Sony to invest $2 billion into extended reality research | Pocket Gamer.biz

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Sony Commits $2 Billion to Extended Reality Research

Sony has announced its plan to invest 300 billion yen ($2.13 billion) in the emerging field of ‘extended reality’ (XR) by March 2024, as reported by Nikkei Asia. This significant investment represents 40% of Sony’s total research and development budget for the year, exceeding spending on electronics and semiconductors.

This commitment to XR surpasses Sony’s game research and development expenditure of 271.1 billion yen ($1.96 billion) in the previous fiscal year.

In recent years, Sony has been making strides in the live service gaming and streaming sectors. One notable example is the integration of game streaming into the PlayStation Plus service. To enhance its mobile division, the company has also made key hires and acquired Savage Game Studios, its first mobile game developer, in 2022.

Furthermore, rumors have circulated that Sony is considering the acquisition of Take-Two Interactive, the parent company of Zynga, which would bring one of the world’s most recognizable mobile developers into its portfolio.

Sony’s Advancements in Gaming Technology

Sony’s commitment to XR follows recent product announcements in the gaming technology space. The Backbone One, a mobile peripheral that enables users to play PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 games on their phones, and Project Q, the company’s newest handheld hardware capable of streaming games from PS5 consoles over WiFi, have already been unveiled.

In addition, Sony recently released the highly anticipated PSVR 2, showcasing its dedication to virtual reality. This leaves many wondering if the next frontier for Sony will be augmented reality.

Augmented Reality Potential

Apple made headlines with its announcement of the Vision Pro, a premium AR headset. It is conceivable that a portion of Sony’s $2 billion research and development budget will be allocated to developing its own AR headset. Given Sony’s strong focus on expanding its mobile business, integrating a version of its VR headset during this expansion seems like a natural move.

Currently, Nintendo is closer to the AR gaming realm through the immense success of the mobile game Pokémon Go, which recently celebrated its seventh anniversary.

It has also been reported that the popular PlayStation Horizon franchise will be coming to mobile devices, further reinforcing Sony’s commitment to its mobile gaming ventures.