PlayStation lays off 900 people and shuts down London Studio
Sony Interactive Entertainment plans to lay off about 900 game developers and shut down PlayStation VR Worlds' London Studio.
PlayStation boss Jim Ryan is stepping down, with successor yet to be named
After 30 years with PlayStation, SIE President Jim Ryan is retiring from Sony.
PSVR 2 Outsold Original PSVR in First 6 Weeks, Sony Confirms
Sony revealed PSVR 2 outperformed the original PSVR in sales in the first six weeks, taking a strong early lead over the company’s first-gen PlayStation headset.
An investor relations presentation delivered by Sony Interactive Entertainment chief Jim Ryan includes some new information detailing PSVR 2 units sales relative to the original PSVR launched in October 2016.
According to a chart in Ryan’s presentation, Sony’s latest headset has sold 8% more than the original in the first six weeks, ostensibly spanning from its February 22nd, 2023 launch to April 5th.
The graph’s y-axis is unlabeled, although it’s likely those numbers are in the thousands of units, which would mean PSVR 2 sold around 450,000 units in its first week, trailing up to just under 600,000 at the six-week mark.
PSVR 2’s adoption curve is notably flatter than the original PSVR, which started at just north of 300,000 units in its first week, ending up at around 550,000 units by week six. When Sony last released sales figures in 2020, the original PSVR had sold around 5 million lifetime units. Notably, PSVR reached its first million in just under its five months.
PSVR 2’s game library consists of a few strong anchor titles, such as Horizon Call of the Mountain, Resident Evil Village, and Gran Turismo 7 while offering an array of upgraded PSVR content and newly ported Quest titles. Upcoming titles include Ghostbusters VR, Beat Saber, Crossfire: Sierra Squad, Resident Evil 4, Synapse, The Foglands, Green Hell VR, and Behemoth.
To keep PSVR 2’s unit sales above the original, the company undoubtably needs to focus on widening its content offering in the coming months. The company is hosting a PlayStation gaming showcase later today which we hope will reveal a little more about the company’s near-term content strategy for PSVR 2.
PlayStation Spending ‘Considerable Money’ On Third-Party, Indie Devs For PSVR 2
PlayStation boss Jim Ryan says Sony is spending a “considerable amount of money” on third-party and indie developers with PSVR 2.
Ryan said as much in the same investor call in which he confirmed PSVR 2 will feature over 20 games when it launches. “Right now, there is a considerable amount of money being spent on partnerships with independent and other third-party developers to secure a considerable pipeline of attractive VR content at the launch of PlayStation VR2,” he said (as reported by VGC).
“That energy, that effort and that money will continue to grow as the installed base of PlayStation VR 2 headsets grows also.”
Currently only a handful of third-party PSVR 2 games have been announced, including Among Us VR and Firmament, though other developers have confirmed they’re making games for the new headset. They include Coatsink, Fast Travel Games and First Contact Entertainment. That said, the recently-acquired Firesprite studio is the only first-party, PlayStation Studios developer known to be making a PSVR 2 – Horizon Call of the Mountain. Other flatscreen titles like Gran Turismo 7 are rumored to be getting support, too. As we’ve just learned, Sony will host a showcase featuring new PSVR 2 games next week.
But the release date for PSVR 2 is still unknown, with many speculating that supply constraints will lead to an early 2023 launch for the kit. That could mean it’s still some time before we get a better sense of the full PSVR 2 line-up. Until then, we’re keeping track of every announced and rumored project right here. We also speculated on what the PSVR 2 launch line-up could look like in this week’s VR Gamescast podcast.
Sony May Have Dropped a Hint About PSVR 2’s Release Date to Investors
During Sony’s annual investor day event, the company confirmed to investors that it has a lineup of more than 20 games ready for the launch of PSVR 2—despite having not yet confirmed the headset’s release date.
Sony’s 2022 Investor Day presentation gives investors in the company an overview of recent performance and future strategic outlook at the company’s core business segments which include PlayStation, Sony Music, and Sony Pictures.
During the wide ranging presentation, the company briefly highlighted “PSVR 2 launch” as a key part of its ‘commercial expansion’ strategy designed to bring “new growth vectors” to the company.
“PlayStation has, and always will, stand for innovation. And PlayStation VR 2 is the latest manifestation of our commitment in the innovation space,” said PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan. “Our plans are now well advanced, with the most striking aspect being the sheer joy expressed by gamers and developers alike when they have the chance to enjoy virtual reality on the PlayStation VR 2.”
Ryan stopped short of confirming a specific launch date or launch window for the headset, but his presentation slide during the segment confirmed “20+ major first-party and third-party titles confirmed for PSVR 2 at launch.”
Ok so hear me out.
While there have been rumors that PSVR 2’s launch could land in 2023, it does seem oddly premature to be counting the number of launch titles for a headset that isn’t launching for another 12 months, or possibly even longer (ie: Holiday 2023).
Surely in another year from now the company could court many more launch titles, and that bigger number would be the one they’d want to share with investors. It’s also worth noting that in last year’s Sony Investor Day presentation, the company didn’t say anything about the number of launch titles for PSVR 2, despite mentioning the headset.
On a similar note, it would be strange for the company to reveal the final version of its upcoming headset more than a year before bringing it to market… but as we know, Sony revealed PSVR 2 in full early this year.
Major consumer electronics products like consoles don’t often launch in Q1, let alone Q2. Case-in-point: every PlayStation console since PS1 has launched in Q3 or Q4… and the same goes for PSVR 1 which launched in Q4.
So a good bet for the release of PSVR 2 is Q4… but the big question is which year?
Again, if we figure Q4 2023, that would mean Sony revealed the final version of PSVR 2 one year and eight months minimum before actually launching the headset… which would be pretty strange for this this kind of product. And that would also mean the company is counting the headset’s launch titles—as it did in this year’s investor day presentation—almost one and a half years ahead of time.
If we figure a Q4 2022 launch… the timing of the headset’s reveal, and the fact that Sony is already counting launch titles, start to make a lot more sense.
But there’s a wildcard, of course; it’s been an unprecedented couple of years with the pandemic changing how organizations do business, not to mention significant disruptions to the global supply chain which has directly impacted Sony’s ability to keep its PS5 in stock.
Turbulence in the global supply chain has shifted even the best laid product launch strategies, so it may simply not be up to Sony if the headset’s launch gets pushed to 2023. For what it’s worth, the company told investors during the presentation that it has “mitigation measures in progress,” when it comes to dealing with supply chain disruptions, including “sourcing multiple suppliers for greater agility in unstable market conditions.”
The post Sony May Have Dropped a Hint About PSVR 2’s Release Date to Investors appeared first on Road to VR.
Jim Ryan: Next-Gen VR Is A ‘Strategic Opportunity’ For PlayStation
Sony Interactive Entertainment President and PlayStation boss Jim Ryan says that the company’s next-generation VR system is a “strategic opportunity”.
Ryan said as such to Japanese publication, Nikkei, in a recent interview, adding that the potential market for VR is “huge”.
“The next generation VR system is a very strategic opportunity for PS,” he said (as translated on Systran). “We launched PSVR in 2016 and have had time to understand the VR experience for years. What I learned from VR is that the potential market is huge. I want to continue to provide a high gaming experience to keep the community entertained.”
Jim Ryan On PSVR’s Future
Sony announced its new VR system for PS5 a few months back, though notably refrained from calling it PSVR 2 at this point in time. The headset, which won’t be launching this year, will feature upgrades to resolution and field of view and will utilize a simplified one-wire connection to the PS5. We’ve seen the controllers, too, which look like a big upgrade from the PlayStation Moves.
Ryan’s comments on PlayStation’s next VR headset being a “strategic opportunity” are in-line with other interesting quotes he’s given in the past few months. He recently told GQ that, going beyond the next headset, Sony sees VR as “something beyond this coming iteration that really could be really big and really important.”
As we wrote in an editorial earlier this month, this suggests Sony is aiming to play a long game with VR that might see its ambitions outgrow the PlayStation brand in the future.
PlayStation CEO: More News On Next-Gen PSVR Coming ‘Soon’
Today Sony surprisingly confirmed development of a next-generation PSVR headset built specifically for the PS5. There is no official name yet and details are scarce, but in an interview with Famitsu PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan said more details are coming “soon.”
The interview is translated via Google translate so some of the quotes might not be entirely accurate, but the general tone and flow of information should be in tact. Specifically, he says:
“My story is about innovation at PlayStation. We believe that VR is a strategic opportunity and an innovative technology that will delight fans, and I would like to inform you that we are preparing a next-generation VR system for the PS5 as our latest initiative.
We have learned a few things by providing PS VR for PS4. One of them is a single [cord] that makes it easier to connect a difficult VR device. More details on the next-generation VR system for the PS5 will be announced soon.”
In the rest of the interview Ryan confirms that they are currently distributing development kits for the new PSVR and the game lineup will be “decided in the future” reportedly.
In the official blog post, Sony confirmed it’s a brand new headset with improved resolution, field of view, tracking, and DualSense-based controllers. That’s extremely exciting given the impressive tech inside the PS5 controllers.
Late last year Ryan said that the “future of VR” would not arrive in 2021, so it seems he was simply referring to the fact that their new headset would be a 2022 or later release. I’ll place my bets that it drops in late 2022, just in time for the holidays like the original PSVR did in 2016.
Hopefully when Ryan said “soon” he actually meant “soon” and we won’t have to wait months before new details emerge. PSVR on PS5 saw some improvements, such as better load times, but it’s far from a next-generation leap. We’re very eager to see what Sony has in store for VR next.
PlayStation CEO: More News On Next-Gen PSVR Coming ‘Soon’
Today Sony surprisingly confirmed development of a next-generation PSVR headset built specifically for the PS5. There is no official name yet and details are scarce, but in an interview with Famitsu PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan said more details are coming “soon.”
The interview is translated via Google translate so some of the quotes might not be entirely accurate, but the general tone and flow of information should be in tact. Specifically, he says:
“My story is about innovation at PlayStation. We believe that VR is a strategic opportunity and an innovative technology that will delight fans, and I would like to inform you that we are preparing a next-generation VR system for the PS5 as our latest initiative.
We have learned a few things by providing PS VR for PS4. One of them is a single [cord] that makes it easier to connect a difficult VR device. More details on the next-generation VR system for the PS5 will be announced soon.”
In the rest of the interview Ryan confirms that they are currently distributing development kits for the new PSVR and the game lineup will be “decided in the future” reportedly.
In the official blog post, Sony confirmed it’s a brand new headset with improved resolution, field of view, tracking, and DualSense-based controllers. That’s extremely exciting given the impressive tech inside the PS5 controllers.
Late last year Ryan said that the “future of VR” would not arrive in 2021, so it seems he was simply referring to the fact that their new headset would be a 2022 or later release. I’ll place my bets that it drops in late 2022, just in time for the holidays like the original PSVR did in 2016.
Hopefully when Ryan said “soon” he actually meant “soon” and we won’t have to wait months before new details emerge. PSVR on PS5 saw some improvements, such as better load times, but it’s far from a next-generation leap. We’re very eager to see what Sony has in store for VR next.
VR on PlayStation 5 to Offer a “completely new VR format”
Earlier today Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) finally began to release details all PlayStation VR fans have been waiting for, news of what’s next. Sure, there have been plenty of patents flying around but now the official wheels have begun to turn. In addition to the announcement, PlayStation President and CEO Jim Ryan also had some rather interesting things to say.
In an interview with GQ, when the subject turns to a new PlayStation VR Ryan says: “this will be a completely new VR format for PS5,” which certainly sounds exciting. The new headset will feature a single cable to the console for a simpler setup plus the company is working on a new controller which will include ‘key features’ from the DualSense controller.
Up until now, the worry has always been that SIE might not continue with VR as the original headset did launch back in 2016. Competitors have released several iterations in that time, making PlayStation VR’s tech look dated. Ryan confirms SIE’s dedication to the format by saying: “We believe in VR and have been extremely happy with the results with the present PlayStation VR and think that we will do good business with our new VR system for PlayStation 5.”
That positive outlook will continue into the future: “More importantly, we see it as something beyond this coming iteration that really could be really big and really important,” he continues.
The PlayStation VR 2 – or whatever it’ll be called – won’t be arriving anytime soon with SIE confirming a launch will take place after 2021. Ryan does reveal, however, that “Dev kits are about to go out” so some studios are going to see what this new headset is capable of.
The news does mean there’s plenty of life left in the current PlayStation VR with Yupitergrad, Neon Hat, InnerspaceVR’s Maskmaker, Winds & Leaves, Fast Travel Games’ Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife, Stride, and team-based shooter Solaris Offworld Combat.
VRFocus will continue its coverage of PlayStation VR 2, reporting back with the latest updates.
Community Download: Do You Think Sony Will Release A PSVR 2 On PS5?
Community Download is a weekly discussion-focused article series published (usually) every Monday in which we pose a single, core question to you all, our readers, in the spirit of fostering discussion and debate. For today’s Community Download, we are focused on the evolving topic of PlayStation’s outlook on VR and if you think we’ll see an actual PSVR 2 eventually?
Over the last week a lot of news has come up regarding Sony, PlayStation 5, and the PSVR. As it turns out, not only does PlayStation’s CEO and President, Jim Ryan, think the future of VR is still a few years away at least, but it sounds like there won’t be any PS5 games with PSVR support at all. Both Hitman 3 and No Man’s Sky developers have indicated that PSVR support is only there for the PS4 versions of games — not the newer, more advanced PS5 versions. That’s a bummer.
When you add on the fact that Astro’s Playroom, a direct follow-up to PSVR’s popular Astro Bot: Rescue Mission has zero VR support it starts to paint a relatively bleak picture for the future of Sony’s VR commitment.
The Future of PSVR
To be clear: it does seem like, at this moment, they’re still committed to the future of VR. Ryan had positive forward-looking statements and we’ve heard from them in the past about allusions to a new headset. But with PS5 launching in less than two weeks for the US we don’t really have any indication of what their VR plan is for the console. That’s potentially troublesome for the state of consumer confidence in PlayStation’s future as a VR platform.
Given all the new revelations of the past week: Do you think Sony will ever actually release a PSVR 2 for PS5? Will this be like the PSP <-> PS Vita in terms of a successor? Or will PSVR go down as a forgotten platform like the PS Vita is now?
Let us know what you think down in the comments below!