After months of teasers and rumoured delays, Sony has finally confirmed the PlayStation VR2 release date and price. We also now know there will be over 20 games at launch – but where are the racing games?
PlayStation VR2 release date and price confirmed
As revealed in a PlayStation Blog post, PlayStation VR2 launches on 22 February 2023, priced at £529.99 / $549.99 / €599.99. This includes a PS VR2 headset, PS VR2 Sense controllers and stereo headphones.
In addition, a PlayStation VR2 Horizon Call of the Mountain bundle will be available for £569.99 $599.99 / €649.99 / £569.99 and includes a voucher to download Horizon Call of the Mountain.
Pre-orders for PS VR2 go live on 15 November. In the UK, US, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg, the VR2 can only be pre-ordered directly through PlayStation’s online store.
Costing more than the PS5 console stings and will likely put some players off. For comparison, the original PSVR cost £349 when it launched in 2016 – PS VR2 is nearly £200 more expensive, though it's worth noting the original didn't come with controllers and required a PS camera sold separately. If you don’t already have a PS5, the price increases to over £1,000.
This is a premium product, and the price reflects that. In fact, PS VR2 is cheaper than other high-end headsets when you compare the specs.
With a 4K resolution OLED screen (2000 x 2040 pixels per eye) offering HDR and 110-degree field-of-view, haptic headset feedback, and new Sense controllers replacing the ancient Move controllers, PS VR2 promises to be a major upgrade over the original. With that in mind, the price isn't unreasonable.
However, it's worth remembering that the original PSVR helped introduce VR technology to a wider audience, selling over five million units thanks to its relatively low price compared to other VR headsets at the time.
This was back when your only other options were pricey PC-only headsets like the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. But the landscape has changed since then.
Meta has found success with the Quest 2, a standalone headset that doesn’t require an expensive console or PC. For casual players who want to dip their toes into VR without spending over £1,000 on a VR headset and console or PC, the Quest is the obvious choice.
The technology is cutting edge, but with its premium price tag PS VR2 will be out of reach for the mass market. Sony is clearly aiming at the high-end market, but with the Quest 3 expected to cost between $300 and $500 next year according to Mark Zuckerberg, this could backfire.
Over 20 PSVR2 games at launch – but where are the racing games?
As well as confirming the release date and price, Sony says it expects PS VR2 to have “more than 20 titles at launch.” 11 of these were announced today including:
- The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR
- Crossfire: Sierra Squad
- The Light Brigade
- Cities VR – Enhanced Edition
- Cosmonious High
- Hello Neighbor: Search and Rescue
- Jurassic World Aftermath Collection
- Pistol Whip VR
- Zenith: The Last City
- After The Fall
- Tentacular
Horizon Call of the Mountain will also be a PS VR2 launch title.
From puzzle games to shooters, there’s a strong variety of genres in PS VR2’s confirmed launch lineup so far. But where are the racing games?
For racing game fans like us, the lack of PS VR2 driving games shown yet is disappointing. Of course, this could change as we get closer to launch next February.
But since PS VR2 won’t be backwards compatible, we suspect some of the unconfirmed games will be enhanced ports of popular PSVR games like Astro Bot Rescue Mission and Blood & Truth. Free PS VR2 upgrades will also be offered for Pistol Whip VR and Zenith: The Last City.
Racing games are perfectly suited to VR. Compared to FPS games, there’s less risk of motion sickness as you’re sat in a fixed position in the game and real life.
Wearing a VR headset enhances the sense of speed and immersion while also letting you look into corner apexes and mirrors inside the interior to keep a close eye on other racers.
And yet there is a surprising lack of quality racing games on PSVR. DriveClub VR was a launch title but blurry graphics were headache-inducing. Gran Turismo Sport offered limited VR support, but it was restricted to time trials or one-on-one races.
There are many racing games we’d love to play on PS VR2. But the most glaring omission in the launch lineup revealed so far is Gran Turismo 7.
Since launching in March, GT7 has left players disappointed thanks to a short-lasting single-player campaign, unstable online multiplayer, and a lack of meaningful updates keeping players coming back.
PS VR2 support would give GT7 the revitalisation it needs. It would undoubtedly be a system seller for racing game fans.
With cross-gen titles holding games back, we've seen little innovation in the racing genre so far this generation.
But PS VR2 could revolutionise console racing games, with high-fidelity visuals and immersive haptic technology letting you feel every bump in the road. And GT7 should be the game to showcase this giant leap forward.
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