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Virtual Reality is all people seem to want to talk about these days, and it certainly is an intriguing future for gaming. However, I highly doubt that it will ever usurp “normal” gaming experiences. As fun and immersive as VR might be, I don’t think I could tolerate it for marathon gaming sessions. And it seems Sony Interactive Entertainment President, Andrew House, agrees with me.
Speaking during Sony’s Investor Day in Tokyo, House explained that VR is much like how the guys enjoy sexual relations – in short bursts.
House then mentioned that he has been very vocal about the fact that this generation of virtual reality lends itself more to short-form content than to very long experiences. He doesn’t see that as a negative, and he tends to liken the VR experience to something more like a theme park ride, as it may be short, but it’s very intense and enjoyable.
The key, according to House, is to manage to have the right kind of content experiences in terms of length and intensity, but fundamentally they need to be enjoyable.
I actually really agree with this. I loved my time with London Heist, and it was great for five minutes of immersive gaming, but I’m not sure how well I’d cope with an hour or two or three. Besides, VR is best when you can really commit to it – put on the headset, some decent headphones and forget about the real world; unfortunately, most of us have real world lives and we can’t simply disappear into another world for too long without being available to our friends or family. Besides, our brains can enjoy the experience for a while, but I’m sure extended exposures would induce more simulator sickness.
House is always quite pleased with how old technology has been made new again with VR. Despite being released five or six years ago and receiving minimal adoption rates then, the PlayStation Move greatly enhances VR experiences. I know that I loved my time with those controllers in VR; I really preferred them to the DualShock 4 when in the virtual environments. It’s nice to see the old technology work so well in such a progressive space.
Now excuse me, I’m going to go clear some space in my living room for an ultimate VR experience.
Last Updated: June 29, 2016
