By Nathalie Voit
Electronics giant Sony on Feb. 22 unveiled its latest virtual reality (VR) headset, the PlayStation VR 2.
In a blog on the company’s website, Senior Vice President of Platform Experience Hideaki Nishino revealed “the stunning new design” of PlayStation VR 2, poised to compete against other prominent companies’ products in the VR marketplace.
Sony’s VR-rival Facebook has set aside about $10 billion over the next year to develop metaverse-related technologies. The company currently offers the $299 Quest 2 to users who want to immerse themselves in the metaverse, a digital universe where Facebook parent company Meta hopes everyday consumers can one day lead double lives.
Apple is similarly expected to launch its own VR headset in the near future, according to a report from Bloomberg.
Sony’s VR system requires a PlayStation to run, and like Facebook’s Quest 2, features two controllers. The power duo will allow users to seamlessly connect and play with games they already own, according to the release. Sony has yet to announce pricing.
“Our goal is to create a headset that will not only become an attractive part of your living room decor, but will also keep you immersed in your game world, to the point where you almost forget you are using a headset or controller,” Nishino said in the release.
The headset features new add-ons to differentiate it from the original version, including a lens adjustment dial that allows users to match the lens distance between their eyes to optimize their views. PS VR2 also debuts a slimmer and less weighty design than the first PS VR headset, in addition to a slew of sensory features like headset feedback, enhanced head and eye tracking, 3D audio, and advanced 4K HDR graphics.
The PS VR2 Sense controllers combine haptic feedback and adaptive triggers to enable a full-scale immersion in the metaverse, Sony said.
“When PS VR2 launches, it’ll take a giant leap forward in the way we play games in virtual reality,” Nishino said.
