Roadtovr: 2019 Was a Major Inflection Point for VR

[Alucardx23]

"VR adoption is accelerating thanks to the Oculus Quest. We've seen over 100 VR titles break $1 million in revenue, growing the total VR software market by 3x in 2019. Top grossing VR titles have cleared $10 million in revenue, and can reach up to $60 million in sales given the current distribution of headsets in the market so far."

"Based on our estimates, we see 2019 as a major inflection point for the entire market, almost tripling yearly revenue to nearly $300 million across all platforms. This is mostly driven by the success of Oculus but also a significant uplift in the PSVR marketplace mainly driven by the success of Beat Saber and other new hit VR games."

"Based on the data we've collected, by the end of 2017 we estimate that almost 40 titles made over $1 million in revenue. And in 2017, a top VR title grossed $10 million. By the end of 2018, that grew to 60 titles at the $1 million milestone, and top titles grossed over $20 million. Now at the end of 2019, we're at more than 100 titles exceeding $1 million in revenue, and at least one top title grossing over $40 million in annual revenue."

All Major VR Storefronts

2019 Was a Major Inflection Point for VR—Here's the Proof

VR adoption is accelerating thanks to the Oculus Quest. We’ve seen over 100 VR titles break $1 million in revenue, growing the total VR software market by 3x in 2019. Top grossing VR titles have cleared $10 million in revenue, and can reach up to $60 million in sales given the current...

www.roadtovr.com

 

[CelestialAtom]

VR is definitely here to stay, and I am truly excited for what the PSVR2 can do on PS5 and the next Oculus platform after Quest for wireless VR gaming.

 

[Alucardx23]

VR is definitely here to stay, and I am truly excited for what the PSVR2 can do on PS5 and the next Oculus platform after Quest for wireless VR gaming.

Click to shrink...

Something tells me Sony will go all in with the PSVR2.

 

[MykhellMikado]

PSN now biggest vr platform

 

[Komo]

Something tells me Sony will go all in with the PSVR2.

Click to shrink...

I mean with the patents I pray it all comes true. (Motion Controllers like Index with finger tracking, Fully Wireless)

 

[Alucardx23]

I mean with the patents I pray it all comes true. (Motion Controllers like Index with finger tracking, Fully Wireless)

Click to shrink...

With the way VR is growing I also wonder how long Microsoft will wait to jump in. With all of the cloud gaming services coming out right now, VR is a great way to differentiate yourself as it will take a while longer before Cloud VR works good enough.

 

[Deleted member 48434]

I do recall saying that standalone (Quest) will be a pretty big thing, bigger than tethered. Ease of use is king.
Vindication.
I hope Sony or Nintendo work on a standalone of their own.

 

[Deleted member 35478]

PSN now biggest vr platform

Click to shrink...

I hope Sony improves their VR headset / tracking post PS5 launch. But I really think the Oculus Quest / Oculus store are going to grow the VR space the most in 2020.

 

[Izzard]

I hope all the "it's a craze" "it's too niche" naysayers see this.

 

[Sidewinder]

Nice!

Something tells me Sony will go all in with the PSVR2.

Click to shrink...

I sure hope so, PSVR was already amazing to me, but PSVR2 will outclass it in every conceivable way, can't wait!

Sony just needs to give PSVR a steady stream of support untill they launch its successor and use the power of the PS5 to inject some new life in that ageing device.

 

[StudioTan]

Great news! Personally I would prefer is PSVR took a back seat and companies concentrated on PC, or better yet that Sony releases their VR games on PC as well. The market is still too small for fragmentation. I don't want to buy 2 separate headsets for PC and Playstation.

Quest is now in a fantastic place since you can use it easily as a standalone or as a PC headset using Link.

 

[HypedBulborb]

Tbh, really surprised that Sony has the biggest market, thought for sure that it would be PC.

 

[Alucardx23]

Nice!



I sure hope so, PSVR was already amazing to me, but PSVR2 will outclass it in every conceivable way, can't wait!

Sony just needs to give PSVR a steady stream of support untill they launch its successor and use the power of the PS5 to inject some new life in that ageing device.

Click to shrink...

Yes, games like Gran Turismo Sport and Ace Combat 7 should get updates on PS5 to allow you to play the full games in VR, the rest should get a resolution and AA increase. The screen should also be good enough for you to consider it as a personal big screen television to play games. That alone would be awesome and a great way to start. I'm really hopping for Sony to create a PlayStation Home like environment in VR, where you can create your own play spaces and invite your friends. If you will play a PS1 game, interact with the PS1 hardware just like you would with a physical model. I imagine something like a combination of the video and screens below.







Bigscreen VR

 

[Deleted member 2840]

PSN now biggest vr platform

Click to shrink...

What

 

[Aniki]

Happy that VR has proved itself viable and is here to stay. I've had a lot of fun with my PSVR and planning to get a PC VR Kit this year. I'm looking forward to all the great VR games i've yet to experience.

 

[Komo]

With the way VR is growing I also wonder how long Microsoft will wait to jump in. With all of the cloud gaming services coming out right now, VR is a great way to differentiate yourself as it will take a while longer before Cloud VR works good enough.

Click to shrink...

I mean they've already jumped in they made the Windows Mixed Reality headsets. All those Samsung/Lenovo/LG headsets are using microsoft tech.

 

[DrDeckard]

Rift and Quest are killing it! Alex should see a considerable boost too.

 

[Ashok]

Quest is huge. And I almost wrote it off but ended up RMA'ing my Index for it. I love the ease of use esp with Virtual Desktop, even if it's only 72Hz.

 

[Funky_Monkey]

What

Click to shrink...

I think he is extrapolating from the chart that Playstation Network now counts for the largest percentage of software sales. It appears to have overtaken Steam.

 

[1-D_FE]

2019 was definitely the year VR needed. A lot was proved true.

 

[Deleted member 2840]

I think he is extrapolating from the chart that Playstation Network now counts for the largest percentage of software sales. It appears to have overtaken Steam.

Click to shrink...

Only the "cumulative VR grossing over 1 million" chart has PSN above the other platforms no?

 

[Funky_Monkey]

Only the "cumulative VR grossing over 1 million" chart has PSN above the other platforms no?

Click to shrink...

No. If you look at the linear chart (the second one)for VR software sales trend, at the 2019 mark Steam is probably just ahead of PSN, but PSN is ahead midway between the 2019-2020 mark. There is clearly some ambiguity as we do not know if the year markers are the start, middle or end of a year. Also the person who decided to change the legend colors between the linear and bar charts should be ashamed of themselves :).

 

[StudioTan]

Only the "cumulative VR grossing over 1 million" chart has PSN above the other platforms no?

Click to shrink...

Yes, if you look at this chart Oculus is making almost 3 times more than PSN in total software sales. Unless I'm reading the chart wrong?

No. If you look at the linear chart (the second one)for VR software sales trend, at the 2019 mark Steam is probably just ahead of PSN, but PSN is ahead midway between the 2019-2020 mark. There is clearly some ambiguity as we do not know if the year markers are the start, middle or end of a year. Also the person who decided to change the legend colors between the linear and bar charts should be ashamed of themselves :).

Click to shrink...

How are you seeing PSN making more than Steam from that chart? The Y is showing total revenue and Steam and Oculus are always higher than PSN.

 

[Paganmoon]

Yes, if you look at this chart Oculus is making almost 3 times more than PSN in total software sales. Unless I'm reading the chart wrong?

Click to shrink...

I read that as 300 million being the combined of all the different store fronts. Reading it like, PSN is 100+ million, Steam roughly 50 million, Rift roughly 90-100 million and Quest generating roughly 50 million.

2019 was definitely the year VR needed. A lot was proved true.

Click to shrink...

I think 2020 could be another, but a lot is riding on Alyx, it's reception and it's effect on the market.

 

[StudioTan]

I read that as 300 million being the combined of all the different store fronts. Reading it like, PSN is 100+ million, Steam roughly 50 million, Rift roughly 90-100 million and Quest generating roughly 50 million.

Click to shrink...

Ah, that would make sense. That would still make Oculus bigger than PSN though if you combine Rift and Quest sales. It would put PSN at just over 100M and Oculus at just under 150M. I guess we need more clarification.

 

[Alucardx23]

Ah, that would make sense. That would still make Oculus bigger than PSN though if you combine Rift and Quest sales. It would put PSN at just over 100M and Oculus at just under 150M. I guess we need more clarification.

Click to shrink...

From the article:

"Based on our estimates, we see 2019 as a major inflection point for the entire market, almost tripling yearly revenue to nearly $300 million across all platforms. This is mostly driven by the success of Oculus but also a significant uplift in the PSVR marketplace mainly driven by the success of Beat Saber and other new hit VR games.

What makes Oculus interesting is how much it has grown the market in the past year, if you look purely at software revenue. Sony announced sales of PlayStation VR in January 2020: 5 million headsets over the last four years. Our estimates suggest nearly $110 million in software revenue recorded in 2019. Oculus hasn't announced how many Quests are out there, but given that it's probably a much smaller install base, it's impressive to see it drive nearly $60 million in software revenue for 2019."

 

[Deleted member 2840]

I read that as 300 million being the combined of all the different store fronts. Reading it like, PSN is 100+ million, Steam roughly 50 million, Rift roughly 90-100 million and Quest generating roughly 50 million.



I think 2020 could be another, but a lot is riding on Alyx, it's reception and it's effect on the market.

Click to shrink...

Ahhh makes sense. What a terrible chart to read holy shit

 

[StudioTan]

From the article:

"Based on our estimates, we see 2019 as a major inflection point for the entire market, almost tripling yearly revenue to nearly $300 million across all platforms. This is mostly driven by the success of Oculus but also a significant uplift in the PSVR marketplace mainly driven by the success of Beat Saber and other new hit VR games.

What makes Oculus interesting is how much it has grown the market in the past year, if you look purely at software revenue. Sony announced sales of PlayStation VR in January 2020: 5 million headsets over the last four years. Our estimates suggest nearly $110 million in software revenue recorded in 2019. Oculus hasn't announced how many Quests are out there, but given that it's probably a much smaller install base, it's impressive to see it drive nearly $60 million in software revenue for 2019."

Click to shrink...

Yeah, it makes sense now, thanks. It's interesting how Steam was ahead of Rift/Oculus at the beginning of 2019 and by the end of the year even the Oculus PC sales were now ahead of Steam, then add-on Quest software sales and it's far ahead now.

There were a few big Oculus exclusive games released this year so I guess it makes sense. I know a lot of people have issues with Oculus still but they are putting a lot of money into VR to it's nice to see that it's getting results for them. Will be interesting to see how Alyx does for Valve.

 

[SirBaron]

Me and my sister got a quest last month, my mother a few weeks later. Except for our mother we use it for both standalone and pc headset.

 

[Deleted member 1839]

I wonder how Alyx will impact the sales for PCVR headsets.

 

[Arkanius]

I wonder how Alyx will impact the sales for PCVR headsets.

Click to shrink...

Most VR headsets for PC are sold out everywhere
Take a guess lol

 

[Deleted member 1839]

Most VR headsets for PC are sold out everywhere
Take a guess lol

Click to shrink...

Heh, I meant after release.

 

[Shinobido Heart]

I encourage everyone to go out and try VR if they can. I don't know if companies are still demoing headsets in local stores, but do give it a try if possible.

I'm proud of everyone who invested in VR. :)

 

[Alucardx23]

Heh, I meant after release.

Click to shrink...

The cherry on top would be having Half Life Alyx winning several game of the year awards. Hopefully I will have my Valve Index by the time the game launches.

 

[Alucardx23]

I encourage everyone to go out and try VR if they can. I don't know if companies are still demoing headsets in local stores, but do give it a try if possible.

I'm proud of everyone who invested in VR. :)

Click to shrink...

As long as it's not smartphone and 3DOF VR we're good. Proud owner of an HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Go and Quest here. I love all of them.

 

[Quample]

But resetera say Virtua Boy craze be over!

This trend will continue in 2020. Can't wait to see what the next few years has in store....true next gen VR is gonna blow our socks off.

 

[tr1b0re]

I am one of those new Quest owners, or soon to be in like a week

I really hope that things just keep getting better

 

[cakely]

100 titles exceeding $1M in revenue!

Seems like very positive news, Quest was obviously a pretty big hit.

I wonder how Alyx will impact the sales for PCVR headsets.

Click to shrink...

By all indications, it already has. Just the announcement gave PCVR sales a significant bump.

 

[Deleted member 2840]

The cherry on top would be having Half Life Alyx winning several game of the year awards. Hopefully I will have my Valve Index by the time the game launches.

Click to shrink...

It's kinda ridiculous that we're in the middle of February and the Index is STILL sold out everywhere since December

 

[Alucardx23]

It's kinda ridiculous that we're in the middle of February and the Index is STILL sold out everywhere since December

Click to shrink...

Even more incredible when you take into account the price of the damn thing.

 

[Deleted member 18379]

Shush, VR is a fad, I know it because I tried it once.
Seriously though. It's exciting to know that we are on the verge of an explosion in the way we can enjoy media. There is so much potential that won't be fully explored for at least another decade.

 

[Dr. Mario]

It's getting bigger but I kinda doubt it's a real inflection, because all these headsets are very hype driven and have one or two years where they bloom and then decline again. Of course that makes sense with the way the technology is currently, but jumping platform from Oculus/Gear to Vive/Steam to PSN to Oculus again makes it still very volatile.

 

[KDR_11k]

It's getting bigger but I kinda doubt it's a real inflection, because all these headsets are very hype driven and have one or two years where they bloom and then decline again. Of course that makes sense with the way the technology is currently, but jumping platform from Oculus/Gear to Vive/Steam to PSN to Oculus again makes it still very volatile.

Click to shrink...

VR's main weakness is the software, the selection is quite limited despite there being theoretically 2000 VR games on Steam and budgets top out fairly low because the small userbase means limited revenue. Plus gaming news sites won't even cover VR games (except for a rare few standouts) due to the small audience that reads stories about them. So unless you're actively looking up VR games you won't know what's good and just see a big list of unfamiliar names.

Tbh, really surprised that Sony has the biggest market, thought for sure that it would be PC.

Click to shrink...

I'm not surprised at all, the PC you need for good VR is quite expensive and goes beyond what you need to just do regular gaming. Even without the headset price that's quite an investment just for VR. Meanwhile PSVR runs on a stock PS4 that most people already own just for TV gaming.

 

[fracas]

I bought a Quest last week after a promising but uncomfortable outing with an OG Rift back in '17 and I was wowed.

Wireless VR is absolutely the future. Once affordable streaming gets to where it needs to be, I think VR will really hit its stride. High FoV with super high resolutions (I'd kill to try a Pimax) and a more comfortable headset are the next step, but the progress made from the launch headsets to the Quest can't be understated.

 

[Tygre]

I just got a Quest.

It's neat, but it reconfirms to me that VR in it's current state will never be more than a niche novelty.

As long as VR means a bulky and cumbersome headset matched to awkward and fiddly controllers it will never go mainstream.

 

[Jaypah]

I'm confused. Is PSN the biggest single marketplace or is it bigger than both Oculus and Steam combined? I can see the former being true but people are saying it's bigger than the PC market which is surprising and impressive.

 

[Alucardx23]

I just got a Quest.

It's neat, but it reconfirms to me that VR in it's current state will never be more than a niche novelty.

As long as VR means a bulky and cumbersome headset matched to awkward and fiddly controllers it will never go mainstream.

Click to shrink...

It's a good thing then that the technology has been improving fast, having a wireless VR headset like the Quest is a big improvement by itself. Although I don't know about the "awkward and fiddly controllers", what we have now looks really good to me, specially with the Valve Index controllers. The level of interaction these VR controllers allow, normal controllers can only dream about.

 

[StudioTan]

I'm confused. Is PSN the biggest single marketplace or is it bigger than both Oculus and Steam combined? I can see the former being true but people are saying it's bigger than the PC market which is surprising and impressive.

Click to shrink...

Looking at the chart (properly now) PSN is at just over 100M in sales, PC looks to be at about 130M between Oculus and Steam with Oculus have the larger share of that. Oculus itself with Rift and Quest seems to be at about 150M.

I just got a Quest.

It's neat, but it reconfirms to me that VR in it's current state will never be more than a niche novelty.

As long as VR means a bulky and cumbersome headset matched to awkward and fiddly controllers it will never go mainstream.

Click to shrink...

Comfort seems to be an individual thing (I personally don't find the Quest uncomfortable) but what do you find awkward and fiddly about the controllers? I find them to be extremely precise.

 

[Skittles]

VR is definitely here to stay, and I am truly excited for what the PSVR2 can do on PS5 and the next Oculus platform after Quest for wireless VR gaming.

Click to shrink...

I actually hope that Sony and Valve partner up in some way once Sony releases PSVR2. They've expressed wanting to be more open with the platform so it's not too crazy that valve would be willing to.

 

[Jaypah]

Looking at the chart (properly now) PSN is at just over 100M in sales, PC looks to be at about 130M between Oculus and Steam with Oculus have the larger share of that. Oculus itself with Rift and Quest seems to be at about 150M.



Comfort seems to be an individual thing (I personally don't find the Quest uncomfortable) but what do you find fiddly about the controllers? I find them to be extremely precise.

Click to shrink...

Ok, that seems more along the lines of what I was expecting. Sounds relatively healthy overall. I have a DK2, Vive and GearVR but I'm seriously considering a Quest. It seems like a damn good value.