Yeah. I need to get to a PAX and try it out before no one buys them and it disappears from the planet.
I don’t know, my cat can be pretty judgmental.
Yeah, I’m looking forward to VR porn too!
So US pre-orders for a PSVR bundle start on Tuesday for $499.
It includes the headset, camera, 2 Move controllers, the VR Worlds game pack, and headphones.
According to Sony, “The core PS VR bundle, which has a suggested retail price of $399.99 USD / $549.99 CAD, is not available for pre-order.” Which I assume will annoy people who already have Move.
It’s more complicated than that. For seated or standing experiences without motion controllers I would say the Rift is slightly better. Better optics, better fit, better build quality*. These are all slight differences but if you don’t have space for roomscale (and you probably don’t) and can wait for the touch controllers, it’s likely a better deal.
I am not sure how exclusivity is going to work out with the PC space. I think most titles will work on both systems but the Vive & Rift SDK each have their good points and developing for both is going to be a pain. Developing for the lowest common denominator for both may be common.
Back to the PSVR, I am not going to be ordering it day one, and won’t be ordering it at all unless they get a killer title. As excited as I am for VR Sony’s track record with console peripherals is terrible. Actually all console peripherals are terrible?
*Take this with a grain of salt, I have no hands on experience, just been exhaustively reading and watching everything I can find on the subject
Oh yeah, believe me, I’m very aware of that. :)
Really hope someone comes up with a universal API for VR rendering soon. Right now we’re in a Rendition Verite vs. 3Dfx Voodoo situation with these guys having disparate APIs.
And I don’t want to have bought the Verite. :)
I finally got the chance to try a demo of the PSVR. I have a minor condition in my left eye that sometimes interferes with 3D stuff—not often, but on the off chance it would matter for VR, I wasn’t going to buy something like this without trying it first.
It works!
So now that I know I could get a PSVR, are we due for price drops any time soon? Are we expecting any Black Friday deals? Or is it just safe to pick one up on a whim when/if my curiosity and entertainment budgets align?
Also, is a PS4 Pro a big deal for this, or is it fine just playing with a regular PS4?
The regular PS4 works just fine but the Pro will give you a little better performance in the games that utilize it. I’ve never seen the Pro version to compare it though.
Like non-VR games, they can run with better image quality on PS4 pro, if updated to take advantage of it. Framerates shouldn’t vary as low framerates in VR aren’t just annoying but nauseating.
Well, Skyrim is coming out in a few days for the PS4 in VR, so there is a chance that it should coincide with a sale maybe?
Also fun story: the PlayStation rep wasn’t allowed to let anyone play the Superhot demo because “someone punched a guy so Best Buy won’t let us do that one anymore”.
I would wait for the revised hardware that allows HDR passthrough. Sony announced it last month.
Ah, that’s why I haven’t considered one. Too much hassle. What an insane example of different divisions in a company not communicating that introducing goggles that didn’t pass through HDR at the same time as an HDR console was.
Heard they’re going to be $200 for Black Friday, but (1) I assume that’s the original model, and (2) don’t you have to still buy the extra-cost camera and back massagers?
They have the bundle with the camera and Gran Turismo Sport selling for $300 for Black Friday.
Picked up the Skyrim PSVR bundle on BF. Haven’t messed with Skyrim yet, first thing I did was get & play Psychonauts: The Rhombus of Ruin. Ordered it on Amazon and it beat me home.
Rhombus was a cool, well-designed VR experience, and picked right up where Psychonauts left off (on a plane headed to rescue Lily’s father). Lots of Double Fine whimsy and strange Psychonauts art, with some really nice visual storytelling at the end. Took maybe 2.5 hours to finish, and I was not in any hurry. Would not have liked it to have been artificially prolonged with more obtuse puzzles.
PSVR worked for me without glasses (mostly, I think, might try it with my reading glasses), but had a lower resolution than I was expecting. Still pretty damn impressive when you look around you and see a whole 3D-rendered game environment.
You’d think a bit of vision blur would be a plus point given current VR resolutions. Natural AA.
Yes, the $200 models are the original generation as far as I know. I believe you can tell if the pass-through box has a sliding compartment for the headset cords or not. All of the online stuff shows a slider, but my unit just has regular old plugs on a solid, non-sliding case.
Regarding the camera, it’s available for $40 pretty regularly, and move controllers can be had around $28 online (maybe you already have one). I thought hard about getting the cheap pack, but the boys were really eager to try Skyrim in VR, and that’s a whole new SKU that justifies the value of the bundle.
Perhaps!
Telefrog can start a thread for PSVR 2 when they finally announce the price.
Until then, here’s a bunch of previews that just hit.
Eurogamer:
Quote
Wow. Wow, wow, wow. That’s the word that keeps springing to mind when I try to sum up my time with PlayStation VR2. As a fervent fan of VR for many years now, it’s safe to say that my first hands-on experience with Sony’s upcoming headset wowed my VR-loving socks off. This sleek and stylish unit was all I could have wanted for an upgraded PSVR headset and much, much more.
Wired:
The Verge:
The impressions all sound really good. I’m still not sure I’m interested in VR yet, but I hope the concept succeeds and so by the time I’m ready to try it, the form has matured and not died away.