Commentary

Will LBE find its niche amid VR market confusion?

For enterprise, it is the LBE VR scene where things continue to be most positive.

Image: Adobe Stock.

October 30, 2023 by Kevin Williams

Consumers' intransigence to fully jump into the latest phase of home VR means LBE becomes a prime provider of immersion.

That such intransigence continues against the groundswell of investment in consumer VR deserves serious attention from the location based entertainment community. Which is not to say the future is easy to see.

Where is Meta headed?

The new Meta Quest 3 headset features a 30% increase in performance compared to the previous Meta Quest 2, with better graphical fidelity achieved using the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 Gen 2 processor.

The system will get 50 new titles this year made to support both Quest 2 and Quest 3.

A big reveal for Quest 3 was a partnership with Microsoft, offering buyers support for Xbox Cloud Gaming on its new Quest — able to play in flatscreen mode on the VR headset with a selection of titles. This also came with a new software update for the Meta Quest 2 on this platform, seeing avatars finally getting their legs implemented, achieved through body data through an AI model to achieve a simulated representation.

However, Meta seems to have relegated VR to the backburner, along with some of its more grandiose claims for their Metaverse aspirations.

What direction is it going?

The reality of the situation for Meta, needing to distance itself from its PC VR roots and look towards defining and dominating the standalone VR horizon, was self-evident and was also reflected in several developments.

Meta originally released Oculus PC Multiplayer VR game, "Medal of Honour: Above and Beyond," a big franchise release for the Meta platform, originally envisaged as an Oculus Rift-S release, then moved to Meta Quest and launched by EA/Respawn, and now will be unavailable from December.

Innersloth LLC, an independent studio in Redmond, Washington, announced that from October the Oculus Rift PC VR headsets would not receive further support of this game — drawing a line through Oculus PC store support.

Enterprise migration?

The position of new games' availability sparked comments from observers regarding the core focus of Meta going forward as its VR aspirations migrate into MR. One of these directions was confirmation of Meta's latest attempt to support enterprise for its hardware.

A new subscription service for corporations called Meta Quest for Business has been running a beta program since 2022 which includes the sharing of devices with the ability of managing of accounts — with all headsets in the program needing a Meta account.

This program offers access to Microsoft Windows 365 on the cloud from Meta Quest 3 and uses Edge and various business/commercial software, all with 24-hour support for administrators.

The Quest 3 offers an obvious platform of interest, especially if supported by Microsoft. Sadly for VR arcade, the reality of this program towards using Quest 3 headsets in venues continued to prove opaque.

As seen with the Meta removal of "Beat Saber" from commercial use, the VR arcade scene needs to be cautious, especially considering this is the sixth launch of a business initiative for its VR/MR hardware since acquiring Oculus.

Road bumps ahead

Sales expectations for the first year had been revised significantly, seeing forecasts change from 7 million units shipped to just over 2 million units. This reflects a potential decline in 2024 regarding consumer VR headset sales.

Speaking of closures, Magic Leap announced the "end-of-life" for its Magic Leap 1 AR headset platform — launched in 2018. The company is attempting to encourage interest to its alternative Magic Leap 2 headset — focused wholly on commercial application.

Magic Leap has seen the completion of its majority stake taken by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund for $450 million. The operation is looking to restructure its business approach in the wake of the pivoting of business towards enterprise, and the developments in the AR business following the Apple Vision Pro announcement and immanent 2024 launch.

Meanwhile, rumors indicated that Google was working with Nintendo on a VR headset as Google was reported to have abandoned previous plans to launch a XR headset under the Project Moohan codename. The project was linked to a partnership with Samsung and was reported to have been abandoned for as restructuring of market focus.

Clarity evasive

While Meta's dreams of a "Metaverse" have failed to achieve the reality hoped for at this point, investment is still strong in the idea. It was reported that the Spanish government would invest €3.8 million ($4 million) into companies working on Metaverse and web3 technologies, as the latest European country to jump into this sector.

Meanwhile, others are now realizing that commercial (enterprise) is the real battleground for domination of the next phase of application. But for enterprise, it is the LBE VR scene where things continue to be most positive.

(Editor's note: Extracts from this blog are from recent coverage in The Stinger Report, published by Spider Entertainment and its director, Kevin Williams, the leading interactive out-of-home entertainment news service covering the immersive frontier and beyond.)

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About Kevin Williams

Along with advisory positions with other entrants into the market he is founder and publisher of the Stinger Report, “a-must-read” e-zine for those working or investing in the amusement, attractions and entertainment industry. He is a prolific writer and provides regular news columns for main trade publications. He also travels the globe as a keynote speaker, moderator and panelist at numerous industry conferences and events. Author of “The Out-of-Home Immersive Entertainment Frontier: Expanding Interactive Boundaries in Leisure Facilities,” the only book on this aspect of the market, with the second edition scheduled for a 2023 release.

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