Sony Slashes PS VR2 Output After Pre-Order Numbers Disappoint

Tsing

The FPS Review
Staff member
Joined
May 6, 2019
Messages
10,994
Points
83
The PS VR2 doesn't release until later this month, but the higher-ups at PlayStation already seem to be sweating over its sales performance. Sources with Bloomberg have revealed that Sony has reduced projections for the initial launch of its new VR headset "dramatically," a decision driven by what is said to be a disappointing number of pre-orders for the premium but pricey device. While PS VR2 has promised to deliver big upgrades over the original, including higher-resolution OLED displays and new Sense controllers, many gamers don't seem to be willing to pay its recommended retail price, which is $549.99.

See full article...
 
All so they can be "sold out" at release and show "unprecedented and unexpected demand" due to the level of excitement generated by the product.

I'm sure.
 
I've never tried VR anything. I think I recall hearing years ago that you need at least 90Hz+90fps to avoid motion sickness. Not sure how true that is.

VR always seemed way more expensive to me than 3D TVs, so I figured if the latter didn't catch on, neither would VR. I really don't know what the current state of things is for that market though. I don't follow VR stuff. I'd like to try it out though, just to see what the experience is like. Hopefully I won't barf as a result.
 
My son - all his friends have the cheaper white Occulus ones - the Quest 2 maybe? He inevitably asked for one for Christmas.

I got lucky and he changed his mind (Legos, of all things). They seem pretty enthralled with it, no barfing that I know of. But they are also enthralled by TikTok, so I guess that's a low standard to be looking at for a comparison.

I haven't tried it myself either - not particularly oppossed to it, just don't want to sink major cash into it only to find out it sucks. Kinda like gaming with headphones - my son won't game without them, so he can sit on Discord and what not -- me, I'd rather just have the speakers and nothing sitting on my head. I imagine VR headsets would end up much the same way.

But I admit, if I were to get one, it would either be Sony or Valve. Sony is a lot cheaper, and our consoles are set up in an area with more open space than my computer room is, but the Valve would be a lot more compelling with a larger library.
 
Last edited:
But they are also enthralled by TikTok, so I guess that's a low standard to be looking at for a comparison.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA


Kinda like gaming with headphones - my son won't game without them, so he can sit on Discord and what not -- me, I'd rather just have the speakers and nothing sitting on my head.
I can NOT stand to game with headphones on. I'm a speaker guy. I don't wanna wear little per-ear speakers on my head for 20 minutes or 3 hours or however long I am gaming, or listening to music, or watching videos.
 
Maybe it's just because I've had to wear glasses most of my life but I've never really been into the idea of having to use a headset to game. I was very much into 3D but hated having to wear the extra glasses for it and ultimately walked away from it because of that (but I still occasionally will watch some stuff on the Z9D because it was probably the best of that tech).
 
I can NOT stand to game with headphones on. I'm a speaker guy. I don't wanna wear little per-ear speakers on my head for 20 minutes or 3 hours or however long I am gaming, or listening to music, or watching videos.
Yeah, this. I can not stand it either, I hated earphones even when I was forced to wear them in office doing mundane jobs. It constantly has to be adjusted so it sits right, and I feel isolated from the world, getting anxious. I was taking them down every 2 minutes to check if something is going on that involves me. Plus it restricts freedom of movement, even wireless ones. Addiotionally headphones and earphones always make it seem like the sound is coming from inside your head.
 
I don't want to say I told you so, but I told you so that VR is a fad.

Either a fad, or permanently "the future" that isn't quite here yet.

There have been a few exceptions, but largely VR is the realm of boring casual WII style games. Why would I spend hundreds of dollars on a headset to do "VR Bowling" when I can just go down to the bowling alley and do the real thing on the cheap?

I think it has a little bit of a Catch 22 problem. Not enough people own VR headsets for AAA type games to take the market seriously, and not enough AAA type games exist for gamers to spend their hard earned cash on the headsets.

I probably fall into the latter category. I'll probably invest in a good VR headset if/when there are games I am interested in that support them, and support them well, not just a poor "proof of concept" style after thought. And when I do, it won't be a playstation one. And probably not a Meta/Oculus one either. I'll go all in, on a top resolution headset to avoid screen door effects. If that were today, it would probably be an HTC Vive Pro 2.

And when/if that day comes, I'll be using the headset for my single player AAA games only. I'm not doing any metaverse nonsense. Not now, not ever. The world does not need any more of that "Second Life" bullshit.

The "metaverse" can blow me.
 
Maybe it's just because I've had to wear glasses most of my life but I've never really been into the idea of having to use a headset to game. I was very much into 3D but hated having to wear the extra glasses for it and ultimately walked away from it because of that (but I still occasionally will watch some stuff on the Z9D because it was probably the best of that tech).

Having pretty bad eyesight, I don't know how well these headsets would work for me, and I also read that with glasses it's easy to scratch the lenses inside these headsets, I would need more usefull info into how well these work with glasses b4 shelling out that much money on something like this.
 
Either a fad, or permanently "the future" that isn't quite here yet.
I believe it will remain a niche, just as hotas setups and racing seat/wheel setups. It's just too expensive for it to go mainstream, and lots of room needed.
There have been a few exceptions, but largely VR is the realm of boring casual WII style games. Why would I spend hundreds of dollars on a headset to do "VR Bowling" when I can just go down to the bowling alley and do the real thing on the cheap?
I'm the type of person who will actually buy something even for one game, if I'm convinced it is good. But the thing is that I'm not convinced VR is worth it, it's too much of an unknown. Either I love it and want to play every game with it or hate it and it becomes an expensive paper weight that I never use. And in the current economy I'm not going to risk that.

I almost bought a set a few years back before certain world events, but oculus just announced you'll need a facebook login for VR, and I couldn't get a HTC due to availability issues. So that was that.
I think it has a little bit of a Catch 22 problem. Not enough people own VR headsets for AAA type games to take the market seriously, and not enough AAA type games exist for gamers to spend their hard earned cash on the headsets.
I don't think it will ever become mainstream or even widely adopted as long as a good set costs €1000+
I probably fall into the latter category. I'll probably invest in a good VR headset if/when there are games I am interested in that support them, and support them well, not just a poor "proof of concept" style after thought. And when I do, it won't be a playstation one. And probably not a Meta/Oculus one either. I'll go all in, on a top resolution headset to avoid screen door effects. If that were today, it would probably be an HTC Vive Pro 2.
Actuall a console set makes more sense to me, you can't play with Mouse+KB on VR anyway, and the console is more suited to room scale it being in the living room. I used to have move! controller for the PS3, and I loved it, but Sony stopped supporting it in record time, later PS3 games simply ignored it, even ones perfectly suited for that type of controller. I'd fear the same happening to PSVR.

But the thing is I don't even have a console anymore, sold my PS4 Pro in December, and I see no reason to get a PS5. Since now it is almost a given that they'll release exclusives for PC eventually.
 
I can NOT stand to game with headphones on. I'm a speaker guy. I don't wanna wear little per-ear speakers on my head for 20 minutes or 3 hours or however long I am gaming, or listening to music, or watching videos.
I approve this message.

It's nice to know I'm not alone in my overwhelming preference for speakers over headphones.
 
I can NOT stand to game with headphones on. I'm a speaker guy.
It's nice to know I'm not alone in my overwhelming preference for speakers over headphones.
I did the headphone thing for a bit when I was a teenager with walkmans and portable CD players but after a while, I just couldn't stand them. Ever since I've stayed committed to some kind of speaker setup. In my twenties, when driving some beat-up POS, if the tape player gave out and it didn't have a line in, I'd throw a boombox in the back seat and run a DC adapter to it. I've been rigging stereos most of my life at this point, one way or another, to make sure to always have audio. I've got some stories.
 
I approve this message.

It's nice to know I'm not alone in my overwhelming preference for speakers over headphones.
I did the headphone thing for a bit when I was a teenager with walkmans and portable CD players but after a while, I just couldn't stand them. Ever since I've stayed committed to some kind of speaker setup. In my twenties, when driving some beat-up POS, if the tape player gave out and it didn't have a line in, I'd throw a boombox in the back seat and run a DC adapter to it. I've been rigging stereos most of my life at this point, one way or another, to make sure to always have audio. I've got some stories.


I think I'm the opposite.

I got used to headphones for games in college (99-03) when I was a Counter-Strike addict, and I prefer them for positional audio now.

I've tried speakers on occasion, but it feels too airy somehow. Like I am distant from the world of the game.

With headphones I can also better isolate out any noises in the environment, and don't have to worry about the noise bothering others, especially since the primary game time I get is late at night when everyone else is in bed.
 
I have a set of Logitech z623's that I got years ago that are just sitting in the basement unused. They get loud (for all in one PC speakers), but I was never happy with the sound quality.

Been much happier since I decided to abandon "PC Speakers" and instead built my own setup with a set of bookshelf speakers an amp and a sub.
 
I have a set of Logitech z623's that I got years ago that are just sitting in the basement unused.
I'm using a set of those for my CRT entertainment center (which covers 6th-gen-and-earlier systems, and my Neo-Geo MVS arcade system). Yeah their sound quality is lacking, but the way I see it, it at least beats the sound coming out of the CRT TV's speakers. My HDTV entertainment center is using an AIWA stereo system (CX-NA202) that I've been using for TV/game console audio since the 90s! Even that system sounds better than the Z623 set.
 
Become a Patron!
Back
Top