Altdeus: Beyond Chronos

July 19, 2021

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos Studio Reveals DYSCHRONIA: Chronos Alternate for 2022

MyDearest Inc. the Japanese virtual reality (VR) studio championing immersive visual novels with Tokyo Chronos and ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos, has today revealed its latest project. Called DYSCHRONIA: Chronos Alternate, this new VR experience is currently slated to arrive next year.

DYSCHRONIA: Chronos Alternate won’t be a direct sequel to MyDearest Inc’s previous VR entries but it will still be connected to the Chronos universe as a whole. How the new project is connected and details of the new storyline have yet to be unveiled, with the studio only teasing the videogames’ existence for the time being. The same goes for platform support, which VR headsets have yet been mentioned.

From the trailer, there’s definitely some sort of time travel element involved with a male character wielding a powerful looking watch. This is then followed by the phrase: “Turn back time. Mysteries are a thing of the past.” Adding to the tease, MyDearest Inc. has launched a dedicated DYSCHRONIA: Chronos Alternate website which has a text entry filed saying “Enter Your Keywords”. Enter a specific word and something may just happen, how’s your Chronos knowledge?

Considering the leap between Tokyo Chronos and ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos both in terms of narrative and interaction, hopefully, MyDearest Inc. will continue that trend, sticking with its visual novel roots whilst expanding the gameplay elements to further immerse players in the experience.

If you happen to live in the United States then MyDearest Inc. has another bonus for you, a competition. An official Twitter account for DYSCHRONIA: Chronos Alternate has been opened and if you follow the Twitter account, like the sweepstakes post, and retweet it there’s a chance to win an Oculus Quest 2 or $25 Amazon Gift Cards. The sweepstakes will be open until 23:59 PDT, 31st July 2021.

With DYSCHRONIA: Chronos Alternate due in 2022 that gives you plenty of time to complete the previous two titles, especially ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos which has a good 15+ hours of content considering the numerous alternate endings. And then there’s the new Episode Yamato DLC which adds a couple more hours. For further updates on DYSCHRONIA: Chronos Alternate, keep reading VRFocus.

July 5, 2021

Altdeus, Tokyo Chronos Dev Raised More Money For More VR Games

Altdeus: Beyond Chronos and Tokyo Chronos developer MyDearest isn’t going anywhere; it’s just raised $8.2 million in a new round of funding.

The funding round was lead by Globis Captial Partners, and brings the Japanese studio’s total funding to around $11.1 million to date. In a press release, the studio noted these funds would be used to expand the studio, start an online community for its fanbase and bring “deeper and richer adventures to gamers” in the future.

In a prepared statement, MyDearest CEO Kento Kishigami said the studio “will serve as the vanguard of Japanese VR game developers making an impact in the global market.”

MyDearest’s two VR games are both unique takes on the visual novel genre for headsets. Tokyo Chronos featured a lengthy story-driven experience when it released in 2019 and the developer followed up a year later with Altdeus, which was set in the game world as the original game but flung far into the future.

We thought Altdeus in particular was a big improvement for the developer’s formula, awarding it 4/5 in our review. “Having added new language options and some much-needed immersion to the core gameplay, I found myself completely immersed in ALTDEUS’ story overall,” we said. “Despite interactivity remaining minimal compared to other VR games, this one comes highly recommended for visual novel fans.” The game got a story expansion recently, but MyDearest is yet to announce its next project.

What do you hope to see MyDearest work on next? Let us know in the comments below!

July 1, 2021

Altdeus: Beyond Chronos Studio Completes $8.2m Funding Round

Japanese developer MyDearest, best known for its two virtual reality (VR) visual novels Tokyo Chronos and Altdeus: Beyond Chronos has announced the successful completion of a new funding round this week. This saw the studio close an $8.2 million USD (900 million yen) Series B funding round to help continue building new VR adventures.

The round was led by Globis Capital Partners, a Japanese VC firm, alongside DBJ Capital and DG Daiwa Ventures. This has brought MyDearest’s total funding to date to $11.1 million (1.2 billion yen). MyDearest has said this new investment will be used to expand its team whilst developing an online fan community for its growing videogame roster.

“The serial successes of our games, and the expansion of the VR market thanks to Oculus Quest 2, have allowed us to close one of the largest funding rounds ever for a Japanese VR game company,” said Kento Kishigami, CEO of MyDearest in a statement. “Our fans have lauded us for our powerful storytelling, and we intend to complement that strength by further evolving the gameplay and interactivity of our games, appealing to an even wider audience. MyDearest will serve as the vanguard of Japanese VR game developers making an impact in the global market.”

Founded in 2016, by Kento Kishigami, Yosuke Kori, and Shotaro Chida, the team’s first title was Tokyo Chronos (2019) following a group of eight students who suddenly wake up in “Chronos World”, a sort of mirror world based in Shibuya, now an empty, deserted district of Tokyo, Japan. Described as a visual novel, the interaction was limited as you mainly followed the story with Japanese voice acting and English subtitles.

2020’s Altdeus: Beyond Chronos was the sequel, set 200 years after the events in Tokyo Chronos. The follow-up was a far more advanced adventure with greater interaction and a multitude of decision points to vary the story and endings. This time the world has been decimated by an alien race called the Meteora with humanity now surviving by living underground. But there is a way to fight back, using giant mechs called Makhia. The narrative puts you in the shoes of a Makhia pilot, being able to control giant rail guns or huge swords.

As MyDearest expands the team and when it reveals its next VR project, VRFocus will let you know.

June 18, 2021

‘ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos’ Episode Yamato DLC Comes to Quest, Trailer Here

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos (2020), the anime-style narrative adventure from Japan-based studio MyDearest, has finally released its paid DLC ‘Episode Yamato’ on the Oculus Store for Quest.

Both Quest & Quest 2 users are officially the first to jump into the game’s DLC expansion, as it’s a timed exclusive on that platform. Here’s how the studio describes it:

In the new DLC, ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos EPISODE YAMATO, you play as Second Lieutenant Yamato Amanagi, a member of Prometheus and pilot of the Ares Makhia. Chloe tries to escape from Prometheus with Anima, but Yamato stands in her way carrying the hopes of his comrades – to bring her back or die trying. The Swordstrike system, the awesome power of Ares Makhia’s sword, provides you with new interactive experiences, taking approximately 2 hours to complete all of the story branches.

The expansion sells for $10 on the Oculus Store, which you can find on the game’s Quest listing. It includes the choice of English and Japanese voice acting, and Simplified Chinese and French subtitles.

Besides the Quest version of ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos, the narrative adventure is available across all major VR headsets, including SteamVR headsets, Oculus Rift, and PSVR. The studio says Episode Yamato will arrive on other platforms at some point in the future, however it hasn’t announced when that will be.

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos, which boasts 15–20 hours of branching storylines, regularly finds itself in the top 20 highest-rated Quest games. At the time of this writing the game sits at a solid 4.79 out of 5 from around 850 user reviews.

By the way: you may recognize the singer behind Episode Yamato’s main theme song, MEDDLER; it’s sung by Suzuki Konomi, who has been featured in a host of anime series including The Pet Girl of Sakurasou, No Game No Life, and Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World.

The post ‘ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos’ Episode Yamato DLC Comes to Quest, Trailer Here appeared first on Road to VR.

June 2, 2021

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos’ ‘Episode Yamato’ DLC Arrives Next Week

When it comes to big branching narratives in virtual reality (VR) few can match ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos‘ offering and soon its going to get even more expansive. After teasing the first details a couple of weeks ago, developer MyDearest Inc. has announced that the first DLC, Episode Yamato, will drop next week.

The Episode Yamato DLC focuses on Second Lieutenant Yamato Amanagi who pilots the Ares Makhia, the other giant mecha used by the Prometheus organisation to protect the planet from an alien race called Meteora. In the main campaign where you play Chloe, she tries to escape from Prometheus but as Yamato, you now stand in her way vowing to bring her back at any cost.

With a new storyline and mecha comes new features with the Ares Makhia using a close combat Swordstrike system to attack the Meteora, rather than the railgun system found on Chloe’s Alto Makhia. MyDearest Inc. states the DLC should clock in at around 2 hours once players have located all the story branches, helping further bolster ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos‘ 15-20 hour base campaign.

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is the sequel to Tokyo Chronos, set 200 years in the future where humans have been driven into the underground city of Augmented Tokyo by the alien Meteora. These colossal creatures have decimated the Earth’s surface, with humanity’s only weapon against them being the Makhia. Alongside Chloe and Yamato, there are several colourful characters including an AI called Noa, whose 360-degree J-pop concerts have made her a local celebrity.

VRFocus’ review of the visual novel said: “ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is the interactive visual novel Tokyo Chronos needed to be.” Going onto add: “Currently, when it comes to Japanese VR visual novels ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is the new standard to beat.”

While ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is available for Oculus Quest and Rift, PlayStation VR and PC VR headsets, the upcoming Episode Yamato DLC will be exclusive to Oculus Quest for the time being, with the DLC’s launch date set for Thursday, 10th June 2021, retailing for $9.99 USD. The studio has already confirmed that the DLC will be made available to other platforms at a later date. VRFocus will continue its coverage of ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos, reporting back with further updates.

May 17, 2021June 2, 2021

Episode Yamato DLC Coming To ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos On Quest Next Month

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is getting DLC content early next month, titled Episode Yamato and featuring approximately 2 hours of new story content.

Update: MyDearest has confirmed the experience launches on June 10 on Quest. Original story is below.

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is a VR visual novel with branching narrative paths that released late last year. Now, it’s getting some DLC that adds up to 2 hours of content if you play through all the new story branches.

Here’s a description of the Episode Yamato DLC from developers MyDearest:

In the new DLC, ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos EPISODE YAMATO, you will play as Second Lieutenant Yamato Amanagi, a member of Prometheus and pilot of the Ares Makhia. Chloe tries to escape from Prometheus with Anima, but Yamato stands in her way carrying the hopes of his comrades – to bring her back or die trying. The Swordstrike system, the awesome power of Ares Makhia’s sword, will provide you with new interactive experiences, taking approximately 2 hours to complete all of the story branches.

The series started with Tokyo Chronos in 2019, which was MyDearest’s first attempt to bring the visual novel genre into VR with “middling results”, according to Jamie in our review. ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos was the follow-up that released last year, promising even more VR interactivity than the first time around.

We found the sequel to be a more successful endeavor overall. Here’s an except from our review:

MyDearest have done a great job on ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos, proving that visual novels can work in virtual reality and it’s clear they took onboard feedback from Tokyo Chronos. …Despite interactivity remaining minimal compared to other VR games, this one comes highly recommended for visual novel fans.

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is available now for Oculus Quest, PC VR and PSVR.

The Episode Yamato DLC will be available for the Quest platform in early June for $9.99 with English and Japanese voice acting, along with Chinese (simplified) German and French subtitles. MyDearest says the DLC will be available on other platforms “at a later date.”

May 14, 2021

First DLC for ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos Arrives in June for Oculus Quest

Japanese developer MyDearest Inc. launched its interactive visual novel ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos for Oculus headsets at the end of 2020, following that up with further support for SteamVR and PlayStation VR headsets. Today, the studio has announced the first DLC ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos – Episode Yamato will be coming to Oculus Quest first, due to arrive in early June.

The DLC puts you in the shoes of Second Lieutenant Yamato Amanagi, a member of the Meteora fighting Prometheus organisation and pilot of the Ares Makhia, the other giant Makhia employed by the force. This new story arc takes place as “Chloe tries to escape from Prometheus with Anima, but Yamato stands in her way carrying the hopes of his comrades – to bring her back or die trying,” the synopsis explains.

In the core narrative, you’re Chloe, who pilots Alto Makhia. This giant beast comes supplied with a railgun to defeat the Meteora. Piloting the Ares Makhia in the DLC you’ll be able to use its Swordstrike system, a close-range attack that in true anime style uses a massive sword. So the DLC will provide some new interactive gameplay elements as well as offering around two hours of additional content once all the story branches are complete.

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos by itself is fairly extensive. While VRFocus’ review found the initial run-through took about three hours, that was then greatly extended by the branching narrative, easily providing 15+ hours of content via its multiple endings. The experience uses a system called Libra that points out impactful choices and unvisited story branches.

The sequel to Tokyo Chronos, ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is set 200 years in the future where humans have been driven into the underground city of Augmented Tokyo by the alien Meteora. Colossal creatures that have decimated the Earth’s surface, humanity’s only weapon against them is the Makhia.

Oculus Quest owners will be able to purchase ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos – Episode Yamato for $9.99 USD, with English and Japanese voice acting and Chinese (Simplified), and French subtitles. MyDearest Inc. will be releasing the DLC for other supported platforms in the future, with dates still to be announced. VRFocus will continue its coverage of ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos, reporting back with further updates.

April 9, 2021

The VR Game Launch Roundup: Help Friends or Save the World!

It’s time to settle in for the weekend and enjoy some virtual reality (VR) gaming. While you might be stuck on a particular puzzle or grinding out a level to build up your XP more titles are on their way. VRFocus’ Friday roundup contains another five VR videogames which you may want to add to your library.

Alvo – Mardonpol Inc.

Alvo is a purely online 5v5 shooter coming to the PlayStation VR next week (other platforms to follow). It’s been in the works for a while, originally slated for release back in 2018. Compatible with the PlayStation Aim controller, Alvo features three gameplay modes: Search and Destroy, Team Deathmatch and Free 4 All, providing players with team-based objectives or just going on a pure killing spree.

Supported platforms: PlayStation VR
Launch date: 13th April

Carly and the Reaperman – Odd Raven Studios

First released back in 2018 for multiple platforms including PlayStation VR and PC VR headsets, Carly and the Reaperman is built around co-op gameplay where the VR-player controls the Reaperman, helping Carly – the non-VR player – escape the underworld. Players have 50 levels to work through, unlocking plenty of customisable options along the way.

Supported platforms: Oculus Quest
Launch date: 15th April

Altdeus: Beyond Chronos – MyDearest

Another anime visual novel from the team behind Tokyo Chronos, Altdeus: Beyond Chronos is the follow-up set 200 years in the future. There’s a 15+ hour storyline involving giant alien beings called Meteora and humanity’s bid to survive by living in underground cities and fighting them with colossal mechs. With English and Japanese voice-overs and interactive elements to keep you engaged in the experience, Altdeus: Beyond Chronos has a sprawling narrative that offers plenty of alternative routes for multiple endings.

Supported platforms: PlayStation VR
Launch date: 15th April

Forest Farm – Nic Schubert

If you’ve been after a VR farming sim then look no further. Forest Farm launches as an Early Access title next week, allowing players to grow their own crops, chop down trees, make pots and fish in the river. There will be plenty of other skills to master as you create your own idyllic farm.

Supported platforms: Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index and Windows Mixed Reality
Launch date: 15th April

Elementary Anatomy: With Story Mode – Virtual Medicine

Learn about the human body with Elementary Anatomy. “Explore your body down to the smallest detail. Up to 7,000 precisely modelled anatomy structures in your VR device. The application depicts simplified anatomy models suitable for high school students.”

Supported platforms: Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index and Windows Mixed Reality
Launch date: 16th April

February 24, 2021

One of Quest’s Best-rated Experiences, ‘ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos’ Launches on SteamVR

Sci-fi anime VR visual novel experience ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos launched on Oculus Quest in December and quickly rose to become one of the best rated titles on the headset. Now the app has launched on SteamVR for PC VR users to enjoy.

As an anime experience featuring “robot battles, pop music, and emotion,” Altdeus might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but those looking for this kind of experience have given the game top marks on Oculus Quest. Currently the game ranks as the 2nd best-rated paid app on Quest, with an average rating of 4.9 out of 5 against more than 650 reviews.

Now Altdeus has launched on SteamVR, opening the door to players across the PC VR landscape. Interestingly, the experience is being sold for $30 (which is $10 cheaper than the Quest version), plus an additional launch discount of 10% (ending soon).

Altdeus promises 15–20 hours of gameplay with “one of the largest branching storylines ever in a VR game.” Here’s the trailer and premise straight from developer MyDearest Inc.

Become Chloe, a mecha pilot who will have her revenge and annihilate the Meteora once and for all. Pilot a giant mecha and make the decisions to determine humanity’s future. Explore new choices to uncover new branches of the story and discover all of ALTDEUS’ endings! Discover the truth, destroy the enemy, and enjoy the cyberspace pop concerts!

The studio also says the experience is heavily designed around player comfort and “highly recommended for people who don’t have a high tolerance against motion sickness.”

Though it takes place 300 years in the future, Altdeus is actually a sequel of TOKYO CHRONOS (2019), a previously released VR experience by the same studio. With both titles now available on Steam, the developer is selling both games in a bundle with a 24% discount.

Altdeus: Beyond Chronos is also available on Oculus PC and due to launch on PSVR on April 15th.

The post One of Quest’s Best-rated Experiences, ‘ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos’ Launches on SteamVR appeared first on Road to VR.

January 21, 2021

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos Coming To PSVR And PC VR Very Soon

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos is a VR visual novel that found some success on Oculus Quest when it first released late last year. Even though that’s not the type of game you’d typically expect to see in VR, it’s now expanding with releases slated for PSVR and PC VR this year.

Today ALTDEUS developer MyDearest announced the game would release on PC VR next month on February 19th and then PSVR two months later on April 15th for $29.99 on both platforms.

Last month we reviewed ALTDEUS, which is a spiritual follow-up to a preview VR visual novel game, Toky Chrono, from the same developers. For all intents and purposes, ALTDEUS improves on its predecessor in every notable way.

In his review, Henry Stockdale wrote:

MyDearest have done a great job on ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos, proving that visual novels can work in virtual reality and it’s clear they took onboard feedback from Tokyo Chronos. Having added new language options and some much-needed immersion to the core gameplay, I found myself completely immersed in ALTDEUS’ story overall. Despite interactivity remaining minimal compared to other VR games, this one comes highly recommended for visual novel fans.

ALTDEUS boasts a 15-20 hour story with branching narrative points and even includes both English and Japanese voice acting options. The game also includes mech battles for moments of actual interactive gameplay and even lets you attend 360-degree virtual J-Pop concerts.

Do you think you’ll check this one out on PC VR or PSVR this year once it makes its way over from the Quest? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments below!