Sony entering the realm of Virtual Reality

Electronics manufacturer Sony yesterday unveiled the development of Project Morpheus, a Virtual Reality (VR) system that works in conjunction with the PlayStation 4.

While the unit is only in prototype phase, Sony is preparing for commercial launch in the near future.

“At SCE we view innovation as an opportunity to build on our mission to push the boundaries of play,” said Shuhei Yoshida, President of SCE Worldwide Studios. “Project Morpheus is the latest example of innovation from SCE, and we’re looking forward to its continued development and the games that will be created as development kits get into the hands of content creators.”

According to a press statement, “Morpheus enables developers to create experiences that deliver a sense of presence – where players feel as though they are physically inside the virtual world of a game. Presence is like a window into another world that heightens the emotions gamers experience as they play.”

The company detailed how the system makes use of a visor style head-mounted display and works together with the PlayStation Camera to deliver a VR experience.

“Inertial sensors built into the head mount unit and PlayStation Camera accurately track head orientation and movement so as the player’s head rotates, the image of the virtual world rotates naturally and intuitively in real-time. Furthermore, in supporting games, the player can use a PlayStation Move Motion Controller as an object, such as a sword,” they explained.