Virtual reality is a growing industry. The potential that many see in the headset is untapped, and we are just seeing what mass adoption can truly look like. Even though the virtual worlds are still in the growing stages, the start of 2020 has been a promising one. The newest achievement of the industry? Over 100 different virtual reality games have passed the $1 Million revenue mark, something that is incredibly impressive, regardless of the gaming platform you develop for.
In a study that was published at the start of February, VR funder Tipatat Chennavasin made the case that 2019 was the major turning point of the VR industry.
Chennavasin gather data from all of the major VR digital storefronts such as Steam, PSN, Oculus Rift, and Oculus Quest. The funder also spoke with many developers in attempts to get all of this data correct. The estimation is that there are 106 total VR games that have passed the $1 Million mark in total revenue. Nearly half of the 106 games have seen their major success in just the last 12 months. This is something that is surely promising to any VR enthusiast.
Yes, this includes the top-tier VR games, but they are also in a class of their own. Chennavasin states that the top seven titles have all seen growth well over $10 million in total revenue. The top title in VR? That has racked in over $60 million. We haven’t been able to confirm which game has hit that $60 million milestone, but we have a pretty good idea.
Chennavasin also predicts that by this time next year, the first $100 million VR game could be in the works. That would take either an absurd amount of DLC to be released, or Half-Life: Alyx to be the biggest hit we have ever seen in VR.
Sustainability
These numbers are all great to see, especially the top grossing. But they aren’t the most appealing to developers and investors. The notion that more than 100 games have made over $1 million shows that success in the virtual realm is sustainable. If you can put a good product in front of the customers, you will be compensated for it. With the recent demand of virtual real headsets skyrocketing in the past months, this is only going to continue.
With 2020 being a year where the industry seems to be focused more on software than hardware. Since that is the case, we could see another big year in content sales. For more VR news and community updates, make sure to check back at VRGear.com.
