By Robert Glashuttner
Contemporary virtual reality headsets have been with us for regarding a decade now. It all started with the Oculus Rift, where you had to set up your own receivers in the room and install many drivers for the thing to work at all.
Today, it’s much more intuitive to dive into VR, and by far the most popular headset right now is the Meta Quest 2. You also don’t need a computer connection anymore, because the thing works wirelessly and standalone. It’s also reasonably affordable compared to the competition.
But now a device has appeared that relies more on computing power and advanced technology, but also brings the cable back into play: namely the second version of Playstation VR. The original version came out on the PS4 over six years ago, and now there’s a sequel for the PS5. We got a headset from PSVR 2 at FM4 and played it in some of the available games.
Unpack, plug in, get started
Although PSVR 2 is a “big” headset, installation – if you can even call it that – is noticeably more intuitive than on older devices. You unpack it, plug it into the PS5, pick up the two round controllers, put the thing on and you can actually get started. In principle, it is like any other VR headset. It’s a bit lighter, of course the tech is better, and there are a few tweaks – notably the eye tracking that detects where you’re looking.
The eye tracking works well, although the games that have existed for PSVR 2 so far hardly make use of it. Most of the features in the new virtual reality headset from Playstation are therefore those that are also known from the competition or from the predecessor: You move completely through 3D spaces, can look everywhere, teleport your character and control the games mostly with your own body.
Cool flagship game, average companion games
A virtual reality spin-off of the popular sci-fi series, Horizon VR: Call of the Mountain is easily the most impressive PSVR 2 game that makes the best use of the hardware. No wonder, because “Horizon” is a strong Playstation brand, which can sometimes be a system seller. There is a lot of climbing (which always works well in VR) and you can shoot archery and compete once morest the robot animals. That’s pretty great, especially because the movements and gestures, such as dodging, backing up, jumping, etc., are as natural as they are clever.
A second, larger PSVR 2 game is Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge, an expanded version of a VR game that debuted on Quest in 2020 and was widely celebrated there for its Last Call expansion. You’re on a spaceship, collecting and repairing things, fighting, and so on. At the beginning of my test, it was just as fascinating as it was overwhelming, but above all amazingly versatile. Things got confusing when my laser weapon suddenly went invisible, but that’s another story.
Almost all other games available at boot are either ports from other VR headsets (e.g. Tetris Effect, Tentacular or What The Bat) or extensions of non-VR games (e.g. Gran Turismo 7, No Man’s Sky” or “Resident Evil: Village”). This is nice as an option, but also a bit disappointing.
Luxury device for one*n, affordable fun for the group
The PSVR 2 headset is a very solid thing that will keep you entertained and fun – but also something that you should ideally play with other people. 600 euros for an additional device of a game console that already costs 600 euros is only affordable for high earners as individual fun. In addition, there is the danger that you will be enthusiastic for a few weeks and then let it gather dust in the box once more. The old problems of VR then make themselves felt once more: After regarding half an hour to an hour of use, it becomes uncomfortable to wear and you start to sweat. In addition, you always have to have the headset, controller and cables at hand, plug them in, unplug them, move them around and put them away.
That’s why you should treat the new Playstation headset in the same way that VR is being used more and more: as selective, spontaneous entertainment for a group. What used to be video game arcades are now more and more publicly accessible VR spaces that are used like a roller coaster at a fair. PSVR 2, for example, as a purchase for the flat share or to pass on to friends – that’s how it works best. When other people get involved and you watch each other make sometimes hilarious moves, that’s when virtual reality technology and the experiences it hides shine the most.
