In a post on their blog, HTC has confirmed international pricing for its upcoming HTC Vive VR headset and reiterated that pre-orders will open on February 29.
WithSony’s PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift, and HTC’s own VR headset scheduled for release in the upcoming months, 2016 is shaping up to be an intriguing year for video gaming. With just over a month to go before theHTC Vive’s April launch, the company behind the headset have now confirmed international pricing.
In a post over on theirblog, HTC have revealed international pricing for theHTC Vivein 24 countries, and that pre-orders for the VR headsets will open on February 29 at 10:00AM ET. While HTC has limited orders to one unit per customer, the company has also announced that Google’s Tilt Brush will also be included in the pre-order bundle for a limited time.
Looking at the price list, it is clear that theHTC Vive will be expensiveno matter which country gamers buy it from. While the Sony PlayStation VR is expected to cost between $400 to $600, and Oculus Rift confirming a $599 starting price for their VR headset, the HTC Vive VR headset will cost a whopping $799. VR gaming may still be in its infancy, and high starting prices were to be expected, but withaverage consumers initially expecting to pay less, there’s a possibility that it’ll take some time for gamers to embrace this new paradigm in gaming.
Having said that, those high price points are somewhat justified by the amount of supplementary devices that will be shipped alongside the headsets. Not only will the HTC Vive feature two additional controllers, two Lighthouse sensors, and two free VR games, but the headset will also be powered bySteam VR software, which based on Valve’s reputation, may prove to be a big selling point for gamers.
While there are earlyworries over the pricing of VR, companies have tried to keep the price points as low as possible, and have made every effort to ensure that the headset quality is of a high standard, including delaying release dates on a number of occasions. WithValve allowing game developers free use of the HTC Vive, this sets another important precedent on ensuring that gamers will not only get high quality hardware for their money, but they’ll have high quality software to back it up.
Despite the HTC Vive’s high price point, it is still to early to judge whether VR will be a success. But based on thepotential of VR in gaming, 2016 will certainly be a very intriguing year for the industry.
The HTC Vive VR headset will retail at $799 and is scheduled for launch in early April. Pre-orders will start on February 29 at 10:00AM ET.
