Sony has been one of the top gaming consoles makers for many years now. In that time, gaming and gaming hardware has changed so much, from the quality of the graphics to what’s possible with gameplay and connectivity. Virtual reality (VR) is a new platform that is yet to be explored, where potentials are yet to be realised, and whose development allows the imagination to run wild. Sony PlayStation VR is one of those devices.
The development of Sony’s VR headset has taken about 5 years and taken input from hundreds of Sony’s employee in various departments. Almost 2 years ago we find out about Project Morpheus and we spoke about it very amazed and with a bit skepticism. Now, it’s clear that the magicians in Sony’s Magic Lab had a lot to do to develop the Playstation VR. Sony’s Magic Lab is where experimentation happens, where ideas are thrown about, worked on and where some devices may never see the light of day. However, without experimentation, we wouldn’t see some of the other devices that come into stores.
Sony Playstation VR headset has something that the Occulus Rift and other devices don’t have – The need to own a $1000+ computer. Considering the cost of the Occulus Rift being added to a beefy PC, automatically a lot of potential users are left out of the fun. The Playstation Headset connects with the Playstation 4, a gaming console that’s already in millions of homes across the world and one that comes with an affordable price tag.
The perspective of the Sony Playstation VR is not that it’s a peripheral for the PS4 but a console in its own right. Sony already has the content to use for VR games, but what the experience could and will be is a massive question. Devices like the EyeToy and Playstation move had a few games designed for them, and gamers had a lot of fun with the interactivity. Many people who weren’t gamers got into the action because of the novelty and different experience of the EyeToy and Playstation Move. In the end, sadly not too many games used the devices and the technology disappeared.
The price of Sony’s Playstation VR looks like it will be around the $300/$400US mark. Compare this to the Occulus Rift ($599) and HTC’s Vive ($799), and you have a device that has a big price difference. Sony admits that it doesn’t have the same quality at something like the Occulus Rift, but it’s going for the everyday gamer over the gamer with a $1000+ PC. As for the games, it looks like the pricing will be between $10 and $60.
Source: Polygon
