Sony said it’s trying to make its Playstation VR2 experience as living room-friendly as possible, as it looks to carve out a niche for itself in a market dominated by wireless options like the Oculus Quest. In a Tuesday blog post, senior Product Manager Yasuo Takahashi expanded on just how the company’s going to achieve these goals.
First, the PlayStation VR2 will include a “see-through” view that lets users press a button to check their surroundings through a front-embedded camera. This feature can be accessed through the function button on the headset or through the digital “Control Centre,” which is also where users can adjust their total play area on the fly.
The company is also advertising that the new system will use its embedded cameras to scan the room it’s in to fully customise the play area space. The system should warn users if they are approaching the play area boundary, and it should save the play area to the system between sessions, that is unless it detects you’ve moved to a different space entirely.
Takahashi also talked up the system’s broadcasting ability. The system will apparently use a PS5 HD Camera hooked up to the console to record users with a picture-in-picture view that apparently includes livestream support for platforms such as YouTube and Twitch.
In addition, Sony’s latest foray into VR will also include a “Cinematic Mode” that can display non-VR game content with the PS5 interface as well as a kind of “virtual cinema screen” at 1920X1080 with 24/60Hz and 120Hz as possible refresh rates. Though the blog does not include any pictures to show what this will look like in reality, the original PSVR also had a cinematic mode. The description makes it sound like other video-in-VR modes on other devices.
Ever since Sony first hinted at its second edition VR headset, users have wondered whether the experience could possibly match or exceed what other companies offer. When Sony last supplied details on this proprietary headset and controllers back in February, the company talked up the ability to adjust the distance between lenses, as well as the headset’s comfortable weight that Sony hopes will make you “almost forget you are using a headset or controller.” Knowing how uncomfortable some users report feeling after extended VR gaming sessions, fitting well may be one of the biggest sticking points beyond the promises of 4000 x 2040 resolution, 90 /120Hz refresh rates, or eye tracking.
Though the system will supposedly rely on a single USB-C cord, Sony will have to compete with other “affordable” offerings like the wireless Oculus Quest series and whatever the hell Apple decides to make, if the tech giant can bring down its rumoured $US3,000 ($4,165) price tag.
The company still doesn’t have a launch date and there’s no details on pricing or what additional games could be coming down the pipe to promote the new system’s launch. The original PSVR was priced around $US399 ($554) when it first launched back in 2016.