In light of the media's coverage of leading game developer, Harmonix, recasting Rock Band for virtual reality, we want to provide extra analyst perspective on the important topic of exclusive content in virtual reality.

Clifton Dawson, CEO at Greenlight Insights:

"Exclusive content is very important for any new entertainment medium as a mechanism to attract mainstream consumers to unfamiliar platforms. And as a new medium for delivering entertainment, virtual reality is no different.

Since early 2015, we have witnessed a rush by headset and camera manufacturers, both large and small, to secure unique content partnerships. As an industry, we're are only now starting to see the fruits of that effort.

In 2016, it's imperative that headset manufacturers continue to work with a select group of studios, each of whom can dedicate the considerable resources required to develop games and experiences for virtual reality. Exclusivity may actually hasten the learning process for studios, and more importantly, the entire industry as it figures out how to design specifically for virtual reality as a distinctive medium with unique production constraints."

Eva Goins, Analyst at Greenlight Insights: 

"Mainstream games like Rock Band will be important to use as boosters to get casual gamers interested in VR. Hardcore gamers (those who play Fallout 4 or Call of Duty or Skyrim) are likely to already be interested in virtual reality mainly because of open-world and environmental exploration, but casual gamers may not even be aware of the industry or may not feel they have any reason to be interested in the industry at all. Familiar titles such as Rock Band help this."

To read more about the recent Oculus and Harmonix announcement, read John Gaudiosi's full article in Fortune here. The topic of virtual reality content and consumers is the topic of a recent Greenlight Insights report.