in 1993, everyone and their grandma (literally) had it by 2003. Very few people had a VHS or home video player in 1980, by 1990 everyone had it. 

Very few people had an HDTV in 2003, almost everyone had it by 2013. 

10 years is a long time, in 10 years VR will be ready if not sooner. 5 years from now the type of VR is going to put what's available today to shame. PS5 VR is going to destroy what's available right now, but other companies like Apple, Microsoft, Google, Occulus, Samsung, and sure, Nintendo will all start upping the ante as well. 

It's inevitable, PS4 VR as clunky as it is is just the first real step towards virtual immersion in convincing 3D worlds at. The sex/porn industry will also be a game changer for this tech as the tech improves and becomes far less cumbersome. Smartphones too, as they get more and more powerful, "cheapo VR" is going to become better and better.