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Sony's VR headset for the PS5 should arrive this year. Here's what it does, and what we expect.
I started with CNET reviewing laptops in 2009. Now I explore wearable tech, VR/AR, tablets, gaming and future/emerging trends in our changing world. Other obsessions include magic, immersive theater, puzzles, board games, cooking, improv and the New York Jets.
The next big VR gaming headset may not be the Quest Pro or Quest 3 , or Apple's expected device . Instead, consider the PlayStation VR 2. Sony's long-expected sequel to its 2016 headset for the PlayStation 4 is on track to arrive sometime this year, and the information being dribbled out over time by Sony makes it look extremely impressive. For gamers, this could end up being the most important VR hardware release in a while.
The PSVR 2 isn't a stand-alone, self-contained headset like Meta's Quest 2 (aka Oculus Quest 2), which means that you'll need to USB-C tether it to a PlayStation 5 (and, of course, own a PS5) to use it. We still don't know a release date or price yet, either. But we do know lots of other key details: specs, the design , how some of its software features will work, and even a confirmed game.
The PlayStation VR 2 looks, in a lot of ways, like the headset we wanted for the PS5 all along. A new design has a color scheme that matches the PS5, and a headband-type visor that's similar to but smaller than Sony's first PSVR. The high-res, vibrating, camera-equipped, eye-tracking capabilities of Sony's second-gen PlayStation headset look like they fit the top-end specs anyone would dream of.
Earlier this year, Sony revealed a ton of details about its expected next-gen VR headset , which is an update to the PlayStation VR that Sony released for the PlayStation 4 back in 2016. Sony's been revealing more details about the headset in little drips and drops: Specs were revealed in January in a detailed blog post, while its funky dedicated VR controllers , which are reminiscent of the PS5's DualSense controllers , were revealed last year.
More recently, Sony revealed new details on how in-VR game broadcasting and room-sensing with its passthrough cameras will work.
We also know about one exclusive game: Horizon Call of the Mountain, which is set in the same universe as Horizon Zero Dawn and Horizon Forbidden West.
The VR headset promises to have unique vibrating feedback and controllers with advanced haptics, along with eye tracking , a 110-degree field of view, and foveated rendering , a technology that focuses only on where the fovea of the eye is looking to maximize resolution, getting more graphics punch with fewer pixels.
Sony's PlayStation Head of R&D, Dominic Mallinson, suggested eye tracking could be likely back in a 2019 conversation with CNET .
It looks to be one of the biggest game-changing VR headsets expected in 2022 .
Passthrough cameras on the headset will work like cameras on the Quest 2 and other VR headsets, showing the real world in your headset. The headset will also "mesh" your physical space, scanning walls, floors and obstacles like chairs and desks to get a clear sense of play space. It can create a boundary you can play in.
The meshing part is particularly interesting, because it's something AR headsets and mixed-reality headsets do. It means the PSVR 2 could, theoretically, also have some mixed reality experiences like the Quest 2 is already playing with, although Sony hasn't announced anything on that front yet.
One unique feature is a live broadcast mode, which will use the PS5's TV-mounted camera to record yourself overlaid with footage from your live gameplay into a single stream. Mixed reality livecasting tools have been emerging for Quest 2, but no game console has ever had this feature before.
Sony also details two display modes for the headset: one, for VR, will display at 2,000x2,040 pixels per eye in HDR, at 90Hz or 120Hz. A 2D "cinematic mode," much like what the original PSVR can do, plays movies and 2D games at 1,920x1,080 resolution in HDR at either 24Hz, 60Hz, or 120Hz.
There's an adjusting knob on the back to tighten the headset fit.
Even if Sony's PSVR 2 headset looks bulky in the photos, it could end up being a lot more comfortable than the Quest 2. An adjustable headband, similar to the PSVR's original design, means it'll tighten around the head like a visor instead of using an elastic strap to squeeze your face. Sony promises adjustable lens distance for different eyes and faces, too, like the original PSVR had. That type of fit worked really well for my glasses.
The headset supports headphones with a standard headphone jack, and has one cable that tethers to the PS5 via USB-C, via a jack that seems to come out of one side of the headband. That's a lot fewer wires than the crazy breakout box needed for the original PSVR.
Built-in eye tracking promises to deliver better graphics, and possibly allow eye control and eye contact in VR games. Eye tracking isn't common in consumer VR headsets yet, but the technology should be arriving on other mainstream headsets, including Meta's next VR device and possibly Apple's as well.
The headset's four tracking cameras will allow movement in VR to be tracked without using a TV-connected camera bar. The tracking should work in a similar way to other VR headsets. It's possible that the cameras could allow some pass-through mixed reality, too, blending VR with what the cameras see onto the headset's display.
A side view of the headset, and another angle on the Sense controllers.
Sony's own exclusive Horizon: Call of the Mountain remains the PSVR 2's splashiest game, but other games have been announced as well. No Man's Sky is a confirmed PSVR 2 port (the game already can be played on PSVR). Also announced: The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners Chapter 2 Retribution, and Resident Evil Village.
Even though Sony seems to have dumped a ton of information our way, there are still a lot of unknowns about the PSVR 2 that we hope to find out sooner than later:
Sony still hasn't put a price on the PSVR 2, which suggests it won't be cheap. The original PlayStation VR cost $400 for just the headset back in 2016. With the PSVR 2's eye tracking, higher-end display and fancy controllers, this could end up costing at least as much as the PlayStation 5. But that's all speculation.
Sony said the PSVR 2 is coming in 2022, but does that mean by the holidays or sooner? There's no big rush, but it would be nice to know.
Sony revealed one PSVR 2 game, but how great will the rest of the lineup be? Sony could dip into its exclusive game library, or get timed exclusives from indie developers. The first PSVR launched with a number of notable games, and the PSVR 2 will need interesting games to sell the hardware.
Odds are, according to reports, it will be backward-compatible with existing PSVR games. That would make sense because PSVR games on PS4 already work on the PS5 with the first-gen hardware. It'll also help give the new headset a starter library; Sony could also update more of those games with PS5-optimized graphics.
Sony confirmed the headset is tethered with a USB-C cable, and you can see the tethered cable in the PSVR 2 photo above. Right now, the answer is no. It's hard to imagine 360-degree Beat Saber with that USB-C cable attached, but PC VR headsets are cable-tethered, too.