The virtual reality (VR) market has developed a reputation for being kind to small and independent developers. A perfect example of this is Schell Games, who recently announced that its VR spy adventure I Expect You To Die had crossed the $3 million in revenue threshold. Schell Games are not content to stop there, however and are reportedly already hard at work on a new VR project.
Schell Games founder Jesse Schell has expressed the opinion that the growth of VR will be slow, but steady, and as such his team is working on its net major VR title, which will be a lightweight dungeon crawler featuring sword fighting.
Speaking to Variety, Schell said: “What we are seeing is that the growth of VR is slow and steady,” he said. “It’s giving us a lot of confidence about the future. Maybe it didn’t take off like a rocket like some expected, but my perception is that’s because of technology and price point and we’re seeing technology and price point improve.”
Schell said that multiple projects were ongoing at Schell Games, but the biggest one is the new sword-fighting title, which will be based on a brand new IP: “We’ve always felt that sword fighting in VR would be fun,” he said. “This is a game we’re exploring for high-end VR platforms that involves dual-wielding sword fighting as a sort of lightweight dungeon crawler.”
Some of the inspiration for the title comes from the work Schell Games did for Star Wars: Jedi Challenges, an augmented reality (AR) title on the Lenovo Mirage, but is also acting as a platform for the team to continue its work in making VR more comfortable.
“It’s crucial that there is as little motion discomfort as possible,” he said. “We also believe sword fighting is a good candidate for VR because, unlike with run and gun games, running while sword fighting doesn’t really make sense. It’s more about standing your ground and being excellent at swordsmanship.”
For future coverage on Schell Games and its VR projects, keep checking back with VRFocus.