Apple has reportedly partnered with Sony Group to support third-party hand controllers on its Vision Pro headset. The move aims to enhance VR gaming experiences by adding support for Sony’s PlayStation VR hand controllers. Although the PlayStation 5 and Xbox controllers are already compatible, they lack the six degrees of freedom required for precise VR gaming.
This partnership marks a shift in Apple’s focus toward gaming, which is a departure from its initial emphasis on content viewing and productivity. The company spent years developing a “wand” tool, similar to an Apple Pencil, but abandoned it due to concerns about confusing developers and increasing costs.
The Vision Pro headset has struggled to gain widespread consumer traction, with sales of fewer than half a million units. To boost appeal, Apple is considering a lower-budget version that would offload computing power to the iPhone and feature less advanced capabilities.
Content development remains a challenge, as developers may be hesitant to invest in games for an unproven gaming platform. Meta’s Quest headsets have driven demand through exclusive gaming content, while Vision Pro games are scarce on the App Store.
Source: https://www.cnet.com/tech/gaming/apple-reportedly-working-with-sony-to-bring-playstation-vr-controllers-to-vision-pro