Steam Greenlight has been a useful avenue for virtual reality (VR) developers seeking to gain notice of their projects and to succeed in launching a videogame on the popular retail platform. Today Chinese developer TianShe Media’s debut VR title Weeping Doll has arrived, looking for community support.
Weeping Doll is a psychological thriller where players are cast as the titular weeping doll, uncovering a storyline about a missing family and the empty house in which it resides.
Designed from the ground up for VR and supporting both the Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR head-mounted displays (HMDs), Weeping Doll mixes exploration with puzzle solving as players need to search the home, scour every room and scrutinise over every detail to piece together the story. The videogame will reward players curiosity, unravelling more layers of the story the house is explored, not just by looking but also keeping an ear open.
Created using Unreal Engine, TianShe Media has created what it calls the Shadow Step system. This the studio claims reduces simulator sickness, allowing the player to move around the environment using the controller while seated comfortably.
A VR specialist studio, TianShe Media was founded in early 2015 to create unique experiences for VR players. The team comes from a diverse range of backgrounds and skills: from seasoned game developers from the likes of 2K Games China (Civilization, Top Spin, Borderlands Online) to Escape Room designers.
The title was first revealed at Sony Interactive Entertainment’s (SIE’s) PlayStation VR Asia Conference, as part of the Chinese developers section. These also included Ace Banana; MIXIP; Kill X VR; Pixel Gear; Dying Reborn, Phantom World. Then earlier this week Oasis Games, a Chinese publishing partner of Sony Computer Entertainment Shanghai (SCES) revealed Weeping Doll along with four other titles coming to the headset during the launch window.
Weeping Doll is scheduled for release in Q4 2016, and for all the latest Steam VR news, keep reading VRFocus.