The weak sales performance of the PlayStation VR2 would have led Sony to pause your production. As reported Bloombergthe Japanese company has stopped the manufacture of new units of its virtual reality headset for the PS5, in order to get rid of those that are accumulating in its inventory.
The aforementioned media indicates that the marketing of the PlayStation VR2 has “progressively slowed down” since it was launched at the beginning of 2023. This would have translated into a marked drop in shipments to the retail sector and an increase in the stock of the device.
By stopping its manufacturing, Sony would seek to get rid of unmarketed units. In fact, the sources of Bloomberg indicate that the surplus of assembled PlayStation VR2 is scattered throughout the Japanese corporation’s supply chain.
The Asian firm would have produced more than 2 million units of the virtual reality headset, but it is unknown how many reached the players. An IDC report indicates that more than 595,000 PlayStation VR2s were shipped to retailers in the first quarter of 2023, although the figure fell to 325,000 in the last quarter of last year.
When we talk about shipments we are referring to the units that arrive at the stores that are in charge of marketing the device, not the number of units sold to the public. The latter has not yet been officially revealed by Sony.
Why are sales of the PlayStation VR2 falling?
Although the PlayStation VR2 has received very good reviews for the quality of the hardware and its integration with the PS5, there are two key factors that would be generating little interest among potential buyers. One of them would be the lack of a greater number of top-level games for the headset
Sony promised more than twenty games compatible with PlayStation VR2 before its launch, and the catalog has grown since then. There is even support for AAA titles like Gran Turismo 7 y Horizon Call of the Mountain. The latter, in fact, was the first confirmed proposal for the device and even had its own bundle when it arrived on the market.
However, the other major factor that would have affected its commercialization would be its price. The PlayStation VR2 was launched in February 2023 with a price of 599,99 dollars for the conventional version. While the aforementioned package with Horizon Call of the Mountain came to the market in exchange for 649,99 dollars. and both values They have not changed since then.
We are talking about an expensive device. More expensive than a PS5 Slim with a disc reader, whose price is 549.99 dollars, but since February It’s on sale
Sony had already given clues that sales of the PlayStation VR2 were not working as expected. Last month, the company announced that official support for use on PC was tested. A notable change in their strategy, considering that they had originally said that the exclusive mission of the device was to take the PS5 experience to another level.
Of course, the manufacturer has paused the production of the PlayStation VR2 It does not necessarily mean that you are already thinking about canceling it.. Industry analysts indicate Bloomberg that virtual reality games could receive a new push in the coming years. Especially due to the revitalized interest after the launch of the Apple Vision Pro.