Less than a month before the launch of the PS VR 2, new reports claim that soft pre-order numbers for the PS5 virtual reality headset have forced Sony to revise its initial sales projections and pull back production orders

Bloomberg (opens in new tab) claims that Sony has cut its planned Q1 PS VR 2 shipments in half, down to 1 million units According to the industry, Sony had originally planned to have 2 million units ready for launch, but the Japanese tech giant has not officially confirmed this figure, so it should be taken with a grain of salt

The report also suggests that Sony recently contacted its supply partners and gave them news that it will be ordering fewer components in the coming months Furthermore, Sony currently plans to ship approximately 15 million PS5 accessories over the first 12 months of its launch

For comparison, the original PS VR headset took about eight months to surpass one million units sold after its debut in October 2016 Therefore, even with the revised sales figures, the PS VR 2 is expected to surpass its predecessor

While the numbers presented by Bloomberg have not been technically verified, there is solid evidence that pre-orders for the PS VR 2 have been somewhat sluggish First, unlike the PS5, which sold out in just a few minutes at all major retailers, the PS VR 2 remains available for pre-order even weeks before its release date

The headset is currently only available through Sony-owned retailer PlayStation Direct While an invitation was required when pre-orders first opened last September, this requirement was quickly eliminated and now any shopper willing to pay the hefty launch price of $549 can order the headset

This high cost of entry is widely cited as the main reason why the PS VR 2 has not generated as much interest as hoped And there is no doubt that the PS 5 accessories, which cost more than the console itself, are a tough sell, especially in a time of economic upheaval for many

The somewhat lackluster lineup of launch games has also been pointed out as a possible reason why pre-orders did not sell out However, Sony is putting its first-party muscle behind the headset, as it plans to release "Horizon Call of the Mountain" along with dozens of third-party titles on launch day

The PS VR 2 will be available on Wednesday, February 22 for $549 / £529 / A$879 For those who have already purchased a virtual reality unit, we have a complete guide on how to pre-order the PS VR 2

On the surface, the plentiful supply of PS VR 2 may seem like a good thing After all, no one wants to experience a situation similar to the PS 5 restocking nightmare that has occupied most of the two years since the PS VR 2 was released But this apparently softer-than-expected early interest may be a stark warning that the headset won't cut it in the long run

Without a suitably high fit rate, Sony may be less willing to fund more first-party PS VR 2 games This would create a nasty cycle in which the headset struggles for relevance due to the lack of attractive software, and the lack of attractive software due to the struggle for relevance And the early adopters will have a very expensive but very limited set of accessories

Of course, this is all a worst-case scenario, and it is clear that Sony is committed to PS VR 2, at least in the medium term In recent years, Sony has acquired several VR-friendly development studios, including Firesprite, which created The Persistence and the PS VR 1 tech demo The Playroom These acquisitions and the launch of the second-generation headset show that Sony continues to have great ambitions in the virtual reality field

Due to its high cost of entry, the PS VR 2 is also positioned as a luxury item that only dedicated PlayStation fans will purchase when it is first released As such, it cannot be an instant sell-out item that the mainstream would want

Once it has been on sale for some time and perhaps experiences its first price drop, interest may increase as more consumers are given the proper incentive to purchase Furthermore, if the headset is well received by early adopters, positive word of mouth could spread and convince gamers who are currently on the fence

For now, it seems unlikely that the PS VR 2 will immediately break sales records or become the next un-receivable technology item, but that does not mean it is doomed to fail Sony sees the launch as just the start of a multi-year campaign to bring virtual reality to PlayStation users, and like any new hardware launch, it's a marathon, not a sprint