We live in an era of impermanence, a time in which even massive triple-A PlayStation-produced games can be delisted from all storefronts and rendered unplayable at the press of a button. Sure, these things aren’t done on a whim, but it is undeniable that the games we buy, digital or, in some cases, even physical, don’t truly belong to us. We pay for the ability to play a game, potentially forever, but more likely for a short while, and that is unfortunate. However, as much as I love to harp on about the death of physical media and the rise and dominance of disposable digital goods, I am actually more concerned with the future of a major PlayStation product.
This is, of course, not the first time that a major PlayStation game has been delisted and caused some level of controversy. Previously, games like Genshin Impact have been wiped from storefronts and taken offline entirely, meaning that players are locked out of a game they’ve invested hundreds of hours and likely a lot of money into. In this instance, the delisting signals the potential end of a piece of PlayStation hardware, a piece of tech that has had its ups and downs but garnered a dedicated community of fans. I am, of course, referring to PlayStation VR, a medium that may be on its last legs if the delisting of one of its biggest games has anything to say for it.
Firewall Ultra Being Delisted Spells The End Of PSVR2
I won’t blame you if you have no idea what Firewall Ultra is. I certainly didn’t until semi-recently, and it’s my job to be on top of this sort of thing. Firewall Ultra was a PlayStation VR2 exclusive developed by First Contact Entertainment and served as the sequel to the critically acclaimed Firewall: Zero Hour, a game I actually am familiar with (see, I am good at my job). While much can be said about the PSVR2’s lack of success since its launch, Sony has done a rather abysmal job of mitigating any fears that this was dead tech on arrival. People’s relative lack of knowledge surrounding Firewall Ultra should really serve as proof of this, especially considering this isn’t just some random third-party title, but a game produced by Sony and developed exclusively for its console.
Recently, after seemingly remembering that this game exists, PlayStation delisted Firewall Ultra and announced that it will be taken offline completely in September. It was released in August 2023, meaning it will have been available for just over three years. Anyone following this game will have likely felt this fate was inevitable, especially as its developer was shut down in December 2023, just a few months after launch. In a statement posted to Facebook, First Contact Entertainment explained that the reason for its closure was due to the “lack of support for VR within the industry” and that it was “just not able to justify the expense needed [going] forward.“
And herein lies the problem. Sure, the delisting is terrible for all the reasons I have discussed ad nauseam in the past (game preservation is immensely important to me), but it also showcases a relative lack of belief and faith in PSVR2 as a whole. Firewall Ultra is an online game, so it was inevitable that it would be taken offline and delisted at some point. However, it was removed long before the PSVR2’s potential lifespan was over, meaning Sony has so little faith that it’ll help sell systems that it would rather pull the plug early. It may very well have been one of the best games on PSVR2, if only because the console is so poorly supported, but anyone who buys the device from now on will never get to find out.
The Future Of Gaming (Probably) Isn’t VR
VR technology has not picked up in the way I suspect a lot of hardware producers and development studios likely imagined. Evidently, there is not a big enough market to warrant investing in AAA titles for the medium, with early adoption being somewhat stunted by high prices and a lack of buzzworthy titles preventing anyone from investing now. PlayStation has clearly put a lot of effort into developing the kit that runs these games, but then seemingly given up halfway through and forgotten to actually commission anything good. There’s the Horizon VR game that’s apparently pretty decent, but beyond that, I couldn’t name a single game for the PSVR2, and I own its predecessor.
If studios like First Contact Entertainment are shutting down because there’s simply not enough interest, then the platform won’t be getting games on a larger scale, and thus fewer people will be interested. As much as I love indie games, if a big-budget console designed for the mainstream released that could only exclusively play indies, it would be cutting out a large portion of the wider gaming community and likely fail as a result. That’s basically what is happening with PSVR2 now, only it costs $400 (it originally cost $550, which probably didn’t help).
It is hard to imagine that VR is the future of gaming, at least for now, anyway. AR tech seems to be awfully popular right now, and tech companies are clearly trying to pivot VR headsets away from being exclusively used to game, but rather to incorporate practically every daily activity, from work to watching YouTube or a film, into the device. Should the hardware become more affordable, then I suspect people will begin to buy into the idea of putting a slab of plastic over their eyes and trying not to vomit. However, we’ve been saying that since the original PSVR, and nothing has changed in terms of price. It is still just as expensive as a regular console, only with fewer games and a worse experience overall.
Firewall Ultra, to me, feels like the start of a shift away from PlayStation VR as a whole. I can’t help but go back to that point about how Sony clearly has no faith in its own-produced titles to be a draw for the console, despite PSVR2 being three years old. It is sad, ultimately, as I believe there is a lot of value in VR gaming in general. I was genuinely blown away the first time I played Skyrim in VR, a game I felt I knew like the back of my hand, but that completely surprised me when put into that context. However, perhaps it is time to pause for a moment, bow out of the race, and attempt to figure out the best way of marketing and monetizing it. After all, further investment may only lead to more money wasted, more games delisted, and more studios shut down, and absolutely no one wants that.
What do you think is the fate of PlayStation VR? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!