It is no secret that Apex Legends is one of the best video games on the market right now. According to Twitch, it was has been top 5 games watched over the past 60 days. Not bad for a new game at all. This game had no advertisement while it was stealthy being developed, and right out of the gates, over 50 million users played this title in the month of February. In this online battle royal, it has strikingly similarities to Fortnite, but players of Apex are passionate about the superiority of this game compares to Epic’s. But what does this mean for Respawn’s upcoming VR game?
Respawn’s audience before their hit game was slim. Releasing a virtual reality game is hard enough, and with a small audience, it is even harder. Respawn knew that if they wanted to have a virtual reality game that was as big as their Apex Legends game, they would need the same type of buyers, on scale of course. To say Legends was a hit would be an understatement. When comparing the numbers, it outdid Fornite from release date, and it was not very close. Look here at what Apex was able to do.
With the gaming industry at its finger tips, Respawn now more than ever has a lot to do. Their plate has been full for quite some time, and the clock is still ticking on them. They have had a VR game in the works for over 18 months now, and we have not heard much about it. In fact, the company still refers to the project as the “super secret VR game.”
What we do know however, is still worth noting. The game will be published as an Oculus Studios exclusive, and has been described as a “AAA VR shooter game” which does not give us too much. The game has yet to be given a name as well. Something that comes along pretty early in the production, although it would not surprise us if Respawn is simply player everything as close to the chest as possible until the game is already officially on the market. That is essentially what they did with Apex Legends, although it was much more secretive because no one was expecting anything anyway.
Because the producing company is releasing so little, it has been hard to connect what the rise of their new game has to do with the super ultra top level secret VR game that Respawn has been working on. As much as predictions are often missed across the internet, I’m going to go out on a limb and say this. Apex Legends and the feel of the game will have a major impact on what they will want to have in this upcoming VR game. And if they don’t have some similarities, the company could be missing out on a very large audience.
They have the potential to not only bring people to buy their VR game, but if they can have the same type of game inside of a headset, we could see a spike in sales with Apex enthusiasts going out to buy headsets for the simple idea of playing while being fully immersed. Respawn must know their influence and what they have the potential to do inside of the headsets of many.
Oculus has yet to say which headsets will be able to run this ultra top level incredibly secret yet exciting virtual reality game, but most likely we will see it on the Rift, Rift S,and hopefully the Quest as well. We will most likely not see the title appear on the Go unless the game is simplified to be able to render at the speeds the Go needs.
Why isn’t the game done yet?
There could be multiple reasons on why this game has taken longer than usual to get out onto the virtual shelves, but we will pinpoint just a few.
Even Respawn themselves did not expect Apex to be this successful this early on. They most likely have had to call all hands on deck to get this game to up to par with the competitors for a longer time. This includes updates, support, marketing, and even the new Battle Pass releasing. All of this happened faster than the company thought it would, and that has more than likely taken a toll on their VR plans.
No that does not mean the game will not get done. Respawn still has to produce the game for Oculus, and they are more than counting on it. But given the extra time that they have essentially granted themselves by releasing such a hit game, it could only mean good things for the company. Once the development of Apex Legends is at a manageable rate, the main focus will be right back onto their virtual reality game. Given that they have had a chance to grow, expand, and learn knew techniques, this upcoming game should be better than anyone is anticipating.
Respawn will not only have the funds necessary to take this game into the next level, but they will have a plethora of developers willing to work with them and for them if they choose to expand their team. Facebook and Oculus has been hands off on this project as well, letting Respawn hire their own people and have their own game essentially. Facebook is not deciding or helping in any way, shape, or form. This is a Respawn project.
When Jason Rubin, a Facebook and Oculus directer was asked what role they had in this upcoming game, he went on to say this. “You do not partner with Respawn and then get involved in designing games for Respawn. Respawn is a fantastically talented company—as far many of the others that we work with: Insomniac, Sanzaru…—we let them design the product they want,” Rubin said. “So, absolutely, a Respawn product is a Respawn product.”
We will be in the dark for quite some time before we know what impact Apex Legends will have on the virtual reality game that the company is still working on, but we can guess that it will be close to the same idea. Will we get any news from the company anytime soon? Probably not. We will most likely get the next wave of news at the end of September at the Oculus Connect event. Until then, we will certainly be entertained by the game that Respawn Entertainment has on the market right now.
