-
I can’t wait for the “English punch” adapter that turns them into portable weapons.
-
Look at those curves. And those analog levers.
-
The internal handle button can be used to pick up objects in the game.
-
Symmetry.
A month after officially announcing a new generation of PlayStation VR hardware for the PS5, Sony today unveiled additional details of the new handheld controllers designed to work with the next unit. As previously announced, the new controllers integrate some of the unique features of standard PS5 DualSense controllers. This includes adaptive triggers that can apply variable voltage depending on the game situation, as shown in PS5 games like Astro’s Playroom. The new PSVR controllers also feature tactile feedback that has been “optimized for its shape”. This technology seems positioned to go beyond the generalized noise of previous controllers to make “every sensation in the game world more impactful, textured and nuanced”, as Sony puts it.
The new PSVR controller also mirrors features found in other virtual reality controllers like the Oculus Touch, including the “orb” shape created by the hand-spinning tracking ring. The new controller comes with “finger detection” for the thumb, index and middle fingers when they rest on the appropriate parts of the controller, without the need to press a button. A “push button” on the inside edge of each hand controller can also be accessed by the middle finger to pick up objects in the game. Sony also promises that the controller is “well balanced and comfortable” in tests with “a variety of hand sizes”.
Each controller also features an analog stick and two full-sized face buttons, a significant update to the old PlayStation Move wands. These Move controllers were originally designed for use with the PlayStation Move camera and flat panel PS3 games in 2010 and were somewhat strange when called on for the manual tracking service for many original PlayStation VR games.
Sony also confirmed today that the new controllers will be “tracked by the VR headset”, suggesting that users will not need a PS5 HD camera or any other external sensor to make use of manual tracking in 3D space. It is not yet clear whether the headset itself will use an external camera for tracking, but current standalone headsets, such as the Oculus Quest line, have shown that it is possible to obtain quality head tracking on affordable headsets that use exclusively internal sensors.
While the PS4’s DualShock controller was used for limited positional tracking (and analog / button access) in many PSVR games, the new controllers appear to be able to completely replace this case on the PS5. The fate of the existing PSVR Aim controller, similar to a weapon, is also unclear with the new hardware.
The millions of PlayStation VR sales have made it a relative success in the still niche world of gaming virtual reality. But the hardware’s limited connection fee (when compared to the total universe of PS4 owners) puts it somewhere in the range of failed add-ons like the Sega CD and 32X.