Since its launch, Oculus Quest has seen a lot of great shooters but, as developers continue to push the bar on higher-spec systems, we’ve longed to see if the standalone headset can keep up with some of the more innovative titles out there. Now available on App Lab, Sport Mode suggests it can.
Developed by Virtuaport, Sport Mode is unashamedly a Boneworks clone and a follow up to the similarly-impressive Physics Playground. Not only does the game ape Stress Level Zero’s signature ‘testbed’ style with helpfully-barren arena-based environments, but it also takes as much as it can from the game’s physics-driven combat. There’s even a slow-motion option for stylish kills. Check out some gameplay below.
Last year’s stunning port of The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners proved that Quest could handle more demanding melee combat, but Boneworks remains the real pioneer of next-generation VR physics. Sport Mode capably brings its wave-based mode to standalone, allowing you to spawn weapons including melee types like katanas and (of course) a crowbar as well as firearms like pistols and shotguns.
While the melee combat is convincing in its own right, requiring heft to wield sledgehammers or holding enemies back as meat shields, the experience also brings in fun props like giant orbs to push around the arena. It sounds like it could get too hectic for Quest and it can, but the beauty of App Lab is that you already have all the warnings in place, and the game even already supports Quest’s experimental 120Hz mode (though that will put even more stress on the systems).
Sport Mode isn’t an especially deep experience, but it’s been a while since we’ve seen an action game that embraces the complexity of VR physics, and this does it very well. The crowbar can hook to cables to slide down and you can topple stacks of boxes.
There isn’t much to Sport Mode, then, but it’s a fun distraction that might help tide you over until we hear more about Stress Level Zero’s own secretive Quest project set in the Boneworks universe. It’s also available on Steam if you want to check it out there, though you’re better off sticking with the genuine article.
