Who said virtual reality (VR) was anti-social and wasn’t co-operative? 2017 has been chequered by announcements of videogames that will offer co-op. From the most recently announced co-op shooters Evasion and Gunheart for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, to Marvel Powers United VR on the Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR puzzler Statik just to name a few. Most of those videogames however don’t give the player the option to explore and choose their own routes whilst gliding through the trees with Spider-Man-esque abilities. Windlands 2 is a refreshing VR videogame exclusive to the Oculus Rift, a sequel to last year’s Windlands. VRFocus spoke to Nick Pittom, Co-Founder of Psytec Games about adding story, multiplayer and combat to Windlands 2.
Simplicity is key, and that was certainly the case for Windlands, where VRFocus recommended short bouts of gameplay in order to avoid motion sickness. Windlands 2, may look simple with it’s polygon like environments, but has truly upgraded in its design. Pittom explains that users use hooks to explore and swing through the world. Psytec Games have also added storyline with MPC’s giving the player the option to follow certain missions if they choose to. In addition, there’s now the option to fight evil robotic creatures with a bow and arrow as well. That is – if your aim is good enough.
The story basically goes as follows: You are a guardian. The world used to be destroyed by an evil demonic being in the very far distant past, but was vanquished by the guardians. The guardians have existed for centuries and start noticing evil robotic machines waking up. You have to save the world once more and destroy evil, collecting mystical crystals to rid the world of evil and rebuild the world.
You can play with three other players online or choose to play offline in single player. So in total, four players can play Windlands 2 together if all players own an Oculus Rift. MPC’s will try and hint that something interesting may lie in a certain direction and when the mission is finished, new parts of the world start opening up. Instead of XP or weapon upgrades, Pittom says it’s “similar to a Zelda game, you get another significant power as you progress”.
The title is set to be released in 2018 and Pittom hints that Windlands 2 might be coming to other platforms. To find out more watch the video below.