It looks like Sony’s big bet on the VR first-person shooter (FPS), Farpoint, had paid off, at least in the UK.
The UK’s weekly games chart, compiled by GfK and shared via The Association for UK Interactive Entertainment (UKIE), reveals that Farpoint debuted at number two in the weekly charts for the last seven days. The only game to sell more copies in the UK that week was Injustice 2, the new fighting game starring DC characters that released on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. The chart tracks UK retail sales figures, though it doesn’t include digital sales from outlets like the PlayStation Store.
Given that Farpoint only appeared on PSVR, which only a fraction of the 60 million PS4 users out there own, that’s a pretty impressive statistic. It’s now the highest position a VR-only game has reached, the previous being PlayStation VR Worlds that debuted at No 7 back in October 2016. It even surpassed Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, which released last week for the wildly more popular Nintendo 3DS. We’ll be interested to see if it ranks again within the next week; we’re not used to seeing VR games listed given most of them release as digital exclusives.
The chart almost certainly counts both the standalone copy of Farpoint and the version of the game that comes bundled with its new controller, the gun-shaped Aim device. In the UK, both were available for £75, which is about £35 more than the traditional £40 recommended retail price of game. Does this mean people are still willing to pay more for experiences despite already buying an entirely new headset?
We know that PSVR has sold around (and by now likely surpassed) one million units sold, obviously only a certain number of which will be in the UK.
We’re happy to see Farpoint succeed, as we quite like the game ourselves. “For better and for worse, based on current capabilities, Farpoint is the game that PSVR deserves — an exhilarating, but flawed, AAA-quality VR shooter,” Games Editor David Jagneaux wrote in his review.
It’s also a good sign for developers making new games that will support the Aim controller soon like Arizona Sunshine.
