You absolutely need to pre-order PlayStation VR – here's five reasons why

With the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PSVR all arriving this year, virtual reality can change the face of gaming. However, after playing the Rift for a few weeks, games editor Brett Phipps fell out of love with it. Now, having played PlayStation VR quite a bit, he's gone all in and believes it'll be the best of the bunch. Here's why.

[SniperControl]

PSVR definitely looks like a hit for Sony, seen nothing but positive reactions from the gaming media and public, roll on the 13th of Oct!

[amiga-man]

Agreed Sony have done a great job with PSVR and it really is looking a really polished product, thankfully people seem to be finally realising VR is no fad, with the naysayers looking more and more silly and out of touch as VR continues to grow.

Not long now.

[nveenio]

I'm excited about PSVR, but how can we pre-order it? I thought they were all done with pre-orders.

[MatrixxGT]

I don't consider myself a nay-sayer however the tech is still new and until PSVR, hasn't been easily accessible to the mass population. (Outside mobile phone sets) Sony seems to have been doing a great job with the unit and preorders continually sold out. I remain optimistic about VR as I'm not real sure if it kicks off and becomes wildly successful that Sony and developers will shift most focus to VR titles instead of traditional style gaming that I still enjoy.

Now that I've tried it I see what the fuss is about and it's really a new perspective on playing now games. However I have a child and pets I have to keep and eye on when my wife is working and I can't isolate myself from my surroundings. For as often as I ever see myself having the time to use a VR headset just doesn't warrant me buying one anytime soon.

[amiga-man]

Matrix the potential for VR is huge and goes far beyond gaming, VR's success is guaranteed, the only thing people are questioning is how it will evolve.

But trust me VR is here to stay and will touch everyones lives eventually.

[GNious]

Was given demostrations of it at Gamescom, and later at a separate event - both rounds convinced me that you absolutely do NOT need to pre-order it, at the very least not without trying it first.

[Rude-ro]

If you want vr, you have to support vr.
And yes, if people want it, they should preorder it because it is sold out and no one knows how long the wait is.

[SweatyFlorida]

Hope so. So far Rift and Vive seemed to not have done much at all, like I predicted, in getting the mainstream's attention or "blowing up". Though it's still early, and I'm sure those units will become more popular in the next 2 years, but yah, PSVR breaking the ice more than they did would be nice, but from a consumer stand point(more players) and a developer stand point(more games)

[ninsigma]

That's some mighty high praise! Can't wait for this to arrive next month!

[TwoForce]

It's getting a lot of praise.

[Rhythmattic]

Wow.. Reading the comments on the articles page, Theres a lot of hate...
Guess the fact a lower res, Sub Pixel display can look as good as double the res on a pentile display really irks them..
Oh , and its comfortable.... Oh, and works great on a standard PS4.

And to Add... IMO, better games in VR

[baelfyrekse]

I will give the PSVR visual fidelity claims the "pepsi challenge" when I get mine on release. As much as PC gamers love to rip on console gamers in general, I think they definitely have their own fanboyism down perfectly.

[Rhythmattic]

Fair enough and Agreed.
Just pointing out PSVR pixels are closer together...
So as its a 1920 x 1080 display, split horizontally into 960 x 2, its not a bad effort by Sony...
After all, they know their optics...
I guess I'm just expecting people understand the difference between the Horsepower that drives it and the Tech.
Bit like Virtual instruments in music.
Theres nothing like the real thing , but who's going to know in a mix?
Technically Vive is the best... But does that mean it has the best VR experience or VR games?

[BenRC01]

the verdict on driveclub seems to be it's so well coded that even on inferior tech it beats all the pc vr racers hands down. it's about immersion not pixels.

[DigitalRaptor]

I'm glad I'm not the only one purporting the PENTILE vs. OLED-RGB stuff around here.

A lesser screen-door effect is 100% more important than native resolution, in regards to what is more valuable in VR: A greater sense of presence, thus immersion.

We also have a baseline 60fps, and the maintaining of higher frame rates due to the PSVR's reprojection method.
http://www.roadtovr.com/son...

Then we have the production value that comes from Sony WWS first-party output, the stable that always squeezes the most out of static hardware, and is something that is already better supported out of the gate. http://www.pushsquare.com/n...

And like you said, the headset itself is the most comfortable and ergonomic on the market, due to Sony having had almost 2 decades of experience with HMD technology before PSVR was even announced. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/...

Those PC dudes are always going to be irked by the innovations that keep "inferior" hardware up to snuff.

[uth11]

Because people can't grasp that specs don't always tell the whole story

[Princess_Pilfer]

Don't pre-order crap. The supply won't be limited, there is 0 reason to pre-order unless you're willing to risk 400 bucks on a product you can't be certain you'll use or enjoy.

[kraenk12]

Just as with the PS1 the thing will be sold out for months.

[SniperControl]

Same goes for the Oculus Rift DK1/DK2/CV1, HTC Vive and Game Gear, all were sold out with-in minutes of sale.

VR on any Platform is here and it's here to stay.

[baelfyrekse]

Hey great, let thousands and thousands of folks beta test and do the leg work for you. If after a month or so people are still hyped, at that time look into getting one.

[Eonjay]

I think you may have a good point because Sony explicitly said that they will have some on hand for launch. The problem is, if preorders sold out so fast you need to be there as soon as it launches.

[thenerdiestcool]

Lol. You obviously don't know anything. The supply will be extremely limited at launch.

[Princess_Pilfer]

Except for the whole "we want mass adoption" thing and the "we already have factories employed to mass produce the thing" and the "we're pushing VR into the main stream" thing that all heavily incentivise getting as many out as fast as possible. That preorders sold out so fast is a good reason to ramp up production.

Besides that, you can and should wait a month or more to be sure it's actually worth getting and works properly, ect. and supply will get a chance to catch up even if it was initially limited, which would make "limited supply" a non-issue.

[baelfyrekse]

I have a bit of a nuanced feel for this. I am excited, as VR is fun and more VR is not a bad thing in my mind. However, having the Rift and the Vive and having experienced some truly amazing games and experiences, I am concerned as to how well the PSVR will perform in comparison.

If it doesn't look good enough or perform well enough, that could be an issue given that its vastly lower preice point will likely be the entry point for millions of people into VR. My first VR experience was on the HTC Vive and room scale, high resolution, with exceptionally well-done motion controllers left a wonderful first impression. I am hopefuly that Sony has spent enough time creating VR experiences that will amaze in the same way my Vive did the first time. There is also the concern that we won't see as many games released as we do on the PC. It seems like every week there are a ton of games dropped onto the Rift and Vive and while not all are good, we are constantly seeing attempts to expand the experiences.

[amiga-man]

The Display technology Sony is using is very well suited to VR and it does compare very well with the more expensive offering, in some ways PSVR even out performs them and considering the price that is quite an achievement, but whatever system people choose, this is still early days for VR what we are seeing now is just the tip of the iceburg.

It's an exciting time.

[DigitalRaptor]

I respect your points of view, and obviously PSVR won't be able to deliver features like Vive's room scale.

I posted a response to this article which talks about how Sony - or developers on PSVR - can build experiences that can potentially compete with higher-end PCVR (on a case-by-case basis obviously).

http://n4g.com/news/1948441...

I wrote: "To elaborate on my original comment above, the technological benefits PSVR has in place to be able to keep up with these higher-end PCVR headsets is two things:

- OLED-RGB display:
The other PC headsets (Oculus & Vive) use a higher-resolution pentile display, whilst PSVR uses OLED-RGB, which means that every pixel on the screen has an R/G/B subpixel value so it actually reduces the screen-door effect when compared to the other headsets. Proof: https://www.reddit.com/r/oc...

- Frame-rate reprojection:
PSVR has been built with a standard for devs to not to go below 60fps EVER. With PSVR games, there's the possibility to take every frame that is output, and predict where your head is going to be using the headtracking of the Camera, to interpolate a new frame in between each native frame. So it is able to maintain a high refresh rate (of either 60Hz, 90Hz or 120Hz), comparable to PC rendering solutions. Proof: http://www.roadtovr.com/son... "

They've already done it with DriveClub VR, and that is just a launch title.

The form factor of the headset also comes into play if we're dealing with comparisons. PSVR, being the lightest, most comfortable, ergonomic and thoughtfully designed headset of the bunch.

[WeAreLegion]

As a Vive owner who has tried PSVR on multiple occasions, I can tell you there's nothing to worry about. PSVR rocks.

[ccgr]

Tempted to get it

[Somedudeoverhere]

1. IT LOOKS AND FEELS GREAT
2. IT HAS BETTER GAMES
3. IT’S EASIER TO USE
4. IT’S BETTER TO PLAY
5. IT’S THE CHEAPEST

naah

[Lazyeye79]

It's a little late to preorder it now. Good luck finding anywhere that still has it. Here's to hoping they have plenty of stock at launch to help those who missed the preorder.

[S2Killinit]

Because if games havent blown your mind recently, like they used to when we were kids, here is your chance to buy back a little of that old feeling. (:

[jasonpugh]

I've said it once, I'll say it again. This will be nothing more than a fad like 3D television, or playing casual games on Kinect, Wii, and Move. Not worth the investment.

[amiga-man]

Umm lets break this down for you then, Non of the tech you mentioned had anything like the number of companies investing in it that VR has,

non of the tech you mentioned has anything like the billions being poured into it's developement that VR has

Non of that tech you mentioned has the scope for investment that VR has, Education,Film,medicine the list is endless and of course gaming.

And if you trust analyst's, VR is set to become a 100 billion dollar industry in just a few years, and you think it is going to disappear? I could go on about the tech being worked on, the Chinese uptake etc, but I would suggest you do a little research before making such ingorant comments.

[jasonpugh]

We shall see. ''Grabs popcorn".

[DigitalRaptor]

Any more detailed first-hand gameplay impressions or...?

Billions of dollars of investment is going into VR with juggernauts like Apple, Sony, Samsung, Google actively financing its development and working together to form an actual market over it, not just an individual brand venture. Strong pursuits by huge film production companies, consumer electronic businesses, with medical and educational solutions already in process.

[Ark_]

I don't think it'll be a fad, but I wouldn't go for the first iteration of headsets either. Too early to invest imo.

On another note: Preordering this is totally fine, since you can return it easily, if you don't like it. Games are a different story, though.

[amiga-man]

We shall see is a cop out, I tell you why you are wrong and you offer no argument against it.

Seriously just look at whats happening in VR before dismissing it as some kind of fad, you will soon realise VR is inevitable.

[gbsrnctaln]

Finally got a chance to try VR on a samsung gear at best buy. Was already sure i would like VR, and after a 30 sec demo vid on an entry level headset I am convinced that I will love psvr and VR in general.

[lunatic0001]

Why don't you try the psvr at best buy....if they still have it to try out...it's pretty cool...haven't tried other vr headsets but I have tried psvr a couple times at e3 and it's pretty cool

[gbsrnctaln]

Didnt have it available. Trust me Im dying to try it!

[lunatic0001]

I got to try it a couple of times...played the kitchen demo before it became re7, the underwater demo, and Batman vr...it's awesome...have it preordered...I just want it already damn it

[carmelo43]

It's way too late to pre-order, so why is this up now

[spoilerjerk]

I have no doubt PSVR will do well this year but I am holding off until PS5 and the next iteration of VR tech. If that is a couple years from now so be it but I think the content quality will be severely lacking this generation. I look it as a long beta test before we get into the quality VR titles and those are nowhere to be seen.

[WeAreLegion]

Good luck with that. Could be hard to find a pre-order.

[thenerdiestcool]

I like the post but it's pointless seeing as how there aren't any pre orders available and they aren't opening them back up.

[Sevir]

Kinda sounds like a COD fan praising a COD game. There are other VR experiences which have witnessed worked quite well. EVE:Valkyrie, Driveclub VR and countless others like Farpoint and Battlezone are remarkable games. Simply put PSVR is the real deal just like Vibe and Rift. And PS4 gamers get to have some amazing games for it.

[Rhezin]

Some titles look cool for VR, but it will take awhile for the public to adopt it and the tech still needs to be perfected. Half the problems at launch will be sickness-related.

[Kosic]

I own the Gear VR, and after using it a handful of times and ending up feeling motion sickness each time. I won't be ordering a ps vr.

I wonder how many people will be disappointed in spending the cash to find out it causes them to feel ill.