Sony is stepping up its next entry to its virtual reality repertoire, as eye-tracking and attention computing pioneer Tobii announced a formal partnership with the company to produce eye tracking tech for the upcoming PSVR (PlayStation VR) 2.
"PlayStation VR2 establishes a new baseline for immersive virtual reality (VR) entertainment and will enable millions of users across the world to experience the power of eye tracking."
"Our partnership with Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) is continued validation of Tobii's world-leading technology capabilities to deliver cutting-edge solutions at mass-market scale," stated Anand Srivatsa, Tobii CEO.
Tobii is expected to also receive upfront revenue from this huge deal starting this year, with the company confirming that the deal will represent over 10% of Tobii's revenue in 2022.
The deal is a landmark in the gaming space of VR as this essentially means that next-gen PSVR headsets are likely equipped with eye-tracking tech. According to an article, the PSVR 2 will use this eye tracking tech in several applications, including foveated rendering. This is a special technique in which the headset will track the user’s gaze and render only the exact center of what they are looking at. Their peripheral vision isn't fully rendered, mimicking what is in real life.
This tech ensures that the overall demand on the system is not taxing, as only the necessary parts of the image are rendered at any given time. It definitely sounds interesting on paper and is exciting to see if it gives the PS5 a leg-up over the competition in terms of better resolution and framerate.
Besides the VR space, Tobii is quite known in certain simulation circles for its excellent eye-tracking tech. Games like Microsoft Flight Sim, Aerofly FS2, DCS World, Star Citizen, Elite Dangerous, X4 Foundations, Euro Truck Simulator 2, Farming Simulator 22, the F1 series, and the Arma series make use of eye tracking tech in various ways.
The PSVR 2 is set to be released at a still-unannounced date.
