http://www.forbes.com/sites/insertc...t-grim-for-sonys-playstation-vr/#330893d51086
Things Are Starting To Look A Bit Grim For Sony's PlayStation VR
Photo: Sony
Sony’s PlayStation VR headset is going to be one of the ultimate tests for virtual reality, perhaps even
the most significant moment in the short lifespan of the platform to date. While the Oculus Rift and
HTC Vive have indeed launched, this fall, Sony’s headset will allow anyone with a PlayStation 4, 35-40 million people, use VR without the aid of an expensive PC. The headset itself is hundreds cheaper than its competition (at $400) and it looks to be the first somewhat affordable, accessible mainstream VR set on the market that isn’t phone-based.
But what if people hate it?
The headset is regarded as one of the most comfortable to wear on the market, but lately, it seems like the praises mostly seem to end there. The problems with PSVR seem to fall into a few different categories, and things seem like they started going awry around E3.
One of the most perplexing stories of the show was the revelation that
Resident Evil 7in VR
caused simulation sickness in a wide variety of players, even VR veterans. Most pinpoint the problem to the
RE7 control scheme which lets you pivot the camera without actually moving your head, which is a very, very disorienting experience in VR. Others said the issue also stems from the fact that Sony only requires developers to hit 60 fps as a minimum benchmark, where other VR headsets demand 90 fps for a smoother experience.
The other problem with PSVR is best chronicled in a
lengthy VentureBeat piecediscussing the somewhat unforeseen weakness of the headset, Sony’s reliance on six year-old Move controller technology, those magic glowing wands that were originally created to compete with the Wiimote, but were effectively mothballed until now, where they’ve been resurrected for VR.
Photo: Sony
It’s not just that they add extra cost (the Move controllers plus a PS camera will run about $100), it’s that they’re just plain inferior to the HTC and Oculus touch controllers. As the piece explains, the controllers are not comfortable to hold for long periods of time, nor do they have the kind of 1:1 tracking that many have come to expect from VR hand-controls. It’s a lot more Wii-like waggling than precise control, which never worked out well for the Wiimote and Move originally, and certainly is unwelcome in VR where precision is more important than ever.
It would be a big problem if PSVR fails to deliver, not just for Sony, but VR in general. This will be many people’s first real experience with consumer VR, given that only a small number can afford elaborate Oculus and Vive set-ups. But everyone has a PS4, and for that reason alone, we will see many first-timers checking out VR that way.
But if it’s bad? The consequences of that could be huge. If your first impression of VR is something with a sub-par framerate, possible motion sickness and poor controls, you may end up turned off to the idea for a good long while. It also doesn’t help that many of PSVR’s games feel more like Wii-waggling/Kinect minigames than full titles, including the much-vaunted
Final Fantasyand
Batman games teased at E3, which are more “experiences” than actual games. If VR turns into something that feels like yet another gimmick like motion controls or Kinect, that’s going to leave a bad taste in gamers’ mouths indefinitely.
I’ve
already written about how the Oculus Rift itself has failed to hook me, or completely sell me on the concept of VR in its current form. The VR headset I dreamed I always wanted usually spends most of the week sitting in its box in my closet as I continue to play games on console and PC. I’m worried that PSVR might result in the same experience for those who buy it, set aside the way the Wii and Kinect were after a few days/weeks of “oh wow cool” gameplay. Or, it might be even worse, and make an outright
bad first impression if players find themselves physically ill depending on the game they’re playing.
PlayStation VR doesn’t come out until October 13th, meaning Sony has time to make some final tweaks, but probably no major overhauls at this point. The Move controllers are something that will have to be replaced down the road, but it’s too late for that now. At minimum, Sony needs to make sure that games like
Resident Evil 7 do not induce nausea for players, even if that means not allowing the game to be released on the platform until that issue is fixed. They also need to set expectations for games like
Arkham VR, so players understand they’re not about to start playing
Arkham Knight in first person, and that it’s a much, much more scaled back experience.
Even as VR keeps running into initial stumbling blocks, I do believe in the long term future of the platform. It
is going to change the world someday, but each misstep will push that dream further and further back. Too much is being invested in VR for it to completely fail at this point. The tech is there, and it will only get better in time. But it needs to do everything it possibly can to make a good first impression, lest the general public be scared off from the idea for years to come.
