VR is all the rage nowadays, and Sony is the latest company that released their own VR kit to the public. Because investing in a VR kit at this point in time is a bit of a gamble because there are very few actual games available for the system, taking the opportunity to try before you buy seems like a godsend for the monetarily impaired amongst us. UK-based game store GAME has you covered, although trying out the PSVR in their stores has a price tag attached to it.

While the demo is open to everyone who wants to participate in it, the demo comes with some added fees that ensure, according to GAME, that the demo is being operated by a dedicated member of their staff. This staff member will walk you through the demo. Here's the price list:

Here's the price list:

For a 10 minute demonstration: £5.00

For a 20 minute demonstration: £10.00

For a 30 minute demonstration: £15.00

If you decide to buy the PSVR after you've tried the demo, GAME will subtract the amount of money you paid for the demo off from the full price of the PSVR, which costs £350 (or $399 if you're in the US of A). This discount can also be applied to a PS4 which currently costs £259.99 (around $300)

Unsurprisingly, this has pissed off a few people, who have since gone on to Twitter to voice their discontent with the store chain:

https://twitter.com/snupo71/status/790591391869042688

https://twitter.com/OldGit_Gamer/status/789806638148509700

Some Twitter users had a more light-hearted reaction to the situation:

https://twitter.com/Confused_Dude/status/789827241001816064

GAME was quick to send out a comment to Eurogamer:

Our pay-to-play PlayStation VR experience is a GAME-led initiative. The cost to use the in-store PS4 pod is entirely refundable for customers that go on to buy either the headset or a PS4 console. The payment allows us to ensure that we have dedicated staff manning the PlayStation VR pods who have been fully trained to adhere to best practice demo guidelines. The demos are intended to give our customers access to one of the most exciting new gaming technologies in 2016 and provide them with the opportunity to get a feel for VR before they commit to buy.

Make of it what you will, it doesn't seem right.

Quick Take

I get that GAME is jumping on the chance to wring some extra money out of their customers, but them saying it's so they can get dedicated staff to walk customers through the process seems a bit weird to me. It's not rocket science, this is a VR kit meant to be mass-marketed to PlayStation 4 players. This is something their employees in the store should be able to do without outside assistance. Seems to me like they're just trying to nickel and dime visitors to their store. A store chain in the Netherlands opened up their stores for people wanting to try out the PSVR and they didn't get charged for the privilege.