If you’re in the market for a virtual reality gaming device this holiday season, you’ll be spoiled for choice. There is a host of virtual reality headsets available on the market in a variety of different price ranges. Sony has already announced the pricing for its PlayStation VR – it will retail for $399 or £349. That makes it much cheaper than its main competitors, the Oculus Rift and the HTC Vive. But what exactly do you get for the $399 you pay?
Let’s take a look at what’s included in the box:
- The PlayStation VR headset
- HDMI and USB cables.
- Power brick and a power cord
- A pair of earbuds
- Processor Unit
- An adapter/cable that connects to the PlayStation VR
- The PlayRoom VR
The PlayStation VR headset itself has excellent ergonomics and a stylish and futuristic look and feel, with its sleek lines and black and white coloring. It’s simple to put on comfortable to wear with its padded band, that fits perfectly around your head. Unlike other virtual reality headsets, it’s also well suited for people with glasses. Interestingly, the PlayStation VR is the heaviest headset of the three mainstream virtual reality devices; but has been consistently rated higher than in the others in terms of comfort and ease of use.
It comes with a processor unit, which is a box, that is required to use the PlayStation VR. Its main function is to process object based 3D audio, to create believable sound effects that sync with the images viewed on the headset and to produce output images to a connected display, such as a television.
Many PlayStation VR titles feature a multiplayer aspect, however only one VR headset is supported at a time by the console. The other players participate in the action by using the television. The processor unit “removes” the virtual reality effect from the game data received from the PlayStation VR headset, so that the images can also be properly displayed on a regular display.
The game included, “PlayRoom VR”, is the virtual reality version of Sony’s popular augmented reality game “The PlayRoom”, which is pre-installed on every PS4 console. The “PlayRoom VR” includes six games and also a multiplayer mode, where one player uses the PlayStation VR headset against the other players, who are using DualShock 4 controllers.
Disappointingly, the box does not include the PlayStation Camera with the required PlayStation VR. This is a peripheral needed by the headset to track movement, and is essential for VR gaming on the PlayStation 4.
Also missing is the PlayStation Move, a controller that is being increasingly adopted by developers for PlayStation VR games. In fact, many games scheduled for release on the PlayStation VR are played exclusively using the PlayStation Move. The PlayStation Camera costs $49.99, while the PlayStation Move retails for $99.98.
It’s also worth noting that the PlayStation VR requires a PlayStation 4 console to play, which is obviously not included in the box. There is a similar situation with its competitors, which require expensive high end computers to run. That is how the PlayStation VR still manages to be a bargain.
Sony’s PlayStation VR is slated for release in October 2016. The virtual reality headset is being touted as the next revolutionary evolution in mainstream gaming. More than 50 virtual reality games are lined up for release in 2016 alone, within only two months after the release of the PlayStation VR.
Source: PlayStationVR.us
