playstationvr
Latest
GDC 2016 Revisited: Virtual reality takes a big leap
And just like that, GDC 2016 has come to a close. But, before the Engadget team says goodbye to the gaming conference, we wanted to give you a look at some of the highlights of the week. Virtual reality was definitely the hot topic of conversation, with plenty of interesting news from Sony, Oculus and other companies. We'll see how these announcements play out over the next few months. Now, who's ready for E3 in June?
Insomniac's CEO on the challenges of making games for VR
As the Founder and CEO of Insomniac Games, Ted Price is responsible for esteemed console games like Ratchet and Clank, Sunset Overdrive and Fuse. Then there's Song of the Deep, a gorgeous 2D platformer that's slated to release this summer with GameStop as the publisher. But for Insomniac and other developers, virtual reality's arrival onto the scene has opened up a world of new possibilities in game-making. And Price's team is already dipping its toes in VR, with projects such as Edge of Nowhere, an insane third-person adventure designed for the Oculus Rift. To that end, I sat down with him at GDC 2016 to talk about developing for virtual reality, the promise of PlayStation VR, Oculus and the relationship between Insomniac and GameStop.
ICYMI: Spinal Cancer solution, self-lacing Nikes and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-750693{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-750693, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-750693{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-750693").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Nike will sell widely-available self-lacing shoes by the Holiday season, though we have no idea how much they will cost. Researchers at the Mayo Institute developed a polymer that will let bone regrow on it after a spinal surgery. And Playstation VR will come to the masses in October, for $400. It's been a big week in tech news with SXSW and GDC. And of course, Apple has an announcement next Monday, so be prepared with our story, here. As always, please share any great tech or science videos you find by using the #ICYMI hashtag on Twitter for @mskerryd.
PlayStation VR's launch lineup looks impressively diverse
Sony isn't letting up with the PlayStation VR news. In addition to the price and release window announcement, and what comes in the $400 box, the gaming juggernaut wants you to see what you'll be playing in virtual reality come October. As clichéd as it sounds, it does really look like there will be something for everyone. And if none of these strike your fancy, remember that Sony's promising some 50 games will release in the two months between launch and December of this year.
Where to buy PlayStation VR in the UK
So, Sony has finally given us all the details for its new PlayStation VR headset. It's coming in October and it'll cost you £350, but did you know that some UK retailers are already taking pre-orders? Well, now you do. If you can't wait until nearer the time, the PlayStation VR bundle -- which comes with the all-important headset, HDMI cable and USB cables, stereo headphones, add-on processor box but doesn't include the PlayStation Camera or Move controllers -- is currently available to order via the following stores:
'Star Wars: Battlefront' is coming to PlayStation VR
If you wanted something a little bit bigger to sink your teeth into for PlayStation VR, there's Star Wars: Battlefront. It's a third-party exclusive and, well, Sony's Andrew House didn't say much more beyond that at today's GDC event aside from it being a DICE-developed project -- just like the base game. He promised we'll hear more about it in the coming months. So, E3? Here's to hoping it's more than just virtual reality viewer for the game's collectible diorama pieces.
Sony admits Oculus Rift is technically better than PlayStation VR
With Oculus, HTC, Samsung and Sony all set to take on one another in the battle for virtual reality dominance, it's obvious that consumers will assess the strengths and weaknesses of each product. Take into account what they need to run: both the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive require high-end gaming PCs, Sony's only needs the modestly powerful PlayStation 4, while the Gear VR just asks for a compatible smartphone. It's perhaps best, then, that the executives behind the headsets are honest about what their products are capable of. That's the approach from PlayStation executive vice president Masayasu Ito, who admitted in a recent interview with Polygon that the PlayStation VR will not match the VR quality of the Oculus Rift.
PlayStation VR has a lower age limit than Oculus Rift
With the VR revolution almost upon us, would-be early adopters are sizing up which headset is right for them. Do they back the Oculus Rift headset, the motion-tracking Vive, the smartphone-centric Gear VR or the gaming-focused PlayStation VR? What about their suitability for children: is that even a consideration? We know that Samsung and Oculus have set an age rating of 13 for their head-mounted displays, with Oculus noting that younger children are in "a critical period in visual development," and now Sony has come forward to say that its VR headset "is not for use by children under age 12."
Recommended Reading: The Super Bowl MVP is a huge nerd
Nerd Von Miller, The Players' Tribune You may not be able to tell by his on-field dominance, but Super Bowl MVP and Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller is a huge nerd. Miller, some fellow players and friends discussed his geekiness for The Players' Tribune recently. The stories are quite entertaining, and yes, he used to wear Rec Specs.
Sony is hosting a PlayStation VR event next month
Despite what GameStop has in mind, Sony might actually still make its promised "first half of 2016" release date for PlayStation VR. That the company has sent out invites for a special media event just ahead of the annual Game Developers Conference only adds to that suspicion. When you consider PlayStation has used the trade show for the setup's debut in 2014, announcing a release window and upgraded innards last year, it only seems more likely we'll get a hard release date and price on the helmet.
GameStop CEO: PlayStation VR will launch this fall (update)
Thanks to GameStop CEO Paul Raines, we have an idea of when to expect Sony's PlayStation VR to arrive. In an interview with Fox Business this week, Raines said the retailer "will launch the Sony product this fall" when discussing the upcoming virtual reality hardware releases. What's more, the GameStop chief says that the company is in talks to carry both the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, both of which are expected to arrive this spring.
Virtual reality support for 'The Witness' sounds shaky
Your brain might be sore from The Witness' puzzles but you won't have to worry about motion sickness from playing it in another format on your PlayStation 4. We've confirmed with developer Jonathan Blow that the gorgeous brain-bender won't be making its way to PlayStation VR; there are no plans for it "at this time." The game was simply in development for far too long (possibly even before Sony had a working Project Morpheus prototype) and Blow has said that to support Sony's VR headset, the game would had to have been designed for it from the outset.
'Desert Bus' to get a sequel for Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR
The notoriously monotonous prank mini-game Desert Bus is getting a virtual reality sequel, and it'll most likely be just as mind-numbingly unexciting. Just how dull is it, you ask? Well, playing it means driving for eight hours straight on a plain road between Tucson, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada at a max speed of 45 mph. According to Polygon, Penn Jillette (of the Penn & Teller duo that created the game) has revealed that he's working on "a new Desert Bus" during his weekly podcast. It will apparently be set in 1992 just like the first version and will "probably be for the [Oculus] Rift and for the PlayStation VR."
Fox pushes virtual reality to the limit with 30 minutes on Mars
I wasn't prepared for The Martian VR Experience. All I'd known before sitting down in a padded seat in a near-pitch-black booth, tucked away in the Library bar at Vegas' Marquee nightclub, was that I'd be enveloped in virtual reality for up to 30 minutes. And I was worried about that. Bad virtual reality -- VR that lasted up to two minutes -- has sidelined me in the past, leaving a lingering nausea I'd prefer to never revisit. But by going all in with its first commercial experience, 20th Century Fox has made an expensive bet that pays off: It's created comfortable long-form VR.
NASA's using PlayStation VR to train its space robots
Virtual Reality tricks the human brain. With a headset strapped on your face, you can pet a dino, visit restricted sites or even experience the horror of being devoured by a shark. But outside the realms of entertainment and news, the immersive visual medium is proving to be a significant tool for science and learning. According to a Road to VR report, NASA and Sony have been working together on Mighty Morphenaut, a PlayStation VR demo that allows operators to practice control over a humanoid in space. The experience recreates the robot's environment, essentially a simulated space shuttle, so that a user can learn how to get the humanoid to complete a task or move around obstacles from a safe distance.
Music shooter 'Rez' is coming to PlayStation VR
Sony has a ton of PlayStation VR content lined up at its PlayStation Experience gathering, but there's a truly special title in that mix: a modern version of Rez. The upcoming Rez Infinite will bring immersive visuals to the legendary (and borderline hallucinogenic) music shooter, including 3D audio and brisk 60 frames per second gameplay at 1080p. There's a whole new area, too, which will help tackle gripes that the original was too short. There's no word on a ship date, but it's safe to say this is good news if the game's mix of iconic graphics and memorable dance tracks (Adam Freeland's "Mind Killer," anyone?) is still etched in your brain.
Battlezone's PSVR reboot is the ultimate fan service
It could be argued that Atari's 1980 arcade classic Battlezone was the first virtual reality game. In a simple duel of tanks, players looked through a small opening in the cabinet to maneuver their lumbering vehicle, firing at a single enemy and avoiding being struck by projectiles. The game's wireframe design was graphically simplistic, but stenciled in thin green lines on the horizon was a single object that drew the attention of fans: an erupting volcano. Rumors swirled of a secret route that would lead players to the volcano's crater where a castle lay awaiting brave explorers. "Of course, none of this was true," Atari engineer Lyle Rains pointed out in Van Burnham's 2001 book Supercade. But that didn't stop the dreamers. In one case, a fan even wrote to Atari to tell the company he'd reached the mythical castle. After decades of speculation, developer Rebellion, best known for the Sniper Elite series, is rebooting Battlezone for Sony's PlayStation VR and taking players into the heart of the volcano.
Sony's new PSVR shooter is a rollercoaster ride of horror
"When we announced this, we saw a 50/50 split among the fan base," said Simon Harris of Until Dawn: Rush of Blood, Supermassive Games' recently announced virtual reality shooter. The title, which debuted at Paris Games Week, is an extension of the PlayStation 4 exclusive released last August. The reason for the mixed reaction? Although its predecessor is an intense interactive drama, Rush of Blood is an on-rails arcade shooter (think House of the Dead or Time Crisis). Fans of the original want more drama, more Until Dawn, and this clearly isn't more of the same. But after playing a brief session of Rush of Blood and talking to Harris about the studio's plans, I'm convinced Supermassive knows what it's doing.
'Gran Turismo Sport' for PS4 will award real prizes
At long last, Gran Turismo is coming to the PlayStation 4... and you'll have more reasons to play than just the usual graphics and gameplay updates. The newly unveiled Gran Turismo Sport will have two FIA-sanctioned championships running throughout the year (one for countries, one for manufacturers), and the winners of each will get real FIA prizes. This is about building the "next 100 years of motorsports," Polyphony Digital's Kazunori Yamauchi says -- in other words, he wouldn't be surprised if racing is increasingly virtual in the future. It's certainly an easier path to glory than becoming a real race car driver.
Surprise: 'Tekken 7' is heading to PlayStation VR
Squeezed between the high-octane trailers of its Paris Games Week press conference, Sony quietly announced that Tekken 7 would launch on PlayStation VR. Details are scarce, but it's definitely happening. Tekken 7 is, of course, heading to PlayStation 4 in the traditional, non-VR form as well.
