@rosinmonkekyx17 Move controllers aren't mandatory. The camera is. Speaking of camera, a lot of PSVR developers are just using the DualShock4's lightbar for positional tracking (via the camera) combined with standard gyro motion control. They know that plenty of people won't spring for Move controllers right away.
The PSVR headset has always been designed with the intention of letting people use their own headphones, since you can't sculpt headphones into the shape of the headset, as nobody has the same shape of head/ear position.
Hence the work they've put into 3D sound on the software side of things.
@game4metoo You do understand that the Rift and Vive also use cameras and/or node trackers to gather positional data from the player/headset and peripherals. Why the hell are people surprised by this? Has anyone paid attention over the last two years of VR demos and specifications?
The bad: Not including the camera in the PSVR bundle. Even though it's under 50 bucks, I'll agree that there should be a bundle.
The non-issue-being-made-into-a-stupid-person's-issue: The fact that VR tech requires a camera or camera-like device to track the player/peripheral positional status. People are actually asking questions about why it's needed? Haha.
Wow, some gamers don't pay attention to technology.
"...a PlayStation representative has confirmed with GameSpot that the headset will require a PS4 camera to function."
Laugh. Did you really need to seek out a PS rep to 'confirm' that? Are you a gaming site with even the slightest grasp of the way VR tech works? Did you think the headset alone is capable of self-tracking itself in 3D space without the use of a camera or node tracker?
Sure, it's mildly irritating that you need to pick up the camera (usually $39.99 on sale, no big expense). But we've known for well over a year, since mid-2014, that all the VR tech from all the various firms would require a camera or node tracker to enable accurate headset headtracking and peripheral tracking in 3D space.
The disappointment is that the bundle doesn't include a camera. That's the headline. The headline isn't "Omg, this VR headset needs to use a camera accessory to track the movement of the headset and the lightbars on the DualShock 4/Move."
We fucking knew that already. We knew it since mid-2014. So much amateur clickbaiting after this announcement.
TLDR: Sony should offer a bundle w/ PS Camera, or a discount coupon for the camera with PSVR. However, the requirement of the camera itself is NOT new or surprising or shocking AT ALL. Absolutely part of PSVR, Rift, and Vive basic functionality. Good gravy, noobs.
Please think this through, folks. And look to history.
It's not a magical ON switch that suddenly permits cross-network play for all games. It's up to the developer, obviously, and a number of other factors - I.e., are the games using the same version/maps/mods etc. such that they can be multiplayer-compatible across servers, are the clients compatible (like, does a Windows 10 version require Xbox Live to cross-play versus, say, the 'normal' PC version of the game in cross-play, as we currently see in several PC-PS4 titles).
Reminds me of people freaking out over Xbox One backwards compatibility, once again with this mindset that it was a magical ON switch that would suddenly allow all previous gen games to run on Xbone.
Again, that was a per-developer and per-game scenario, just like it is here.
If there's one thing Sony has to 'accept' in terms of an invitation, it's letting dedicated (server) PSN games cross-play with dedicated (server) Xbox Live games.
Third-parties, such as those who currently allow PC-to-PS4 cross-play with Warframe, SFV, War Thunder, Rocket League, DC Universe, FFXIV, etc., they get to make up their own minds to a certain extent because those are their own server shards. Sony just says it's okay.
They've been allowing that since, what, 2004? When FFXI was cross-play between PS2 and PC.
Microsoft made a brief, abortive attempt at cross-play in 2006-2007 with a couple of first-party titles that worked between Windows Vista and X360. They were talking up Windows Vista and Games for Windows Live like the next coming of geezus, suggesting dozens of cross-play games would appear on Vista and 360, and that Vista would one day be able to play 360 games natively from the game DVD.
Hasn't anyone been paying attention to Microsoft's 'PC gaming' narrative over the last decade? Whenever they decide they want a piece of the pie, the bullshit and misdirection starts to flow. This latest announcement is yet more subterfuge, or "We're the good guys, really!" in the wake of the repugnant Windows 10 'Universal Windows Platform' (UWP) nonsense.
@7tizzYou want a cool 'controller' for PS4 for 150 bucks? It's easy to find a Vita for that price. Great games, nice feature set, and a competent remote play peripheral for PS4. There's your 'elite' controller accessory for PS4, available now.:
@drocdocImpossible. Would you really expect developers to optimize game code for 3 different SKUs of the same platform? Talk about hellish. Not to mention the absurdity of producing hardware with multiple chipset config variations and figuring out the manufacture process for multiple production lines, likely at different facilities. Consoles require a unified hardware config and development environment to succeed..:
Let's put the angst aside, and check the tech and logistics:
Even if the PS4's drive - turned virtual drive in the emulator - is capable of reading/running PS2 games, you'd still be in the same boat as Xbox One's limited b/c with 360 discs: because these new version have enhancements, forget about your disc - you'd still have to download that 'new' copy/wrapper of the game before playing, and it would still hinge on publishers authorizing the b/c version.
With that in mind, remember that unlike MS doing this ongoing b/c with 360 games, a last gen console, we have Sony skipping back a couple generations to PS2. All kinds of factors like disc compatibility and security, used game prices and availability, license and content holders authorizing the running of their game on a non-native console via emulation, etc., come into play with older gen titles. It was probably a headache to navigate, and easier to re-wrap the emu game.exe upscaled and with trophies.
To make this go down easier, Sony needs to keep polling players and rolling out select games, get all the prices to $5 - $10 US no higher, and consider including extras like soundtracks and art.
@kazeswenPS VR uses the camera - it's an essential element of its configuration. So your speculation above is off the mark. In fact, the core unlock could very well be there to help the OS work in a new VR sub layer going forward, which ultimately would also include the camera/light node tracking portion of the VR motion capture (light bar/Move controller/gun tracking, etc.) So it's not about the camera.
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