This thread is two years old and I'm going to say that as of now, VR is neither life changing nor a fad...yet. I got myself the Oculus Go a few weeks ago and I can see all kinds of potential. In some regards the hardware is ahead of the software but the hardware can also be greatly improved. I demoed the Oculus Rift before I got the Go and it was nice but I didn't see the killer game or app that justified the $400 price. I also thought the idea of being tethered to the PC was too big a restriction for right now. Some of the Go games are surprisingly good but their aren't enough. To me, it seems like Telltale could be a AAA company that could really bring some great games to VR. Anshar Online is a new multiplayer game that's pretty good for $7. I found this video last night. It's a bit like getting sucked into an 80's Tron game.
The last few times I've been to Microcenter VR crap has been by the front door selling for $5. It was a fad. But now it's D-E-D dead. Like Batman's parents.
It's not dead. It's evolving. Beats Saber made it into Steams top 5 sales list when it sold 50,000 copies in it's first week.
Calling it a fad or saying it's dead is giving it too much credit. VR was never really alive in the first place. Motion controls were a fad. VR was something that no one other than tech journalists and uber nerds ever really cared about or bought. Now VR stuff is in the bargain bin, and even at bargain bin prices no one cares about it. Let's be honest here, at a time when video games are becoming mainstream and even have kind of a cool factor, strapping scuba goggles to your face and prancing around like a fairy is for complete fucking dorks. It also has kind of the same problem as motion controls where almost no one playing a video game actually wants to do anything physical while playing. You play video games because you want to be lazy. Looking around and swinging your arms around is too much work.
I agree with almost all of that. It never made it to fad status and it also hasn't died. Perhaps it's smoldering. I wont consider it a fad until all the big tech companies give it a go. Let face it. How many technology ideas seemed great but didn't have any kind of success until Apple stepped in? Rumors are saying they will have something in 2020. VR also has a secret weapon. Or maybe it's not so secret. “We expect it to serve as a major gateway to our content,” said Xavi Clos, head of production at BaDoinkVR, a virtual reality-focused adult entertainment company. “Facebook has emerged as an unexpected ally in the VR porn business,” he said. “The Oculus Go is the perfect porn device.” http://variety.com/2018/digital/news/oculus-go-porn-adult-videos-optimized-for-go-1202820066/
Its more of a gimmick than a fad at the moment but it has the opportunity to be great one day in the future with better tech. That said, I won't care until it reaches Sword Art Online type of deep dive style.