This year is supposed to be a year when virtual reality is booming. Oculus Rift and HTC Vive These two high-end products, which landed on the market in the spring of this year, were widely praised, and sold out within minutes after the pre-sale, and then... There is no then, no matter Rift or Vive In the ecosystem of, there is a cracking level app for users to use, not to mention that people have to spend so much money to buy this headset device, and also need to use it with a high configuration computer. At present, these VR devices are a little far away from most people's daily life.

There are only three months left until the end of this year. Maybe there is one thing that can change this situation, that is, PlayStation VR.

PlayStation VR is a product launched by Sony for use with its own PS4 console. It will be launched next week to prepare for the upcoming holidays (Christmas in the United States, etc.). PS VR is a relatively inexpensive and user-friendly game headworn device. Many users who like to play games may already have a PS4, so they don't need to spend extra money to buy a computer. Rift and Vive On the contrary, ask yourself, if you were one of millions of PS4 users in the world, would you like to have a PS VR to refresh yourself?

PlayStation VR was named "Project Morpheus" in 2014. Two years later, except for a slight change in appearance, its core design concept has not changed. The appearance design of PS VR is still very beautiful. The white arc design adds a feeling of a spaceship in the 1960s science fiction film. The front panel is black and the rubber mask is worn. The PlayStation camera tracks your movement through the blue light on the VR head. Its appearance is somewhat similar to that of Sony's previous HMZ, but it is much larger. No matter where the PS VR is placed, it is very eye-catching.

Look at other places. It's very comfortable to wear the PS VR. Many other VR headwear on the market cover your head like a ski mask, which will make your face very uncomfortable. On the contrary, the PS VR is just the opposite. A plastic ring is put on your head, just like a hat, and you can loosen it by pressing a button on the side, Then you can put it on. There is a rotary button behind the head wear to adjust its tightness, and there is another button to adjust the focus. By sliding the screen in or out, it means that even short-sighted children can play PS VR with glasses.

Although PS VR is one of three headwear (Rift Vive ）The heaviest one is 610g, but I feel it is the lightest when I wear it. It will not always squeeze your cheekbones or forehead, because it disperses its weight and will not be concentrated in one place, and I don't need to worry about PS VR disturbing my hairstyle. In addition, the mask in the head is made of rubber instead of foam, which means that it will not easily get dirty or absorb sweat, and the rubber material is also excellent in sealing, basically without light leakage, and has a good experience. However, we also found that when I wear the PS VR and look directly or shake my head violently, it will slip, This is a big problem when playing Danger Ball.

The price is one of the highlights of PS VR, only $399 (about 2660 yuan). However, this price does not include the PlayStation camera and the two Move controllers, which are just the key to improving their VR experience. However, since the PlayStation camera and Move controller have been sold long before PS VR, some players may already have them, However, if you don't have the above two equipment, I still recommend buying the PS VR package, which costs $499 (about 3327 yuan) - including two Move controllers and a PlayStation camera.

In fact, even the $499 bundled package is better than Rift and Vive To make it cheaper, the former sells for $599 (about 3994 yuan), while the latter sells for an exaggerated $799 (about 5328 yuan). Not to mention, you need a computer with strong configuration for use. However, the reason why PS VR is so cheap is partly because its hardware parameters are not the best. Rift and Vive Both have two built-in screens (one for each eye), with a single eye resolution of 1200 x 1080. The PS VR has only one display screen, and the single eye resolution is only 1080 x 960. On the book parameters, the resolution is a hard wound of the PS VR. When you experience it, you can feel that the graininess is more obvious than the other two VR devices, with some vertigo, and the dark color looks a little fuzzy. However, the resolution does not depend on the perception. Sony has done a great job in the screen refresh rate of PS VR, which is one of the selling points they touted. In fact, it is really good to experience. When playing games, the pictures are very smooth and the delay is very low.

Except Rift and Vive In addition, PS VR has to face many competitors, such as Samsung's third-generation Gear VR and Google's first generation Daydream headset (to be launched in November). More and more manufacturers use mobile devices as the carrier of VR, because it is conducive to popularity and cheap. As long as you have a mobile phone, you can put it into this VR device to experience, However, compared with the experience of PS VR, those are pediatrics. They do not have some functions such as motion tracking, and cannot reach the image processing capability level of PS VR.

Compared with other VR devices, PS VR has some very good designs. For example, the wire control device on the body allows you to control the volume, power switch and a microphone. The body does not have headphones, but the wire control device has a headphone interface. You can connect to the earphones provided by Sony or use your own Vive Compared with the strange earphones, the PS VR design is more convenient and beautiful. Of course, you can also use wireless earphones. However, Sony said that it can output 3D sound effects through the headphone interface, providing a more realistic sound experience.

Unfortunately, the controller of PS VR has the worst experience among these VR devices, far inferior to Oculus Touch or HTC Vive There are four small buttons on the controller. They have no other purpose than to control the menu. In addition, there is an Option key hard to touch on the side of the controller. The most useful buttons on the controller are the trigger button and the ball for top positioning.

Even if the controller is difficult to use, it is also a trouble to set up the PS VR, PS 4 and TV. Instead of directly connecting the PS VR to the PS4 for use, you need to plug the PS VR into a box (to output 3D sound effects and images for the PS VR and TV* This box needs additional power supply ）, and then connect the box to the HDMI interface of the TV. The next step is to connect the box to your PS4 (through a microUSB or HDMI cable). If you have a PlayStation camera, you must also connect it to the PS4. After the above steps are completed, the cable may be messy.

But with Rift and Vive The difference is that the whole assembly process of PS VR is very simple. You don't need to install any third-party software or drivers. The screen will have a guide step to teach you how to do it, and then you just need to update the system. Once you are finished, you can wear PS VR, and you will still see the familiar PS interface, but now it is floating in front of you.

The PlayStation camera can track the PS VR headwear within a distance of 3 meters (1.8 meters wide), which is not too big a problem for apartments in New York, and the entire system experience does not require you to move too large a position. For some people, they may not buy PS VR to experience virtual reality, but want to play games in a more "private" way. When you play games with PS VR, in addition to the pictures on your head, your TV will also have pictures, but you can turn off the pictures on the TV and only play on the head mounted display, This gives you a sense of privacy when you watch some private movies or violent games. By the way, I would also like to point out that buying a PS VR does not allow your PS4 to do two things at the same time (for example, play games with the PS VR, and then others watch videos on TV with the PS4).

Sony promises that there will be 30 games supporting PS VR, most of which will be released at the end of the year. You can play these games with the Move controller or the DualShock controller, and some games can only be played with the Move controller. The experience is good.

The adventure game "Wayward Sky" is mainly played in the third person. You point to different directions to control the game characters. In some critical moments, such as assembling machines or aiming and shooting with weapons, the perspective will switch to the first person to provide a better sense of immersion.

Rock Band and Guitar Hero, two music games, are also very good to play with PS VR, while The London Heist, a shooting game, is estimated to be in Rift or Vive It will be better to experience it on the. There is also a light-emitting tracking device on the DualShock handle, so you can also play with the handle. However, unless you do not plan to purchase a Move controller, we recommend that you use Move to play, and the experience will be better, because the motion tracking range of the handle is relatively limited.

In general, the best PS VR games I've seen so far are still played based on the controller, and there are still some games that are not exclusive to VR. At present, there are still some top game masterpieces lacking in PS VR. Although Biochemical Crisis 7 will be launched in PS VR next year, Sony has released some lightweight games, such as Rez, a VR supported remade music shooting game, As well as SuperHyperCube, Thumper and so on, compared with those 3A masterpieces, these small games may attract some users, but in the long run, these numbers of VR games are not enough.

All the above features and games make us rate PS VR as "not bad". Although there is no game that makes you feel that you want to buy PS VR back, and it does not change the way users view the media, PS VR provides an interesting experience with some good games, It is believed that people will have a pleasant experience when playing with it. Although there are some obvious shortcomings, they will not have a particularly bad impact. Even though the price of the PS VR is more expensive than that of a PS4, this is not enough to prevent it from becoming a good gift for cutting hands on holidays.

Bonus points

√ Very comfortable to wear

√ Relatively high cost performance

√ There are some good games

Negative equinox

× Mediocre Move controller experience

× The system interface is not particularly good

× Need some more stimulating VR experience

Translation of pictures and texts from: