While competition is usually good, I'm starting to get sick of the sheer number of different (and incompatible) VR headsets that are being made. We have Valve/HTC, Sony, Oculus, Razer, Samsung, and now possibly Apple all working on competing headsets. And you just know that they are going to compete primarily via anti-consumer "platform" exclusives. When consumers decide which expensive VR kit to get based on what exclusive content they care the most about, every other piece of content exclusive to a different device loses a sale. This makes it hard to see a profitable future for VR. Console exclusive video games only work because of the limited number of consoles and the relative ease of owning multiple consoles. Quality (injury free) VR tech is likely to require a dedicated room and more involved setup, reducing the reasonable number for most people to own to zero, or maybe one. Two or more VR setups is going to be reserved for the wealthiest enthusiasts just because of the real estate requirements.
I was thinking the exact same thing. I think someone will come out ahead of the race though, just in regards to quality, marketing, and execution. I don't think a VR setup will require an entire room. It will definitely take up space (and money), but not an entire room's worth. Take the Cyberith Virtualizer for example.
Valve's will, and I think any that want to reach that level of quality and immersion will also need a room. Granted, you could probably have some other stuff in that room as well, but the more cluttered it is, the harder it is to use for VR.I don't think a VR setup will require an entire room.