PSVR2: Next-Gen Boogaloo

[Neon Ignition]

It's possible they might bring them but given the avoidance of having PSVR2 work with PC's it seems they aren't keen on it. I assume it's considered low priority because the audience is much more limited than their other ports are for.

If anything, after the impact of Switch and the arrival of Deck, it's more a wonder that Sony pursued PSVR2 over PSP3. Scalable on the go PS4/PS5 games feels much more marketable than VR. But then we live in the timeline where Vita scared them off.

[Asura]

nope not everything is a simple affair comparing games like RoboRecall, on the meta quest vs the pc version shows how much they had to cut to get a big budget game onto a low powered headset same goes for games like Arizona sunshine too. texures, lighting, reflections shadows and detail are all cut to the bone to get the game running at a decent level. with robo recall you also loose the amazing way that the robots fell to pieces as you shot them too bits which was a big part of the game when it launched.

True, but those games were designed, initially, for PCVR, and later had to be crushed down to work on the stand-alone headsets. It's a different sort of development from games made natively for the hardware.

This is going off topic a little but something I thought of last night.

Having picked up a Steam Deck recently and re-buying some Sony classics (God of War, Days gone, Horizon Zero Dawn) on Steam so I can play on the device I wonder whether Sony's PC support policy extends to bringing their own VR titles to PC in future

My gut feeling says "no", but honestly, these days, it'd be wrong to assert that. Even if Sony said they were exclusive, recent events have shown that word is kinda meaningless now.

Even using VR as an example, you can get Vader Immortal on PSVR, which was previously an Oculus exclusive that was part-made by Oculus, and Iron Man VR came to Quest 2, which was previously a Sony exclusive...

I've just realised that might have been tit for tat

[Lebowski]

True, but those games were designed, initially, for PCVR, and later had to be crushed down to work on the stand-alone headsets. It's a different sort of development from games made natively for the hardware.

The original point that Neo made was that all vr games are simple affairs that don't benefit from graphical omph, i was desputing this by saying the standalone quest shows that you do have to compromise the experience of big budget games to get them running.

[Neon Ignition]

Some Quest games have been compromised to fit them on but I never played it feeling they were stripped by too much. Even in their PC incarnations they're not visually high bar games. Even Alyx, impressive as it is compared to other VR games, shows its limitations and reuse of assets etc to keep it in check. PS5 is capable of pumping strong visuals out as Horizon shows but non-Sony devs are never going to tap into it because it doesn't justify the budgets, especially if from a tracking and graphical standpoint other headset releases are in the back of their mind. VR software support is an issue across the entire market, it's why it was so critical that this time Sony go all in with a steady strong showcase line up but as it stands they feel like a repeat of the Vita scenario is looming.


Hopefully Sony gets some more titles announced in very quick fashion. Given it launches in February, if Summer 2023 circles around soon after and their support remains so anaemic then red alerts should be going round. Should make the sales next year interesting too.

[fishbowlhead]

You're wrong. You can build a PC perfectly capable of running PCVR for £500-600 add in a used Oculus Rift and you're well under £1000.

You can get an RTX 2080 now for about £300 and well under that if you bide your time.

Even with new parts if you try hard enough, now if you'd have said that maybe even as little as 2 months ago, you may have been right, but now if defo a good time to build a gaming PC.

Pick up a diskless PS5 and it becomes even more improbable. You can’t match the specs for a new system with new parts even if you are a really savvy builder.

[Neon Ignition]

By October 2023, if it sells 1m, we'll have our answer

[MartyG]

Pick up a diskless PS5 and it becomes even more improbable. You can’t match the specs for a new system with new parts even if you are a really savvy builder.

I just linked you it above with a new VR headset that can be used on the PC for under a grand right this very moment.

Link me the same

[QualityChimp]

Right. Some of us think PC VR is the way forward and a cheaper alternative, others think the streamlined PSVR route delivers what they want.

Can we talk about the PSVR2 again, gang? Cheers.

[MartyG]

I thought we were?

These are not competing things, simply equivalencies if you were in the market for a PC alternative for around the same price. I don't really see that those in the market for PSVR2 are the same people in the market for PCVR, because if they were they'd already have bought the parts I linked above and be enjoying some perspective-changing experiences

But you can do it. If you wanted to.

[Neon Ignition]

If anyone is unsure PSVR1 can be snagged for about £80-£90 at this point giving you access to most of the experiences PSVR2 will see, at least to the extent to get a good idea if it suits them before diving in with the cost of the new unit. Do it for Astrobot!

[QualityChimp]

Zenith: The Last City is also supposed to be offering a free PSVR2 upgrade.

After the Fall is also rumoured to be offering an upgrade too. The PS Blog reads: "And that’s not all that awaits you on PS VR2. Since the initial launch in December 2021 our team has continued to expand the world of After the Fall, which has more than doubled in content since then. You’ll be pleased to know that all of that gorey, co-op goodness will be included free of charge to anyone who buys the game on PS VR2."

[Asura]

Zenith: The Last City is also supposed to be offering a free PSVR2 upgrade.

Be interesting to see if anyone's playing it when PSVR2 comes out, unfortunately. It came out to a lot of fanfare and I enjoyed playing it for ~10-15 hours, but whenever I log on now it seems dead.

[QualityChimp]

Ghostbusters: Rise Of The Ghost Lord Announced For PlayStation VR2 And Meta Quest 2

"The Ghostbusters VR game announced in April 2022 now has a full title and release window. This game, revealed earlier this year as Ghostbusters VR, is called Ghostbusters: Rise of the Ghost Lord. It is a VR title for Meta Quest 2 and PlayStation VR2 that's scheduled to launch in 2023.


nDreams is developing the title, which will be published by Sony Pictures Virtual Reality. Players will become a ghostbuster in San Francisco as they traverse the city to bust ghosts. Locations like the Golden Gate Bridge will be featured in the campaign, which supports solo play and co-op. The end goal is to defeat the Ghost Lord and his minions from destroying San Francisco."

[MartyG]

I've seen the original Quest headset on buy it now for around £200. They aren't great comfort-wise with the default straps for long sessions, but the panels in them are fantastic for media content.

There are definitely cheap ways into VR right now on the used market if you're unsure - I've said it plenty of times before, but you can't really have VR explained to you or watch it being streamed. To truly understand why it's perspective changing, you've got to experience it personally, and with the specs PSVR2 has, it will be a high-end one.

And that's why I do think that PSVR2 will be worth the asking price.

[Neon Ignition]

.......

.......


I'm actually quite tempted by a cheap PSVR1 now....