Roughly one year after Sony (NYSE: SONY) first announced the second iteration in its PS VR lineup, the gaming giant finally unveiled the final design of its PS VR2 headset.
In the PS VR2, Sony is taking at primarily at the existing gaming market, betting that consumers will want to play their favorite PlayStation titles in virtual reality, even as Meta (NASDAQ: FB) and others push to bring VR out of living rooms and into everyday life.
Sony did not offer a price point for the PS VR2, but it is expected to be priced competitively with the Meta Quest 2, currently priced at $299, although the price could tread higher given the PS VR 2's higher-end capabilities.
The PS VR2 echoes the PlayStation 5's black and white design language, with Sony saying the two devices' designs were informed by each other. It retains the PS VR's adjustable headband, and the scope and headphone jack location remain the same.
New to the PS VR2 is a dial to adjust lens distance and optimize viewing, as well as vents that serve to prevent lens fogging while further echoing the PS 5's design. It will support high 4k resolutions while offering haptic feedback through a new motor built into the headset as well as eye-tracking, a 110-degree field of view, while supporting frame rates of 90-120 Hz. The device comes with a single cord setup, connecting to the PS 5 through USB-C.
"Our goal is to create a headset that will not only become an attractive part of your living room decor, but will also keep you immersed in your game world, to the point where you almost forget you are using a headset or controller," said Sony executive Hideaki Nishino in a release.
"When PS VR2 launches, it'll take a giant leap forward in the way we play games in virtual reality," he added. "There are plenty of exciting new features to look forward to in the PS VR2 system," he said, noting inside-out camera tracking, VR2 Sense Technology, among other features as well as "the new, intuitive PS VR2 Sense controller that creates an incredibly deep feeling of immersion."
It has been five years since Sony last updated its VR lineup, first launching the PS VR in 2016. Since then, consumer standards of VR have shifted higher in line with improving technology. The Valve Index, for instance, can replicate the movement of individual fingers in VR, while the Oculus Quest 2 offers a VR experience without the use of a separate console or computer. Sony will have to strain to meet consumers. heightened expectations.
In the meantime, the VR space is growing all the more crowded, with Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) expected to release its own VR headset sometime this year, while Meta will continue to lay the tentative foundations of what could become the Metaverse with the launch of the Meta Quest 3.
While Sony's VR ambitions are seemingly limited to gaming at the moment, it will still have to recruit new players and retain existing ones by offering a compelling enough PS VR2 catalog.
Tandem to that end, the upcoming blockbuster , Horizon Call of the Mountain, was built "specifically for the PS VR 2 and will open the doors for players to go deeper into the world of Horizon,"according to Sony. Additionally, in his release, Nishino noted that PS VR development kits are already in the hands of game creators.
"We are excited for what they'll come up with to truly make virtual reality a remarkable experience for gamers," he said.
Sony did not disclose a release date, but if it sticks to its traditional launch schedule, the PS VR2 will likely hit store shelves during the holiday season of 2022.