Well before the release of PSVR 2 (2021), Sony had predicted, due to the launch of its future VR headset, that it would focus on offering hybrid titles: both playable on flat screen but also in VR. The same firm announced that every effort would be made to ensure that PlayStation VR 2 games come as close as possible to the graphic quality of PS5 games. Remember, those who didn’t have a PC yet Gamer had the hope ofobtain the qualitative port of PCVR games, with the simplicity of the console world. Nowadays, the majority of PSVR 2 owners are not really satisfied with the proposal Sony, and we explain the reasons to you.
In the facts, very few license ports of successful VR games are available in the PlayStation VR 2 catalog. If Capcom enjoy the VR versions of Resident Evil: Village and remake coming from Resident Evil 4in the category “triple A port of PS5 games to VR”, it is clear that apart from Gran Turismo 7 and the aforementioned games, there is nothing to get your teeth into. Horizon: Zero Dawn, God of War, Ratchet & Clank, Hogwarts Legacy… so many titles that would be so pleasant to play in VR!
Why aren’t studios getting into VR porting? Due to lack of interest, time, money and skills. Let’s not forget that these are teams who have always been used to working on a flat screen. One thing is sure, if you had bought the headset when it came out, and you had, due to the absence of said ports, left it in the cupboard, well, you still have one solution: opt for a PC VR-Ready. You will therefore be able to benefit from numerous VR ports – unofficial – which are important to you (licenses PlayStation included): GTA V, Red Dead Redemption 2, Horizon: Zero Dawn, Uncharted 4, Hogwarts Legacy, Resident Evil 2, 3, 4…
However, don’t give in too quickly, since Valve’s possible next PCVR console could well grant the wish of those who originally wanted to easily immerse themselves in their favorite licenses.
Day One purchasing about to decline?
If you are a little more curious and you don’t mind playing independent games as much as “big titles”, you might like the PSVR 2 more. But there is a hiceach title (or almost) has a different optimization and definition (not counting reprojection). It will therefore be necessary to make the effort, before each purchase and to avoid any disappointment, to find out more. Eh yes, procurement Day Onebecomes, like on PC, a real gamble, and one that can be very painful!
Less optimization, more patches?
No Man’s Sky and The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR paved the way for games offering graphics unworthy of a PSVR 2, while promising a patch later supposed to settle everything. This poses a huge problem: those who have turned their games upside down and who want new experiences must be patient, if only for wanting to play it properly. During this period of time, the first disappointed will inform the second, who, in turn, will wait until the game is actually ready before buying it. This behavior, which is completely understandable, causes a delay in patching, because the lower the investment, the longer the optimization will take. This impatience could even convince a good number of players to want to resell their headset, with the slight conviction that, a few years later, they will be able to find their games correctly patched and possibly buy a second-hand PSVR 2 to enjoy it.
Ports of standalone games in place of PCVR versions and PCVR versions struggling to catch up with their standalone versions.
Green Hell VR has, for its part, opened the way to ports of standalone games on PSVR 2, even though a PCVR version, with much higher graphic quality, exists! The survival game, full of bugs as a bonus, therefore allows itself the feat of not reaching the level of the version Meta Quest 2. Worse still, the studio does not intend (at least publicly) to improve its game. As for the new Fast FPS Hellsweeper VRthis one, although based on the PCVR version, achieves the feat of being uglier than on Meta Quest 2, unheard of (or big stupidity, some would say)! Here, in the face of players’ protests, is what the studio has just announced:
Dear Hellsweeper VR community,
First of all, we would like to address the initial criticism we received regarding the graphics quality of Hellsweeper VR on PSVR2. We sincerely appreciate your candid feedback and understand the concerns raised. Before we get into the details, please note that we have already started to resolve these issues, even before the game launched. Three years ago, we made a decision regarding our development pipeline. It was stable at the time, but has not kept pace with today’s advanced tools. This is not a flaw of a platform, but the result of poor timing and decisions we made as a studio.
Our choice to release the game on PSVR2, despite the graphical issues, was influenced by several factors: obligations, gameplay decisions, and the challenges of supporting crossplay on different devices. Our initial optimism met reality much closer to launch, resulting in compromises to maintain our vision. We’ve chosen to introduce the core combat experience first, with a commitment to making graphical improvements post-launch.
We were faced with a tough choice: settle for the Quest 2 graphics or strive for the fidelity of the PCVR model. We chose the latter option, even though it temporarily compromises the rendering resolution. Rest assured, we will address this issue in future updates.
For those who know us since our first Saisento VR game, we listen to our community and we are fully invested in our games. We promise to do the same for Hellsweeper VR and are committed to improving graphics for PSVR2 in the coming months.
For an in-depth look at our challenges and plans, we invite you to head to our Discord to view our full statement. As a small studio that owes its beginnings to the community that trusted us, our reputation and integrity as game developers are very important to us.
We come to the same problem, we will have to wait for the game to be patched to enjoy it properly. If it lasted a few days, or even a few weeks, this would (almost) not be a problem. In fact, we most often have to wait a few months (4 to 6 in general) to be able to return to the securities we have purchased. A shame, especially for those who already cannot find their content level account on PSVR 2.
From an outside perspective, it’s the appeal of VR as a whole that suffers, with players who might think that it has not completely gotten rid of its old demons (low graphics, poor optimization, etc.). In the same vein, it is the very democratization of VR that could suffer, because with such practice in the rendering of games, it is difficult to present the PSVR 2 as a headset supposed, overall, to amaze us. For sure, you will have to make a small selection before wanting to “democratize VR”. This is also a question that does not arise on our good old consoles next-gen, further proof that VR is still far from being the priority of Sony, the latter not seeming to have quality control worthy of the name.
Sony seems to consider the PSVR 2 as an accessory, as a proposition, and not as a priority.
Some may wonder if it was really worth spending nearly €600 for the PSVR 2 rather than staying on their Meta Quest 2 or Pico 4. Let us reassure ourselves, at present, half of the games available and upcoming on the Store are from the Meta Quest systems, which leaves the other half for PSVR 2 players. Alas, this is precisely where the problem lies, nothing says that this second half is well optimized! Hence the importance of discussing on social networkshere in comments or at each game release, to find out what it really is and to avoid, in any case, a big disappointment.
For the most curious among you, the PlayStation VR 2 still remains a real proposition to this dayeven if it remains parasitized by numerous development and optimization problems. Many titles will give you sensations that you won’t find anywhere else and if you make the effort to find out before buying this or that game, there is clearly something to do. If you have a PS5 and only want to try the PSVR 2 exclusives, know that you can always test the helmet for 100 days, return it and get a refund. And for the trickiest among you, you can even ask a friend who owns the PSVR 2 to share their account so that you don’t have to pay for the games that interest you during this time. What more do the people want?
THE PlayStation VR 2 is already available, and you can expand your game library via gift cards PlayStation available on Amazon.com.