PlayStation VR launches this October for $399

50 games expected to be available in 2016

During a press event at the Game Developers Conference today, Sony announced its price and release plans for PlayStation VR. The PS4 virtual reality device will be out this October in North America, Europe, and Asia for $399 / CAD $549 /  €399 / £349 / 44,980 yen.

Sony didn’t stream the event, but someone had it up on Periscope. What a time to be alive.

According to Sony, there are “more than 230 developers” on board with PS VR, with 50 or so projects planning to release by the end of this year. One of the upcoming games is an exclusive Star Wars Battlefront experience made in partnership with EA, DICE, and Lucasfilm.

Here’s a look at the final specifications for the hardware and what the gear looks like:

Which has me wondering about the cost of other peripherals, like the PlayStation Move controllers (a widely used input method for VR games) and the PlayStation Camera (required). That stuff adds up! This equipment is already available, so be on the lookout for deals, I guess.

We’re being asked to pay the price of another game console here, on top of needing a PS4, but Sony is still at a not-insignificant advantage compared to the Oculus Rift ($599) and the Vive ($799).

As for specific games, Sony lists the following titles as being among the 50 expected to release in 2016: Eagle Flight (Ubisoft), EVE: Valkyrie (CCP Games), Headmaster (Frame Interactive), Rez Infinite (Enhance Games), Wayward Sky (Uber Entertainment), RIGS: Mechanized Combat League, Tumble VR, Until Dawn: Rush of Blood, and PlayStation VR Worlds (SCE WWS). Also, The Playroom VR, which will be a free download at launch. Some are real tech demo-y, but others (like RIGS and Valkyrie) are damn cool.

I’ve experienced enough VR to want in sooner than later. I prefer the Rift, but my PC isn’t quite cutting it these days, and the superior Vive is too expensive for me to justify. So you got me, Sony. I’m in.