PlayStation is one of the technology companies that is betting the strongest on the democratization of the (still marginal) virtual reality within the field of video game. The company, which in 2016 launched its first console-compatible viewer on the market PlayStationhas been working for years on the development of a new, more cutting-edge model that is expected to hit stores sometime in 2023: PS VR2. Although at the moment there is no official confirmation.
Recently, the company Kratos, Nathan Drake and company, has shared new functions that will accompany the viewer; among them a ‘transparent mode‘, which will allow the user to see the real environment in which he is once he has the glasses on.
This novelty will surely be well received by users, who won’t have to take off their headset if, for example, they can’t find the console controls or some unforeseen event arises that forces them to disconnect from the game for a moment . It can also help prevent accidents and the occasional stumble.
“The transparent view is only for viewing, so there is no recording option,” explains the technology; this also implies that PlayStation will not collect any type of data about the environment in which the user plays.
To record you while you play
PlayStation has also taken into account the enormous popularity that the creation of content for social networks and platforms such as Twitch y YouTube. For this reason, the new viewer will add a function that will allow the user to record themselves during the games, although for this they will have to use another device, specifically a PS5 H cameraD which will have to be connected to the console.
It should be remembered that neither the next glasses nor the current ones are functional independently. To be able to play with them, it is necessary to have a PlayStation system.
To avoid accidents
As with Facebook’s Meta Quest VR headset, the upcoming PS VR2 headset will allow the user to limit their play area in order to avoid accidents when using the device.
“The cameras will allow you to scan the room, while the PS VR2 Sense controllers will allow you to further expand and customize the play area to suit your style of play and the environment of the room,” they explain from PlayStation.
We already know how they will be
As we say, the new glasses will be much more powerful than the model that Sony currently has on the market. Although at the moment the price is unknown -probably between 300 and 350 euros- and the official launch date -it is aimed at 2023-, we do know what the device will be like. PlayStation has also shared its main features.
The glasses will have an OLED type screen that will have a resolution of 2,000 x 2,040 per ojoy smooth refresh rates from 90 to 120Hz; something important, considering that the viewer has to be prepared to move especially ambitious games.
On the whole, images may reach 4K HDR, in addition, with an approximate field of vision of 110 degrees. The viewer will also include foveate rendering, which allows the exact area the player is looking at to be upscaled. All with the aim that the user experience with the glasses on is as close as possible to what we experience when we observe our real environment.
If we said that we already know the design of the viewfinder, we have also known for about a year what the controls that will accompany it will be like, which will be two, and will form a key part of the experience.