Despite Featuring Some Amazing Tech, The PSVR2 Is A Pain In The Neck

I want to preface this piece by saying the PSVR2 is an impressive piece of hardware that brings some welcome innovations to the home VR space. Features such as foveated rendering to better leverage the power of the PS5 to create more immersive worlds, along with the superb Sense controllers that let you feel the tension of a bowstring or the ripple of water running through your fingers, truly elevate the experience like never before. Add to that a gorgeous 4K OLED display with rich colors and the blackest blacks, and you have the recipe for a headset that feels like a massive evolution for not just console VR, but VR in general.

As a day-one adopter of the PSVR2, I’ve spent the better part of the past two months soaking up much of its library, and I’ve had a great time doing so. Still, there’s one uncomfortable truth that needs to be acknowledged, and that uncomfortable truth is the PSVR2 is itself.

Now, I’m no VR virgin. I’ve owned various HMDs over the years, both high end and entry level, and have fallen in love with the medium. There are experiences it provides simply can’t be replicated in pancake mode. Take Resident Evil 7: Biohazard, for instance. Having played through the game in VR and felt the unbelievable tension and atmosphere it added to an already exceptional game, I can’t even imagine revisting it on a flat screen.

My virtual reality voyage started with the PSVR when it launched on October 13, 2016. So impressed was I with Sony’s debut effort that I became an instant believer in the medium and, just a few months later, picked up an Oculus Rift, which I’ve put hundreds of hours into. From there, the headsets just kind of began piling up around my house. My wife and I purchased a Valve Index for my son, which I’ve spent plenty of time with. And when Resident Evil 4 VR found its way to the Quest in 2021, you better believe I picked one up just for that to experience Capcom’s seminal survival horror epic like never before.

What I’m trying to get at is that I’ve played more than my fair share of VR. So much so that my “VR legs” are now veritable virtual tank treads, allowing me to plow through long gaming sessions without breaking a sweat. And while it’s true that all of these aforementioned headsets have their strengths and shortcomings and offer varying degrees of comfort, the PVR2 is, by far, the most uncomfortable headset I’ve ever slipped my noggin into; a pearly white face-prison of uncushioned plastic that makes all but the briefest sessions an exercise in frustration.

Donning the PSVR2 is like strapping yourself into some medieval torture device. So much so that I wouldn’t doubt the prototype is based on some blood-caked relic fished from the basement of Elizabeth Bathory’s castle – presumably with a few rusty nails and chunks of ancient scalp attached that thankfully didn’t make it to the retail unit. Its weight is distributed with the kind of pinpoint precision known to only the most sadistic of black ops interrogators, resting heavily on only the most sensitive parts of the skull while leaving the sturdier bits unburdened by its weight.

Of course, at first, I assumed I had to be wearing it wrong. After all, I’d been counting the days since the PSVR2’s announcement, eager to experience games like Resident Evil Village VR, Horizon: Call of the Mountain, and more, so I was keen to give Sony the benefit of the doubt. But after months of finding that unicorn of a sweet spot, it remains as elusive today as it was when it showed up on my doorstep back in February.

I’m not the only person who’s experienced the facehugger-esque grip of the PSVR2 firsthand. The internet is full of early adopters who’ve found themselves similarly disappointed with the fit of their new gadgets.

A quick search of Reddit revealed countless users voicing their dissatisfaction with the PSVR2’s lackluster design.

One Redditor even described feeling as if the PSVR2 nearly made their nose bleed.

And, as you’d expect, Twitter is also filled with similar complaints.

Ok NOT an official review of the #PSVR2 headset, i want to say I’m absolutely LOVING it so far except ONE THING…it hurts my head. After about 2hrs of playing it becomes painfully uncomfortable..im wondering if ANYONE else is also experiencing this extreme level of discomfort?? pic.twitter.com/qwBLN1V8aQ

— SAVAGE GAMER (@AudioGoddz) March 3, 2023

Wow… the PSVR2 honestly feels cheap and is extremely uncomfortable :/ if there is padding anywhere on the device, it’s about as thought out as the cable being permanently attached to the left side. Controllers are wonky to hold also, there is no easy way to grab them

— Pharrit’s unintended wonderland (@Pharrit) February 22, 2023

I could post similar examples for hours, but there’s no point beating the horse until it’s nothing more than a puddle of glue. The PSVR2 is just downright uncomfortable to use. What’s so surprising about this is that Sony essentially nailed it with the original PSVR, delivering a sleek and comfortable headset that was easy to wear for extended gameplay sessions. That Sony could retain such a similar design for its successor while somehow sacrificing all that made it so effortless to wear just boggles the mind.

Despite my discomfort, don’t think I’m ready to send my headset to the landfill just yet. I still plan to spend plenty more time with my PSVR2 because I feel it genuinely has some excellent games and the potential to bring console VR into the mainstream – that is, so long as Sony continues to give it the support it needs and doesn’t abandon the hardware the way it did the PSP and PlayStation Vita. In the meantime, I’ll just stock up on ibuprofen and keep my fingers crossed that the inevitable cranial calluses that’ll come as a result of my time with the PSVR2 will be enough to take away the sting of an otherwise excellent product.

So, whats your experience with the PSVR2 been like so far? Have you had to suffer through a similar situation, or have you managed to find the sweet spot to keep you playing for hours without a care in the world? As always, we love to hear what you think. Let us know in the comments below.