Xbox head Phil Spencer has made numerous comments about his lack of interest in getting into the VR hardware space in the past, and if you were hoping he'd changed his mind, we've unfortunately got some bad news to share.
Spencer mentioned during WSJ Tech Live earlier this week that the Xbox team are "big believers" in virtual reality, but Xbox is planning to "stay as a company right now in the consumer space focused on software."
Here's a bit of what he had to say, courtesy of transcription from Video Games Chronicle:
“We’re big believers in that software platform and the devices that will enable that. Absolutely. [But] we’re focused a lot more on the software side of that right now. When I think about immersive worlds and I think about the connection of a player and community, that’s something that’s very high on our investment list."
“I think that the hardware innovation that’s happening is great and it’s an important enabler, [but] right now I’m deciding to stay more in the software side of that enablement. I believe it will scale better in the long run.
“And you know, I applaud what Sony‘s doing, I applaud what Oculus is doing, what Valve has done. I mean, there’s a lot of good players out there that have done some amazing VR work... But yeah, we’re gonna stay as a company right now in the consumer space focused on software, and I think that’s a good bet.”
Back in July, Spencer told the Kinda Funny Gamescast that he felt the best example of a virtual reality experience right now belonged to the Oculus Quest 2, and he wouldn't want to entertain a VR device which required a cable.
He also mentioned that a potential for VR in the Xbox space was to look at "how could we bring content to a screen like that", and "do we think that the games we currently have that we're able to run on our platform would work there?"
Ultimately, it sounds like Xbox is interested in dabbling with VR, but don't go expecting a headset anytime soon.
What do you make of Spencer's comments? Let us know your thoughts down below.
[source wsj.com, via videogameschronicle.com]
Comments 19
I wish they would get over the cable and support the HP Reverb G2 on the Xbox Series X. If they aspire to standalone they may as well support the existing MS ecosystem right now cause MS will depend on it later. Valve and Facebook didn't wait for standalone to get started, Xbox shouldn't either.
I personally don't care for VR. I actually see AR being implemented a bit better. I get motion sickness and wearing a headset would make me claustrophobic.
Yeah, I think it's more likely MS will partner with an already existing headset maker like Oculus or Valve rather than make their own. (Most likely Oculus, as it's actually affordable). Having Quest 2 support on Xbox would be pretty neat, it's a solid headset on its own, and it can connect to PC's (and potentially Xbox's) via Wi-fi to play wirelessly.
Good. No matter what the fanboys say VR is still just a fad.
If oculus came to Xbox I would buy it day one.
@Xeno_Aura you can stream your Xbox console to the quest 2 via the Xbox app sideloaded to the quest also run gamepass app via sideload
Good to hear they are focused on software can’t wait to see the flood of new games. The wait is killing me.
The only issue i would see with vr is the amount of games
Microsoft has Hololens and Mesh. Xbox can easily fit into that with their game streaming service
VR is really cool, but the hardware is still a problem. It's awkward, uncomfortable, restrictive, and expensive. It's a neat tech gadget, and it may be the future in the long term, but for now it's definitely just a gadget, (or an exceedingly expensive rich boy's toy like a full HOTAS for flight sim.) I love that Sony's going all in on it despite saying they wouldn't, but I also think it won't become a real business avenue for them, and will be stupid expensive when the new one launches. Heck, Bethesda was one of the most meaningful contributors to PSVR1, and now they're out of that game.
It was gaining momentum for a while, but then just kind of stalled out again. I love my PSVR, but it sits collecting dust because it's just a total PITA to set up and get "in the sweet spot" for.
I'm glad, VR isn't the future like some people think it is anyway.
@NEStalgia Not sure I'd agree, the Quest 2 has been the most successful VR device to date (tied with PSVR, but likely to overtake it) selling over 5 Million headsets. At £250 it's fairly reasonably priced for the consumer, it requires no setup, no cables and most games work in a small area (2x2 metres is fine for basically any game, some games require no space).
PSVR2 is hopefully following a similar step to Oculus where the headset is entirely wireless and you just press a button to turn it on and connect.
@Xeno_Aura PSVR2 is already confirmed to have "a single wire", so, no it's kind of the same old. We don't know much else about it, but we do know that much.
Quest 2 may be fast selling but it's also relatively limited in what it can do, which is the tradeoff right now for wireless. It's reasonably priced, but it's definitely closer to the "toy" end of the spectrum than, say, Vive, or even PSVR2 (assumed.) And 5 mil is very very niche in an age where PS4 and Switch can do 100mil each and Xbox does however many. It's far from a failure, obviously, but it's definitely a pretty tiny market.
That's probably for the better. Decent VR setups require costly products from a variety of manufacturers, and Microsoft is still working to broaden the appeal of Xbox to the masses — masses that are generally too poor to afford a VR setup in the first place.
No VR for me. When VR takes over, that’s when I’m done with gaming (or playing retro dedicated hardware only).
Good, Focus on making good games, Not this VR crap
As someone who got quite violently motion sick from VR, despite wanting to like it, i'm glad to see not everybody is pointing this direction!
VR is niche similar to Kinect, but the Xbox platform needs VR due to several things. Kids love VR, its perfect for party games and many (like me) do not want to invest in a high-end PC and relatively expensive VR headset. Afraid that Xbox will be late for the VR party. Just see how Apple and Facebook is gearing up for next gen VR.
I would be very interested in a VR set on Xbox, just for competition sake and furthering the advancement of these headsets. I enjoyed my PSVR, however I had to sell it due to repeated motion sickness. Would be nice if the tech got to the point where this was eliminated in most people...
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