There seems to be a multiplatform trend emerging in the videogame market. Microsoft recently announced that several Xbox exclusives like Hi-Fi Rush and Sea of Thieves would be coming to rival consoles. And now Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) has revealed that work is underway on bringing PSVR 2 support to PC. Is this a good move or simply Sony desperately trying to sell more headsets?
So the PSVR 2 celebrated its first anniversary to very little fanfare this week. A PlayStation Blog post detailed updates and a couple of new games with the most interesting being Zombie Army VR from Rebellion. However, what caught most people’s attention was a brief mention of PC support.
“Also, we’re pleased to share that we are currently testing the ability for PS VR2 players to access additional games on PC to offer even more game variety in addition to the PS VR2 titles available through PS5. We hope to make this support available in 2024, so stay tuned for more updates.”
PSVR 2 PC Support
In theory that sounds great. If you’ve got a PSVR 2 as well as a gaming rig, then you could access SteamVR games (for example), opening up a whole new world of VR possibilities. You’d have those lovely OLED panels to play your PC games on as well as those Sense controllers.
But are the majority of PSVR 2 owners really that bothered about PC support? There’s certainly a niche bunch of VR fans who’d utilise it. The VR community adapted the original PSVR with unofficial drivers and open-source tools, but that’s not for the faint of heart. Those same people have also been working on the same challenge as Sony, with the iVRy Driver planning a DLC update for its PSVR hack.
The other aspect to consider is sheer hardware compatibility. SIE built the PS5 with PSVR 2 in mind so that it could easily plug in via a USB-C port. However, USB-C aren’t ubiquitous on GPUs, some models have them and some don’t. For universal compatibility, an external adaptor would be required – like the free PSVR adaptor for PS5. Would this be an additional, purchasable accessory, or would another freebie deal come into play?
And let’s not forget the fact of software support. PSVR 2 games enjoy eye tracking, foveated rendering and headset haptics, none of which generally feature in PCVR games. So there are those fun issues to solve.
When the VR community does this it feels like a genuine effort to give fans more options. Whereas with Sony, it seems like a bid to sell more headsets because what they have isn’t shifting – no sales figures have been released of late.
What we’d really like to see are more first-party AAA games for PSVR 2. Third-party teams like Vertigo Games with Metro Awakening and Mighty Eyes with Wanderer: The Fragments of Fate are leading the charge but where is SIE?
What do you think, is PSVR 2 support for PC a good thing or just marketing to keep folks interested? Let us know in the comments.