I still feel like it's a very niche market in the west, and will stay that way unless some of the better VN's (Grisaia, G-Senjou, Clannad) take the spotlight from things like the Sakura games, Nekopara, and Hatoful Boyfriend. A lot of people are just completely put off by them and think of VN's as joke games. That being said, I don't think they will ever not be niche in the west.