From everything we have seen thus far, it is apparent virtual reality might become the next big thing in gaming, but the head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, is not a man interested in this happening at all.
Since the rise of the Oculus Rift and Sony's Project Morpheus (the latter is now known as PlayStation VR), the virtual reality scene has heated up to new temperatures. Many companies, of course, aim to get in on the ride.
Microsoft is one of those companies, although it has chosen to partner with Oculus VR and Valve to bring virtual reality to Xbox One and Windows 10 instead of creating its own device.
What the software giant is focusing on is a little device called HoloLens. It is not virtual reality or augmented reality, but something entirely different that is known as "mixed reality," or MR for short.
Why is Spencer not a huge supporter of VR?
"I'll say, obviously we have relationships with Valve, we have a relationship with Oculus around the VR work that they're doing, but I'm going to say I kind of hope not. It doesn't mean I don't think VR has great experiences to offer. I think it does, and we'll find those, and people will love playing those. I love playing games in my family room with my kids. I love people coming together and watching what's happening on screen and laughing, and the kind of fun of what video games were always about."
Spencer is making a lot of sense here because VR is a device that could do away with the kind of togetherness we have right now. Take a look at multiplayer gaming and where it is today. Most folks are no longer taking part in split-screen multiplayers with friends anymore, and this is due to online gaming.
VR is capable of doing a similar thing where everyone is too busy wearing a pair of goggles to want to spend quality time with those around them in the real world.
We do hope both VR and other technologies such as MR coexist, but we would prefer VR became more of a business tool rather than a device for the home and family.
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