Seeking a virtual reality breakthrough

For the first time, seven virtual reality games are included in the national e-sports competition. [Photo provided to China Daily]

But the rapid expansion of the virtual reality market had cooled down a little bit by the end of 2016.

The lack of good content still keeps virtual reality games from becoming more popular among the public.

After the first months, there have been fewer people coming into The Choice's VR experience center. According to a survey done by The Choice, only 15 percent of customers are satisfied with their VR experience.

In the second half of the year, many venture capitalists stopped funding unprofitable virtual reality projects.

"We have witnessed the in and out of the capital, but we think it is not the winter for VR industry itself. The technology has been advancing steadily in the past year," says Zhang.

The government has also pushed to popularize virtual reality games.

The National Electronic Sports Tournament held by General Administration of Sport of China included seven virtual reality games in its e-sports competition last year. After three months of preliminary contests in 14 cities, 42 contestants made it into the final in Xiamen, Fujian province.

But the virtual reality gaming industry is still waiting for its killer apps - ones with the appeal of Angry Birds or Plants vs. Zombies - that could make virtual reality a must for every household.

One possible candidate is Raw Data, a sci-fi action combat game, which became the first virtual reality game to gross $1 million in a month after being released in July.

Its creator, California-based virtual reality company Survios, disclosed in December that it raised $50 million in funding last year.