PlayStation VR launched just last month, and now Sony has shared which games players have downloaded the most so far.
Sony has added a new PSVR section to their monthly ‘PlayStation Store Top Downloads‘ posts, revealing the top 10 most downloaded games for the company’s new headset so far:
1. Job Simulator ($30)
In a world where robots have replaced all human jobs, step into the ‘Job Simulator’ to learn what it was like ‘to job’. Players can relive the glory days of work by simulating the ins and outs of being a gourmet chef, an office worker, a convenience store clerk, and more.
PlayStation Store Rating: 5/5 Stars
2. Batman: Arkham VR ($20)
Batman: Arkham VR immerses you in the Dark Knight’s Universe and redefines what it means to be the Batman. Experience Gotham City through the eyes of the World’s Greatest Detective in an all new Arkham mystery. Think like Batman. Utilize his legendary gadgets in Virtual Reality to unravel a plot that threatens the lives of Batman’s closest allies.
PlayStation Store Rating: 4/5 Stars
3. Until Dawn: Rush of Blood ($20)
Strap yourself in for the most disturbing rollercoaster ride you’ll ever take. From the warped minds of the team behind PS4™ horror classic Until Dawn, comes Until Dawn: Rush of Blood – a virtual reality experience to strike fear into the hearts of every trigger-happy arcade shooter fan.
PlayStation Store Rating: 5/5 Stars
4. PlayStation VR Worlds ($40) [Bundled with PSVR Launch Bundle]
PlayStation VR WORLDS takes players on a journey through five high quality VR experiences built exclusively for the launch of PS VR, featuring a breadth of content and game genres that wonderfully showcase inventive VR design, best in class visuals and binaural audio soundscapes.
PlayStation Store Rating: 4/5 Stars
5. Here They Lie ($20)
Developed by Tangentlemen under the banner of Santa Monica Studio’s external development group, enter an uncanny horror experience where death is not a checkpoint. Delve into an inescapable, surreal world where unsettling encounters and environments come to life. Here They Lie is a mind bending first-person VR descent into madness.
PlayStation Store Rating: 4/5 Stars
6. Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes ($15)
One player is trapped in a virtual room with a ticking time bomb they must defuse. The other players are the “Experts” who must give the instructions to defuse the bomb by deciphering the information found in the bomb defusal manual. But there’s a catch: the Experts can’t see the bomb, so everyone will need to talk it out – fast!
PlayStation Store Rating: 5/5 Stars
7. EVE: Valkyrie Founder’s Edition ($60)
Experience the thrill of being an elite spaceship pilot in the sprawling sci-fi universe of EVE. Join the Valkyrie, an outlaw band of galactic pirates, and take up arms to claim what’s yours. Trade cannon fire for cash as you chase wealth and notoriety on the edge of space. With a wide variety of ships, customization options, weapon loadouts, and combat styles, EVE: Valkyrie™ gives you the ultimate freedom to fly. Virtual reality space dogfighting is here. Welcome to the next life.
PlayStation Store Rating: 4/5 Stars
8. Gunjack ($10)
Gunjack is the visually stunning best-selling VR game built from the ground up for virtual reality. Take on the role of a gun turret operator on a mining vessel in the Outer Ring region of known space. As part of the ship’s defense team, it is up to you to protect the rig from pirates, opportunists and anyone else looking to take what rightfully belongs to the company. Jump into your heavy weapons turret, power up your guns, and challenge deadly waves of enemy ships determined to blast you and your crew into oblivion.
PlayStation Store Rating: 4/5 Stars
9. Harmonix Music VR ($15)
Unlock the transcendent potential of your music with Harmonix Music VR. From a whacky dance party, to 3D reactive art, and even a nice relaxing alien beach, Harmonix Music VR is the next evolution of your music library.
PlayStation Store Rating: 4/5 Stars
10. Sports Bar VR ($20)
Bringing the virtual pub experience to your living room. Sports Bar VR is the ultimate social experience available on PlayStation®VR, featuring an awesome set of bar games and an incredible pool simulation including 8 Ball, 9 Ball, Killer and many more cue sports.
PlayStation Store Rating: 3/5 Stars
It appears that titles offering demos have done particularly well, such as Job Simulator, Until Dawn: Rush of Blood and PlayStation VR Worlds, and the public’s desire to ‘be the Batman’ was never in doubt. It’s likely that pricing has played a significant role, with several less expensive titles making the top ten, and many $50+ titles like Battlezone and RIGS missing out. Indeed, seven games in the list are priced below $20, a typical ‘impulse buy’ limit. The outstanding (but not surprising) success could be EVE: Valkyrie, one of the most expensive VR games ($70) at #7. CCP Games deserve special mention, having managed a double hit, with Gunjack (another EVE-themed game) at #8.
As a rough gauge for how PSVR games are selling compared to the broader PlayStation game decosystem, we can look to the ‘Popular’ list on the PlayStation Store, which puts the top PSVR download (Job Simulator) in the #27 slot, right next to Destiny The Collection. When you sort by digital-only games however (those which are not sold on physical discs and can only be downloaded from the PlayStation Store), the gap closes significantly, with Job Simulator in the #5 slot. We don’t know exactly what metric PlayStation’s ‘Popular’ list is based on, but this suggests that PSVR games are doing well against the broader backdrop of all PS4 games. Given Sony’s 40+ million PS4 install base compared to a much smaller PSVR install base, that’s good news.
That said, with the fairly small selection of PSVR games currently available, and only one month of data, it would be unwise to over-analyse at this stage. The VR medium as a whole is still finding its feet, and certainly the pricing of content (considering the vast differences in scope and length) is up for debate. PSVR appears to be off to a good start, but the figures after the holiday season will tell the true story.
Additional reporting by Ben Lang