Last month Skydance Interactive announced that its first virtual reality (VR) title, Archangel, would be coming to PlayStation VR with an exclusive two-week launch window in July before hitting Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. Now the studio has confirmed the first date, revealing PlayStation VR owners will get to play the videogame next week.
The date is set for Tuesday, 18th July, for the first release, with an exact day for the other two headsets in August yet to be confirmed.
Archangel is set on a world ravaged by natural disasters. Players take on the role of a pilot in the United States Free Forces, a resistance group fighting a tyrannical United States government which has removed all freedoms from its citizens. Stepping into a massive mech, players will take the fight to HUMNX, a private conglomerate that controls what little is left of a ravaged America.
We’ve watched massive robots in various films and controlled them in some games, wondering when we’d get a realistic experience that really makes us feel like the pilot of a massive machine. Arcades have been destinations for large rigs that emulate the type of experience we desire but VR, as a platform, is the perfect way to bring this into homes.
Skydance Interactive’s Archangel is an attempt at this mech dream in the form of a story-driven shooter that will debut on PlayStation VR (PSVR) and we got a chance to try out an updated demo at E3 2017 last month.
Before the mission started there was a brief tutorial in which I was taught the controls. Piloting a giant robot from its cockpit is something VR should excel at and this experience was a hint at things to come. There’s no delay between your movements and the movement of your virtual arms in the mech’s cockpit, but there’s a subtle delay between that and the movement of the mech’s arms. This feels intentional though as it really makes you feel like you’re manipulating a large and heavy weapon of mass destruction.
The feeling was so thorough that I realized I was mimicking the slow movement with the controllers, a testament to how VR can really trick your senses. Beyond that, the controls for the mech were fairly intuitive. You have a shield on each arm that you can activate with a button press along with weapons for each arm. You alternate between shooting and guarding with each and there’s a degree of strategy needed to survive your encounters.
With all these things said, it’s disappointing that the game is just an on-rails shooter. It allows for more cinematic situations that come across well, but the engaging movement of the mech will have you longing for more freedom. While controllers like Valve’s Knuckles are working to create a level of heightened immersion for moments where you merely inhabit virtual spaces and interact as you would normally without the barrier of holding a controller, experiences where you pilot ships or mechs are enhanced by the VR controllers we use.
Skydance looks to be shaping a fun experience with Archangel that may end up telling a compelling story as well and, hopefully, it sets the bar for these types of games. Archangel will be available this month in July for PSVR and for Vive and Rift the following month in August.
Virtual reality shooter Archangel tries to capture the feeling of controlling a giant mechanized robot while it tells a story of corporations and technology threatening to take over the world.
Here’s our roundup of news from E3 day 3. We go hands on with newly announced PSVR titles Moss and The Impatient. Archangel and Sparc for PSVR get a release dates, more details of Gran Turismo Sport‘s VR support are revealed and we go hands on with Kopin’s 2k per eye, super lightweight microdisplay VR headset.
We tried a short demo of newly-announced VR title The Inpatient, one of two new PSVR games from Supermassive Games. The psychological horror game is set in the Blackwood Sanatorium featured in Until Dawn (2015), with the demo showcasing some ‘intensely human-like character animations and excellent voice acting’.
Gran Turismo Sport shown on PSVR with significant limitations:
Skydance Interactive’s first dip into the world of virtual reality (VR) has been met with a considerable amount of anticipation, following a trailer revealed earlier this week. Debuting in hands-on form at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), Los Angeles, Archangel has proven to be a good-looking videogame, with a decent enough amount of smarts to back it up.
Firstly, let’s get the stigma out of the way. Yes, Archangel is an on-rails experience. It’s no StarFox, but it certainly attempts to make up for the lack of user initiative by way of its motion-controls. The player is positioned with a skyscraper-tall mech, and is equipped with a small variety of weaponry. More interesting however, is the videogame’s shield mechanic: each arm has a temporary shield that can be enabled, allowing for impenetrable defence within a specific radius around the shield emitter. That radius does not encompass the whole body, and the arm upon which the shield is being emitted from can no longer be used to fire. This results in lots of swift and tactical decisions as you attempt to raise a shield from one arm and shoot around it before switching, throwing your arms across your body to ensure both protection and equal aggression.
The preview build available at E3 2017 consisted of two levels. The first, suggested to be an early level in the final release, saw the player begin without weaponry; simply left to learn the basics of shield use before being allowed to retaliate. Once in motion the player soon enters an enemy occupied city, taking down infantry, tanks and air units with the two available weapons: a machine gun and a rocket launcher. The second level – a much more difficult option – offers more weapons and level interactivity, but essentially remains the same experience.
That level interactivity is based around scripted events which demand the player perform an action at a set time before being able to progress. The first level required the player to punch some stone bridges in order to progress, while the second sought the draining of energy from generators. Both required use of the motion-controllers for direct input, neither seemed to offer any benefit aside from altering the videogame’s pacing.
On a visual front, Archangel is a very impressive looking videogame. Far reaching draw distances and densely populated environments are matched by striking particle effects. The animation of the mech’s arms seemed so accurate as to almost know where the player’s elbow was in relation to their movement, and the attention paid to signposting – highlighting of enemy units, indicators for both friendly and incoming fire – has certainly been born of experience.
Archangel was certainly enjoyable for this short demonstration, but it’s difficult not to wonder about the longevity of such an experience. Despite the videogame’s commendable visual design you have to wonder whether Skydance Interactive has kept up with the times; VR at E3 this year is very different to what was on offer last year, and Archangel feels very similar to the first wave of titles made available for HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR. It’s only a few weeks until we get to find out whether the development team has made Archangel an experience worth a few hours investment, or fears of simplistic and repetitive gameplay come to fruition.
Fresh off a newly revealed trailer for virtual reality (VR) videogame Archangel, showing a world in need of some swift mecha-suited heroism in order to fight back against a tolitarian regime, Skydance Interactive (through CEO Peter Akemann) took time out at this year’s E3 in order to discuss a bit of the studio’s history, their plans for E3 and just what gamers can come to expect from the world of Archangel.
Archangel, a story-driven shooter, comes first to PlayStation VR for two weeks next month by way of a timed exclusive before heading to PC VR and both the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift head-mounted displays (HMDs). The plot centres around the player who takes control of a giantic mecha as part of a resistance group fighting against a United States government which has fallen into darker shades following natural disasters laying waste to the planet. A tyranical rule, held in part by a shady conglomerate, which is clamping down on anything remotely resembling personal freedom in the name of security.
VRFocus is at E3 for the duration of the event and will be bringing you regular news updates, features, previews, videos and interviews from Los Angeles throughout the week. Stay tuned for more information on Archangel and the other VR videogames on display.
PlayStation VR has sold over 1 million units and had more success in sales compared to the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. VRFocushas put together a list of games that we know are coming to the PlayStation VR. If you prefer watching all the games coming to PlayStation VR, scroll down to the bottom to view it.
Farpoint is a first-person shooter on the PlayStation VR. When it launched, it debuted at number two in the UK Sales chart and is sold alongside the new Aim controller. Starting with a bloke putting on a PlayStation VR in his basement he then finds himself transported to an uncharted alien world filled with all manner of enemies.
Survive in an unknown alien world after a crash, search for fellow human survivors whilst shooting hoards of alien creatures. The new DLC Cryo Pack coming on the 27th of June, a 2 player co-op with challenge levels in an ice world.
This VR game is a multiplayer racing title based on slot car racing. You can play with up to four friends or race AI opponents. Taking inspiration from toys by Scalextric and Carrera, FuturLab has created a title that evolves slot-car racing in a way only videogames can do.
Featuring both a singleplayer – against AI – or an online multiplayer for up to four people, Tiny Trax includes six vehicles to select before heading out onto the track. Friends can select either single races or go for a tournament to test their skills.
Is a first-person shooter set in the year 2076, where you must throw, slow and shoot your way through extraterrestrial-bots inspired by classic arcade shooters, the studio only released one image, showing a vicious looking robot. First Contact Entertainment describes ROM: Extraction’s gameplay mechanic as “Throw, Slow & Shoot.” Whereby players will have the ability to slow down time – called “Reflex” power – to help defend themselves against these dangerous looking, extraterrestrial robots. The videogame will be a first-person shooter (FPS) using motion-based controls, three difficulty settings and global and local leaderboards.
Gran Turismo Sport was original slated for release at the end of 2016, but the developers were forced to push back the release date to 2017. Polyphony Digital are known among fans as being perfectionists, so it was not a huge surprised that an ambitious project such as Gran Turismo Sport ended up taking extra time.
The game now has a new Racing wheel designed exclusively for Gran Turismo Sport on the PlayStation 4. Specifically designed specially to enhance the experience of playing Gran Turismo Sport, the upcoming driving and racing simulator from Polyphony Digital on the PlayStation 4. Gran Turismo Sport is also offering virtual reality (VR) compatibility, which in combination with Thrustmaster’s racing wheel, could offer even more immersion to players.
THESEUS is a third person action-adventure where you play the titular character on a quest to slay the Minotaur from the ancient Greek mythology.
Taking inspiration from titles such as ICO, Shadow of the Colossus and the Last Guardian, Forge Reply has gone for a third-person viewpoint for its VR adventure, with Theseus employing a mix of static and dynamic cameras to aid immersion and gameplay.
Play this survival horror game where you wake up from a cryrosleep in the year 2521. Survive an experiment gone horribly wrong to save the ship.
Sneak around and hide behind cover, being stealthy will feel natural in VR and give you the upper hand.
7. Bloody Zombies – nDreams
Bloody Zombies is a side-scrolling brawler set in London. It supports one to four players online or locally. Follow the story of four lone survivors and fight zombies who appear as 2D cardboard cut-outs in a virtual environment.
A real-time strategy game announced at the 2016 PlayStation Press Conference and will be released in Japan in 2017. You’ll play as the demon load with the aim to conquer the world.
Play the the God of Destruction and fight against those heroes of justice by using the food cycle, breeding monsters and repelling incoming heroes while conquering strongholds.
Is a Chinese developed game set in a medieval-themed world and strategic gameplay where you assume the role of a commander. You have to build up your team to enjoy PVE and pvp, each battle lasts about 5 minutes and you will win the game after you destroy the enemy’s forts.
It’s cross-platform and is supported by HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, PSVR, Google Daydream and Samsung Gear .
Archangel is coming exclusively two PSVR for two weeks before coming to any other platform. In this story-driven shooter where you become a six-story-high war-machine and fight against the tyrannical HUMNX.
AI-controlled teammates in different vehicles will need your protection and will support you when your shields have failed.
SUPERHOTVR is finally coming to PlayStation VR, after debuting on Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.
SUPERHOT had heaps of critical acclaim at launch, and its VR version received equal praise. We can only assume the PlayStation VR version will be equally beloved.
The acclaimed shooter is finally coming to PlayStation VR, but this isn’t simply a port of a game you’ve already played, but an all-new installment built for VR.
Developed by id Software, the studio that created the DOOM franchise, DOOM VFR casts the player as the last known human survivor of the demonic invasion of the UAC’s Martian research facility.
Bethesda’s beloved The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is making its way to VR on PlayStation 4.
Publisher Bethesda Softworks has announced that The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is set for a November 2017 release on PlayStation VR, and all of the original console downloadable content (DLC) will be included with both the digital and physical editions of the videogame.
Star Child was announced with a short trailer during Sony’s E3 press conference.
Star Child takes place on an alien world, filled with mysterious creatures and futuristic space ships. The man-made interiors of the planet hide many incredible fluorescent and neon creatures, all of which are sure to look incredibly imposing in VR.
Final Fantasy XV: Monster of the Deep will offer PlayStation VR players the opportunity to explore the world’s oceans, lakes, ponds and rivers and participate in a wide variety of fishing challenges. Many returning characters from the original Final Fantasy XV will appear in the videogame, including familiar faces such as Noctis, Prompto, Ignis, Gladiolus, and more.
17. Bravo Team – Supermassive Games
Bravo Team, appears to be a military first-person shooter (FPS). Releasing at the end of the year for PlayStation VR, Bravo Team will be one of the first competitive multiplayer VR shooters for the platform.
In Moss you will be focusing on puzzle solving and exploration, slowly finding your path forward through these huge stages. Butterflies and insects appear huge next to your mousey character as they are entirely dwarfed by trees and other creatures – something that becomes very obvious when coming face-to-face with a hungry snake.
Sparc is a skill-based, physical sport, where two players use PlayStationMove motion controllers to aim and throw projectiles at each other inside a virtual arena, all the while defending themselves by dodging, blocking, or deflecting incoming attacks from their opponent.
Sparc includes multiple two-player game modes where players can compete against their friends or find challengers via online matchmaking. Additionally, a selection of single-player challenges and training modes are included, plus a wide range of customization and personalization options for competitors.
Earlier this year Skydance Interactive announced development of two virtual reality (VR) projects, Life VR and Archangel. Since then further details have been released on the latter, the most recent being an exclusive launch window for Sony Interactive Entertainment’s (SIE) PlayStation VR. Today, those eager to jump into a giant mech and blast enemies to smithereens are able to get a better glimpse at what’s to come with a new trailer.
As there’s a little show going on in Los Angeles, California, called the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2017, Skydance Interactive has released the first video for the upcoming shooter, detailing more of the storyline as well as the intense battles that await.
Archangel is set on a world ravaged by natural disasters. Players take on the role of a pilot in the United States Free Forces, a resistance group fighting a tyrannical United States government which has removed all freedoms from its citizens. Stepping into a massive mech, players will take the fight to HUMNX, a private conglomerate that controls what little is left of a ravaged America.
Archangel is scheduled for release in July 2017 for Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and PlayStation VR. As yet, the studio hasn’t revealed when the exact launch date will be, and so when the PlayStation VR launch window will begin.
Checkout the E3 trailer below, and for further updates from the event, keep reading VRFocus.
Archangel is an upcoming single-player shooter from Skydance Interactive that puts you in the cockpit of a 6-story mech, enlisting you into the resistance forces to battle an evil corporation now rampant in post-apocalyptic USA. Check out the new trailer here.
Selected by the United States Free Forces to pilot a one-of-a-kind mech, you lead your squadron into battle against HUMNX, a private conglomerate that’s taken the reigns of power in absence of the now disbanded US government. Using motion controls, Archangel lets you shoot an array of high-powered weapons, or even use your physicality to punch a plane from the sky while shooting away with the other.
Archangel launches in July for an exclusive two-week window on PlayStation VR before releasing on HTC Vive and Oculus Rift via Steam and Viveport.
Demoing the game at GDC 2017 in March, we can say that Archangel’s is technically an ‘on-rails’ shooter, meaning you don’t get to freely control the mech’s locomotion. Visuals were immersive, and the task of shooting wave after wave of buzzing drones and massive tanks that scramble around as you make your way through the story was certainly a tall order to fill.
Skydance Interactive, launched in 2016, is a division of Skydance Media. The company creates and publish original and IP-based virtual reality experiences and video games. In 2017, Skydance Interactive will debut Archangel, representing its first original title.
A few months ago Skydance Interactive revealed the first details for its upcoming virtual reality (VR) title Archangel, a story-driven shooter in which players take control of a six-story-high war-machine. Set to release on all the major head-mounted displays (HMDs), the studio has announced it’ll be coming the Sony Interactive Entertainment’s (SIE’s) PlayStation VR first, with a release window scheduled for July.
Archangel is set on a world ravaged by natural disasters. Players take on the role of a pilot in the United States Free Forces, a resistance group fighting a tyrannical United States government which has removed all freedoms from its citizens. Stepping into a massive mech, players will take the fight to HUMNX, a private conglomerate that controls what little is left of a ravaged America.
Making the announcement on PlayStation blog, Peter Akemann, President, Skydance Interactive, said: “Our goal with Archangel was to create an action-packed shooter with explosive gameplay, high-quality graphics, engaging storytelling and dynamic characters, delivering a complete package for VR gamers.”
Detailing some of the gameplay players can expect to see Akemann noted: “Grab the controls and watch as your own two massive mech hands surge to life! Fire at will on your enemies with an incredible array of high-powered weapons, or punch a plane from the sky with one hand while machine-gunning a hovercopter with the other — all without breaking a sweat.
“Throughout the game you’ll protect — and be protected by — AI-controlled teammates who pilot a number of different vehicles, each with their own capabilities. When the odds turn against you, use your shield generators to block incoming attacks and protect your teammates. If your shields have failed, your teammates carry nano-bot units that can repair damage to your hull. When weapons and shields won’t do the trick, you can get personal and use your hands to crush your foes. Being a massive mechanized engine of destruction has some pretty noticeable advantages in combat!”
PlayStation VR will have a two-week window exclusive before Archangel comes to HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. The actual release date for PlayStation VR has yet to be revealed, when it does VRFocus will bring you the announcement.
On a visual front, Archangel is a very impressive looking videogame. Far reaching draw distances and densely populated environments are matched by striking particle effects. The animation of the mech’s arms seemed so accurate as to almost know where the player’s elbow was in relation to their movement, and the attention paid to signposting – highlighting of enemy units, indicators for both friendly and incoming fire – has certainly been born of experience.
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7. Bloody Zombies – nDreams 
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