Xbox + Oculus Rift?
Well that was odd.
It does make sense in some respects. But it is odd. The article is even more odd. It seems completely inaccurate to claim that Microsoft gets the most benefit from this. In fact, I think it is more than just slightly the other way around.
Firstly, why it does make some sense. On its own, as a platform, Oculus hasn't really made waves. It is hugely popular and well known. But there are no mainstream applications for it. To put it bluntly, it is either doomed to try and survive as a boutique device or die a slow and painful death. For Microsoft, Sony is bringing Project Morpheus out next year and HoloLens isn't really at a price point to compete with that.
So Microsoft gets a quick answer they don't need to sink a lot of R&D dollars into and Oculus actually has a chance to survive. That makes sense.
But, does Microsoft need an answer to Morpheus? That isn't proven yet one way or another. But the simple reality is; probably not. The current generation of consoles weren't really designed with VR in mind and there currently aren't any games out for either platform built with VR in mind. By the time VR becomes a major component in the gaming landscape HoloLens might be at a price point and quality to compete. VR might not catch on at all this generation.
In fact, this move may actually backfire on Microsoft. One of the great things I was thinking of using HoloLens for was to stream my Xbox One games to a giant holographic window. And it sounds like (from the linked article) Oculus Rift will do this and at a fraction of the cost.
So, no matter how it pans out it sounds like Oculus sells more units that it would have otherwise. The Xbox One, even if not as successful as the PS4, is still hugely successful by any other measure. With VR being unproven all this real does is eats into a potential hardware revenue stream for Microsoft. They probably don't care as it doesn't sound like gamers and the average consumer were really the target audience for HoloLens anyway.
I also don't buy that this partnership is going to do anything for Windows 10 hardware sales. Firstly, it was already a foregone conclusion that this tech would work with Windows PCs. If that helps Windows at all, it is already reaping those benefits.
And as I said earlier, this feels MUCH more important to Facebook and Oculus as the entire hardware division was basically doomed to death without a viable platform. I'm not really sure how an option which can potentially save an entire division of a company can be called less valuable than hardware which brings questionable value to two VERY stable and well established platforms (Xbox and Windows).
And lets not pretend Facebook had other options of this calibre. Sony already has their VR headset planned so they wouldn't be interested in either buying or partnering with Oculus. Nintendo isn't a serious platform for gamers. Which leaves Xbox and Windows as the only two remaining platforms with any chance in hell of getting traction for the hardware. And this partnership gives them both! And PC gaming alone puts the Windows 10 eco system ahead of all of Sony's devices combined.
But, to that last point, I think the Xbox piece is the most important piece for Facebook. While Windows 10 is great and has a wealth of gamers and games... it isn't really anything new. And what is there requires developers to target Oculus specifically to give any tangible benefit. With the ability to stream your Xbox games to a virtual big screen for "legacy" games or immerse yourself in future truly VR titles it actually gives gamers a viable reason to at least consider the headset even if they aren't interested in gimmicky VR games.
So yeah! Odd. I don't think Microsoft needed this at all. Ultimately, I think both Project Morpheus and Oculus will cost too much as accessories to attract a mainstream audience any time in the first 3-5 years. And in that time Microsoft could potentially have iterated on HoloLens sufficiently that it could take on the likes of Project Morpheus at a competitive price.
I can't blame MS. It is certainly nice to be able to popular with a device that already has street cred and gives you a quick and simple answer to Sony's VR headset. I just also can't sit back and put stock in the claim that they are the bigger beneficiary here. This is just a check box ticked off on the PR and marketing bucket lists.
It does make sense in some respects. But it is odd. The article is even more odd. It seems completely inaccurate to claim that Microsoft gets the most benefit from this. In fact, I think it is more than just slightly the other way around.
Firstly, why it does make some sense. On its own, as a platform, Oculus hasn't really made waves. It is hugely popular and well known. But there are no mainstream applications for it. To put it bluntly, it is either doomed to try and survive as a boutique device or die a slow and painful death. For Microsoft, Sony is bringing Project Morpheus out next year and HoloLens isn't really at a price point to compete with that.
So Microsoft gets a quick answer they don't need to sink a lot of R&D dollars into and Oculus actually has a chance to survive. That makes sense.
But, does Microsoft need an answer to Morpheus? That isn't proven yet one way or another. But the simple reality is; probably not. The current generation of consoles weren't really designed with VR in mind and there currently aren't any games out for either platform built with VR in mind. By the time VR becomes a major component in the gaming landscape HoloLens might be at a price point and quality to compete. VR might not catch on at all this generation.
In fact, this move may actually backfire on Microsoft. One of the great things I was thinking of using HoloLens for was to stream my Xbox One games to a giant holographic window. And it sounds like (from the linked article) Oculus Rift will do this and at a fraction of the cost.
So, no matter how it pans out it sounds like Oculus sells more units that it would have otherwise. The Xbox One, even if not as successful as the PS4, is still hugely successful by any other measure. With VR being unproven all this real does is eats into a potential hardware revenue stream for Microsoft. They probably don't care as it doesn't sound like gamers and the average consumer were really the target audience for HoloLens anyway.
I also don't buy that this partnership is going to do anything for Windows 10 hardware sales. Firstly, it was already a foregone conclusion that this tech would work with Windows PCs. If that helps Windows at all, it is already reaping those benefits.
And as I said earlier, this feels MUCH more important to Facebook and Oculus as the entire hardware division was basically doomed to death without a viable platform. I'm not really sure how an option which can potentially save an entire division of a company can be called less valuable than hardware which brings questionable value to two VERY stable and well established platforms (Xbox and Windows).
And lets not pretend Facebook had other options of this calibre. Sony already has their VR headset planned so they wouldn't be interested in either buying or partnering with Oculus. Nintendo isn't a serious platform for gamers. Which leaves Xbox and Windows as the only two remaining platforms with any chance in hell of getting traction for the hardware. And this partnership gives them both! And PC gaming alone puts the Windows 10 eco system ahead of all of Sony's devices combined.
But, to that last point, I think the Xbox piece is the most important piece for Facebook. While Windows 10 is great and has a wealth of gamers and games... it isn't really anything new. And what is there requires developers to target Oculus specifically to give any tangible benefit. With the ability to stream your Xbox games to a virtual big screen for "legacy" games or immerse yourself in future truly VR titles it actually gives gamers a viable reason to at least consider the headset even if they aren't interested in gimmicky VR games.
So yeah! Odd. I don't think Microsoft needed this at all. Ultimately, I think both Project Morpheus and Oculus will cost too much as accessories to attract a mainstream audience any time in the first 3-5 years. And in that time Microsoft could potentially have iterated on HoloLens sufficiently that it could take on the likes of Project Morpheus at a competitive price.
I can't blame MS. It is certainly nice to be able to popular with a device that already has street cred and gives you a quick and simple answer to Sony's VR headset. I just also can't sit back and put stock in the claim that they are the bigger beneficiary here. This is just a check box ticked off on the PR and marketing bucket lists.
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