Sony Unveils Next-Gen PlayStation VR Controllers; Features Adaptive Triggers And More

Back in February, Sony revealed that it is currently working on a next generation PlayStation (PS) VR system for the PS5 that would feature a brand new headset and controllers. Thanks to a recent entry to the official PlayStation Blog by PSVR lead Hideaki Nishino, we now know what the upcoming controllers will look like.

Based on the images provided, the new PSVR controllers have dropped the PlayStation Move’s “nunchuk” look for a more unique-looking grip design for each hand. Nishino refers to this as the “orb” shape, which has been designed with “great ergonomics” in mind – allowing users to “hold the controller naturally, while playing with a high degree of freedom.” He claims that the surrounding “rings” will not constrain hand movement, and have been tested on a range of hand sizes.

The button layout on the new PlayStation VR controllers bear a slight resemblance to those from Oculus, where each grip comes with two face buttons, a trigger button, a side “grip” button, a Share/Options button, and an analog stick. As mentioned by Nishino in his previous blog post, the new controllers will also include key features from the PS5’s DualSense as well as several new features of its own. These include left and right adaptive triggers, haptic feedback, and a built-in tracking ring for the corresponding VR headset.

Unique to the controller is the finger touch detection feature which can, well, detect your fingers without any pressing in the areas of the device where your thumb, index and middle fingers are placed. Nishino says that this will enable users to make “more natural gestures” with their hands during gameplay.

Other details such as battery life or charging methods were not mentioned in the blog. Development for the new PlayStation VR system is still a long way off and, as previously reported, is not aimed to be launched this year.