Sony has today revealed the new set of next-generation PlayStation VR controller it has in the works, planned to ship alongside the new headset. The hardware manufacturer has opted for an "orb" shape that is similar to other VR devices seen on PC. They are said to be "well-balanced and comfortable to hold in each of your hands". These new controllers will also include lots of new features, some of which are part of the PS5 DualSense controller.
Each one will have an analogue stick, which is a big improvement over the PlayStation Move controllers for a start. The device will have adaptive triggers, haptic feedback, and finger touch detection. "The controller can detect your fingers without any pressing in the areas where you place your thumb, index, or middle fingers. This enables you to make more natural gestures with your hands during gameplay." The controllers will be tracked by the headset itself rather than a camera placed next to your TV. The new controllers appear to feature every single button present on a PS5 pad except for the touchpad and D-Pad.
Over on the PlayStation Blog, senior vice president of platform planning and management Hideaki Nishino said this is all designed to make a huge leap for gaming in VR. "We’re thrilled with the controller we developed, but what matters now is how game creators will take advantage of the features to design the next generation of VR experiences. Prototypes of our new VR controller will be in the hands of the development community soon, and we can’t wait to see what ideas they come up with and how the controller helps bring their imagination to life!"
Don't forget that this new PSVR headset won't be launching this year. How do you like the design and features of these new controllers? Share your first impressions in the comments below.
[source blog.playstation.com]
Comments 112
These sound amazing! An enormous improvement on PS Move!
Man I really can't wait for psvr2, I hope this controller bundled with psvr2 so all playstation vr games will support it 😃
Half life Alyx confirmed 🤞🏻😊
@get2sammyb do you recon the new VR unit will use the USB C port on the ps5?
So cool! These will be a massive step up from Moves. Those things are 10 years old!
@Fuzzymonkeyfunk Sony better be knocking down Valve's door.
I am soooo looking forward to this. Can't wait for a new generation.
Great news, Iron Man VR could be awesome with these controllers. I suppose similarly SW Squadrons could be more immersive too!
As said above Half Life Alyx please Sony!!
All they need to do is confirm HL Alyx and I'll buy it just for that
Christmas 2022 is gonna be fun
I hope it can be purchased on the release date.
That's a great design and really exciting going forward, hopefully current VR games will all work on this as well and we get Half Life Alyx
Oh s*** this is HUGE! Love the improvements!
I just want an easy setup now <3
@jack22 Hopefully COVID will be behind us and they can build up decent stock to meet demand.
Just take my money. Its as simple as that.
These look incredible. Missed out on PSVR with the PS4 era but I'll be picking this up day one, I reckon.
@Fuzzymonkeyfunk it seems pretty certain that's what it's for
Cool cool cool
@get2sammyb somehow it puts a smile on my face that the move controller, despite it's flaws, has remained relevant across three generations! I can't think of another official console controller that can claim that.
So so happy! Not just that Sony are committed to VR on PS5 but that development is so far along that they can reveal this already. Finger tracking and analogue stick are impressive, and tracking of the controllers from the headset will, I’m sure, be far superior with dedicated controllers rather than the compromised solution last gen. This is incredibly good news.
I'll be pre-ordering this. Hopefully it launches with some great games.
I'll probably jump on the Occulus Quest 2 first and then see what if offers, just coz I really want to go wireless but these are nice looking controllers and the haptic element will be really important.
Looking forward to more details!
@tameshiyaku Yeah, it's mental, if you could go back to 2010 and tell people PS Move would still be used on PS5 absolutely no one would believe you.
This looks really cool, I am excited for PSVR2 and here for it. All of it.
Edit: I just hope that they are light, very light.
Well they look good, one thing that is so annoying for me with current vr is the move controller, so this is great news. Been some good news this week, been in bed since Saturday so haven't been on here much those free games was a nice surprise for me, had my 1st vaccine Saturday and been ill since then not 100% yet but getting there haven't played anything for nearly a week now.
WOOOW.
this is the generation that sony is actually taking seriously with regards to vr, i can't wait!!
Looked weird at first, but also very comfortable.
@Playstation wow it's PlayStation itself!
Does they come with a Gyro ring?
Looks awesome! Hopefully VR makes some big strides over the course of this generation.
Hitman 3 new PSVR controller patch please.
"The controllers will be tracked by the headset itself rather than a camera placed next to your TV. "
The lack of external sensors is a little concerning, but that might just be from my lack of experience with this type of tracking. I was hoping for true tracking via room sensors similar to Vive. My hopes and expectations are through the roof with the next PSVR though!
Also, there's now way it could be any worse than the camera tracking we have now.. so improvement is improvement.
@get2sammyb I just feel that PSVR 1 is just a prototype for VR on PS console. PSVR2 will be the real deal
Take my money!!!!
I’m really excited for PSVR 2 and these controllers look amazing.
Early 2022 maybe?
Wow! I'm rubbing my thighs with excitement and pleasure!
@Total_Weirdo Sadly it's coming out next year, but that gives developers plenty of time to make some great things!
@Dijon Yeah, expecting a big upgrade from PSVR 2 in every department!
I really hope some PSVR games like Astrobot Rescue Mission get patched to support PSVR 2. I don't want to buy old hardware just to play a few PS VR games in my library
@mittensknox This will happen 100%. Library of PSVR games is not that big, especially the really good ones like AstroBot. Can't see this title being forgotten and many others.
@tameshiyaku There is one, the GC controller is functional on 4 generations (GC, Wii, Wii U and Switch). Though I doubt the GC controller would've been supported this long if it wasn't for Smash players refusing to use any other controller.
Journos do love a new buzz word! The main headline feature here should be that they have analogue sticks. Haptic feedback and adaptive triggers are nice to have, but adding an analogue stick was essential.
Looks very sleek and modern. Much better than the childish looking Move controllers.
I just hope they can somehow keep the headset price down.
If it ends up £350+ again, then it will be another niche product like PSVR1.
They also need more first party support from the big franchises and to fund 3rd party devs.
They should go to SEGA and fund them to make a VR House of the Dead. Go to Bandai Namco and fund them to make a VR Time Crisis.
Lots of these light-gun shooter games are ideal for a comeback with VR!
Looks like a massive upgrade. Can't wait to see the headset itself.
Bring The Stormlight Archive VR game to this and I’m sold instantly, otherwise I’ll probably passing or waiting a while. It sounds awesome, but I know I wouldn’t play it much.
Really excited to try these out, I love the dualsense so think they will add a lot to the games. I have a PC setup with this type of tracking and for the most part it's great. My one concern would be what type of batteries they go for, internal or AA. Because my PC controllers that are AA, eat through them really quickly and they don't have half the tech of these controllers.
@blinx01 I'd be really surprised (and happy) if psvr2 is below 350 to be honest. They are on about higher resolutions and bigger fov, plus all the other tech(eye tracking) they might to add. Can't see that being cheap.
Add me to the list of people that will probably jump into VR this gen. Love the tech in the DualSense so I can only imagine how good that will be when coupled with VR. Would also be great if they do some backwards compatibility so that I can go back and check out some of the games I've missed from PSVR1.
Love it. All the features are what I hoped for especially the 2 analogue sticks. Got a long wait but I'm very excited to try it eventually.
@Grumblevolcano true, good point! By now it could be renamed the smash controller. Though I also remember that metroid prime played itself like a dream.
Looks like they took inspiration from the Quest's controllers. Smart move Sony. Should've took a little more inspiration from the Index's controllers, allowing you to essentially wear the controllers on your hands.
@get2sammyb absolutely! I'm one of those crazy people who still ownes two sharpshooters and occasionally enjoys playing Killzone 3 or House of the Dead Overkill with a fellow gunman.
@Serialsid
I know.
On one hand, I want this to have high enough specs to not get outdated so quick like PSVR1.
On the other hand, VR will never hit mainstream unless a console offers one for a cheap enough price and offers substantial games to go with it.
Only enthusiasts will buy a £450 console, then spend another £350+ on an accessory.
Now this is the level of industrial design I’ve come to expect from Sony. Looking forward to a matching PS5 rev. B.
sold out out of stock cant find them anywhere
@Rudy_Manchego Same here with oculus 2...cant stand being tethered with a wire.
How do they do on Beat Saber? That is the only thing that matters to me when it comes to VR. I'd use controllers wrapped in barbed wire if they could track me accurately when I'm working up a sweat playing Expert+ at 150% speed.
Wasn't the original codename for PSVR Orbis?
These look amazing, hurry up PSVR2 lol
@__jamiie Think Orbis was the codename for the PS4.
I wonder if you can get covers for these? Could get some Hulk or The Things fists!
Need a Daredevil game so I can play as Gladiator w/ these.
@tameshiyaku "...the move controller, despite it's flaws, has remained relevant across three generations! I can't think of another official console controller that can claim that."
I guess you could technically count the Gamecube controller (4 gens, GC, Wii, Wii U, Switch) but yeah, the PS Move has survived through an awful lot. It's always interesting seeing gaming tech that lives longer than anyone gave it credit for. =)
Edit: Somehow missed Grumblevolcano's comment saying the same thing. My bad.
Amazing news. Seriously can’t wait for PSVR 2.
These look fantastic. Releasing "along side" PSVR2 doesn't sound like it'll be bundled, which means it doesn't sound likely to be mandatory. I' both glad and confused by that. But they definitely look nice....price pending. If it's not mandatory I may not use it. I don't have room to flail my arms around where I can't see them. I've had a few near destruction moments with PSVR1 and Move and just ended up using DS4 for all VR....hopefully DS5 is a standard option, but I want these (if they don't cost too much more than a DS5.)
I wonder, though, how the headset itself will be tracking them. They don't look to be emitting light in these renders. Is it a camera on the headset tracking hand movements all the way around (that doesn't sound too right, because won't your own shoulders obstruct the controller positions from the headset often?) Or maybe they just mean it acts as a magnetic center for motion trackers in the controllers.
While all Xbox has announced over the past 6 months is that they're buying Bethesda, Sony has announced and shown numerous new IP and even hardware. The marketing people at Microsoft really are clever to get people to believe that the two platforms have competitive offerings.
@sanderson72 That's right! PSVR was project Morpheus.
I can't wait for these and the new VR headset. PSVR has been my favourite gaming innovation in years.
@get2sammyb I loved using the Move for playing Child of Eden in 3D on my PS3. Such a surreal experience.
Headset needs to be half the size and half the weight. It also needs Astrobot 2 and Half Life Alyx day1! I will line up for this if they hit it right!
Exciting times. Can’t wait to see more!
Can't wait. Backwards compatibility with PSVR1 is a must for me though.
Seriously they look great. One massive win is that these should be a lot easier to use on PC for things like Dolphin VR.
Loos great. Waited to get into PSVR until this generation. So ready to get mine.
Already have VR on PC. Dirt, ALYX, Lone Echo are amazing experiences. Really want to play AstroBot and Blood & Truth.
All of a sudden everyone loves VR now! This is what we love to see Sony.
Is it just me, or do these remind you of the old Sony Ericsson logo?
Holy crap this looks great. Really hyped for PSVR2 now.
If they can get foveated rendering in then it's going to be a hell a game changer. Imagine it's as good as 4K visuals per eye at 90+FPS. Dreamland!
@Odium I was annoyed the original PS VR game didn't get the Stormlight Archives thing but it was one of the first things I purchased when the Quest got PC VR support and it's not that great. It isn't really a game and is 30 minutes long if you take your time. It was more of a proof of concept thing they used to shop the series as a TV show/Movie
Also great username!
Sold! next year I'm going all in on VR. Hopefully I will also be able to play the current VR games I missed.
@mittensknox
The issue with Astro bot specifically is that it is one of the few games that needed DualShock tracking. The way you shot ropes with the touchpad and used them to bounce Astro up with the movement of the controller for example...It’d require more than a simple backcompat to get this one playing correctly.
These look absolutely amazing and very comfortable to hold. The l1 and r1 buttons will take some getting used to, but this has me very excited for the system. Cant wait to see how games take advantage of the extra power. Something tells me insomniac has a role to play here. They were putting out a lot of VR content on pc, before the acquisition.
Haptic feedback though. Something tells me Lady Dimitrescu is watching, waiting and is ready to terrify us in VR as soon as this drops
Can VR work without the controllers or is that up to developers?
@KnightRider1982
It can. Some games only require head movement.
Would have been perfect if they'd gone with a completely wireless headset as well but I think the ps5 doesn't have memory bandwidth requirement for it sadly.
Can guarantee the kid will use these as iron man gloves and punch his brother in the nads.
@Fuzzymonkeyfunk Almost certainly it will use the USB-C. That's also why it's on the front.
@Glassneedles that’s really disappointing to hear. I was so excited when I saw it was a thing. Thanks!!! I was torn between this name and The_Lord_Ruler, obviously Odium won ha.
a step in the right direction. only two more psvr generations and the tech will FINALLY be where it needs to be! it was clearly obvious that the tech wouldn't reach its potential for 10-15 years after the release of psvr 1.
@Deanster101 @Culjoseth Was rumored to be wireless for a while until Sony just announced recently that it isn't. I'll probably still cave and get one though. Maybe the PS6 VR will be wireless.
@Odium yeah it was disappointing to me too when I first read some reviews of it but I was well aware when I bought it. It's probably worth watching on Youtube if you are interested. It won't quite be the same as experiencing it in VR but it's a nice visualisation of the shattered plains.
They look odd but cool I got put off by the next VR system already because they said it is still wired :-/ Oh well maybe PS:VR 3 will be wireless then I might get excited about it. I'm more interested in just playing games the normal way for now really.
@BUDSclass201 it could potentially be that it isn't officially wireless (so as not to disappoint the many people without the WiFi for it) but the option would be there. Connecting quest to pc is like that.
thats just a guess though obviously.
Cute little thumbsticks, and the lack of need for a camera is a big win as well.
Hopefully the price is reasonable and Sony goes big with VR development this gen. Give us something exciting that'll move even the skeptics to reconsider their position.
@tameshiyaku Gamecube controllers are compatible with the wii, wii u and switch.
Those look really great. I'm a big VR user but I used PSVR for about 30 minutes. But these look like the best controllers on the market. PS5 has the horse power to run decent but not perfect VR, My 3090 still struggles to push NMS on my Index, but good enough for 95% of applications. I hope the headset is a good match. getting rid of the outside tracking is a good move. Oculus has shown how well that can work with very limited overhead. I'm looking forward to seeing what Sony has on offer. My PS5 was looking like it would get little use outside exclusives but VR could well extend that.
@NathanUC Oculus has proven inside tracking. It works perfect, I like my Index, a lot, but I can't in all honesty say its controller tracking is any better in use than the quest 1st gen I also have. You can force errors but in use its as good as perfect.
@NEStalgia The IR emitters will be hidden under the plastic of the bands, They shine at a frequency that passes through the plastic. Again the Oculus handsets work the same.
The only thing missing is a hand strap, so you can completely open you hands with the controllers staying in place. This works really well and really should have been included for best in class.
I'm am really excited with what we are currently hearing from Sony right now concerning VR. I can't wait.
@TooBarFoo Ahh, that's cool. From occulus, is there any data on how well it performs or gets off track by having multiple units running nearby in the same room? I often used PSVR 1 about 5 ft away from someone else using PSVR1.... the darned cameras would always see the other person's headset or controller. This sounds better, but I do wonder how wide an arc it picks up and if it's problematic. Even at worst it's probably better than before ,though.
@Discol76 Yeah, we went a long way from Ryan basically confirming they weren't going to have a PSVR2 at all in September to suddenly having this great looking PSVR2 in the works.
These controllers look so sick! I was always a little turned off that PSVR 1 used the old move controllers, but these controllers look incredible and make me much more likely to get PSVR 2.
@Glassneedles I more want it just to feel like I’m there than anything else. I mean, I wouldn’t complain to feeling like a Windrunner, but I can’t imagine that short of a game would capture that feeling, sadly.
So happy about this. I can just never be bothered setting my PSVR up these days but less cables plus these replacing the moves controllers is amazing. Plus all the other mentioned next gen VR upgrades. Yes! Hope it’s not too far away....!
@Daleaf i had the mild fever for a day and then was fatigued for the rest of the week. I didn't get much gaming done either.
These controllers look beautiful! I hope they can pull off a ff7remake with the headset...
@NEStalgia
Yip some turnaround. Delighted
@Loftimus some people are fine others just a day or so just luck of the draw I guess lol, hopefully 2nd won't be as bad, 4 days in bed lol, just had fever hot/cold, aches and headache no appatite, will be doing some catching up over weekend lol.
Hi there fellow games.
Even tough I don´t particularly interested in VR in general, I did tryed both Moss and Astro Rescue Mission on a friends house and they were pretty awesome. and this new controllers look kinda cool.
But honestly guys, it was your excitement and happiness over this PSVR news, that I can almost see your smiles, that has made a very long and somewhat dark day that I had gain a bit of bright light.
So thank you for that, really 😊
You have no idea how much I needed to feel some joy and positivity around me, even if it was virtualy (pun intended) and indirectly.
Cheers, stay safe good people and happy gaming to us all
@BUDSclass201 Rumors are typically fan boys wishing or just thinking that they will do what others are doing and copy it. I’m glad it’s not wireless if it means a better experience.
Understood. Hoo-ya!
@RaZieLDaNtE
Ikr man. Real life can be quite dark and even more so in these times. That's why I look for truth and honesty but mostly optimism in my entertainment.
You should know that your classy comments always bring much needed light hearted balance in an anonymous Internet favouring aggressivity and lies.
@Wavey84 yeah the camera is annoying. There are also rumours that maybe - just maybe it will be wireless. I think Sony are playing it safe saying it will be wired for now whilst experimenting with wireless possibilities. It doesn’t seem too much of a reach. The Oculus Quests are wireless.... thoughts anyone?
Wow. At the end of last year it sounded like VR was not something Sony were interested in anymore. In the first few months of this year we've had, what a dozen new VR games announced and news of VR2 in the next year or so. Great stuff.
I was initially a little disappointed by not having all fingers tracked on the new controllers but then, after just picking some stuff up and manipulating them, you really only need to track the three that they are. Otherwise they look great.
Single wire to headset is cool, don't have a huge amount of room to move around in anyway, All in all, something really cool to look forward to in the next year or so
Every new tidbit is hitting the right notes. My biggest issue was resolution, and that's yet to be talked about. Having already addressed the outdated move controllers and the cumbersome setup of PSVR though, I think Sony is well aware of the shortcomings. This will be the official PSVR launch IMHO, the first was pretty much early access.
@Odium the combat in the game is basically throwing rocks at Parshendi and a Chasm Fiend. There’s a bit where you lash yourself to a chasm wall and Syl is flitting about like Navi in ocarina of time. No flying or anything sadly as I imagine it was very low budget.
If you are looking for a game with a similar feel to wind running I would suggest Gravity Rush 1&2. Aesthetically it is completely different but the main characters powers over gravity are surprisingly close to wind running as I discovered when I replayed it after finishing the latest book.
@Glassneedles Gravity Rush is the perfect comparison to being a Windrunner in gaming. I hadn’t even considered that, but now I want to go back and play it again. Unfortunately, that game does sound really disappointing.
@JJ2 Hi there friend.
Thanks for the kind words man, I very much apreciate it.
Yeah, life can sometimes strecht it´s leg to trip you over.
But you got to hold firm and steady to keep from falling to the ground. It´s difficult sometimes. but we have to hold steady.
And it´s always a good thing to talk to people who can bring you up and cheer you on.
That´s what I try to do to those around me. Bring them up.
Thanks again. It´s good to know good people still exist in a virtual world.
Cheers, stay safe and all the best 👍
Hard pass again, wake me up when the PS6 has PSVR3 wireless version...
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