Sony says PSVR2 won’t be backward compatible with PSVR1 games

On Friday, a Sony spokesperson confirmed that the PlayStation VR 2 will not be backward compatible with games developed for the original PlayStation VR.

Sid Shuman, Senior Director of Content Communications at Sony Interactive, asked Hideaki Nishino, Senior Vice President of Platform Operations at Sony, if original PSVR games can be played on the PSVR2 bundle in the Official PlayStation Podcast Episode 439 (his response begins at 29:12).

“PSVR games are not compatible with PSVR2 because PSVR2 is designed to provide a truly new generation of virtual reality,” Nishino said. Nishino listed a number of “much more advanced features”in VR2, including new controllers with haptic feedback, adaptive triggers, advanced eye tracking, and 3D audio. “This means that developing games for PSVR2 requires a completely different approach than the original PSVR.”

While the answer was adamant “not compatible” and left fans with no hope, Nishino’s checklist of new VR2 features didn’t make it clear why the system wouldn’t be able to run less advanced VR1 games.

Consider the Oculus Rift S, which advertised a completely different eye-tracking system than its predecessor, the original Oculus Rift. The Rift S was compatible with games built for any Rift system (as well as some games for other headsets). It was a smooth transition for those who upgraded their Rift or bought VR at a later stage.

It’s also a disappointing result for some of the great games that were only available on PlayStation VR. These include the original Mario-caliber Astro Bot, the brain-teasing puzzle game Statik, a VR mode for Resident Evil 7 that has never been released on any other system, an exclusive first-person VR Blood & Truth, and a VR mode for WipEout that can extract benefit only from the VR2 headset.

The lack of compatibility could be due to PSVR2’s much more focused control system centered around Sense VR controllers. PSVR players could switch between the DualShock 4 (and even use the motion-sensitive features of that controller), PlayStation Move wands, and even the PSVR Aim Gun. While the PSVR2 gamepads follow the typical VR design, they feature a more refined rumble and “pulse”triggers borrowed from the Dualsense PS5.

Scheduled for early 2023, PSVR2 received a more formal introduction to the world earlier this week when Sony revealed hands-on/visual details of the PS5 add-on at the 2022 Tokyo Games Show. The VR2 offers a number of quality-of-life improvements over its predecessor, including single-cable connectivity, an accurate Interpupillary Distance (IPD) calibration tool, and improved room tracking. This follows an earlier disclosure of the basic characteristics of the system.

Sony offers a camera adapter for PSVR games on the PlayStation 5 to help keep the system viable. But that’s not too comforting for noteworthy games stuck on the island of the previous generation’s VR experience.