Is PSVR 2 the game-changer the VR industry needs? In Edge 380, we ask the developers who will determine its fortunes

It’s been a little over six years since Sony introduced PSVR, and during that time the VR landscape has changed significantly. Valve released Index, and created arguably the medium’s one true killer app in Half-Life: Alyx. Oculus, meanwhile, became Meta – whose Quest 2 is now the market-leading headset, available at an attractive and accessible price point. Now it’s time for Sony’s sophomore effort, which falls somewhere between the two. But at an RRP of £520 (more than the PS5 hardware itself), can it make a similar splash to its predecessor? In the new issue of Edge, on sale today, we talk to the developers whose software will help decide its fate. 

What’s clear is that the hardware is a major step forward: its 4K OLED HDR displays combined with PS5’s horsepower allows PSVR2 to hold its own against the best PC VR experiences. With eye-tracking tech, head-mounted haptics and the new Sense controllers proving leagues ahead of those Move wands, it’s certainly a capable bit of kit. But it’s the games that /really/ matter. And so, in our extensive cover feature, we talk to a range of developers currently making software that will release within PSVR2’s launch window to find out their thoughts on developing for the hardware. There’s input, too, from analysts and consultants, who offer their expert views on the future of Sony’s second-generation headset. 

Elsewhere in Edge 380, we celebrate 2022’s greatest games, hardware, studios and more in The Edge Awards. We dive deep into the creation of the year’s most mesmerising mystery in The Secret Of Immortality, go hands-on with Edmund McMillen and Tyler Glaiel’s long-gestating Mewgenics, and reflect on PlatinumGames’ Astral Chain and its fascinating combination of all-out action and routine police work in Time Extend. We also catch up with the team behind Monolith’s FEAR, as they look back at a horror FPS that is still talked about two decades on. 

In Play, we deliver verdicts on The Callisto Protocol, Marvel’s Midnight Suns, Warhammer 40,000: Darktide, Need For Speed Unbound and more, and talk to the makers of Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration about how they raised the bar for retro compilations. In Studio Profile, we meet Roll7’s founders to find out the secrets behind the company’s eclectic work culture and their plans for its magnum opus, while in Knowledge we talk to the sibling team behind Dwarf Fortress as their hugely influential game finally comes of age. 

All this and much more awaits in Edge 380, which you can purchase at UK retailers now, or by ordering online here.