Sony launched the PS VR2 headset as early as February 2023 and is confident of its success. However, this hasn’t translated into actual huge sales, and today there are rumors that the company has chosen to stop production of the headphones in order to clear out existing inventory.
Sony is said to have a sizable inventory of PS VR2, with sales declining every quarter since the headset’s release. IDC said Sony sold 595,500 units in the first quarter of last year, 435,500 units in the second quarter, 343,600 units in the third quarter, and 325,200 units in the fourth quarter. By the way, these are deliveries to retailers, not consumers, so actual sales to consumers may be even lower.
Sony has produced “well over” 2 million PS VR2 units to date, according to “people familiar with Sony’s plans.” Sales are clearly nowhere near that level, so suspending production certainly makes sense. The more interesting question is whether this means anything for mass-market demand for a more reasonably priced VR headset than Apple’s Vision Pro ($550 for PS VR2).
One of the issues with PS VR2 may be the availability of games, or rather, the lack thereof. Sony’s PlayStation London division, which was dedicated to making VR games, strangely shut down last month, a move that means there won’t be any improvement in game availability for PS VR2 in the future. Sony, on the other hand, said in February that it was testing the ability of PS VR2 users to access PC games.
The cost of developing VR games is said to be “significantly higher” than regular games, which explains the lack of options. Then again, gamers wouldn’t even spend $550 if there weren’t a lot of games available for such a VR headset, so we’re pretty much stuck.
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