Bloomberg reports that Sony has significantly lowered its sales forecast for its PlayStation VR2 headset, which is set to launch next month. [Sony’s] Deliberation. “
The PlayStation 5 maker expects to sell 1 million PSVR2 units by the end of March, up from a sales forecast of 2 million reported last October. According to reports, Sony plans to sell about 1.5 million more headsets in its next fiscal year ending March 2024.
With lower sales projections, PSVR2 will be on pace to slightly outpace the original PSVR headset, which sold just under 1 million units in the first four months and 2 million units in just over a year. But that sales pace is now on the rise, with headsets like the Meta Quest 2 selling 2.8 million units in the first quarter, according to market analytics firm IDC, for a combined sales pace of over 15 million units. looks less impressive.
The Quest 2 has some key advantages in competing with Sony’s upcoming headset, including a $150 lower asking price, even after the recent price hike. The self-contained Quest 2 also doesn’t need to connect to external hardware, as opposed to the PSVR2’s reliance on connecting to the $499 PlayStation 5.
Despite the success of the Quest 2 at its relatively low price point, the VR industry as a whole seems to be heading toward the high end of the price spectrum these days. Meta’s Quest Pro launched last October for a whopping $1,499, but a week-long sale has slashed that price by $400 for now. And next month’s standalone Vive XR Elite will cost him $1,099.
The first PSVR headset eventually sold at least 5 million units to 106 million PS4 owners as of the end of 2019. If PSVR2 were to sell at the same rate, it would only sell 1.4 million units compared to around 30 million today. PS5 owners (sales for both will likely continue to grow over time, especially now that the PS5 is easier to find in stores). Adding to the lineup, PSVR2 seems poised to become more of a niche Sega CD than a powerful, self-sufficient platform of its own. As we said, “PSVR2 will be nothing more than an expensive PS5 accessory.”
