At long last PlayStation players are getting into the cube world for real. In the latest PlayStation blog post, Mojang announced that it’s currently working on PlayStation VR device support for its hit game. Seems like the works are nearly done and PSVR owners will get a chance to play Minecraft in virtual reality a bit later this month.
According to the developer team, Minecraft won’t have any restrictions in virtual space. In other words, this means that everything you can do in a game right now, you will be able to do with the PSVR device. Minecraft VR will launch with two separate modes, so players will be able to choose the experience most suitable for their place – there will be an Immersive mode (a regular one) and a Living Room mode (a mode with limited mobility options).
The best part about all of this is that the update will be free of charge. The only thing you need is an operational PlayStation VR device. Minecraft VR update should land sometime later in September.
Here’s a full message from Mojang:
This has been much requested, and much discussed amongst our Minecraft PlayStation community and players but, I can finally say something officially about it. Yes, we are bringing PlayStation VR support to Minecraft, and we’re doing it very soon! This month, in fact!!
Yes, that soon!
Us Mojang folks have been bursting to say something about this for ages! PS VR support has actually been a planned PS4 feature since we got the thumbs-up from Sony to bring cross platform play and the Bedrock version to PlayStation 4. There was never any question of would we, just when.
So, I guess you’ll be wanting to know some details?
Once we’ve finished the final bits of polish to the experience, the PS VR support will arrive via a patch for the main Minecraft game. Everyone who has Minecraft on PlayStation 4 will get that patch automatically. Download that patch and you’ll get access to the new Minecraft VR functionality. Of course, you’ll need a PS VR setup in order to use it. All of you have one of those right?!
But what is Minecraft x PlayStation VR, I hear you say?
Well <drum roll>… it’s Minecraft, but in stellar VR. It is 100% the same Minecraft game that you can play every day, every week, every month, every year…on PlayStation 4. Nothing removed. 100% wholesome & pure full-fat Minecraft.
But surely there must be something different?
Yes, of course! There’s a bunch of new settings & guidance so that you can tweak the VR experience to your needs. There’s also two main ways you can play the game in VR: Immersive and Living Room modes. We think both are cool, but it’s up to you.
Just like the main game, you use your DualShock 4 controller to move around and do all the crafting and choppy/fighty things that you need to do, but you’ll be fully immersed in your Minecraft world. I guarantee you will jump out of your skin at some point.
Despite the pandemic adjusting how we develop Minecraft, development on Minecraft for PS VR has been relatively drama-free. Dare I say it, normal, even. The Minecraft x PSVR experience itself is based on the Minecraft VR tech that we developed for other VR platforms a few years back. SkyBox Labs took that and have been working their magic to convert and optimise the existing tech for PS VR. And, of course, our friends at Sony have been there all along the way to guide us because they know their system better than anyone.
It’s been a brilliant team effort and we’re so excited for PlayStation VR’s players to get to experience a gorgeous, immersive version of Minecraft!
It’s worth pointing out that this is not the first attempt to transfer Minecraft into virtual reality. Some time ago there were versions for Oculus Rift, Microsoft Mixed Reality, and Gear VR devices. With the PSVR version, Minecraft now seems to be available almost on any platform you can think of. And that’s a great set up for some new reveals that might be coming in the upcoming Minecraft Live stream next month. We wrote in detail about it in our previous blog post.
