With the advent of technologies such as the Oculus Rift and Sony’s Morpheus project for PS4, it appears VR is about to open up to the gaming world in such a way never before seen.
And with that may come several unintended consequences. Some feel VR–assuming it succeeds–will result in gamers becoming more isolated. While this may seem counterintuitive to the social nature of gaming, those behind fun little gadgets like the EyeToy (remember that?) and the more recent Playroom see this as a prime opportunity to create a whole new level of interaction from the inside out.
In a recent interview, SCE London Studio Director Dave Ranyard pointed to some of their own past innovations as a template, stating, “…we’ve done a lot of social games. Having that social screen is really important to us. There’s actually quite a lot you can do with that. We’ve been doing lots of companion apps as well—you can interact, you can see what they’re seeing—you can imagine that with a haunted house, and you can totally see it—the payoff is brilliant.” He says.
But the big question from fans like myself is still when, when, WHEN?! Unfortunately, that remains up in the air, as Ranyard says it’s still just “a prototype,” and that “…we don’t have a date on hardware yet.”