Jason Schreier tweeted about an audible “Awwwww” from the crowd at the announcement of Batman: Arkham Shadow. The reason? This new installment in the beloved Arkham series is exclusive to Meta Quest, Facebook’s (now Meta) virtual reality platform.
The crowd here at the Summer Game Fest live show let out an audible “Awwwww” at the announcement that this new Arkham game is for Meta Quest, in case you’re wondering how VR is going
— Jason Schreier (@jasonschreier) June 7, 2024
A niche market?
For ages, everyone’s been saying VR is the future of gaming, with life-like immersion that blows everything else out of the water. But the truth is, VR hasn’t exactly exploded like everyone thought. It’s still a niche market compared to the big console players like PlayStation and Xbox.
For comparison, Sony’s sold over 59 million PS5s as of March 2024. Meta Quest’s sales figures are a bit more hush-hush. However, estimates say the total number of ALL Quest models sold is way, way lower. Sure, the Meta Quest 2 was a hot holiday gift, but turning that into a thriving VR market is proving tricky.
Meta’s hoping the VR community will go gaga for Arkham Shadow and maybe even bring some new players to the platform. If the game’s a hit, it could be a tipping point for VR, showing everyone the amazing experiences it can offer. But if it flops, it could just reinforce the idea that VR has very limited appeal.
Previous VR Games
VR games have been a bit of a wild ride. Some games, like Half-Life: Alyx, got amazing reviews and sold well within the VR community, but they never reached the popularity of big console releases. Others, like Lone Echo and The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners, did well with VR players but never became mainstream hits.
Some VR exclusives have a tough time even making back their development costs because there just aren’t that many people with VR headsets yet. Star Trek: Bridge Crew, for example, got mixed reviews and didn’t make a huge splash, even though it’s based on a super famous franchise.
Dark Knight Rises in Virtual Reality
Despite the challenges, Batman: Arkham Shadow could be a game-changer. The Batman franchise is huge, and the idea of driving around Gotham City in VR is pretty tempting. If the game delivers on its promises of super immersive gameplay and a killer story, it could attract both VR veterans and newbies alike.
But success isn’t guaranteed. VR headsets are expensive, some gamers get motion sick in VR, and there just aren’t that many VR games out there yet – all of which can make people hesitant to jump in.
Developed by the Iron Man VR crew (Camouflaj), this VR experience promises full immersion. We’re talking swinging through Gotham, solving crime scenes, and taking down classic villains like Killer Croc and Two-Face in a brand new story set two years after Arkham Origins.
