sony-ap

 

Just when you’re wondering what can possibly happen next in the gaming industry, there’s this.

 

This week, Sony announced they are “up next” to enter the world of virtual reality gaming. The announcement came during the annual Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. During Sony’s presentation, they introduced a prototype device called “Project Morpheus”.  The wearable device will allow players to create virtual reality experiences while playing games on Sony’s new PlayStation 4 console.

 

“Nothing elevates the level of immersion than VR,” Shuhei Yoshida, head of PlayStation’s videogame software division said at the event. “Many of us in PlayStation have dreamed of VR and what it can mean to the games we create.”

 

Players will be equipped with a pair of goggles with an frontal viewer, which will be combined with the PlayStation Camera and PlayStation Move handheld controller.

 

Virtual-reality goggles have built-in displays to help convey the effect of entering a simulated world, instead of relying on transparent third-dimensional glasses for viewing a movie or TV screen.

 

Sony had long been rumored to bring its virtual reality headset to the market, but the unveiling of the device comes just as sales of its PS4 consoles have been strong. Sales have topped 6 million units worldwide since its launch in November.

 

The Japanese tech giant is betting on its gaming division to drive sales at a time when its once-revered electronics businesses are struggling. The company expects an annual loss of $1.1 billion, weighed down by costs to fix its television and personal computer businesses. In February, Sony said it will eliminate 5,000 jobs worldwide, sell off its PC business, and split off its TV division into a separate subsidiary. (WSJ)