It’s been six years since Sony’s VR glasses PSVR were released and the PSVR2 shouldn’t be on the market until the beginning of next year at the earliest. In our opinion, the VR sector in gaming is a bit fallow, as only a few games are developed for this area. New and better hardware could change that.
At a try-out event in London, Sony invited people to try out the PSVR2 and test it extensively. From everything you’ve read about it so far, Sony’s new VR glasses seem to be THE chance for the VR market to trigger another hype. Here you can find out what the PSVR2 can do and why so many are enthusiastic about it.
Pro
- Custom controllers with adaptive triggers
- Easier
- Less cable clutter
- Haptic feedback on the head
- Significantly higher resolution than its predecessor (2000 x 2040 pixels per eye)
- Besseres Eye-Tracking
Contra
- Unknown price could cause a rude awakening
First impressions
At first glance, the PSVR2 headset seems to be convincing in all respects and to surpass its predecessor and the competition in many respects, even if typical VR diseases still persist – keyword motion sickness.
Especially with a resolution of 2000 x 2040 pixels per eye, the PSVR2 can clearly stand out from other VR headsets and thus fully utilize the computing power of the PS5. Let’s just hope that publishers and developers will now take matters into their own hands and develop good AAA titles for VR again. Not much has happened since Half-Life: Alyx.
Our colleagues from GamePro have already been able to try out the PSVR2. For a first impression, go here:
The Playstation VR 2 can do that
The PSVR2 comes in a minimalist design that matches the PS5. The 4.5 meter long cable is said to be significantly lighter than other VR headsets and therefore less annoying. The weight of the glasses themselves should also be surprisingly low, which ensures that the glasses don’t get in the way even after a long period of play.
Die Controller have been significantly adjusted compared to the first Playstation VR glasses. Instead of the chunky rod-shaped controller with a ball of light at the top, there is now a design that we already know from other VR headsets. The controller encloses the hand and can thus register the movement of the fingers. In addition, adaptive triggers are installed, as with the Dual Sense controllers.
The controller for the new Playstation VR 2 headset now also has adaptive triggers.
Also in the field of eye tracking should Sony’s gaming glasses outperform the competition. So-called foveated rendering seems to have little to no lag here. Foveated rendering ensures that only the areas you really look at are rendered in high detail. There are also smaller benefits that come from this type of eye-tracking, which will mainly affect immersion, for example that NPCs can now look you directly in the eye.
The play area is defined with Sony’s “seethrough” feature, by simply looking around the room and adjusting the area with the controllers if necessary. According to testers, this should work better than Oculus’ “passthrough” feature.
Sony’s new seethrough feature that allows you to demarcate your play area.
Particularly excited are some testers from the so-called Sense technology, which allows haptic feedback on the head. This is how you should feel it, for example, when a bird flies close to your head. But you don’t want your whole head to vibrate.
The highlight seems to be the significantly improved picture for most. Sony has quadrupled the resolution, bringing the PSVR2 to a whopping 2000 x 2040 pixels per eye. It also supports 4K HDR gameplay, has a field of view of 110 degrees and 90-120 Hertz depending on the game.
What does the press say about this?
Some colleagues are more and some less reserved when it comes to the enthusiasm for Sony’s new VR flagship. Eurogamer for example are very enthusiastic:
“Wow. wow wow wow That’s the word that comes to mind when I think about my time with the Playstation VR2«
The colleagues at GamePro are particularly impressed by the immersive vibrations:
»[…]after playing it we are sure that this will be the big innovation for VR gaming that will set PSVR 2 apart from other headsets.«
Also The Verge only speaks positively about the PSVR2, albeit a little more cautiously. Here’s what the editors at The Verge have to say about the resolution, which many are hailing to the skies:
»[…]While a lot of the games looked great, it felt like there was some sort of coated surface between you and the game. The best way I can describe it is that it seems like my contacts have dried out. You can still see clearly, but it’s a little blurry at the edge.”
You really can’t find much negative about the PSVR2 even if you search. Should someone lose negative words about it, such as with Heisethen this mostly relates to the motion sickness or color fringes in the picture when the headset is not properly placed on the head:
»Even a slight slippage led to color fringes when playing, which became clear, for example, with light text in front of a dark background. The sweet spot, i.e. the correct viewing position, seemed a bit small on the PSVR2; Whether this will improve in the final hardware and how the lenses compare to the competition from Meta, Valve and HTC can only be clarified in a detailed test«
All in all, it can be said that the Playstation VR 2 does a lot right at first glance. One can only hope that developers and publishers will see this and start making great games and innovations for VR again.
If you don’t have a Playstation and still want to enjoy VR, you should take a look at our VR glasses buying guide:
The best VR glasses – Virtual Reality purchase advice
What do you think of the new VR glasses from Sony? Do you already have VR glasses and will you replace them, or are you just not into VR at all? Feel free to write it in the comments!
