A dogfighting shooter set in CCP's EVE Online universe, it seemed to be generally regarded as a decent example of something that VR did well, while also being an excellent demonstration of VR's limitations. PC Powerplay described it as "easily one of the prettiest VR launch titles," and "arguably the best VR experience currently available for the [Oculus Rift] platform," in the same review where they described the same game as "a prime example of how we’re still at the very first generation of VR games - take away the VR headset, and there’s actually a remarkably shallow experience here."
Regardless of the game's excellence and/or limitations, though, there's no denying that it was one of the most highly-hyped early titles for VR, with CCP planning simultaneous Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR releases. Now, however, CCP have apparently decided that they'd like to make some money back from EVE: Valkyrie, which is why they're planning to release a non-VR version of the game on Steam. Because of course they are.
From Kotaku:
This week, CCP Games announced a massive shakeup to its immersive VR shooter EVE: Valkyrie. A free expansion coming in September called “Warzone” will, among other things, remove the need for a virtual reality headset. By decoupling Valkyrie from its VR roots, a much wider player base will be able to log in and play CCP’s unique and beautiful shooter.
[...]
In addition to removing the VR headset requirement, Warzone will add a new mode called “Extraction,” which will work as a sort of Capture-The-Flag-in-space, forcing players to navigate their way out of intricate complexes while trying to return the enemy’s “flag” to their base. Extraction is the fourth competitive game mode in Valkyrie, and the second to be added as part of a free content patch for all owners of the game.I am surprised only that anybody is surprised.
Meanwhile, CBC News is reporting that VR developers are doubling down on long-form content, like virtual concerts, even while "VR at any length has struggled to go mainstream — weighed down by technology, cost, motion sickness fears and headset accessibility — with some analysts even speculating its demise." The biggest technology problem that VR content makers will have to overcome may simply be the weight of the headsets, which make them too heavy to wear comfortably for extended periods, according to Occulus themselves:
While the tech will doubtless improve with time and further development, unless VR headset makers shrink the size and weight of the gear down to the point where wearing them is more like wearing ski goggles than welder's goggles, I don't see longer form content as being the solution to VR's issues. And there's still the simple fact that it's expensive; even Samsung's GearVR and Google's Daydream require thousand-dollar, high-end smartphones for VR to really work well, and if it's not working well, then what's the point?
With VR adoption stagnant, makers of VR gambling on content that their few users physically can't endure, and VR launch titles decamping for the larger user bases of Steam's non-VR marketplace... I have to say, I really don't see how this current generation of VR headsets can ever become a thing.