What Will Happen? The Game Industry VR Games Edition

VR games using headsets such as “MetaQuest” and “PS VR” attracted a lot of attention for a while.

Will VR games become a new battleground for the game market?

Attention is focused on VR as a new form of game, but its future is unknown

VR is an abbreviation for “virtual reality,” a generic term for technology that allows users to experience virtual spaces as if they were real. At present, VR is becoming popular in the form of headsets that allow users to experience digital screens as if they were real. Among these, VR games are those designed for game experiences.

MetaQuest” developed by Meta and ‘Play Station VR,’ a headset for PlayStation, are already on the market and compatible software has been released for each.

Many pundits and media consider VR games to be the next blue ocean for the gaming market. For example, according to a report on the gaming market published by Grand View Research, the VR gaming market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 22.7% from 2023 to 2030, reaching approximately US$109.5 billion by 2030.

Incidentally, since the size of the overall gaming market as of 2023 is $160 billion, according to this forecast, the VR gaming market will have grown to about two-thirds of that size by 2030 on its own.

However, such a projection can only be based on too optimistic expectations at the present time. Although the market for headsets and VR-compatible software is not yet fully formed, and the scale of its sales can only be predicted from a small amount of data, there is no doubt that the explosive growth described above is not occurring at this time.

For example, in October 2023, the cumulative revenue of the Meta Quest store reached $2 billion. However, at the same time, it is also reported that the pace of revenue has been declining in the last 12 months, and while the $2 billion figure can be assessed differently, it is certainly far from the $109.5 billion market size, at least. Moreover, the fact that the pace of revenue is declining suggests that momentum may even be waning.

In any case, it is unlikely that VR gaming will suddenly grow as it is now. In the game market, there is a history of hit titles first in any field, and the market has grown as a result. For example, in the smartphone game market, the hit “Pazudora” quickly increased the number of players and stimulated the entry of developers.

Similarly, it will be difficult for VR games to grow to a market scale comparable to that of consumer and PC games unless a major hit title appears. Of course, there are game companies that see this situation as an opportunity and are entering the market, so let's hope that they will create a blockbuster title.

The Present and Future of VR Games

1. Headsets are being released one after another, and the fit and specifications continue to improve.

2. At one time there were predictions of rapid growth, but that momentum has waned and almost no hit titles have been created. In order to expand the size of the market, hit titles must appear.

Are live game videos right or wrong?

In recent years, live game videos have become popular content on video platforms. Not only e-sports titles such as “Fortnite” but also games such as “Minecraft” are popular as distribution titles.

The question that arises is whether live video games are a positive thing for the video game market. While some believe that video distribution is good for promotion, there are also many who believe that it may discourage purchasing by providing spoilers and other information.

Although there are different opinions on this issue in the video game industry, there is no doubt that live video game distribution is becoming an important part of the promotional activities.