Sony spokesperson claims PSVR ‘operates as a backwards compatible device’ on PS5

PS5’s support for the PlayStation VR headset has been brought into question after two games were confirmed to only support the peripheral on PS4.

Both Hitman 3 and No Man’s Sky will only support PSVR in their PS4 versions, developers IO and Hello Games confirmed this week, which is due to the fact that PSVR “operates as a backward compatible device” on PS5, a Sony spokesperson reportedly told UploadVR.

The representative is said to have gone on to clarify, “We have not announced PS5 titles for PS VR.”

In order to access No Man’s Sky and Hitman 3’s VR features, PS5 users will need to play the PS4 versions of the games via backward compatibility. Owners of No Man’s Sky on PS4 and Hitman 3’s PS4 digital version will qualify for a free PS5 upgrade.

It’s been known since last year that PlayStation 5 would be compatible with the VR headset. However, it’s not been clear if the device would be able to take advantage of the next-gen console’s improved power or play full PS5 VR games.

PS5’s new camera peripheral, however, will not work with PlayStation VR, but Sony has said it will send an adaptor out for free to PSVR owners.

This week Sony Interactive Entertainment CEO Jim Ryan commented on the future of VR in an interview with The Washington Post, and stated that he believed the future of the genre could be several years away.

“PlayStation believes in VR. Sony believes in VR, and we definitely believe at some point in the future, VR will represent a meaningful component of interactive entertainment,” Ryan said. “Will it be this year? No. Will it be next year? No.

“But will it come at some stage? We believe that. And we’re very pleased with all the experience that we’ve gained with PlayStation VR, and we look forwarding to seeing where that takes us in the future.”

One 2019 patent suggested that Sony could be preparing to release a next-gen PlayStation VR headset. It describes a VR headset which includes two front cameras and one rear camera, as well as upgraded Sony Move controllers which could feature a built-in camera too.

Sony said in January that PlayStation VR sales have topped five million units since the headset launched in October 2016.