Watching video has been a passive activity since its inception (with some modest exceptions). 360 video maintains all that passivity in its filmmaking, but adds an unnecessary and inconvenient (even if cool) piece of interactivity: turning your head. You can't even move around! It's cool, but it's largely a gimmick for most videos as they are now. Maybe filmmakers will develop new techniques for this technology, maybe not.
Games and other similar interactive content seem like a much better use of the technology.
As someone who had the opportunity to shoot a few of these last year [0], I wholeheartedly agree. There's so much left wanting out of the experience beyond the gimmick of the wraparound video. And, I'm not sure that films/docs translate 1:1 into VR. As you mentioned, interactive content (and thus new technology enabling this content) seems like a much better bet. You're already starting to see it with frameworks like ForgeJS from GoPro. I'd love to see the ability to export this type of content from the various engines (like Unity) into YouTube/Facebook. The only reason I still feel it's still more than a valid venue for content is the reach and access they've enabled for regular, mobile users as opposed to Oculus/Vive/etc.
> but it's largely a gimmick for most videos as they are now
Absolutely agree. There has been exactly one video where I was constantly spinning around 360 and it was the Lion King musical 360 video (1).
The reason it kept my interest was 1. things are happening 360 the entire time, and (more importantly) 2. I got to see a view that I had never seen before (that is, looking from the stage into the audience). If the Lion King video had been shot in an open field, I doubt I would have been spinning around nearly as much.
TBH, I find 360 video tiresome. It gives me a feeling of anxiety (low level annoyance, not full blown panic) that I might be missing something interesting if I'm facing the wrong way. I really don't find the payoff to be worth it. I feel like 360 video is going to end up like 3D TV.
Games and other similar interactive content seem like a much better use of the technology.