Sony confirms next-gen VR for the PlayStation 5. That's great news for virtual reality on all fronts
"We believe in VR... We see it as something that really could be really big and important."
Early this morning, a statement appeared from PlayStation Senior Vice President of Platform Planning and Management, Hideaki Nishino, regarding the new PS VR system coming to PS5 next year. After the news of more PlayStation exclusive games coming to PC this Spring, starting with Days Gone.
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The new PS VR system (tantalizingly with no name yet) will have a more simplified setup than its PS4 counterpart, with improved resolution, FOV, and tracking. The new PS VR will also connect to the PS5 with just a single cable for easy install and features a redesigned VR controller that'll have "some of the key features found in the DualSense wireless controller, along with a focus on great ergonomics."
Anyone hoping to play Resident Evil Village in VR at launch on their PlayStation 5 will be disappointed, as Nishino stated that the new PS VR headset wouldn't be hitting store shelves in 2021.
PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan said in an interview with GQ UK that dev kits are about to be sent out to developers and reinforced their commitment to VR on their console.
"We believe in VR and have been extremely happy with the results with the present PlayStation VR," says Ryan, "and think that we will do good business with our new VR system for PlayStation 5. More importantly, we see it as something beyond this coming iteration that really could be really big and important."
Sony did not unveil any new specifications, images, or even potential pricing for the next-gen PS VR. There's no debate that the PS VR was a popular headset last generation and brought affordable VR gaming mainstream, something VR on PC has struggled with due to the high cost of premium headsets and other issues.
But the Oculus Quest 2, Facebook affiliation aside, has shown that affordable, easy-to-use VR can work on a gaming PC to great effect. Since the 90Hz update the Quest 2 has become a fantastic PC VR headset, and there is the promise of a 120Hz update on the horizon too.
Hopefully, with Sony confirming its support for next-gen VR, that could be a boon for VR at large, encouraging more big name devs to focus on virtual reality. And that would be a win for VR gaming on any platform.