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Oculus Rift available for preorder for $599.99, shipping in March
- Thread starter War Eagle
- Start date
Admiral Snackbar
Member
Finally! Was about time.
Managed to buy 3 (plus 2 free from the kickstarter backing), 2 of which should be coming in March, 1 in April and I guess the free ones will get to us backers much later on.
(That many, as my studio was born basically only with VR in mind - back to just before DK1 times - and we do installations with them)
That aside, I'm impressed with the amount of people on here saying (or worse, hoping) that the Rift will be a flop, VR doomed and so on.
Either it's a bunch of salty people that want it but can't afford it (forgetting either how much early new tech costs, or not realising it if someone else bought that early tech for them), or just out of touch with how some things work/are priced/are built
Especially reading how some people are actively hoping the Vive will cost less than the OR.
People who want to go into a GameStop and get a Rift+Game for 250-350 will of course be able to, at a later stage though. VR is not only for games and the 'non-games' will drive a lot of its initial interest and recognition.
Also, the Rift is pretty much...well, A LOT different than the DK2. Yes, you're putting some pixels in front of your eyes in both cases, but the quality and experiences are really, really different.
Once you try the CV Rift or Vive's latest DK it gets clear immediately - for VR, that's the way to go. DK2 wasn't even close in comparison.
Obviously it's not going mainstream in the first week or month. Can't understand how some think that should be the case.
It's also a dangerous thing to do in the case of virtual reality. Pisspoor headset sold for 250, grandma buys it as gift for grandson, grandson connects it to his low/midrange PC, starts EVE Valkyrie, throws up his birthday cake, throws the headset in the bin and *that* is a forever lost consumer for VR.
Also, people forget that VR generally is, and has always been an incredibly high-cost operation to create, maintain - and from a developer POV, sustain. Even if you take the hardware out of the equation - and you can't - it's not like you have your Candy Crush, Uncharted or Temple Run and can just throw it into VR. (some will do that of course, unfortunately)
It's not a new TV, where you can create content for it with the same instruments and thought process as always, just in 4k - and if you don't have a 4k camera, do it in 2k. The experience is just marginally changed.
VR needs custom workflows, custom thought train to produce content for it, lots and lots of testing not only on different hardwares but on different kinds people - not just your target, and the list could go on.
Cinematography took decades and decades to get refined and standardised, and it had the advantage of forced shots, for VR will be just a bit shorter than that time-wise, I think, since we can readapt some things from original cinematography concepts, but won't be too far off.
In conclusion I do not think it is overpriced at all. It is 'pricey', as in, not an impulse buy, but it can't be at this stage.
I understand the ones pissed off at Palmer's comments that CV would be in the ballpark of 350, but Palmer hasn't been CEO of Oculus in a very very long time now - his words, especially when talking market and money, at this point are of marginal meaning.
He doesn't even know how the pricing of his own consumer product works.
Of us who ordered from Europe, we paid more and that includes taxes. The only thing we need to add on top of that price is the shipping. Which will happen from Europe by the way, as it has happened with DK1 and DK2 (and we bought 2 DK1 and 8 DK2) - there WILL NOT be any 'import' or 'custom duty' tax that will apply to your CV1 order. Want to bet?
TL;DR: The Rift will be fine even priced like that, and VR will be fine too. You'll be able to afford it at 200/250, its games and have the good-enough machines that runs them in 1, 1.5 year's time.
You're good people. 100% agree.
Chance Hale
Member
Huw_Dawson
Member
The classic BBC Sherlock Holmes TV series.
The thing is, I'm still thinking about getting one of these - but this pushes my interest back a few months whilst I make some computer upgrades (and conquer Europe in SFV)
Disaster Nebraska
Banned
You can't apply Rogers Curve in a vacuum, because Oculus has competitors. The "early adopter" curve only works out if OR has no competitors and/or the competitors are priced about the same.Remembering what I learned in business school, here's a bit of insight.
This is "Rogers Adoption Curve". What this shows is a business's (especially relevant in the tech industry) market penetration from the start and to the finish of its lifecycle. Price is one of the factors directly associated to the increase in penetration as time (X axis) goes on.
From Oculus perspective, the people who are all in on Oculus Rift "the innovators", they're willing to pay the $600 price tag. If you are not willing to pay that, then you are not part of this label. If you are waiting for the price to drop a bit, and it will, then you are the "early adopters". The people who go on forums, who are excited for this thing and have been for so long and will preach to friends and family about how amazing it is. As time goes on, marketing pushes occur, further price drops happen, the mainstream target audience gains awareness and access to the product, "early majority" and "late majority" will make their purchases. Finally "laggards" would be the people who come across this tech when Oculus 2 is already out and they're LTTP. They're picking this thing up on clearance (not really, but they're far behind).
We can throw our arms up in the air, but until we hear that this is a complete failure, Oculus will continue to work on their shit and making the price cheaper for the rest of us unwilling to pay.
That isn't likely to be the case here, though, what with PS VR.
I know people are super excited for Oculus but more products fail than those that succeed. When you take into account that Oculus plans to release aggressive SKU iterations, they may be pricing themselves out of the market right at the start.
Nothing unusual about that, to be honest. It happens all the time.
Real_Madrid
Member
I wonder how 'open' the Oculus really is. They have an appstore, but you have to imagine that many games on their store will also be on Steam etc and probably cheaper that way.
Is there a chance they will block mods and whatnot?
Is there a chance they will block mods and whatnot?
captjohnboyd
Member
I feel like the comparisons to gaming monitors or TVs are disingenuous at best. There's only so much software out there for VR and while that may be an amazing amount of content (I don't really know how much either way just making a point) a television or monitor can be used all the time for anything. There's no shortage of content for either a monitor or a tv. Ever
If the early adopters aren't satisfied with the "experience" and after a week of using it they just see it as a gimmick like 3D TV's then word of mouth will spread. I fear that many are expecting lots of great varied experiences instead of small chunks that are basically early VR experiments. I've heard people saying they cant wait to play COD in VR, and Star Wars, and all their favorite MMOs. But those games dont exist at the moment.
I did jab at the price but I understand it and I want VR to get big. ' just worried that the initial reaction will be "OMG AMAZING" then a month later " MEH,SAVE YOUR MONEY U'LL USE IT FOR LIKE A WEEK"
I did jab at the price but I understand it and I want VR to get big. ' just worried that the initial reaction will be "OMG AMAZING" then a month later " MEH,SAVE YOUR MONEY U'LL USE IT FOR LIKE A WEEK"
The Elite
BOSS
The big fear for me when it comes to VR is content.
I'm not just talking about gaming. I am really curious to see what independent development brings to the table in terms of experiences.
VR makes the word EXPERIENCE ok to use again because, yeah, I kind of want to be sold on new experiences beyond gaming.
I'm not just talking about gaming. I am really curious to see what independent development brings to the table in terms of experiences.
VR makes the word EXPERIENCE ok to use again because, yeah, I kind of want to be sold on new experiences beyond gaming.
AcademicSaucer
Member
Conflicting messages. So the Euro price doesn't include import taxes after all?
Im not saying he is right or wrong, but maybe he should leave twitter for a while.
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
Oh I know hardware has been revised over the years - but the same happens with other devkits over the time. While they've improved the hardware, it's safe to say that the said hardware has decreased in price over the years too. DK2 would be costing far less to mass-manufacture now than whatever it cost them to produce it as a devkit back then. Then there's also significant savings that can be amassed by mass-purchasing the hardware and mass-manufacturing something, as opposed to creating limited run prototypes. Yet, they couldn't (or wouldn't) leverage any of those advantages here seemingly, and the mass manufactured product costs literally twice more than their early prototypes made years ago. It's just intuitively weird tbh.
I also have to say that some of the decisions they made, like embedding headphones, bundling controller, games and remote were wrong IMO. I don't care about either of those games or the remote, and for headphones, I don't want to pay extra for whatever phones they are including into this, when I already have high end earbuds that I can use. It feels like they are going almost out of their way to make this thing more expensive than it really needs to be, just to rip off the early adopters, especially after it seemed like they were going out of their way to make the devkits as affordabe as possible.
Betta Lines
Member
Dude, I was answering a question as to why people expected it to be cheaper. Do you see me complaining about the price?
MutonCommander
Banned
Thanks for the writeup. People need to understand that premium tech carries a premium price. If the PSVR is significantly cheaper, chances are that it's also significantly worse.
What? You have no idea what you are talking about.
You can go onto any online forum and pretty much everyone is saying it is too expensive, not just GAF.
For your second point, VR at this moment has hype behind, so why are they not trying to use it?
The fastest way to ensure VR survives and grown is to make the biggest impact now, expose large amount of users to VR and let those users use their word of mouth to spread the hype. This will also push the bigger companies to thrown money behind this thing.
At this moment, this is a really bad start for VR.
CosmicQueso
Member
Fits really close with an Early Adopter %. So, right on target more like.
If it was year 3 and 90% of the responses were "nope" then it's a different problem.
king grimlock
Member
Is there an issue with cards being declined? I thought I saw someone mention it when the thread was smaller. I hope they don't need to see the $$ up front...
plagiarize
Banned
And then when they launched their next hardware, that was cheaper and better... more people bought it. The PS3 is only a failure compared to the PS2. It made Sony money. It put them in a position to make a better (and more affordable) follow up. It didn't kill them off. Would the Rift have sold more at a cheaper price? Of course.
Doesn't mean it's doomed at $600.
I have played it. You are wrong. Many games are already very well suited to being VR games. Anything with a cockpit is already well on it's way to working well in VR.
StevePharma
Member
Bought in, price is steep but I was expecting 5 to 6 hundred at minimum plus European price bumps.
Now I just need to know when Sony ships PSVR and 2016 is set. Can focus now on new computer build for May-June.
Exciting times!
Now I just need to know when Sony ships PSVR and 2016 is set. Can focus now on new computer build for May-June.
Exciting times!
backbreaker65
Banned
That doesn't mean anything without #'s and you don't even need the money right now to order the damn thing. Hell Quya did the same thing.
Crazy this gimmick is costing $600 US. That's an insane entry point, never mind the hardware needed to run it and the potential problems people can run into while using it.
I thought it would be somewhat expensive, but this just put a nail in its coffin of any sort of potential success - not like that would happen anyways - another one to put in your attic along with the Ouya, 3D Glasses, Kinetic, and other motion control peripherals.
I thought it would be somewhat expensive, but this just put a nail in its coffin of any sort of potential success - not like that would happen anyways - another one to put in your attic along with the Ouya, 3D Glasses, Kinetic, and other motion control peripherals.
shaowebb
Member
Well thats news, but the problem is I've yet to see one piece of software for it that makes me give a damn. Its neat interesting tech, but it may as well be a science project unless someone who is a game designer steps up and really makes something unique and captivating with it.
As is, its an expensive novelty.
As is, its an expensive novelty.
Doc Holliday
SPOILER: Columbus finds America
I see your point but How many people own Racing wheels? If the numbers aren't there right away publishers/developers are not going to be too keen on making software. People keep comparing it to high end tvs and audio equipment but guess there will always be music and content because you don't need high end stuff to enjoy it. Good VR content is expensive or at the very least time consuming. If the audience isn't there, devs will think twice.
I just feel like VR has enough shit going against it, don't make the price one of them.
Buggy Loop
Gold Member
Lets see, i already have (and cant wait to play in VR with
Elite Dangerous
Dirt Rally
Digital combat simulator (especially this one, VR will change everything)
Assetto Corsa
War Thunder
The Vanishing of Ethan Carter
Minecraft
Star citizen
Upcoming games i want to play in VR
Enemy starfighter (ooohhhh yesss)
Edge of nowhere
And shitload of horror games like Routine and The forest for exemple.
Its really not the games that are missing on PC. Like i said, the kickass VR community (not exclusive to oculus), made a lot of VR experiences possible, tweaking old games sometimes to unofficially support it.
Oh! I read it as if you were complaining that the components didn't cost them any where near $100 and this is just money grubbing, etc. Sorry!
wanderingprostheyltite
Member
Nope, they'll keep it open. They even wanted the Gear to be open with their app store in place but Samsung was the one that put the kibosh on that.
Ninja Scooter
Member
People who say "I can't wait to play COD in VR" are probably not the people shelling of $600 for this first iteration of consumer VR. They are the people who will be buying a headset in 2-3 years when the tech is cheaper and, who knows, maybe a version of CoD is actually available in VR.
Was there a lot of overhype for VR as the next big thing? Sure. But I don't think people understand just how early in the process we are with this stuff. This is not a mainstream product, and not every piece of technology starts out that way. That doesn't mean it's a failure.
I'll probably partake in some VR porn sure, not sure why you want to watch however.
Cant wait for April.
Again. In one tweet he says the taxes are included in the price of the product. In this reply to someone complaining about getting taxed again, he tells that person to blame the country. But his reply should be to tell the guy that he won't get taxed again, because it's already included in the price. Or is it? Getting taxed TWICE is not something you blame on the country, but on Oculus itself (if that is indeed the case).
Nevermind it's bad PR.
So I really don't get why people are defending this tweet.
Mr Wonderstuff
Banned
Clearly they are not early adopters. Sorry but not everyone banging on about the price is the target audience. I wonder how many have ordered a Rift from here and not said as much.
This thread is going to end up like the thread about next-gen consoles from 2012 where hundreds of people confidently predicted the failure of Sony's next console.
Oh it definitely will be. Manufacturing costs will go down even as the technology improves.
They will eventually want to grab a wider spectrum of people rather than just the enthusiasts.
Remembering what I learned in business school, here's a bit of insight.
This is "Rogers Adoption Curve". What this shows is a business's (especially relevant in the tech industry) market penetration from the start and to the finish of its lifecycle. Price is one of the factors directly associated to the increase in penetration as time (X axis) goes on.
From Oculus perspective, the people who are all in on Oculus Rift "the innovators", they're willing to pay the $600 price tag. If you are not willing to pay that, then you are not part of this label. If you are waiting for the price to drop a bit, and it will, then you are the "early adopters". The people who go on forums, who are excited for this thing and have been for so long and will preach to friends and family about how amazing it is. As time goes on, marketing pushes occur, further price drops happen, the mainstream target audience gains awareness and access to the product, "early majority" and "late majority" will make their purchases. Finally "laggards" would be the people who come across this tech when Oculus 2 is already out and they're LTTP. They're picking this thing up on clearance (not really, but they're far behind).
We can throw our arms up in the air, but until we hear that this is a complete failure, Oculus will continue to work on their shit and making the price cheaper for the rest of us unwilling to pay.
And why it doesn't matter:
"Why 3D TV Went From CES Darling to Consumer Reject"
http://www.wired.com/2012/01/state-of-3-d-technology/
- Expensive. Check.
- Can cause headaches and is uncomfortable. Check.
- Not supported by a lot of quality content. Check.
A lot of similar warning signs.
But I guess we'll see, won't we?
Doc Holliday
SPOILER: Columbus finds America
Only people who haven't tried it call it a gimmick from my experience.
Wait wait wait wait wait, Dirty Rally and Minecraft already support the Oculus Rift ?????
What joke? That a sophisticated, consumer ready, complete in box, high def. VR product, first to market, is $599?
Uh, ok.
Including PSeye and PS move controllers?
You salty? Am I doing it right?
AcademicSaucer
Member
Yeah, if you cant afford it right now just get the entry level PSVR, if what he says is true, the rift will gradually decrease in price.
alexbull_uk
Member
There are 3rd-party tools that can make the Rift work with a ton of games. Even new stuff like Fallout 4.
Oculus understands that this is a marathon, not a sprint. Releasing a product done right, even at a kinda high price is what it takes to establish the baseline for what's acceptable in terms of quality for hardware. They're not trying to hit mainstream because the overwhelming majority of people can't even run the headset on whatever they own, the Rift at this time is squarely aimed at early adopters/enthusiasts.
plagiarize
Banned
We have people here saying VR is dead because the Rift is expensive. I bring up S curves not about specifically Oculus, but about VR in general.
I still don't think you're right though. I bet you the PS3 still sold on that kind of curve even with cheaper and more popular alternatives.
Not sure about the former but Microsoft is developing a version of Minecraft for the Rift.
Doc Holliday
SPOILER: Columbus finds America
You mean the one that launched a hundred dollars cheaper than the competition and more powerful?