Xbox co-creator Seamus Blackley has claimed the lack of a ‘killer app’ is the reason VR and AR haven’t taken off yet.
Speaking on an upcoming episode of the VideoGamer Podcast, the transcript of which was shared with PC Guide, the developer claimed that ‘nobody is able to put their finger on’ what a ‘killer app’ could be.

“We’ve seen VR and AR not really take off, and if you’re a big fan, I’m sorry. but it’s just the f******* fact” he said. “There is no killer app and nobody can put their finger on what a killer app could be.”

What does VR need to take off?

“Everybody has a different kind of personal fantasy and then, at least in my experience, when you are given the environment that you sort of fantasized about you’re like ‘OK’ and you just want to take the headset off, because it’s this hot, heavy thing. It’s weird and disappointing” says Blackley.

Part of the issue comes down to the structure, or lack of, given to the player in VR games, said Blackley – with the illusion of freedom jarring with the need for the game to provide more narrative control. Part of successful game design comes down to ‘constraining’ the player, he said.

“When you lower the structure so much for the player that they are in the headset and they look around everywhere, in principle as an elevator pitch that sounds great. In practice, when we want to be entertained, we want a storyteller to control the narrative and to entertain us. We want somebody to give us ideas bigger than our own ideas or different to our own ideas because that’s entertainment. I can make up stories myself and do my stuff all day long, but I like to have somebody else entertain me. It’s like scratching your own back versus having somebody scratch your back for you.”

Seamus Blackley

He continued: “To some extent you need them to be able to control what you’re looking at. You need them to constrain you to the narrative which is not the thing you’re going to do. And there’s a small minority of guys who are going to scream and yell at them and want full control and that’s great, super cool, fine, guys but they enjoy having that control because they’re getting off on breaking that narrative control and they wouldn’t be getting on off it if it wasn’t there already, so it’s paradoxical.
“The problem with AR and VR from a narrative standpoint it’s like just too much freedom.”

Brands like Meta continue to push their latest VR products, such as the Meta Quest 3S. Designed as a more budget-friendly model, it opens up VR to even more users, but if there is no ‘killer app’ to make the most of it, VR may remain a relatively niche audience in the gaming industry. For reference, we reviewed the Quest 3S and would recommend it if you’re looking to get into VR without having to overspend.

About the Author

Talal Musa

Talal is the Head of Digital at By Gamers for Gamers, incorporating PC Guide and sister titles WePC and Videogamer. He was previously head of digital media at Gfinity PLC.