Virtual Reality Set To Make Mainstream Breakthrough
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- An old technology being reinvented and re-imagined for the world of video gaming was on display at a game-developers conference in San Francisco this week.
Video games don't just belong to teenage boys sitting in their parents basement anymore.
"The video games industry definitely rivals the movie business now," said conference spokesperson Sibel Sunar.
In fact, video games are doing twice the business of Hollywood in terms of gross sales. Which is why 26,000 game developers are at the Moscone Center this week learning the latest, greatest and coolest.
This year, the advancement being pushed above all others is the commercial birth of virtual reality.
"When you take the headphones off, when you take the headset off, and ask them what it was like, 'Wow!' is what you hear more than anything else," said Aram Jabbari of Sony.
Virtual reality has been around for a long time, but predictions are this could be the year it goes mainstream. VR, as it's called, could have its first billion dollar year in 2016.
"It's a true revolution. In the same way we went from 2D graphics to 3D graphics," said PlayStation Creative Director Nicolas Doucet. "Once again, that's the key crossroads now in video games."
One study says in 10 years the market could hit 80 billion.
"A lot of people see it on reports on TV, and think, 'That's interesting,'" said Jabbari. "There's nothing like trying virtual reality."
On the new Sony PlayStation 4, KPIX 5 reporter Mike Sugerman was convinced he was bait as he was lowered into a virtual shark tank.
While the experience was virtual, his fear was not as he saw the shark charge him. It is a sensation that has to be experienced to be appreciated. And lots of people might do just that this holiday season.
The PlayStation VR consoles is projected to cost just under $400 when it hits the market in October.
