Opinion: Exclusivity Deals Could Virtually Kill Virtual Reality

Virtual Reality is on the up-and-up--at least that’s what we’d like to think. Sadly, head-mounted-display developers like HTC and Oculus haven’t really released any sales numbers, possibly because they’re lower than they'd hoped. But that doesn’t mean that fully immersive gaming and entertainment doesn’t have a future. In fact, the future is pretty bright for virtual reality. Already things like AltSpaceVR are taking the spotlight, making it easier than ever to interact with others in a virtual social environment. And even more applications which really live off of the social interaction capable with VR are springing up each day. But exclusivity deals are starting to loom over the burgeoning medium and could spell trouble.

Oculus is probably one of the most known companies for their exclusivity deals. Games like Lucky’s Tale and Insomniac Game’s Lovecraftian horror, Edge of Nowhere, wouldn’t be possible without Oculus, and Facebook, to back them up. Insomniac is already working hard on a new PVP-focused game, The Unspoken, which I had the chance to check out last week at E3. The problem with virtual reality, is that development is expensive. Not only do you have to have an engine that can run well in virtual reality, but you also have to have access to the tools and hardware that you need to effectively craft something in it.

That’s where exclusivity comes into play. Now, most of these exclusivity deals, aside from some like Edge of Nowhere, are timed exclusives, which means they’ll eventually support access with any HMD. But what happens if these exclusivity deals take a more standard model akin to console exclusives? Not only would the market become fractured, but the entire concept of virtual reality entertainment would suddenly become even more complicated.

Publishers need to exercise caution if continuing to take exclusivity arrangements, because they run the severe risk of undermining their own long-term goals. Yes, virtual reality is really expensive to buy into. Yes, you need a really high-quality system to run it. But in the end, virtual reality opens a new door for immersive content unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. It allows you to gather in a room with friends and strangers who live thousands of miles away, all while allowing you to feel like you’re closer than ever. But in the end, virtual reality isn’t a new platform for gaming or entertainment. It’s simply a new way to enjoy the things we already love and enjoy. That’s why these exclusivity deals make no sense from a consumer standpoint.

Yes, sometimes these deals are made so that the developers can guarantee funding for their game. And yes, many of these products might not ever see the light of day if it weren’t for these deals. But that doesn’t change the fact that these companies are basically making exclusivity deals for more immersive peripherals. Because, when you really get down to the basics of it all, virtual reality headsets are nothing more than immersive monitors and controllers. They aren’t complete systems that run off of their hardware. They are add-ons that help to immerse the consumer into their media even more. 

So, should developers just not make their game instead of taking exclusivity deals? Of course not. But the blame for this exclusivity practice really falls on the HMD developers. In a recent email correspondence, Gabe Newell said, "We don't think exclusives are good for customers or developers." He then went on to say that Valve is more than happy to absorb the financial risks that smaller developers have with virtual reality projects. He also said that Valve will allow developers to "develop for the Rift or PlayStation VR, or whatever the developer thinks are the right target VR systems. Our hope is that by providing that funding that developers will be less likely to take on deals that require them to be exclusive."

This is the direction that the virtual reality market needs to take. By doing this, Valve is giving developers an open-ended road to travel down. They are saying, "Hey, we have faith in this new technology, we will provide the funds, you provide the product. Develop it how and where you want." This is huge for VR, because it removes the idea of exclusivity deals, and opens up the door for more developers to make their first steps into the virtual reality market. The other option is to take the Oculus route and bind your product to a single HMD. Not only does this hurt your consumer base, but it also limits application sales, and in the end could mean the difference between life and death for a developer.

Just imagine, if you will, that a sweet new game is getting ready to hit the market. Then you find out that the game only supports mouse and keyboard configurations made by Logitech. This means anyone sporting a Razer, Corsair, or any other brand of keyboard, would be unable to play the game unless someone created a hack, or the developers later worked in a hotfix to allow play with other components. This is basically what exclusivity with virtual reality headsets is. It’s just a blatant attempt to rally in content to push their own devices on the consumer. Which brings me to my next point.

Virtual Reality isn’t a hot seller. The buy-in cost is way too much right now, and that’s pushing a lot of people away. Will prices go down as new iterations are made? Of course. This is just the first generation of tech we’re seeing. As time goes on, and new advancements are made, these things will become cheaper to engineer, thus moving those cheaper prices on to the consumer. But what if it is never given the chance to make it that far? What if virtual reality dies before it really even gets started?

That’s why these exclusivity deals get made. Head-mounted-display companies want to push their product on the consumer. They want to make it the best that it can be, and that includes offering up the best amount of content available to the public. Which is why companies like Oculus are pushing for these exclusivity deals the way they are. It’s an attempt to bolster product sales. All in all, you can’t fault the developer for simply trying to make their product better. What happens when those attempts begin to hurt the very economy of the device that they are pushing forward?

In the end virtual reality headsets are just another peripheral. Until they offer self-contained modules to run the HMDs, this is all that they will be. Making content exclusive to a computer peripheral is not the way to push this industry forward. If virtual reality is meant to go mainstream, as many hope it will, it has to be open to anyone and everyone. The more hoops you put in place for people to jump through, the harder it will become to convince them of the fidelity of the product you are offering.

Right now the virtual reality industry suffers from lack of content and high buy-in. But, most importantly, VR suffers from the mainstream idea that it doesn’t bring anything new to the table. That it won’t change the way you view entertainment or media. Adding more hoops to the process won’t change that, and if Oculus and HTC aren’t careful, PlayStation VR just might steal their spotlight when it releases later this year.

Josh Hawkins

Guides Editor

Joshua holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing and has been exploring the world of video games for as long as he can remember. He enjoys everything from large-scale RPGs to small, bite-size indie gems and everything in between.