Playstation VR 2: 5 things Sony could realistically do to boost the platform
The Playstation VR 2 deserves a second chance. Here are five ways Sony could take the VR headset to new heights in 2025 and beyond.
In his column "Gaming In Focus", MIXED guest writer Jamie Feltham regularly looks at current developments and shares his experiences from over 10 years in the XR industry.
PSVR 2 hasn’t strayed far from thought since my rant about Sony’s live service games push two weeks back. The launch of Arken Age – a genuinely brilliant action epic – still has me obsessed with the idea of what could have been for the PSVR successor. Or, rather, what could still be.
It’s never been more important for VR developers to support multiple platforms. As we said two weeks back, some studios are even selling more copies on PSVR 2 than they are on Quest or PC VR right now. But stats like these, mainly from smaller indie studios, aren’t going to be enough to sway Sony to greenlight a swathe of epic new exclusives for its ambitious peripheral.
But it doesn’t have to.
Sony could easily renew interest in PSVR 2 as it approaches its third year on the market. Cruically, this could be with some cost-effective measures that don’t see it sign millions away on risky exclusive bets. So, no, we’re not talking “bring The Last of Us to VR” or “launch PSVR 2 Pro” - this is about realistic, price conscious possibilities to reinvigorate one of the best VR headsets on the market today.
Cut price, permanently
I think that at this point everyone agrees this needs to happen. PSVR 2 was far, far too expensive from the get go, but extended sales periods last year saw the device shoot up charts and renew interest online. The headset ultimately has a lot of expensive components, including its eye-tracking module and OLED displays, but these aren’t enough to justify a price tag similar to the flagship Quest 3 model with its onboard compute and pancake lenses.
Bringing the headset down to a much more reasonable price as part of a soft relaunch should be central to Sony’s strategy as PSVR 2 enters what’s likely the second half of its life span (assuming PS6 arrives in 27/28).
Release Astro Bot Rescue Mission on PSVR 2
There really has never been a more obvious time to bring Astro Bot’s original starring role to PSVR 2. The fantastic 2024 platformer is doing a victory lap of awards ceremonies, fresh off of its win at The Game Awards, and people are hungry for more of Sony’s new mascot. How many of those people even know that there’s an equally ambitious (and, for my money, overall better) Astro game locked on PSVR 1?
Astro Bot Rescue Mission is one of the best VR games on any platform. | Image: Team Asobi
Now porting is hard and takes time, but it’s still a significantly faster, cheaper process than developing an all-new game. I struggle to think of a more efficient and economical way to regenerate hype for PSVR 2 than bringing one of your most critically acclaimed IP to the platform. And it could pave the way for another interesting avenue, too.
Bring PSVR 1 and PSVR 2 Games PC Too
When it’s not complicating matters with PSN Account logins, Sony’s PC strategy from the past few years seems to have been a big success. Spider-Man, The Last of Us, God of War and Horizon have all performed great, and we’re sure to see more titles make the jump. But why not bring your VR titles to PC too?
Wipeout would be a great fit for PC VR. | Image: XDev, Clever Beans, EPOS Game Studios
Steam’s user surveys suggest VR is in decent health on the platform, and you’ll significantly de-risk any PSVR 1 ports by adding swathes of new potential players to your audience. And PC players would no doubt jump at the chance to play the likes of Wipeout, Astro, and Blood & Truth. Heck, with PSVR 2 now supporting PC, you'd even be encouraging people to purchase the headset to play games on Steam even if they don't own a PS5, further increasing the potential addressable market.
Host A Dedicated VR State of Play
Another no-brainer that I’m very surprised we haven’t seen in PSVR 2’s life cycle - why hasn’t Sony ever hosted a dedicated State of Play for VR announcements? It already does a great job delivering VR surprises in its core shows, including the recent reveals of The Midnight Walk and Hitman’s PSVR 2 version, but a dedicated show would give the team opportunities to go deeper with those games and explore others.
Last year alone we could have seen a State of Play cover the launch of Into the Radius and further show off Metro, Behemoth and Alien. Doing so would really help combat the narrative that PSVR 2 doesn’t have any games, and help push the narrative that this is the best place to play multiplatform releases. With a very decent selection of PSVR 2 titles on the horizon for 2025 - the company should really consider doing this.
Develop PlayStation VR Worlds 2 - this time with Playstation brands
Let’s get just a bit more ambitious for our last point. The original PlayStation VR Worlds was a groundbreaking experience for PSVR. It didn’t review especially well given that it was ultimately a minigame collection, but it defied the ire of critics and went on to become one of the definitive first-stops for VR newcomers over the course of PSVR’s life.
Maddeningly, PSVR 2 has no PlayStation VR Worlds equivalent. There’s the boat demo for Horizon but that doesn’t really reach the same heights of the dramatic Ocean Descent experience, nor the London Heist piece that paved the way for Blood & Truth. If Sony were to commission any new first-party project for PSVR 2, I’d love to see them bring back Worlds, this time visiting actual PlayStation worlds.
Playstation VR Worlds has achieved cult status among fans. | Image: Sony
Imagine short, sharp experiences based around some of the hit titles from the past 10 years. Staying silent to avoid the attention of a Clicker in The Last of Us, practicing sword skills in Ghost of Tsushima, or experimenting with crazy, made for VR weapons in Ratchet and Clank. Clearly we’re not getting full, standalone entries in these series for VR anytime soon, but you could bring a lot more people into the ecosystem by offering a taste of what they have to offer in VR.
What do you think of these ideas? Join the conversation on Facebook, Bluesky or X or share your opinion in the comments below.
For feedback, topic suggestions, or other ideas, please email us at hello@mixed-news.com.
Jamie Feltham has 10+ years of experience working in VR, first covering the industry for a number of publications including UploadVR, where he created the UploadVR Showcase. After handling biz dev for HTC Vive and global PR & marketing for Fast Travel Games, Jamie founded the VR Games Showcase, the premiere digital showcase for VR game announcements and updates. You can follow @VRGamesShowcase on YouTube to get ready for the next VRGS events. Jamie can be reached at jamie@thevrshowcase.com.
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