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Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick Still Doesn’t Like VR Very Much
It sounds like Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick still isn’t sold on VR.
During an earnings call earlier this week (as reported by GamesBeat), Zelnick noted that VR “didn’t get this industry too far”. The CEO, who runs the company that owns both Rockstar Games and 2K, was speaking in relation to avoiding industry ‘buzzwords’.
“I’m always allergic to buzzwords,” he said on the call. “The buzzwords of VR didn’t get this industry too far and AR hasn’t improved matters either. 3D hasn’t done much for us. What moves the dial in our business is amazing creativity, great characters, great stories, great graphics, great gameplay. The ability to enjoy those experiences with other people all around the world. That is what really matters.”
It’s not the first time Zelnick has dismissed VR. In 2017, he said he was more hopeful for AR than VR (though that hope doesn’t seem to have panned out either), and last year he even said he was happy Take-Two didn’t “waste any money” on the platform. That was despite the fact Take-Two has, in fact, published three VR games in versions of LA Noire, Borderlands 2 and NBA 2K.
In July of last year the developers of LA Noire: The VR Case Files also noted they were currently busy making a new ‘AAA open world’ VR game.
While it’s understandable that one could draw that conclusion from VR’s performance between 2016 – 2019, Zelnick’s comments don’t really seem to acknowledge the platform’s resurgence in the past few years, where big hits like Half-Life: Alyx have released, Facebook is finding success with the Oculus Quest 2, and Sony prepares to ship a new VR headset for the PS5.
It is true, though, that we’re yet to see Rockstar’s biggest franchises embrace VR. That said, this week did see the launch of a VR mod for Red Dead Redemption 2 on PC, from the same developer of the GTAV VR mod. As it stands, these are the only ways to experience Rockstar’s open worlds in VR.
VR is a “Buzzword” Says Take-Two Interactive’s CEO
Virtual reality (VR) faced a lot of detractors in the early days of its resurgence as a consumer technology. While some of those have come around as the hardware has improved it seems Take-Two Interactive’s CEO Strauss Zelnick still isn’t sold on VR or its effect on the videogame industry.
In an earnings call this week Zelnick was highly sceptical of current trends, from the use of the word metaverse continually used by companies like Epic Games and Roblox to cryptocurrencies and immersive tech like VR and augmented reality (AR).
When discussing the metaverse subject and how Take-Two’s properties like Grand Theft Auto Online or Red Dead Online might transition he said: “I’m always allergic to buzzwords. The buzzwords of VR didn’t get this industry too far and AR hasn’t improved matters either,” reports GameBeat. “3D hasn’t done much for us. What moves the dial in our business is amazing creativity, great characters, great stories, great graphics, great gameplay. The ability to enjoy those experiences with other people all around the world. That is what really matters.”
So don’t expect Take-Two Interactive to be actively pursuing VR or AR if the boss has such distaste for the technology, even after all these years. But that’s not to say its subsidiaries won’t. The publisher owns Rockstar Games creator of Grand Theft Auto and L.A. Noire. Back in 2017, the studio – in conjunction with Australian developer Video Games Deluxe – released L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files, a very well-received videogame at the time.
Last year Video Games Deluxe revealed in a job posting that it works “exclusively for Rockstar” and that it was hiring for another VR project which is going to be “a AAA open world title.” Currently, no further details have surfaced regarding the project. Thankfully, Video Games Deluxe and Rockstar don’t share the same opinion as Zelnick so hopefully more info will be released during 2021 for that VR title.
His opinion of AR is also in stark contrast to many major companies like Microsoft, Apple and Google who are heavily investing in the technology. Slightly more understandable from a videogame perspective as AR tends to be seen much more as a tool rather than an entertainment medium. Should Take-Two Interactive decide to delve deeper down the VR rabbit hole, VRFocus will let you know.
Take-Two CEO Thankful Company Didn’t ‘Waste Any Money’ On VR After Publishing 3 VR Games
In a recent interview with Protocol, Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick stated that he is thankful the company didn’t “waste any money” on VR, despite the fact that they’ve published three VR-exclusive games with another “AAA open-world title in VR” currently in development.
In the article, the interviewer is talking to Zelnick about emerging technologies, specifically cloud gaming such as Google Stadia. Zelnick responds, “Any new distribution vehicle that offers high-quality, efficiency and a reasonable price is good for our business because broader distribution is always better in the entertainment business.”
He then goes on to say, “That said, there was all this hype for years about VR, and I wasn’t very compelled by that. Thankfully, as a result, we didn’t waste any money on it.”
Take-Two has already published three VR games. For those unaware, Take-Two Interactive is the parent company for both Rockstar Games and 2K. This means they’ve directly funded L.A. Noire: The VR Case Files, Borderlands 2 VR, and the NBA 2KVR Experience, not to mention a fourth one on the way from the same studio that created L.A. Noire VR.
Unfortunately the interview does not return to this comment to get further clarity on what he’s implying, but it’s likely that he simply means they did not pivot their entire business model to embracing VR and did not spin up a multitude of expensive VR projects. Instead, they outsourced a couple of ports and a basketball mini-game.
What do you think the Take-Two CEO meant by this comment? Does this mean the reportedly “AAA” open-world title is not receiving as much funding as before? Let us know what you think down in the comments below!
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