Compatibility Driver Developer Says PSVR2 Will Not Work on PC

PSVR 2 is set to launch on February 22, 2023, and just before its release, there have been some exciting developments, which to some may be upsetting. It has been reported that the upcoming Virtual Reality headset from Sony will not be compatible with a PC.

If you’re someone who was waiting for a long to get your hands on the PSVR 2 and play it using your PC and SteamVR, well, you might have to change your plans or buy a PlayStation console. Although Sony has yet to release any first-party VR games on Steam, the company has released non-VR games in the past with the intention of reaching Steam’s massive user base, however, the potential benefit of enabling PSVR 2 on PC is substantially less.

According to Road To VR‘s report, the iVRy Driver developer recently discussed the potential of PS VR 2’s PC compatibility on Reddit. The developer of the headset drivers is concerned that Sony would encrypt the USB signals, making the device unusable on a computer. He said:

You would be wasting your money, as there is no guarantee you could ever use it on a PC, and quite a good chance that you won’t be able to. The original PSVR is (electronically) equivalent to a monitor and so it is relatively simple to get a video signal up on it. Reading sensors etc. took a lot of reverse engineering, and at least a year from release before anyone figured that out. It then took a couple more years before it was usable as a PC VR headset. Tracking and controllers (using the original hardware) is still very much a work in progress, over 5 years from release. That is without Sony making any effort to prevent non PS4 users from using it.”

Unfortunately, PS VR 2 will not be immediately useable on PC even if the USB signals are not encrypted. This is because there is currently no SLAM tracker available for Windows, no controller support, etc. There’s a lot of work that needs to be done before the headset can be used on anything other than a PlayStation 5, so it’s unlikely that it will ever be useable on PC. It was initially impossible to use the PlayStation VR on a PC when it was released in 2016, but companies like Mediator Software remained committed to changing that.

Sony believes that having an exclusive VR headset will give them an edge over their competitor, Xbox, in the increasingly competitive console market. If the final product lives up to expectations, there will be no reason not to try it out, and anyone purchasing a PSVR 2 will almost certainly also buy a PlayStation console. Furthermore, it provides an alternative to PC VR gaming that is less expensive, so naturally, consumers will be drawn to it.

However, there has been no formal confirmation, so it is advisable to wait for it. Let us know what you think of Sony’s decision to make the PSVR exclusive until then if this turns out to be accurate.