I think a lot of people are too wrapped up in nostalgia for science fiction to realize VR and AR aren't as objectively superior to the paradigm of screen and input as they assume, and that these technologies will only ever be niche. And that's fine. I have an Oculus Go collecting dust and an Oculus Quest I only use one app for and I doubt I'd ever be willing to get a third headset. The gimmick of being able to turn my head in a virtual space just isn't worth it.
VR probably hit its peak with VR Chat, and AR probably hit it with Pokemon Go. Just as we're never getting the Jetson's future with Rosie the Robot, but we do get roombas, we're never getting the cyberpunk future where everything happens in VR, but we do get furries hanging out in digital Taco Bells.
> we're never getting the cyberpunk future where everything happens in VR, but we do get furries hanging out in digital Taco Bells
The interesting thing is that we kind of already knew this; 20 years ago, Second Life had a very similar "hype cycle->some niche groups kinda like this" story. I'm unsure why people thought that "like second life, but you have to strap this thing to your face" would necessarily be _more_ appealing.
I don't see too much appeal to AR, but VR has a very fun/enjoyable immersive aspect to it.
One of the things I very much hoped for was to be able to "hang out" with friends who have grown geographically distant in a space that felt more our own.
But I don't think that makes it truly "huge" in a mass market way unless it's at a very affordable price point.
There are some pretty cool AR demos out there too, but for me they're not worth wearing the headsets I've seen.
VR probably hit its peak with VR Chat, and AR probably hit it with Pokemon Go. Just as we're never getting the Jetson's future with Rosie the Robot, but we do get roombas, we're never getting the cyberpunk future where everything happens in VR, but we do get furries hanging out in digital Taco Bells.