When PlayStation VR launches on October 13, it will join the likes of HTC Vive and Oculus Rift in offering an all-new way to game.
There’s unsurprisingly a lot of debate surrounding the value and marketability of VR content, not to mention the technology’s ability to make it “mainstream” in the face of rising health concerns.
Despite all the doubt, one thing’s for certain: PlayStation VR will have the biggest exclusives, and it may just be what the technology needs for a much-needed market boost.
The fact that Resident Evil 7 biohazard‘s VR mode will be exclusive to PlayStation VR for 12 months says a lot for just how hard the PlayStation team is working to create a piece of hardware that is as if not more appealing than a home console.
The news of the timed exclusivity comes via a Reddit post. One response raises an interesting question about the deal between Capcom and Sony: it seems like a hell of a long time to remain exclusive to one piece of hardware. Rise Of The Tomb Raider did it, and it didn’t appear to really raise the stakes in the console war at the time.
The difference here is obviously the “PlayStation” name and the company’s marketing push behind the technology, and it’s pretty obvious that Resident Evil is widely associated with PlayStation anyway. Would HTC Vive and Oculus owners flock to Resident Evil 7 biohazard in the same way PlayStation VR, or prospective PlayStation VR owners would?
We’re still a few months off launch, with the game expected to hit PlayStation 4, PlayStation VR, Xbox One and PC in January 27. Will it be the PlayStation VR’s killer app?