This past week was dominated by news from E3, the largest video game trade show on the planet. Press conferences were jam packed full of announcements, the UploadVR editorial team were hard at work covering the show for all of you, and there was enough stuff going on to exhaust us thoroughly. However, during all of that, a few new games still did release for the HTC Vive and we’ve rounded them up for you right here.
If you missed last week, you can see those here. And don’t forget that UploadVR now has its own SteamVR community group, complete with a curated list of recommendations so that you don’t have to waste any money finding out what’s good in the world of VR. Let’s get to it.
Dogfight Elite, from Echoboom –
Release Date: 06/11/16 Price: $19.99
You can take one look at Dogfight Elite and pretty much tell that it’s not optimised for VR, or really just optimised in general. A third and first-person flight game, it’s a pretty scrappy-looking piece of work that has in-app purchases on top of the already lofty price tag. Granted it’s early, but environments are painfully basic and the UI looks dreadful. There might be something here, but it’s going to take a lot of work to realise it.
Recommendation: Not right now. Come back in a few years, maybe.
The Nest, from invrse Studios –
Release Date: 06/14/16 Price: $9.99 (Currently 10% Off)
We previously broke the story on The Nest with our first look preview a couple of weeks ago and came away very impressed. Here are some thoughts from that article: “After playing for a while, I was fully immersed and quite frankly forgot that I wasn’t actually inside of a sniper nest. What really sells and drives the entire experience in The Nest isn’t the gunplay though, as great as that is, it’s the scope.”
Recommendation: Unique and inventive use of motion controllers for room scale VR. Definitely get in on this early and watch it grow into something even better.
Lost Route, from Imbanova Entertainment –
Release Date: 06/14/16 Price: $4.99
You know those few times you’ve made a wrong turn and ended up travelling down what appeared to be an endless road, in a creepy neighborhood, while probably surrounded by trees and murderers? That’s basically the premise of Lost Route, a driving game that puts you in that exact situation. The events are random and the road is procedurally generated so each time you play you can experience a similar, yet slightly different, type of nightmare.
Recommendation: Early Access with some bugs, but it’s a clever concept and fun to show people. Give it a shot at that price!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alLLpTMJHig
Octoshield VR, from Anthony Pigeot –
Release Date: 06/15/16 Price: $4.99 (Currently 15% Off)
An Early Access game that mixes offense and defense into a single mechanic: your shield. When you’re not blocking attacks, you can use it to take out enemies by giving it a toss Captain America-style. However, the aesthetic is much more like Tron that it is like a WWII era super soldier’s destructive playground.
Recommendation: Simple and fun at a cheap price. It won’t keep you entertained for long right now though, so it may be better to wait until more content is added.
Zero-G VR, from Linkus Studio
Release Date: 06/15/16 Price: $3.99 (Currently 40% Off)
Zero-G VR is designed to offer the “ultimate VR high-speed game simulation.” Before you reach for the sick bag, it might be worth pointing out that reviews for the game are actually largely positive. You’re armed with a jet pack and tasked with reaching a shuttle, spending a previous few moments in a gorgeous space environment. It’s a short experience, but there are a handful of different modes to keep you going.
Recommendation: It’s one of the most interesting thing out this week, not that it has much competition. Give it a look if you’re desperate for something new and want to take advantage of the discount.
Within, from Within –
Release Date: 06/16/16 Price: Free
Vrse is a studio that anyone interested in immersive film should be following. Or should I say was; the company this week changed its name to Within. Accompanying that shift is the launch of its content app on the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, offering you access to a wide range of 360 degree videos, such as the captivating Clouds Over Sidra, and even music videos from the likes of U2. Expect plenty more to come in the future, too.
Recommendation: It’s a free app with some of the best 360 films to date. Get it.
Muv-Luv VR, from Degica and ixll –
Release Date: 06/16/16 Price: Free
This entry is a bit out of left field. Degica is the publisher behind the long-running and immensely successful RPG Maker game development franchise that has powered games like To The Moon and Always Sometimes Monsters. However, Muv-Luv VR isn’t like that at all. It’s a spinoff from ixll’s Muv Luv and it’s a first-person shooter that appears to put you in the cockpit of a large mech gunning down alien hordes.
Recommendation: It’s free, so you might as well check it out, but unless you’re an avid fan of Muv Luv there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot here.
Annie Amber, from Pantumaca Barcelona and Carlos Coronado –
Release Date: 06/17/16 Price: $7.99 (Currently 10% Off)
When Annie Amber previously released on the Samsung Gear VR we wrote: “In terms of sheer beauty, VR games don’t get much more impressive than Mind: Path to Thalamus, and its creator has just stealth-released a brand new title for Gear VR. The most recent Oculus Store refresh includes Annie Amber, a narrative-driven piece from Carlos Coronado. As with Mind, this is a first-person game, though it perhaps has more in common with Land’s End than it does the previous title.”
Recommendation: If you’re prone to VR sickness, you might want to stay way from this one. Otherwise, it’s a gorgeous treat that we definitely recommend checking out.
Armed Against the Undead, from Unity3d.College –
Release Date: 06/17/16 Price: $19.99
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Armed Against the Undead is a zombie killing game in VR with a bunch of different weapons. The biggest draw here is that they’ve included weapons you don’t see in every VR game, like chainsaws and flamethrowers, but the novelty wears off in just a few minutes.
Recommendation: Overpriced and uninspired are two words that come to mind. There are tons of options in this genre already, some are much better.
