 Virtual reality has made a lot of big promises, but to most people, really high-end VR is still a novelty or a dream. It's expensive, finicky, and still hasn't offered a killer app that will keep people using it. PlayStation VR is supposed to be the solution. Coming out next week, it's the only big tethered virtual reality headset powered by something lots of people already have, the PlayStation 4 gaming console. It's cheaper than either the Oculus Rift or the HTC Vive, and is backed by Sony, one of the world's great gaming companies. PlayStation VR just has to be good enough to make a worthwhile holiday splurge, but for something as new as virtual reality, good enough is still a tough standard to pin down. The heart of PlayStation VR is the space-age black and white visor once known as Project Morpheus. On paper, the PS VR headset has some disadvantages compared to the Rift and Vive. It's the heaviest of all of them and the lowest resolution, using a single panel instead of one for each eye. But in practice, the comparison isn't so clear. For one thing, PS VR fits on your head completely differently. Where most headsets strap onto your face like ski masks, PS VR is mounted on a plastic ring that stretches around the upper part of your head, balanced by weights on the back. This means that it's not putting as much pressure on your face, especially your cheekbones. Its eyepieces slide out with the push of a button, so it's wearable with glasses. It seems just a hair greener than other headsets, and some experiences can look a little muddy. But with a well-designed game, you won't even notice the difference in resolution. The hardware is full of nice touches, like an inline remote that your headphones can plug into, letting you easily adjust the volume and turn the headset on and off. I haven't worked up much of a sweat in the PS VR yet, but it's the only major headset with a smooth and easily cleanable rubber face mask, not one made of fabric or foam. It's also easier to get to the point of using PS VR in the first place. Setting up the system means connecting a lot of wires. You plug a small processing box into your PS4 in the wall, plug your TV and headset into the box, and plug a tracking camera straight into the console. But you don't have to worry about hunting down software and drivers like you would on PC, because the console just guides you through an extremely simple introduction. The toughest part is positioning the camera right. If your space is too big, it might not pick up the tracking lights on the headset when you sit back on the couch. And although you have enough room to walk a few steps in PS VR, it's not a room-scale experience. One of the problems with PlayStation VR is that it's not a completely new system. It's a setup cobbled together from various pieces of Sony hardware. The core $399 PS VR bundle comes with the headset, the box, and all its cables. In order to use it though, you'll also need a PlayStation Camera, which is sold separately. And in order to fully take advantage of the catalog, you'll need two PlayStation Move controllers in addition to the DualShock gamepad that comes with any PlayStation 4. Adding Move in a camera costs an extra $100, although that's still cheaper than the Rift and Vive. And you might want to splurge on a charging dock so you won't start running out of USB ports for all those controllers. PlayStation Move is the weakest part of PlayStation VR. The Move controllers were first released back in 2010, and they don't feel designed for virtual reality. They're covered in tiny buttons that are tough to hit even when you can see what's written on them, so the only really useful elements are a button on the top and a trigger on the bottom. That's enough to handle most experiences, but it feels limited compared to the Vive controllers, Oculus Touch, or sometimes even a regular gamepad. In some games, the Move sticks feel just as accurate as something like the Vive controllers. In others, the camera doesn't seem to quite reach far enough to give you a good range of motion, or the controllers drift slightly as you play. A big problem when you're in an action game. Sony has previously said that most of its games will be playable with a normal gamepad. The DualShock actually has limited motion tracking of its own, thanks to a light bar on the back. But in some cases, it still feels like an incredibly awkward two-handed remote control. If a game says it's best played with the Move controllers, believe it. That said, there are cases where a normal controller works perfectly well, or is the only choice. Take for example Super HyperQ, a game where you have to look around virtual reality and rotate three-dimensional objects to fit through a series of holes. A lot of PSVR's upcoming flagship titles are gamepad-based, including Rez Infinite, Rigs, and Star Trek Grid Crew. There are over two dozen games and experiences launching with PlayStation VR, with more listed for later this year. So far, we've seen about ten of them, including a spatial puzzle game, a trance-y series of music mini-games, a horror rail shooter, and a cute adventure game. While it's not exclusively a gaming device, it's definitely geared toward it. But there's enough out there that almost anyone should be able to have some fun from the start. Setting it up doesn't feel like installing a new cyberspace terminal in your living room, and putting it on doesn't feel like jacking into the Matrix. It's not exactly normal-looking, but it at least starts to fit into your life in a way that other high-end headsets don't. It doesn't even create some kind of new, virtual environment for you to enter, just a big-screen version of the normal PlayStation 4 interface. In some ways, this makes PSVR a little less exciting than its competition, but it hits close to the same quality bar, while being cheaper, more accessible, and more comfortable. Maybe VR that doesn't feel futuristic is exactly what the world needs right now.
 Virtual reality has made a lot of big promises, but to most people, really high-end VR is
 still a novelty or a dream.
 It's expensive, finicky, and still hasn't offered a killer app that will keep people
 using it.
 PlayStation VR is supposed to be the solution.
 Coming out next week, it's the only big tethered virtual reality headset powered by something
 lots of people already have, the PlayStation 4 gaming console.
 It's cheaper than either the Oculus Rift or the HTC Vive, and is backed by Sony, one
 of the world's great gaming companies.
 PlayStation VR just has to be good enough to make a worthwhile holiday splurge, but
 for something as new as virtual reality, good enough is still a tough standard to pin down.
 The heart of PlayStation VR is the space-age black and white visor once known as Project
 Morpheus.
 On paper, the PS VR headset has some disadvantages compared to the Rift and Vive.
 It's the heaviest of all of them and the lowest resolution, using a single panel instead
 of one for each eye.
 But in practice, the comparison isn't so clear.
 For one thing, PS VR fits on your head completely differently.
 Where most headsets strap onto your face like ski masks, PS VR is mounted on a plastic ring
 that stretches around the upper part of your head, balanced by weights on the back.
 This means that it's not putting as much pressure on your face, especially your cheekbones.
 Its eyepieces slide out with the push of a button, so it's wearable with glasses.
 It seems just a hair greener than other headsets, and some experiences can look a little muddy.
 But with a well-designed game, you won't even notice the difference in resolution.
 The hardware is full of nice touches, like an inline remote that your headphones can
 plug into, letting you easily adjust the volume and turn the headset on and off.
 I haven't worked up much of a sweat in the PS VR yet, but it's the only major headset
 with a smooth and easily cleanable rubber face mask, not one made of fabric or foam.
 It's also easier to get to the point of using PS VR in the first place.
 Setting up the system means connecting a lot of wires.
 You plug a small processing box into your PS4 in the wall, plug your TV and headset
 into the box, and plug a tracking camera straight into the console.
 But you don't have to worry about hunting down software and drivers like you would on
 PC, because the console just guides you through an extremely simple introduction.
 The toughest part is positioning the camera right.
 If your space is too big, it might not pick up the tracking lights on the headset when
 you sit back on the couch.
 And although you have enough room to walk a few steps in PS VR, it's not a room-scale
 experience.
 One of the problems with PlayStation VR is that it's not a completely new system.
 It's a setup cobbled together from various pieces of Sony hardware.
 The core $399 PS VR bundle comes with the headset, the box, and all its cables.
 In order to use it though, you'll also need a PlayStation Camera, which is sold separately.
 And in order to fully take advantage of the catalog, you'll need two PlayStation Move
 controllers in addition to the DualShock gamepad that comes with any PlayStation 4.
 Adding Move in a camera costs an extra $100, although that's still cheaper than the Rift
 and Vive.
 And you might want to splurge on a charging dock so you won't start running out of USB
 ports for all those controllers.
 PlayStation Move is the weakest part of PlayStation VR.
 The Move controllers were first released back in 2010, and they don't feel designed for
 virtual reality.
 They're covered in tiny buttons that are tough to hit even when you can see what's
 written on them, so the only really useful elements are a button on the top and a trigger
 on the bottom.
 That's enough to handle most experiences, but it feels limited compared to the Vive
 controllers, Oculus Touch, or sometimes even a regular gamepad.
 In some games, the Move sticks feel just as accurate as something like the Vive controllers.
 In others, the camera doesn't seem to quite reach far enough to give you a good range
 of motion, or the controllers drift slightly as you play.
 A big problem when you're in an action game.
 Sony has previously said that most of its games will be playable with a normal gamepad.
 The DualShock actually has limited motion tracking of its own, thanks to a light bar
 on the back.
 But in some cases, it still feels like an incredibly awkward two-handed remote control.
 If a game says it's best played with the Move controllers, believe it.
 That said, there are cases where a normal controller works perfectly well, or is the
 only choice.
 Take for example Super HyperQ, a game where you have to look around virtual reality and
 rotate three-dimensional objects to fit through a series of holes.
 A lot of PSVR's upcoming flagship titles are gamepad-based, including Rez Infinite,
 Rigs, and Star Trek Grid Crew.
 There are over two dozen games and experiences launching with PlayStation VR, with more listed
 for later this year.
 So far, we've seen about ten of them, including a spatial puzzle game, a trance-y series of
 music mini-games, a horror rail shooter, and a cute adventure game.
 While it's not exclusively a gaming device, it's definitely geared toward it.
 But there's enough out there that almost anyone should be able to have some fun from
 the start.
 Setting it up doesn't feel like installing a new cyberspace terminal in your living room,
 and putting it on doesn't feel like jacking into the Matrix.
 It's not exactly normal-looking, but it at least starts to fit into your life in a
 way that other high-end headsets don't.
 It doesn't even create some kind of new, virtual environment for you to enter, just
 a big-screen version of the normal PlayStation 4 interface.
 In some ways, this makes PSVR a little less exciting than its competition, but it hits
 close to the same quality bar, while being cheaper, more accessible, and more comfortable.
 Maybe VR that doesn't feel futuristic is exactly what the world needs right now.