PlayStation VR2: Sony stopped production of its virtual reality headset, here’s why

THE virtual reality headsets Although it has been available to the public for many years, it continues to be a market that manufacturers have difficulty entering. Not for lack of trying, though. Meta in the 3rd version of the helmet Duty, HTC’s never stops rejecting his Bless youand even Apple Launched with Vision Pro in early 2024. There is another manufacturer in the sector: sony. PlayStation VR2 is very confident and expects some sales when it launches in February 2023 2 million copies in a few weeks.

But we’re far off target, according to figures from IDC, which list the number of deliveries to sellers rather than consumers. 595,500 PSVR2 Shipped in the first half of 2023. Since that time this figure continued to fallduring Meta was climbing. In fact, we knew that Sony’s virtual reality headset was a commercial failure almost immediately after its release. Conclusion : Unsold items are starting to accumulate According to people familiar with the matter. That’s why the Japanese company decided Suspend production of PSVR2.

Sony is pausing production of its PSVR2 headset, and for good reason

Analyst Yijia Zhai explains that several factors may be to blame: “The high price of VR devices is the main obstacle to their expansion. There are currently a limited number of games that support them, which will lead to a lack of motivation among gamers to purchase hardware. VR”. He remembers this too “The development cost of VR games is much higher than normal games“.

Sony’s decision follows the decision taken last month. Closure of PlayStation London division specialized creation of virtual reality games. The company does not intend to give up on the market as it aims to make PSVR2 compatible with PCs towards the end of this year. According to IDC’s Francisco Jeronimo, the VR industry “31.5% annual increase between 2023 and 2028“Sony would be wrong to deprive itself of possible renewed interest from gamers.

Source : Bloomberg