VR support 'not at launch' for Odyssey

[[VR] Orodruin]

VR has no leverage. VR users are literally a speck in the profit margin. So no, I don't support people who feel entitled to demand something just because they decided to blow money on a niche fad equipment. In fact, the more they demand it, the more I hope it gets pillaged further.

Please show the data supporting this and not just your own biased opinion. Steam data puts the number of Steam VR users at the few percent level. Now, Elite is a good game generally, enough to be reasonably popular with the general gamer. However, it is widely regarded as one of the best - if not the best - VR games out there. This makes it significantly more likely that a VR user will have Elite than a general gamer. If you think VR users only represent a percent level fraction of the player base you are fooling yourself.

 

[amigacooke]

It's really quite simple. Marketing 101. You kiss the bupkis of those who bring in the money. As you can quite clearly see, no VR bupkis has been kissed by FDEV during this reveal. In fact, they've made it quite aware VR users can have a seat over there ----> and FDEV will get to them, eventually, maybe, after they serve the ones bringing the profit. So regardless of how much VR users are bringing in, they're not bringing in enough for FDEV to care. This means they are, in fact, not impacting FDEV's bottom line. VR users simply have no space leg to stand on.

I don't objject to them not buying something they don't want. I object to them thinking they have any sort of entitlement via their false sense of importance to FDEV and the game. I'll put it like this: if all us "pancakes" said "remove VR or we all quit", you'd have no more VR within a week.

How silly to assume that a game that had supported VR for 6 years would continue to support VR.

You see Frontier can't have it both ways, they can't play the friendly company that is always pleased to see you and the hard nosed drop 'em if they aren't making enough profit company.

 

[[VR] DDM_Reaper20]

VR has no leverage. VR users are literally a speck in the profit margin. So no, I don't support people who feel entitled to demand something just because they decided to blow money on a niche fad equipment. In fact, the more they demand it, the more I hope it gets pillaged further.

I don't see anybody DEMANDING anything, only some saying they won't buy the game if it doesn't support VR -- which is their right. Okay, English isn't my first language (I've only been speaking it for 38 years), so I might have got that wrong. Kinda doubt it, though. As to your hopes -- now who's behaving like a spoilt brat?

 

[Ravenx444]

I am a huge Elite fan. I currently drive a semi-truck for a living, so I don't get to play as often as I'd like, but I absolutely love playing Elite in VR. Space trucking n all that. Currently, playing this game is something I'd classify as hobby, and I love just kind of flying around and exploring and just kind of lazily progressing. But playing Elite in VR was so immersive. It is currently THE ONLY GAME that allows you to explore the solar system in VR. That allows you to be a space pilot. It's a dream I've had since a child. Growing up on Star Wars, wanting to be Han Solo, and because of Elite, and VR tech, I'm about as close I'll ever get in my lifetime to doing something like that.

Last year, I was listening to some of ObsidianAnts videos on my truck and he mentioned they were coming out with a new expansion. Atmospheric planets, space legs, it was going to be awesome. I was so excited, kept talking about it for days to my wife. So I was like, this is going to be amazing, I want to be ready for the next expansion. So I upgraded.

I bought a new computer. I bought 2 vkb joysticks. I literally paid for my Valve index yesterday after waiting since February for my order to be processed. I was going to get an Obutto cockpit, I bought flight pedals, I bought a button box.

Yesterday I was so excited to see that trailer, I was thinking about it all day. I'm a 35 year old father, and that trailer made me as excited as when I was 5 years old and we got a Nintendo under the xmas tree. I was just imagining flying my asp explorer through canyons and just, god, it was going to be amazing.

Today, I woke up in my truck and the first video in my feed was from ObsidianAnt, saying VR wasn't going to be supported in the new expansion. Look, I know I'm on the internet. I know people are going to say you shouldn't get your hopes up, or whatever. But I was literally crushed. It felt like someone taking away a dream, a goal. I don't understand it, why remove a feature that's been in the game for nearly 6 years, one that is so integral with how some of your most earnest fans experience your game. An experience that they can't have ANYWHERE else. Why can't we at least continue to have VR support in the ships. I would gladly switch to my monitor whenever I get out of my cockpit anyway, most VR walking games end up hurting my back, and I know alot of them give people motion sickness. Perhaps something like a virtual screen that pops up inside of VR, Ala virtual desktop?

I know this got a bit ranty, and I know it got a bit long, and I know people say gamers are entitled. But it's because game developers don't just sell games. Sometimes they sell dreams, and today you took away mine.

Please KEEP VR SUPPORT IN ODYSSEY! (or at least promise you're going to patch it in)

 

[777Driver]

some people really need to stop getting their knickers in a twist over Zorans trolling. He's just p'd about all the threads. TBh it's a bit overkill, especially with so little info released so far. He's still trolling though.

Until I hear separate launchers going forward, or no atmospherics for horizons users, or that VR is completely dropped, I'll carry on as normal.

 

[[VR] DDastardly]

Thanks to the lack of VR support, I couldn't be less excited for Odyssey if they'd announced it was only going to render at 320x240 in black and white with no sound (and could only be controlled with a keyboard).

 

[CMDR Karrde Sun]

Life was so simple when the biggest problem with the game was the fss. Makes it feel like a real first world problem now compared to vr being dropped.

 

[[VR] wi03016]

I lost my interest for Odyssey without VR. No money for a half baked DLC.

 

[sgurr]

I don't care much for the fps stuff.

As long we get the planetary tech I'm fine with it. No problem using the Xbox controller and doing the fps stuff on the couch using the TV. If they plan to block access to planets completely for VR users, that would be a major blow. ...

This ^^^ is how I feel too.

I have been so looking forward to atmospheric worlds in VR, I personally don't care if I can't walk around as long as I can fly/drive.

 

[Ascendingbike42]

I'm fine with no vr at launch for oddessy, but it would be nice to get some clarification on what that actually means.
Are they working on vr support but don't think it will be at a high enough standard at launch?
Or does it mean that they will think about adding it later if enough people complain about it?

 

[avow555]

Considering the title is maybe +9 months away, lots can happen prior to the release.

 

[Rat Catcher]

Seems like removing things from the game is ‘progress’

First, the ADS.
Then CGs.
Next, IIs and Galnet.
Now, VR.

What next?

Well, flying around in a silly spaceship is highly over-rated, that's the next bit to be axed... actually it may be 2nd as 400 billion systems when everyone only hangs around in SD and Deciat? Get rid of all of those bodies no-one ever goes to, they won't be missed...

 

[Factabulous]

Well, flying around in a silly spaceship is highly over-rated, that's the next bit to be axed... actually it may be 2nd as 400 billion systems when everyone only hangs around in SD and Deciat? Get rid of all of those bodies no-one ever goes to, they won't be missed...

... and then finally we'll just be left with the ultimate part of the game, the part we all aspire to be worthy of ..... powerplay

 

[Bigmaec]

Note that the official word is VR will not be in Odyssey AT LAUNCH. Granted, that does not promise VR will be added later, nor give any indication of how high up the priority list it is, but at least it does signal that if they manage to get the experience right, they will re-add it. (I believe that they could not get the 'experience' right in VR in Odyssey, and that caused its omission)

Whilst Horizons and base ED will continue to support VR, one has to wonder if player who cannot complete "odyssey only"ground missions will be at a material/equipment disadvantage in their Horizons ships. I guess we will have to wait and see...

This at launch thing is marketing speech for "it propably won't come ever, but we still want your money".

They didn't seem to state anything about whether VR would come post-launch, let alone a time-frame.

The closest they got was this slightly garbled, possible intimation, from Stephen. (And I'm not throwing shade on the garbledness, it's hard to give accurate answers to an angry mob while playing the game )

I wouldn't read too much into that final phrasing, and general more optimistic flow. It's not a statement of imminent deployment post launch.

Here's everything else they said regarding VR:
[

See above. It's propably easier to implement VR before launch then into a deployed game. So I fear it won't happen.

VR has no leverage. VR users are literally a speck in the profit margin. So no, I don't support people who feel entitled to demand something just because they decided to blow money on a niche fad equipment. In fact, the more they demand it, the more I hope it gets pillaged further.

Harsh words, but sadly true. VR is niche, and although players like me who spend lots of money on HMDs and rigs are propably mostly whales ingame too, it still seems to be less then what FD intends to gain by new customers.

Sad, but true. Also short-sighted I think, because VR still is a growing market, and Elite was set in all top VR games lists.

Lets see what comes out of this.

 

[Cmdr Snuffler]

Life was so simple when the biggest problem with the game was the fss. Makes it feel like a real first world problem now compared to vr being dropped.

IMO this VR announcement is the worst thing for ED since day 1 of Alpha.
A lot of people have poured huge amounts of time, resources and money into building VR sim rigs solely for ED, myself included.
To say I'm gutted is an understatement.

Frontier, this is a big big mistake...bigger than no offline mode, bigger than MAC support and way bigger than the whole FC debacle.

VR has no leverage. VR users are literally a speck in the profit margin. So no, I don't support people who feel entitled to demand something just because they decided to blow money on a niche fad equipment. In fact, the more they demand it, the more I hope it gets pillaged further.

This is pretty much my thoughts exactly...on space legs...but hey ho, each to their own.
"Feel entitled" is a little hyperbole imo…VR has been a stable feature since the 2nd drop of alpha all those years ago. ED has championed VR. So people upset/disappointed at lack of VR support being unsupported out of the blue has nothing to do with entitlement.
The fact you're advocating for VR to be cut even further purely to spite VR players is about as childish as it gets.

 

[Vasea Azure]

If VR would hold back future content, as it usually do, I rather be happy for FD to drop it and expand the game.

 

[Bigmaec]

IMO this VR announcement is the worst thing for ED since day 1 of Alpha.
A lot of people have poured huge amounts of time, resources and money into building VR sim rigs solely for ED, myself included.
To say I'm gutted is an understatement.

Frontier, this is a big big mistake...bigger than no offline mode, bigger than MAC support and way bigger than the whole FC debacle.

It yet depends on the implementation.
If - for example - you simply can't disembark your ship when you didn't load Odyssey, but the planetary improvements,
landing, atmosphere etc. are all the same - and (this is a big and) the gameplay loops of Odyssey aren't that important like engineers for Horizons, THEN I could cope with only loading Odyssey in 2D when I want to do something on feet.

If - and sadly I think it looks this way - more features of Odyssey are locked by the launcher option, then I fear I'm done with this game.

Also I don't think there will be a triple game support forever (base - horizons - odyssey) because that's not economical, so there will be people left behind.

 

[Iain L]

If PvP would hold back future content, as it usually do, I rather be happy for FD to drop it and expand the game.

 

[Phoenix_Dfire]

The problem with VR at launch is the amount of work that is involved to do a truly great experience.

Look at how many developers worked on Half life Alex. It was a huge team for at least a couple of years and people will be demanding that level of immersion. I know people are going to complain that 'NMS can do it, why not E' but, to be honest, just getting space legs (with some atmospherics) is still a huge undertaking and NMS already had that in.

I hope they will continue to work on VR but it's not a priority for the moment.

 

[Cmdr Snuffler]

It yet depends on the implementation.
If - for example - you simply can't disembark your ship when you didn't load Odyssey, but the planetary improvements,
landing, atmosphere etc. are all the same - and (this is a big and) the gameplay loops of Odyssey aren't that important like engineers for Horizons, THEN I could cope with only loading Odyssey in 2D when I want to do something on feet.

If - and sadly I think it looks this way - more features of Odyssey are locked by the launcher option, then I fear I'm done with this game.

Also I don't think there will be a triple game support forever (base - horizons - odyssey) because that's not economical, so there will be people left behind.

I agree with everything you've said here.
There could potentially be another option...when switching to space legs just drop to 2D in the headset and treat it as a normal monitor. I could live with that.
For the 1st time in my life I feel sad and upset about features, or lack thereof, in a game

I hope they will continue to work on VR but it's not a priority for the moment.

It should be for a game that's supported VR since alpha and is one of the best VR games out there.
Reminds me of Windows Phone 7 when MS ditched cut and paste Look how that turned out.
They could have easily gone with VR still supported, atmospheric planets and loads more content like PvP, Powerplay etc, which is needed and asked for by almost everyone, while working on legs as a 2nd free update.
To ditch VR for legs is the wrong move imo.