How popular are PC VR mods? Download numbers give an idea
Mods are one of the great strengths of PC VR and they attract hundreds of thousands of VR fans, as the latest figures show.
Flat2VR has published download figures for popular PC VR mods on X:
- Lethal Compay VR: > 460,000
- Resident Evil VR mods: > 650,000
- UEVR: nearly 500,000
- Half-Life 2: VR Mod: > 500,000
MIXED asked Flat2VR where these numbers come from. Flat2VR replied:
"We have back-end access to most every VR mod that’s put out. Some of it like the Lethal Company VR mod is public too if you just go to the Mod download page."
According to Flat2VR, these numbers were taken a few weeks ago, so they are likely to be a bit higher by now.
(PC) VR ports could become a valid business
The Flat2VR scene has been making flatscreen games playable on PC VR headsets for years, including Cyberpunk 2077, various Resident Evil remakes, and most recently Horizon Forbidden West.
One of the biggest successes to date is Half-Life 2: VR Mod, which has been downloaded half a million times, according to Flat2VR. The VR port is a congenial adaptation of the classic game and was released on Steam with Valve's blessing. Episodes 1 and 2 were also ported.
At the turn of the year, the UEVR injector, which makes almost all Unreal Engine titles playable in VR, also attracted attention. UEVR has also been downloaded nearly half a million times. The VR mod for Lethal Company is only a few weeks old and has reached similar numbers.
An interesting article. If you're a dev and you're afraid to port to PCVR, here's a few recent VR mod download numbers:
AdAdLethal Compay VR mod released a few weeks ago & has 464,151
Resident Evil VR mods downloads: 659,218
UEVR: : 492,011 so far
Half-Life 2 VR: over 500,000 https://t.co/A8ljU4ooMD pic.twitter.com/GBHWrSmbDY
AdAd- Flat2VR (@Flat2VR) April 9, 2024
These numbers suggest that PC VR enthusiasts are a small but passionate group of VR users. Commercial PC VR ports could generate millions in revenue if users were willing to spend money on high-quality adaptations. So far, most VR mods have been offered for free.
A potentially even larger market exists in the standalone headset space: Team Beef's VR mods, released for headsets such as Meta Quest and Pico 4, are reaching seven-figure downloads.
The commercial viability of this has led leading figures in the Flat2VR scene to create a studio dedicated to marketing and publishing VR ports to popular VR platforms.
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