PlayStation VR always had a tough road ahead. Compared to high end gaming PCs needed to power the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, the PlayStation 4 is under-powered. The fact that Sony was retro-fitting its old 2010 released Move Controllers and PlayStation Camera to work with the PSVR, peripherals once designed for VR, also does not bode well for the platform. However, after going eye-on with it for the past few days we must say, we’re pretty impressed. But the good news doesn’t end there as it’s revealed PlayStation VR Cinematic Mode works with other platforms as well.
PlayStation VR Cinematic Mode works on any other platform thanks to HDMI
If you plug in any HDMI device into the PSVR processor it converts to cinematic mode. An adaptor would be needed for an official PS4 camera to work. The camera does not use a standard USB-A connector. On the bright side, we think it is actually USB protocol.
On the other had, it works on the Xbox One as well. But there’s no sound, so you’ll have to plug in headphones into the Xbox output for that. Basically, in order to run something else through the VR headset, you have to have the processor box plugged into a running console. Maybe more trouble than its worth. But it definitely works. And we doubt it’ll be long before someone figures out a way around it.
The processing box will render any HDMI input in cinematic mode by default, it just doesn’t carry sound because the PS4 gives it 3D sound information. With the PSVR Headset working on PC with an HDMI, we expect that somebody is going to make some third party driver for SteamVR. For a budget gamer, it beats paying $600 for an Oculus Rift.
Let us know your thoughts about the PlayStation VR Cinematic Mode in the comments.