The de facto savior of virtual reality (VR) gaming before it’s even began, PlayStation VR, is finally here – and we’re quite smitten with it. Sony itself is unsurprisingly bullish on the thing, with president and CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Jim Ryan having said he expects to sell “hundreds of thousands” of units during launch in an interview with CNBC.
But, maybe that’s a bit too bullish? We honestly just don’t know.
Sony sure has the dedicated, 40 million-strong install base and a more approachable price than its rivals, the HTC Vive and the Oculus Rift.
Again, but, this isn’t just another accessory or game console. This is an entirely new technology and gaming category that, despite the aforementioned impressive first attempts, has yet to strike lightning in the same way, say, the Nintendo Wii did a decade ago.
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A lot of that has to do with price, natch, despite Ryan (wrongly) calling it “extremely affordable” in his CNBC chat. But, perhaps it also has to do with that, the appeal of VR is frustratingly hard to demonstrate without strapping a headset onto the person you’re trying to convince.
In that way, VR is a lot like 3D TV – remember that?
PlayStation VR managed to sell through pre-order units rather handily, it seems, though online stores are filled with the things as of this writing. Of course, the social buzz after those pre-orderers fire up their units could push those six-figure sales numbers along.
Finally, but (last “but” this time) even President of SCE Worldwide Studios Shuhei Yoshida can’t say with certainty what demand will be like for Sony’s VR solution. See why we’re grappling with this one?
So, we’ve devised an entirely non-scientific way of proving or disproving Ryan’s projections: asking you whether you plan on buying the thing, and when – if at all. Answer away!
Via GameSpot
