Project Winter was a snowbound social deduction multiplayer game that had you questioning and/or betraying your friends to hilarious effect. Developers Other Ocean Interactive are now taking that hidden roles formula and chucking some zombies into the mix with the newly announced The Walking Dead: Betrayal. Its reveal trailer sums up the survival and betrayal tug-of-war quite nicely. Though the heartbroken screams of “NOO NOO” arguably steal the show. Take a first look at the backstabbing below.
For some time now we’ve been considering how best to integrate meaningful and consistent accessibility information for the games we cover on Nintendo Life and across the Hookshot network. Today we’re pleased to announce that we’ve partnered with Family Gaming to bring in-depth accessibility information to readers via our reviews and game pages on Nintendo Life and its sister sites, Push Square and Pure Xbox.
As you may have already spotted in our Pikmin 4 review, both the review itself and the corresponding game page now display accessibility information integrated from the Family Gaming Database API. Covering a wide range of software across platforms, the database currently has just under 1,400 assessed games and counting.
Blizzard will address the backlash to Diablo 4’s latest patch in a livestream set for this Friday, July 21.
Game director Joe Shely, associate game director Joseph Piepiora, and associate director of community Adam Fletcher host the Campfire Chat livestream on July 21 at 11am PDT.
In a tweet (below), Fletcher said the Campfire Chat will address this “feedback”.
“We have been hearing feedback from players regarding some of the changes in 1.1.0 for Diablo 4,” Fletcher said. “We are going to have a Campfire Chat later this week on Friday to talk more about it. We will have more details/timing in the next day. Thanks again for the feedback!”
We have been hearing feedback from players regarding some of the changes in 1.1.0 for #DiabloIV.
We are going to have a Campfire Chat later this week on Friday to talk more about it.
We will have more details/timing in the next day. Thanks again for the feedback!
Blizzard has already issued a hotfix for Diablo 4 that sorts issues caused by the patch. This addresses the reduced drop rate of Aberrant Cinders in Helltide, which was lower than intended, and re-enables the Hatred’s Chosen buff.
Fletcher also confirmed Blizzard intends to remove the level requirement for World Tier 3 (40) and 4 (60) that were stealth introduced with this week’s patch.
We will be removing the level requirement for World Tier 3 & 4.
Diablo 4 players hope Blizzard rolls back a number of the controversial changes made by the patch, but in the meantime Season 1, dubbed Season of the Malignant, kicks off tonight, July 20.
Despite various issues, Diablo 4 enjoyed an enormous launch that saw over 10 million people play in June. Diablo 4 is Blizzard’s fastest-selling game of all time, and has fuelled record revenue and profits for the company. If you’re still playing, check out our interactive Diablo 4 map to start tracking your progress as you play.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
Going down the cursed checklist, Unholy certainly has enough elements to make for an absorbing horror adventure: it casts you as a desperate and vengeful main character, pits you against a malevolent religious cult that must be infiltrated and overcome, and arms you with a suite of emotion-fuelled special powers in order to get the better of every guard and ghoul who stands in your way. Unfortunately, like trying to crucify someone on a cross made of cardboard, Unholy’s execution just doesn’t hold up. Unresponsive controls, erratic AI, and frustrating instant deaths make for a seven-hour journey that regularly feels about as much fun as a spot of self-flagellation.
Young mother Dorothea wants to escape the grip of a religious cult known as Spring of Eternity, but there’s just one problem: the church’s high priest has snared the soul of her son Gabriel and fled our mortal realm to a cathedral deep in the heart of a supernatural underworld known as Eternal City. With a wizened old crone she meets up with in her father’s apartment building acting as her spiritual guide, Dorothea is able to cross over to this perpetually gloomy netherworld via an arcane ritual, and it’s here she must conquer a disappointingly modest variety of grumpy armoured guards and twitchy zombie types in an effort to rescue her only heir.
Unfortunately, like trying to crucify someone on a cross made of cardboard, Unholy’s execution just doesn’t hold up.
The landscape of Eternal City itself isn’t too far removed from the real world, it’s just darker and a lot more of it is on fire. Having said that, there’s clearly been a lot of care put into crafting Unholy’s underworld, with disgusting, tendril-covered subway tunnels to make your way around and streets lined with eerie, candle-lit tributes to the dead to crawl through. Unholy’s apocalyptic environment is by far its strongest attribute, so it’s disappointing that everything that happens there so shamelessly lets it go to waste.
Emotion Controls
Dorothea’s plight is an emotional journey in more ways than one, because in the realm of Eternal City human feelings can be harvested from corpses in the form of coloured orbs that can be used to your advantage – at least in theory. When loaded into Dorothea’s supernatural slingshot, ‘anger’ can be blasted into breakable elements in the environment, ‘shock’ becomes literal bolts of electricity that can fry power circuits from afar, ‘sadness’ serves as smoke bombs to break your enemies’ line of sight, and ‘desire’ can be used as a temporary distraction to lure guards away from their patrolling paths. It’s a shame that my regular feelings of frustration couldn’t also be loaded into Dorothea’s slingshot, because I would have been blessed with infinite ammo during almost every enemy encounter – particularly in Unholy’s latter half.
You see, the problem is that Unholy’s enemies are only momentarily stunned by any of Dorothea’s attacks head-on. The only way to dispatch an assailant is by maneuvering them near an explosive barrel or electrical trap, shooting it, and then hoping that they get collared by the collateral damage. Should you miss, or indeed should the enemy somewhat illogically survive (as was often the case during my playthrough) then you leave yourself open for a one or two-hit kill counterattack that will dispatch you faster than an Amazon delivery, returning you to a checkpoint that typically feels noticeably further back than it should be. Unholy could have perhaps benefited from the inclusion of a melee attack to buy you a bit of breathing space, especially since the way you have to manually shuffle through each ammo type rather than quick-select the one you want makes changing your strategy when cornered substantially more cumbersome than you’re probably used to from other games.
Evading enemy assaults might not have been so bad if Dorothea was even remotely fleet-footed, but unfortunately she moves with all the urgency of a child who’s just been told to brush their teeth. She also gets stuck on pieces of the environment that she shouldn’t, and then often fails to cling to the climbable surfaces that she should be able to grab. It doesn’t help that enemies have the tendency to block your only exit from an area, shuffling around in a circle like they’re the last drunken guest on the wedding reception dance floor, with no way of moving them if you’re fresh out of desire orbs.
Even when I did manage to stumble my way to the safe haven of a locker to hide in, I could never be certain if my pursuer would instantly ignore me and return to their post, or wait patiently outside until I was eventually forced to exit the locker and resume the clumsy chase. Unholy’s largely passive arsenal forces you to adopt a stealthy approach more often than not, which would be fine except that rarely do its stodgy stealth mechanics feel reliable enough to make for an enjoyable sneak through the shadows, particularly against the larger groups of ghouls in its latter half.
Masking Up
As it turns out, there’s a plague running through Eternal City that’s killing all its residents, so it makes sense that Dorothea is told to mask up upon entry. However, this is no surgical-grade N95 shield, but rather a mystical veil with special vision modes that can be toggled on to reveal interactive elements in the world like collectibles, explosive barrels, and the ubiquitous lockers. It can be further upgraded over the course of the campaign to serve as an actual gas mask to prevent Dorothea from perishing in poisonous gas clouds, and eventually as a sort of thermal vision to detect the late-game demons that are otherwise entirely invisible. These are each useful for the most part, although strangely you can’t activate any of these mask modes while you’re operating Dorothea’s slingshot, which makes trying to lure an invisible enemy into a trap an annoyingly approximate task.
Dorothea’s mask does have one additional benefit, though, in that it also conceals her stiff facial animations during cutscenes. Still, it can’t hide her wooden line delivery and charmless attempts at sarcasm, and nor can it prevent her from hyperventilating for comedically lengthy periods at a time even well after she’s out of harm’s way. It’s almost as if Dorothea’s gasping and Unholy’s swelling soundtrack is trying a bit too hard to convince you that your situation is scarier than it actually is. In fact, a few hours into Unholy I got so sick of her umpteenth asthmatic episode huffing through my headphones that I hopped into the pause menu and muted her persistent breathing sounds for good.
I was especially grateful for that option, since elsewhere in Unholy there’s not a hell of a lot of meaningful choices offered. A tacked-on upgrade system sends you sniffing around for special mementos from Dorothea’s past – like a pair of her mother’s sunglasses or one of Gabriel’s letters to Santa – which can be exchanged at special shrines for seven different skill buffs, but few of them make a tangible difference to your approach. Unlocking the ability to carry more than three of each slingshot ammo type is one genuinely handy exception, but I never found a compelling use for Dorothea’s running slide move aside from the initial dash through a timer-based gate that served as the ability’s tutorial.
It’s a shame that my regular feelings of frustration couldn’t also be loaded into Dorothea’s slingshot, because I would have been blessed with infinite ammo
In fact, there are a lot of elements in Unholy that are introduced and then quickly forgotten. Early on I was able to use a smoke bomb to confuse a motion detector in order to bypass a locked door, but I never found any such similar instances of circumventing security ever again. Likewise, a lantern-toting banshee enemy that emits a high-pitched scream to alert patrolling guards to your presence is featured in precisely one area in the entire adventure, which is a shame given the number of different enemy types I came across in total can be counted on one hand, and none of them are particularly frightening to encounter unless you count the cheap jump scares when the invisible enemy types suddenly appear inches in front of your face.
Puzzles, too, are equally lacking in variety, and never become much more stimulating than solving combination locks or swiveling dials on sealed trunks. Though to be fair, neither seem as redundant as the way Unholy will often require you to spend a precious anger orb in order to shoot the breakable lock on a crate… purely so you can collect another anger orb that’s revealed to be inside it.
All of Unholy’s sins may have been partially forgiven if the plot had been worth the struggle, but unfortunately the payoff for reaching the heart of Eternal City is underwhelming to say the least. It certainly didn’t help that I found Dorothea’s personality too obnoxious to ever really warm to, and so her ultimate fate and that of Gabriel hit me less like a slingshotted shock orb and more like a damp squib. On the upside, I had been dreading the idea of having to endure the unwieldy combat against a potentially tough endgame boss, but thankfully the final encounter is kept within the stress-free confines of a non-interactive cutscene – which would have been a disappointing way to conclude a better horror game, but here it felt like a small mercy.
To be able to experience these five new tracks from this HD-2D RPG series, players will need to purchase Season Pass 2. The tracks on offer include the following (you can hear some of them in the video below):
Ever since we announced Firewall Ultra, the next evolution of the Firewall franchise, last year here on the PlayStation Blog, the outpour of encouragement from the community has been nothing short of amazing. The pure excitement in all your comments, messages, tweets, and posts have us all even more motivated to make the game as great as it can be.
Which is why we’re so excited to debut our new gameplay trailer featuring fresh PvP gameplay footage!
To cap off that excitement, today we’re thrilled to announce that pre-orders are officially live for Firewall Ultra starting today with a launch date of August 24, 2023 at 10PM (Bangkok/Jakarta) / 11 PM (Singapore/Kuala Lumpur/Hong Kong/Taiwan) / August 25, 2023 at 12AM (Seoul).
Firewall Ultra puts the next-gen VR features embedded in the PS VR2 front and center to deliver a compelling and immersive first-person shooter experience. This includes eye-tracking for innovative use cases like closing your eyes to avoid the effects of a flashbang, incredible haptic feedback in the PlayStation VR2 Sense controllers for realistic weapon feedback, headset feedback when you take damage or toggle on night vision goggles, and so much more.
Firewall Zero Hour players know how much we continue to support and build on the game after launch, and that we value feedback from our community – so we will be looking to explore adding more content such as new weapons and contractors, maps, additional game modes, and possibly manual reloads post-launch. Keep an eye out for our operation calendar and more info on our post-launch plans as we get closer to the release of the game. In the meantime, we are excited to reveal that we’ll be offering ways to acquire unique variants of our weapons when playing Firewall Ultra for the first time ever. These unique weapons* will come pre-fitted with great attachments, an exclusive skin, and legendary versions will even have a different look all together.
* Unique Weapons require game progression
We’ve also overhauled the game’s internal infrastructure with an immersive social lobby area and shooting range in our Safehouse between game sessions, dedicated servers to help minimize dropped network connections, and a new best-of-three round-based player-versus-player (PvP) format that will have you spending less time waiting and more time playing. You can read more about all of this in the PlayStation Blog’s hands-on report right here.
What is Firewall Ultra?
Firewall Ultra is the next evolution of the Firewall franchise following the 2018 hit PS VR shooter, Firewall Zero Hour. The primary PvP game mode called Contracts pits two teams of four against each other in a best-of-three series of matches that feature tense tactical combat across a variety of maps.
In each match a defending team must protect a laptop full of classified intel using an assortment of gadgets and weaponry while the attacking team attempts to bypass the security access points and hack the laptop. Tools at your disposal include proximity mines you can place in crafty locations to catch attackers by surprise, door blockers to fortify your position, and many more. Attackers need to tread carefully around maps and work as a team to decrypt the intel before time expires.
It is vital to be aware of your surroundings at all times while playing Firewall Ultra. Nighttime outdoor maps like Oil Rig, as seen in our gameplay trailer, or even the dark, decrepit corners of indoor maps like Office can get incredibly dark and dangerous. Thanks to the dynamic lighting and realistic shadows afforded by Unreal Engine 5, we’re able to deliver an incredible sense of tension, immersion, and visual fidelity in real-time.
Firewall Ultra will feature a brand-new player-versus-environment (PvE) game mode that will let either you by yourself or you and up to three other contractors take on deadly enemy AI across the full selection of maps. It’s a whole new way to play Firewall and we can’t wait to share more about that mode soon.
Cutting-edge FPS immersion
We use eye tracking in a number of ways to enhance actual gameplay in Firewall Ultra. For example, you can close your eyes physically to avoid the blinding light of a flashlight. You can also close your non-dominant eye when aiming down the sight of a gun to make the view even tighter for slightly more precision. These are both natural things players find themselves doing while playing, so we reward you for getting lost in the experience, having a sense of presence, and giving into the immersion.
Using eye tracking you’ll be able to quickly swap weapons on the fly without needing to take time away from the action and foveated rendering ensures you’ll always have a sharp and crisp look into the world thanks to PS VR2’s powerful 4K HDR** display.
Just wait until you play one of the darker maps and witness the dynamic lighting from your side barrel flashlight attachment for the first time. There’s nothing else quite like it.
Finger touch detection and the adaptive triggers elevate things even further, letting you feel the different resistance levels of each weapon in your hand. Pulling the trigger of a pistol is completely different from the trigger on a sniper rifle and experiencing the intense haptic kickback of a shotgun is incredibly visceral. Using the PlayStation VR2 Sense controllers you’ll be able to flip a knife across your fingers for stealth takedowns – or simply show off this nimble hand movement to friends. You can even make realistic hand signals and silent commands to team members for better tactical realism and interactivity. The PS VR2 Sense controllers make for an incredibly immersive game experience.
We leverage the amazing hardware features of PlayStation 5 to make it easier than ever to join your friends. If you see your friends in a game of Firewall Ultra, you can quickly hop directly into the squad immediately from the card in your PS5 Game Base if there’s room. Load times are blazing fast to cut down on friction.
Pre-order details
We want to thank all our fans for patiently waiting on new information to come out about Firewall Ultra and are pleased to reveal that your patience is being rewarded with pre-order and edition details.
Choose between the Firewall Ultra Standard Edition for SGD 54.90 / MYR 169 / IDR 579,000 / THB 1,290 which includes access to the full game or the Digital Deluxe Edition for SGD 79.90 / MYR 249 / IDR 879,000 / THB 1,990. When you pre-order Firewall Ultra before launch, you’ll get access to one of our favorite legendary weapons: the Reaper X75. This is included for both Standard and Digital Deluxe Editions when pre-ordered.
For those that purchase the Digital Deluxe Edition, you’ll receive early unlock of four of the game’s contractors (Meiko, Skip, Fang, and Node—pictured above,) which includes their unique skills, as well as alternate outfits for each contractor. The Digital Deluxe Edition will also include four weapon camos that can be applied to customizable weapons in the game and you get access one post-launch Operation Pass*** for Firewall Ultra.
We can’t wait to see you all in-game when Firewall Ultra launches exclusively for PS VR2 on August 24. Don’t forget pre-orders are live now so you can secure everything you need to prepare and be ready to squad up next month!
** Consists of two 2000×2040 OLED displays *** Access to complete content for one future Operation (date TBA).
PlayStation 5 and PlayStation VR2 required to play. PS VR2 is not for use by children under age 12. Internet connection & PS Plus membership required for online play. PS Plus is subject to a recurring subscription fee taken automatically until cancellation. Full terms: play.st/psplus-usageterms.
Ahead of the launch of the Pyra and Mythra Xenoblade Chronicles 3 amiibo tomorrow, Nintendo has released a new update for the latest entry in the series – adding functionality for both of these figures.
When you scan these figures in, you’ll receive special-themed items. Apart from this, there are also some bug fixes for the Expansion Pass Wave 4 “Future Redeemed” content.
Though Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision-Blizzard has cleared its biggest hurdle (the FTC), the deal isn’t quite done yet. And all parties involved have given themselves more time to finalize the deal. We discuss that, plus Sony finally signing its 10-year Call of Duty deal with Microsoft, the death of Xbox Live Gold and its somewhat confusing replacement in the form of Xbox Game Pass Core, and more!
Subscribe on any of your favorite podcast feeds, to our YouTube channel, or grab an MP3 of this week’s episode. For more awesome content, check out my recent interview with Todd Howard, who discussed the realization of his vision for Starfield after eight years, how Red Dead Redemption 2 was something of an inspiration, what his future holds, and more!
Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s executive editor of previews and host of both IGN’s weekly Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, as well as our monthly(-ish) interview show, IGN Unfiltered. He’s a North Jersey guy, so it’s “Taylor ham,” not “pork roll.” Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.
When PlayStation VR2 released earlier this year, it offered players a chance to experience virtual game worlds bristling with detail and immersive features. PS VR2 was the culmination of several years of development, which included multiple prototypes and testing approaches.
To learn more, we asked PS VR2’s Product Manager Yasuo Takahashi about the development process of the innovative headset and PlayStation VR2 Sense Controller, and also gained insight into the various prototypes that were created as part of this process.
Yasuo Takahashi, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Global Product Strategy & Management Dept. Section #1 Principal Product Manager
Developing the PS VR2 headset
PlayStation Blog: When did development for the PS VR2 headset start?
Yasuo Takahashi: Research on future VR technology was being conducted even prior to the launch of the original PlayStation VR as part of our R&D efforts. After PS VR’s launch in 2016, discussion around what the next generation of VR would look like began in earnest. We went back and reviewed those R&D findings and we started prototyping various technologies at the beginning of 2017. Early that same year, we began detailed conversations on what features should be implemented in the new product, and which specific technologies we should explore further.
For additional context, take a look at the PS VR2 Headset Teardown video which digs deeper into the features of the headset and its inner workings.
PSB: Which feature or design element took the longest to develop?
YT: From the concept planning phase, we were already thinking about introducing new features that would represent a generational leap compared to PS VR. These included eye tracking, headset feedback, and a single-cord setup. We also needed to include these features into the headset while maintaining a light and compact design. To achieve this, it was important to design a system that handled all the functions efficiently. Our teams worked very closely from the beginning to produce detailed technical estimates, and discussed how they could achieve an optimized design. It was a very important part of the early stages of the project, and although the research itself did not take that long, we were constantly optimizing even after the prototype was built.
Additionally, we dedicated a lot of time into making sure that the headset was comfortable to wear and hold.
PSB: Looking at these initial headset prototypes, I’m guessing that the weight significantly reduced during the development process?
YT: Yes, the initial prototype was focused on evaluating functionality rather than weight, as we were considering how to incorporate new features into the original PS VR design. We were also exploring the best system for tracking, and with our first outside-in/see-through prototype, we were simultaneously testing the see-through view camera as well.
After we performed functional evaluations, we then integrated the components into the actual system. The “tracking system study prototype” was a prototype created just prior to the integration, and although it was very large and heavy, it served an important role for evaluation.
Outside In/ See through prototype: “The first prototype of would become PS VR2 featured IR LEDs for outside-in tracking, and a see-through view camera on the front and center part of the headset.”
Outside In prototype. “A second prototype was created in parallel with the Outside-in/See-through Prototype. This one featured multiple IR LEDs for outside-in tracking placed on the front of the headset to test out tracking capabilities. A second prototype was created in parallel with the Outside-in/See-through Prototype.”
Inside Out prototype. “This prototype was equipped with four cameras for inside-out tracking, and was created to evaluate the headset’s new tracking capabilities.”
After we performed functional evaluations, we then integrated the components into the actual system. The “tracking system study prototype” was a prototype created just prior to the integration, and although it was very large and heavy, it served an important role for evaluation.
Tracking camera positioning prototype “Prototype used for considering the position and angles of the four cameras. Using a dial, the position and angle of each camera could be finely adjusted.”
Tracking system prototype “Prototype for testing the four cameras on the front of the headset by connecting them to an evaluation board. This was performed prior to the production of the SoC (system-on-chip), which is responsible for integrating all components.”
In parallel, we also assessed the comfort and wearability of the headset. Since we already knew its expected weight, we evaluated numerous configurations of how the headset can be worn based on that estimate. We added many features, but in the end, we put a lot of thought into the materials and shape to make the headset feel lightweight. Each component itself was made lighter, the design was made as simple as possible, and the thickness of the plastic was made as thin as possible while maintaining strength. The mechanical engineers worked hard to achieve just the right balance between weight reduction and durability.
PSB: PS VR2’s eye tracking feature is really impressive– how was this developed?
YT: We wanted to push the boundaries of play with PS VR2, so we were exploring eye tracking as a new UI feature. Eye tracking technology had been around for some time and we knew it was a great fit for VR, so we wanted to make sure we leveraged it appropriately. We also looked at foveated rendering to achieve a high-fidelity visual experience, which is a technique that optimizes the resolution of where the player is looking at, while reducing rendering performance of the surrounding peripheral vision.
PSB: Did you encounter any difficulties when testing eye tracking?
YT: Some people wear glasses and everyone has different eye colors, so the feature needed to accommodate all kinds of players. To ensure the feature was tracking correctly, we spent a long-time testing and optimizing the feature with a variety of users.
PSB: Headset feedback is unique to PS VR2. How was this first added as a new feature and how did you go about developing it?
YT: Mechanical design engineers removed the rumble motor from a DualShock 4 wireless controller and attached it to PS VR to try it out. They found that it actually increased the feeling of immersion and sense of reality, though there were challenges when trying to actually integrate the feature into the headset. That’s why we created the next prototype, “Eye Tracking Evaluation Prototype Part 2” with a built-in motor, and tested how the motor affected eye tracking and head tracking.
Eye tracking evaluation prototype 2 “Testers were asked to look at different screens to test the eye tracking. The sides of the device can be opened, so that the developers can visually check the distance between the lens and the eyes. This was done because without visual confirmation, it was difficult to know if the device was being worn at the correct lens distance.”
We worked closely with PlayStation Studios to evaluate what kind of headset feedback would be the most effective based on what we learned from the prototypes. We compiled our findings into a design guide so that other developers could learn from it, and many developers used it as a reference.
PSB: What PlayStation Studios feedback did the team end up incorporating into the final PS VR2 headset?
YT: The placement of the tracking camera was adjusted based on their feedback, while confirming the range of hand movement expected in actual gameplay. When PlayStation Studios members gathered in San Francisco for an event, we brought prototypes from Japan and made adjustments based on the feedback we received there.
Skeleton prototype “This is a prototype that allows the internal structure of the headset to be visible from the outside.”
Developing the PS VR2 Sense Controller
Check out the PS VR2 Sense Controller Tear Down Video for an in-depth look at the internal structure of the controller.
PSB: When did the development of the PS VR2 Sense Controller start?
YT: As with the headset, we kicked off discussions in 2016 and began prototyping in 2017. The inside-out method is a tracking technology that is paired with the headset, so we considered this from the initial stages. We also discussed other features we wanted to add, how many buttons the controller should have, and to what extent we could incorporate features from the DualSense wireless controller for PlayStation 5.
Members included those from electrical design, mechanical design, R&D, as well as mechanical design. The mechanical design team was integral to developing and exploring various shapes for the controller.
PSB: What were the features or design aspects that took the longest to develop?
YT: The PS VR2 Sense controller incorporates key features from the DualSense wireless controller, such as haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. We also added a sensor for finger touch detection, and we spent a lot of time adjusting the controller to make it easier and lighter to hold. We also conducted extensive user testing. PlayStation Studios has a dedicated user testing team, and we worked closely with the team in Europe to ensure that we had as many people test the controller as possible.
PSB: How did you land on the final design and shape for the Sense controller?
YT: In the earliest prototype we used a different tracking method and utilized the sphere from the PlayStation Move controller. It also included features such as adaptive triggers, haptic feedback, finger-touch detection, and L1/R1 shoulder buttons. We equipped these features in the prototype to verify which features were the most important.
Prototype 1 “This is one of the earliest prototypes. This was a prototype to test the effectiveness of adaptive triggers, haptic feedback, and finger touch detection in VR controllers. Tracking was enabled by the PlayStation Move motion controller sphere.”
The next prototype used inside-out tracking, and this was how we determined where the IR LEDs should be placed and started experimenting with several different shapes for the controller.
Prototype 2 “This prototype was built for tracking performance study,evaluating the performance when the IR LEDs (for tracking) were placed separately on the top and bottom of the controller.”
Prototype 3 “A prototype for the tracking performance study. This prototype was used to evaluate the performance when IR LEDs were placed on a ring on the back of the hand.”
This next prototype is close to its current final shape, but the main difference is the size of the grip. The shape is the result of adding various features, such as adaptive triggers, haptic feedback, and of course, the battery. However, it was too large to hold for extended game play sessions, so our mechanical and electrical engineers worked hard to optimize the grip to make it thinner and more comfortable to hold.
Prototype 4 “Another prototype for the tracking performance study. This was to evaluate the performance when IR LEDs were placed around the controller with both design and features in mind.”
PSB: What kind of evaluation process did you go through when adding completely new features such as finger-touch detection?
YT: We created a prototype that incorporated features such as adaptive triggers, haptic feedback, finger-touch detection, and other elements that achieved a stronger feeling of immersion in VR experiences. We considered various forms of finger-touch detection, including ones that required button presses.
Each time we created a prototype, we asked for feedback from PlayStation Studios and used those insights for further testing. We asked how they wanted to utilize the controller in their games, and determined which features we wanted to include and how to include them. The optimal number of buttons, for example, is something that game developers can provide the best feedback for, so we closely listened to their thoughts during development.
PSB: The final shape of the controller feels natural in the player’s hand. Why and how did you decide on this final design?
YT: Our goal was to balance the weight and center of gravity to make the controller easier to grip and hold for longer gameplay sessions. We conducted extensive prototyping and user testing in order to achieve a comfortable fit. It was not enough to simply piece the components together; we had to make drastic changes to the internal structure. The next prototype is close to the final product, but the fit is not yet fully optimized.
Prototype 5 “This prototype is equipped with all final features and incorporates the unique “orb” shape. It was also used to evaluate the tracking feature, which was close to final at this stage. The grip design and comfortability were not yet fully optimized.”
PSB: It seems like the team put a lot of effort into IR tracking during development. When creating the prototypes, did you have to make any drastic changes from your initial planning?
YT: At the start of the project, we weren’t sure whether inside-out or outside-in tracking was better, so we explored both possibilities in parallel. We split into two teams and produced prototypes for both. After that, we decided to focus on the inside-out method and continued to optimize the tracking. The prototype produced to test the placement of the headset tracking camera enabled us to fine-tune the position and angles of the four cameras with a dial. It was also used to verify the range that the cameras could detect.
PSB: Were you involved in software development at the initial research phase? What feedback did you incorporate?
YT: We couldn’t fully envision how the controller would act and perform in an actual game, so the PlayStation Studios team provided feedback on the proposed product specifications early on in the technical review process. For example, if the player is standing and grabs an object at the waist, the head must remain facing forward, so we made sure the camera could detect an object below the headset. On the other hand, if you are pulling out a bow and arrow from your back, your arm will not be in the range of the camera. In instances like this when the controller was out of range from the camera, we had to make adjustments based on feedback, so that the tracking felt more natural.
Optimizing ergonomics while incorporating both adaptive triggers and haptic feedback was challenging, but we followed through due to strong demand from the software development team. The adaptive triggers must be located near the fingertips, while the haptic feedback needs to be incorporated where players grip the controller. The adaptive trigger modules are reasonably large, so if you account for the modules as well as the battery, various components end up crowding the grip area. This is not ideal ergonomically and sacrifices comfort. Originally, we intended on utilizing the same adaptive trigger components as the DualSense wireless controller, but we ended up creating a customized, dedicated module for the PS VR2 Sense controller.
All the prototypes for PS VR2 headset and the PS VR2 Sense controllers.
PSB: Finally, what are you proudest of with regards to the final PS VR2 headset?
YT: The original PS VR was used by many game developers to expand the world of VR games, and we believe that the PS VR2 pushes the boundaries even further. PS VR2 is capable of rendering stunning 4K HDR visuals (2000×2040 per eye), and eye tracking also delivers high-quality graphics with efficient rendering techniques. Combined with the controller, headset and comfortable design, players can fully immerse themselves in the extraordinary VR worlds created by game developers. The diverse portfolio of VR games will continue to expand in the future, and we hope that players will enjoy them to the fullest.
AI is at the center of the ongoing strikes in Hollywood, as writers and actors are concerned over how studios will take advantage of the rapidly-advancing technology moving forward. Those concerns are also bleeding into the world of video games, specifically in the voice actor community.
Last week, we shared the controversy in the Skyrim community, where dozens of voice actors discovered AI-generated NSFW Skyrim mods using synthetic versions of their actual vocal performances. The characters in these mods sound like the real-life actors, but they’re saying lines the voice actors never actually performed — often in pornographic contexts. Many of these mods are hosted on the mod distributor Nexus Mods.
Now, Victoria Atkin — who played Evie Frye in 2015’s Assassin’s Creed syndicate — has discovered that her voice is also being used in AI-generated pornographic mods on Nexus Mods.
IGN spoke with Atkin, alongside Tim Friedlander, the founder and president of the National Association of Voice Actors (NAVA), about AI’s continuing threat to the voice actor community.
“I was kind of shocked, really, that it’s been used without my say, without my consent, it’s just out there,” Atkin said of the moment she learned how her voice was being used. “To think that my living could be taken away because somebody could copy it and modify it and make me say whatever they want me to say, it’s extremely frightening… It’s a threat all around. It’s kind of like this invisible enemy that we’re fighting right now.”
To join in the fight against that invisible enemy, Atkin went to the picket line for the WGA strike last month. Atkin and Friedlander explained that many of the issues writers and actors are striking over in the television and film industries also impact interactive entertainment.
“AI is a general threat to labor, and voice actors and writers are labor,” Friedlander said. “We are basically replacing humans with AI and digital technology that can do our job for free, and it doesn’t benefit the voice actors, it doesn’t benefit the writers… It only benefits the very top part of these companies.”
A Lack of Regulations on AI-Generated Content
Since the threat of AI is relatively new, Atkin said that many of the contracts she’s signed throughout her career are not up to date. For example, the contract she signed with Ubisoft for Assassin’s Creed was inked nearly a decade ago, well before fears of AI were under consideration. This means many contracts contain no language addressing permissions for AI content.
As a temporary fix, NAVA released an addendum earlier this year for actors to include in their contracts. The document has companies agree that the voice recording and motion capture performance will not be used for the creation of synthetic voices or machine learning. But Friedlander said widespread change needs to happen in a more official capacity.
“Right now there’s no contract protection and that needs to be in our contracts, very specifically to address AI and machine learning… Many voice actors have been doing this for 10 or 20 years, we have hundreds and hundreds of hours of audio that’s out there freely to be used and for machine learning to train our replacements, to train these synthetic voices that could potentially be used to replace us.”
Friedlander said there’s no software right now that can track voices as biometric data. So, it’s virtually impossible for any actor to keep up with all the instances of AI-generated content featuring their voice. For actors like Atkin who have been in the industry for years, that makes the lack of regulations on AI-generated content all the more concerning.
“I’ve done so many games I’ve lost count, and there’s so much of my voice out there that I would never be able to keep track of… There’s credits that are not even on my IMDb that I’ve done. It’s just frightening… It’s kind of dangerous what they can do with it without my say.”
IGN reached out to Nexus Mods for comment on this, but did not hear back in time for publication. When IGN reached out to Nexus Mods previously regarding the NSFW Skyrim mods, a spokesperson linked to the site’s current policy on AI content, which reads in part, “AI-generated mod content is not against our rules, but may be removed if we receive a credible complaint from an affected creator/rights holder.”
Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over seven years of experience in the gaming industry with bylines at IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine, and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.
