PSVR 2s secret weapon is its performance-boosting, game-changing eye tracker

Date:
Wed, 30 Mar 2022 10:42:57 +0000

Description:
PSVR 2 devs talk up the transformative power of virtual reality eye tracking.

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Whats a VR game without some cracking virtual reality hardware to power it?
It seems that Sony is already eyeing up a spot on best VR headsets lists with its PSVR 2 accessory, after a GDC showcase revealed the power of its built-in eye-tracking system.

According to Android Central , Sony showed developers the new headset as part of a talk on the Unity game engine, detailing how the systems eye tracking
and foveated rendering combo can dramatically improve the performance of virtual reality games.

When used correctly, foveated rendering (which works to make sure only the area of a scene a player is looking at is rendered in detail) can lift performance on the PSVR 2 by 2.5x. But foveated rendering working in tandem with eye tracking can increase that to 3.6x faster than without either technology employed thats the difference between broadly downgrading the visuals outside of a players direct gaze, and specifically lifting the detail only on what a user is looking at.

The VR Alchemy Lab demo was what was used to show off the PSVR 2 headsets capabilities a multi-platform app that allowed for a degree of comparative experience. Using the foveated rendering and eye tracking features of the headset saw frame time drop from 33.2ms to 14.3ms in the demo.

A second 4K sci-fi demo saw similar results, with CPU thread performance jumping 32% and GPU frame time dropping from 14.3ms to 12.5ms. Its going to
be a key part of PSVR 2 developers arsenals, then, if they want to ensure their games run silkily smooth while retaining high visible detail particularly given the demanding resolution of the PSVR 2s displays.
Analysis: Beyond performance and into gameplay

The performance benefits appear to be clear ahead of the hardwares release. But arguably more important, from a usability perspective, is the way eye tracking can augment gameplay experiences.

Want to throw a cheeky wink at an NPC and see how they react? Thatll be possible thanks to eye tracking, while finer interaction with objects in a virtual world will be made more intuitive, as the eye tracking data can be combined with other peripheral input to more precisely discern a players intent. No more fumbling with unwanted in-game items just because they sit closely together in the game world and the input definition is too broad to
be able to determine which item is wanted.

Accessibility can be improved with eye tracking too. UI elements could be enlarged or enhanced when looked at directly, and fade away for a less cluttered play space when not in use. Developers will also be able to isolate the reasons why a player may be stuck in an area of the game if, for
instance, their data shows a player hasnt even seen the source of a solution
, and introduce a tooltip appropriately.

The possibilities make you long for similar functionality on flatscreen TV play. But, according to recent reports, PlayStation still has some final details to hammer out as of January, it was still only in talks with eye tracking specialists Tobii on implementing the companys tech into PSVR 2.
Want to know more about PSVR 2? Here's every spec and design detail revealed so far



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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/psvr-2s-secret-weapon-is-its-performance-boosti ng-game-changing-eye-tracker/


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