Last month E McNeill – the indie developer behind Astraeus, Tacteraand Skylight – launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign for his latest virtual reality (VR) title, Ironlights. Looking to achieve the small sum (in videogame terms) of $15,000 USD, that goal was hit earlier today. Now there’s the possibility of stretch goals being hit.
Currently, just over $17,000 has been pledged by supporters to bring this arena battler to fruition. McNeill previously mentioned that the funds weren’t to help build the videogame as it was almost complete, rather ensure it was finished to a high standard ahead of a planned Spring 2020 launch.
With 8 days still left attention has now turned towards stretch goals, namely a $25K target. Should this be achieved the developer says: “we’ll let the backers decide which class should be added next. Do you want to fight with a scythe, halberd, whip, or something else entirely? We’ll listen to your ideas, assemble a list of potential classes that we’re confident would be a solid addition to the roster, and send out a poll to all the backers of this campaign. Whichever class you choose will become our top priority!”
To secure yourself a copy of Ironlights it’ll cost $15 (£12 GBP) which is a 25% saving over the final price once the launch takes place in April. Or why not go for the $60 (£47) tier, getting the entire E McNeill back catalogue of Ironlights + Darknet, Tactera, Skylight, and Astraeus. Ironlights will support a range of headsets including Oculus Quest, Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Valve Index, with cross-buy supported for Oculus.
Ironlights is primarily a PvP combat experience (a single-player mode is available) mashing up medieval brawling with a futuristic twist. Players can select from a range of fighting styles such as the Knight (Two-handed Greatsword), Monk (Staff) and Crusader (Flail & Shield) and then personalise their look before stepping (floating) out into the arena.
All the action takes place in slow-mo with players only able to attack and then defend (rather than a real-time back and forth battle) depending on their energy levels. Melee weapons break with every hit and players can also launch ranged attacks for a small energy spend.
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Ironlights as development continues, reporting back with the latest updates.
E McNeill, the developer behind VR strategy games Darknet (2015), Tactera (2016), and Astraeus (2018), is launching a new VR title next month called Ironlights which aims to bring a strategic bend to the melee combat genre.
Update (February 12th, 2020): The Ironlights Kickstarter passed with flying colors late last month, and now developer E McNeill has announced the official street date for the strategy-based dueling game.
McNeill tells Road to VR that the game has now passed Oculus quality assurance and is currently slated to launch on Quest, Rift, and SteamVR on April 9th for $20, which includes cross-buy for the Quest & Rift versions. All version are said to include cross-play multiplayer. The game will be available on Steam, and the Oculus Store for Quest and Rift.
The original article announcing the Kickstarter follow below:
Original Article (January 15th, 2020): Called Ironlights, the still in-development game is setting itself apart from other physics-based melee titles by offering up a dynamic ‘back-and-forth’ combat scheme, which is designed to further eliminate careless controller waggling by way of a novel turn-based combat system. During a turn, only the attacker can land strikes while the defender must do their best to dodge or parry the incoming blows.
As a physics-based game, all weapons have weight and momentum. However striking an enemy automatically enters you into slow motion, forcing you move your body in slow-mo in order to maintain “optimal control” of your weapons.
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Image courtesy E McNeill
Image courtesy E McNeill
Image courtesy E McNeill
Image courtesy E McNeill
In Ironlights, you’re also only allowed one hit per swing, as weapons shatter after each hit instead of bouncing off. By design, this is meant to side-step the sort of disconnect you might feel when you strike a virtual enemy and your physical controller keeps moving. McNeill says to think of it “sort of like a VR version of Street Fighter or Soul Caliber, mixed with SUPERHOT and maybe a dash of Beat Saber.”
Although Ironlights is said to be nearly finished, with launch slated for Spring 2020, the studio is searching for $15,000 in extra funding via a Kickstarter campaign, which promises a 25% discount off the full game ($20 MSRP) when it goes live later this year on Oculus Quest, Rift, and SteamVR headsets. The funds, McNeill says, will help bring to the game more armor models; backers at the $30 and above will get early access to the game.
The game is set to include five classes at launch, which includes the Knight (two-handed greatsword), Duelist (rapier & buckler), Monk (staff), Ninja (dual katar-style daggers), and Crusader (flail & shield). And while it promises a single-player campaign, which will include duels, tournaments, and exhibition matches, the game is also targeting cross-platform multiplayer, featuring online and LAN-based modes.
Starting out in VR development is 2013, McNeill has since produced four VR games, including the early Gear VR hit Darknet. He’s been secretly working on Ironlights for some time now with Rockstar Games veteran Geoff Barber, something he calls his “biggest game yet.”
In addition to McNeill’s VR development chops and Barber’s programming expertise, much of the 3D art was built by SuperGenius, a high-caliber art studio which has worked with Blizzard, Double Fine, and Oculus. The game’s thumping soundtrack was composed by EDM artist Jordan Aguirre (aka bLiNd), who also created a few of the game’s sound effects.
Indie developer E McNeill made a name for himself in the virtual reality (VR) space through innovative strategy titles like Astraeus, Tacteraand Skylight,harking all the way back to the early days of the original Samsung Gear VR with Darknet. It has been a little while since VRFocus last heard from E McNeill as he’s been working on a very different project to those previous titles, Ironlights, am arena-based combat experience.
Echoing gladiatorial duelling whilst mixing in medieval-style armour and a futuristic setting, Ironlights is all about one on one combat, vanquishing your foe with not only swords and other melee weapons but ranged projectiles as well.
Looking to offer skilful, fluid fights across Oculus Quest, Oculus Rift and SteamVR compatible headsets, Ironlights will include a single-player campaign alongside head-to-head multiplayer battles. Various classes will be available for players to find their own fighting style such as the Knight (Two-handed Greatsword), Monk (Staff), Crusader (Flail & Shield) and more.
Ironlights won’t be some brawling fighter where you can hack to your heart’s content. Gameplay mechanics are physics-based so weapons have weight and momentum, however, the combat always takes place in slow-mo. Adding to this is the fact that weapons will break after each hit instead of bouncing off and that while in melee combat only the attacker can do damage, the defender can only block.
“I love a good hack-and-slash game or physics sandbox, but I’ve always craved something with deeper gameplay. So I decided to try to build it myself! Ironlights was created to fulfil the fantasy of cinematic combat: a flowing, skilful dance of steel,” says E McNeill in a statement.
For the Kickstarter crowd-funding campaign McNeill is looking to raise $15,000 USD over 30 days to help finish the videogame to a strong standard. With a launch planned for Spring 2020 development is almost over and Ironlights will retail on Oculus Store and Steam for $19.99. Backing on Kickstarter gets you a discount, with a pre-order tier only costing $15. Or for those pledging $60, they’ll get Ironlights + Darknet, Tactera, Skylight, and Astraeus.
For further updates on Ironlights and the Kickstarter, keep reading VRFocus.
Following a release onto Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR last month, virtual reality (VR) title Astraeus has now released for the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. The title is a simple looking real-time strategy (RTS) experience that becomes more complex the longer players stay within the title. Embracing the quick to play, easy to learn, and hard to master design.
Players need to manage an ever growing network of asteroid mining bases and ships, as hundreds of ships swarm around them in a stunning display of lights. As the title takes place in the near future where dozens of companies are operating in the asteroid belt, fighting for their share of the biggest gold rush in history. Players will need to take control of mining drones, build a network of bases, and outpace the competition before they beat you.
“You play as an AI who is “awakened” on an asteroid mining control ship after the captain has died. Unfortunately, his corporate bosses on Earth don’t seem to have realized this, and they keep sending critically important missions,” McNeill states. “In each level, you’ll need to build a network of dozens of bases and command thousands of ships as you attempt to corner the market (or eliminate the competition through more… direct means).”
E McNeill has created a number of VR titles with their previous VR titles including Darknet, Tactera, and Skylight. The latter being a favorite of VRFocus having earned a full five star rating with Tactera being awarded four stars in their respective reviews.
Astraeus was created as a prototype for a VR development reality show, the VR Developer Challenge, in which it won 1st place and a £20,000 (USD) prize. Since it’s launch on Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR back in May, E McNeill has been hard at work to bring the title to other headsets which has now released.
Astraeus is available now on Steam for HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality. The title is also available on Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR. For more on titles by E McNeil in the future keep reading VRFocus.
There are a number of indie developers that have found genuine success creating virtual reality (VR) titles, one of which is strategy specialist E McNeill. Last month saw his fourth title, Astraeus, launch for Oculus Go and Samsung Gear VR, and today McNeill has confirmed a PC version is due to be released soon.
Like E McNeill’s three previous VR videogames, Darknet, Tactera, and Skylight, Astraeus is another deviously simple looking real-time strategy (RTS) experience that becomes a lot more complex the longer you play.
“You play as an AI who is “awakened” on an asteroid mining control ship after the captain has died. Unfortunately, his corporate bosses on Earth don’t seem to have realized this, and they keep sending critically important missions,” McNeill states. “In each level, you’ll need to build a network of dozens of bases and command thousands of ships as you attempt to corner the market (or eliminate the competition through more… direct means).”
So Astraeus is a VR asteroid mining RTS title where you need to build a mining network from dozens of bases, and watch as hundreds of ships swarm around you. Your job is to control these swarms of mining drones, create the bases, and outpace the competition in Campaign, Skirmish, and asynchronous multiplayer modes.
Originally created as a prototype for a VR development reality show, the VR Developer Challenge, Astraeus won 1st place and a $20,000 USD prize. Arriving in May as a launch title for the Oculus Go, Astraeus will be launching for Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Windows Mixed Reality headsets next Thursday, 7th June with a 10 percent launch discount off the usual price of $14.99. Additionally, the Steam version will also include a non-VR build.
E McNeill has created some of VRFocus’ favourite RTS titles for VR headsets, with Skylight achieving a full five stars and Tactera gaining four stars in their reviews. For further updates from the indie dev on his latest VR project, keep reading VRFocus.
E McNeill is a name that will be familiar to any long-time VR fans. The solo indie developer was one of the first to release a full game on Samsung’s Gear VR all the way back in 2014, and he’s released a number of great strategy titles on a variety of headsets since. Next week his latest project, Astraeus, will launch on Rift and Vive, too.
Astraeus was a launch title for Oculus Go last month, and is McNeill’s fourth VR game. It’s a real-time strategy experience that the developer says is easy to learn but deep to master. You play as an AI controlling a mining ship. You’re tasked with building bases to lead other ships in an attempt to corner the market. The game began life as a prototype for the VR Developer Challenge and ended up winning first place with a $20,000 prize. Check it out in the trailer below.
It’s set to cost $14.99 on Rift and Vive, though it’ll be a little cheaper at launch with a 10% discount. The Steam version will also include a non-VR build.
E McNeill, an indie developer behind strategy games Darknet (2015), Tactera (2016), and Skylight (2017), announced his real-time strategy game Astraeus, an Oculus Go launch title, is coming to HTC Vive, Oculus Rift and PC on June 7th.
In Astraeus, you play as an AI who’s awakened on an asteroid mining control ship after the captain’s death. Filling in for the now deceased captain, you take command fulfilling critically important mining missions, requiring you to build a network of dozens of bases and command thousands of mining rigs as you attempt to corner the market, or eliminate the competition.
Astraeus, McNeill tells us, was originally prototyped for a VR development reality show, the VR Developer Challenge, where it won first place and a $20,000 prize.
As a launch title for Oculus Go (also available on Gear VR), the Steam version will support for Rift, Vive and include a non-VR build for traditional monitors.
Astraeus will be available at a 10% launch discount off the usual price of $15. You can follow along with the game on Steam here.
Indie developer E McNeill is known for creating seemingly simple, yet deceptively challenging virtual reality (VR) titles, having three to his name already, Darknet, Tacteraand Skylight. All of them have been released on Samsung Gear VR first, before then being ported to other headsets. Skylight is the latest to get this treatment, arriving on Oculus Home today with full Oculus Touch support.
Skylight first launched for Oculus Rift in December via Steam, supporting HTC Vive and Windows Mixed Reality headsets as well. The title is a strategy experience where you controller a fleet of spaceships via a holographic projector, with each mission pitting you against an ever growing armada of hostile forces. At your command are nimble squadrons of fighters, specialised frigates, and giant capital ships, each with their own particular role to play.
While the visual quality looks pretty much unchanged from the Gear VR version, the PC videogame features as Deluxe Edition features new missions and ships, for a total of 15 unique ship types. The single-player campaign includes 36 missions to play through plus a skirmish mode for you to customise your own battles. Skylight also includes a multiplayer mode to play against your friends or a stranger. A unique feature of the multiplayer is that it’s turn-based, so you don’t need to be online at the same time as your opponent. You can input your fleet’s orders on your own time and come back to continue playing the match later on.
VRFocusreviewed the Gear VR version giving it a full five-stars, saying: “E McNeill has shown once again that he knows what he’s doing when making a mobile VR videogame. It may not feature in your face action, but it doesn’t need to, as Skylight has been perfectly formulated with engaging gameplay, quirky visuals and hours of entertainment.”
On Oculus Home you can pickup Skylight for £10.99 GBP or it’s available on Steam for £11.39. There’s also a VR Bundle on Steam where you can get all three of E McNeill’s videogames for £22.29, saving 34 percent off their combined price. For any further updates from the developer keep reading VRFocus.
And so it came to be that the last edition of Something for the Weekend before Christmas falls appropriately enough on Christmas Eve. So if you’re still unsure as to what to get yourself, are looking to get something new for the family to enjoy as they try out virtual reality (VR) over the holidays or you’ve suddenly realised that you’ve forgotten someone and you need to get them a present sharpish a purchase on Steam might just be the ideal present buying get out of jail free (Christmas) card.
Also, before we look at some of the VR titles available a reminder that you can set the date for when people receive your gift as well so it doesn’t have to show up immediately. Look in to the options when you purchase.
Anime Girls VR
Compatibility: HTC Vive & Oculus Rift
There’s not exactly any way to sugar coat this one. Yes, Anime Girls VR is a videogame. Yes, it features anime girls. Yes, the content is… exactly what you think a game called Anime Girls VR would end up being about. It possesses the nudity tag on the Steam listing. Say no more, eh? Get to know middle school teacher Yoko, maid Mizuka and sport loving Kaori all of which love to dance. According to the publishers you’ll need to go some to keep up with them.
If you’d like to take a waifu home this Christmas, Anime Girls VR is currently at 20% off until December 30th 2017, and you can get it now at £7.43 (GBP) as opposed the usual £9.29.
TrainerVR
Compatibility: HTC Vive and Oculus Rift
The first thing to say about this one is that no, despite the name this is nothing to do with physical fitness.
When I was very young the toy I wanted most of all was a BRIO train set. If you’re not familiar with the name BRIO are the makers of the wooden train set with the grooves in the wooden track pieces (sort of an inverted track). Nowadays there are all kinds of knockoffs of it around the place but BRIO are the originals. TrainerVR give you your own virtual train set in that BRIO-style. Not only that but the whole thing is physics based, so if you want to create a steep incline your train will struggle. Also if you lose your temper the entire thing can be flung to the four winds.
An Early Access title from developers sumalab, until December 30th 2017, TrainerVR is available at a30% discount. Bringing the total to £7.97 (GBP) from £11.39.
Little Einar
Compatibility: HTC Vive
Released onto Early Access only yesterday by developers MADBones Games, Little Einaris currently available for £8.09 (GBP) from £8.99 and will in the future be coming to Oculus Rift also.
“This release comes with seven levels with the last three of the chapter to fast follow. The intention is to incorporate feedback into the last few levels and go through an optimization pass before moving into chapter 2, chapter 3 and eventually full release.” Explain MADBones Games. “While developing Little Einar, we wanted to rekindle the old school feeling of retro video games without creating a retro game. The classic experience of a side-scrolling platformer is revitalized in VR. We hope you enjoy it and we look forward to your feedback to make Little Einar better.”
Light Strike Array
Compatibility: HTC Vive
Our last Early Access title for a while, Light Strike Array is a room-scale action strategy videogame by developers Unwieldly Systems.
In Light Strike Array two teams (Bands) battle over a mysterious resource called “salt” – we’re pretty sure it isn’t actually just salt – you’ll need to mine it and gather your strength up if you’re going to take on your opponents. The end of the game is to take your crystalline ‘Shards’ and destroy the enemy’s Heart. You’ll need to first wear down the protective shield that surrounds it, however, and the shield referred to as a ‘cornoa’ is more than capable of obliterating the light that makes up your crystal soldiers.
What would Christmas be like without a little blood and gore, eh? Um… well, actually just peachy, thanks. But GexagonVR’s puzzler Nevrosa: Escape isn’t exactly about bringing cheer to the world.
GexagonVR describe it as “an escape room game with horror and action elements, where you are trying to find your way out of laboratory through solving puzzles while being locked with a strange creature. Mystical machines, old family curse and various endings depending on your ways of play.”
Nevrosa: Escapeis available at a rather generous 40% off – £8.99 (GBP) from £14.99 – until December 29th.
Tactera
Compatibility: HTC Vive and Windows Mixed Reality
If there’s one developer we have remained consistently impressed by on VRFocus it would be E McNeill. Other VR titles Darknet and Skylight have both performed well in reviews with the latter already featuring once on the site this week as part of our Best Gear VR Titles Of 2017 list.
In our Gear VR review of Tactera from last year we explained how the videogame felt like to play: “Tactera actually plays out in two phases: grand battle strategy and real-time combat. The player is first greeted by a grid-based map which plots their advance on enemy territory, taking it in turns to deploy troops and move across the map until combat is initiated. Once enemy units meet yours, the player may choose one of the combat instances (if more than one occurs simultaneously) to play in direct command of, whilst others will be simulated. While still learning the ropes this may seem like an unfair advantage on behalf of the AI enemy, however once some knowledge has been attained planning and forethought will avoid any unnecessary weakness in your strategy.”
Developed for VR, but playable out of it if you like, in Red Chain Games’ Boxed In you need to clear the various rooms of multicoloured blocks which can appear from above, the left or the right. There’s 36 variations of play and it’s a good title for those of you looking for a casual gameplay experience this Christmas.
“Quantized is an audio reactive, procedurally-generated sensory experience. Play your own local songs to generate a fun, exhilarating musical journey.”
A videogame by developers Chris Mahoney and Kenny Bier and published by Abstractron, Quantized has a 15% discount on its regular price of £10.29 until December 28th. Meaning you can pick it up for only £8.74.
And finally, whilst it is a Steam week here on Something For The Weekend, here’s a bonus couple of entries for our PlayStation VR owning readers.
Virry VR: Feel the Wild
Bafta award nominated experience Virry VR: Feel The Wild is currently on promotion on the US PlayStation Store for $3.99 or $1.99 for PS Plus users – a 60% and 80% saving respectively on the regular price.
Filmed on location in 4K, get up close with lions, elephant and a zebra, you can even wallow in a mud bath with a rhino. That or take in some of the more tranquil sights as you take a virtual safari down an African river.
The discount is part of a PS Store Flash Sale. Whilst there’s not many PSVR titles in there is another PlayStation VR entry which will definitely be of interest to people…
“PlayStation Move arguably increases immersion in the world of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR ten-fold. The realism of interaction and combat is a huge part of VR, and this is no different here; reaching out to grab an item, swing your sword, draw an arrow to your bow, or cast your spells. It all simply makes much more sense when it’s your hands doing the work.”
It might be an older title given a fresh lick of paint but it remains one of the most in demand PlayStation VR titles this holiday season.
Up until January 2nd 2018 you can journey back to Tamriel for 33% off. Based on the US store, with the price at $40.19 (USD) from $59.99.
In March publisher Archiact and developer E McNeill released strategy/puzzle title Darknet for PlayStation VR. Now they’ve expanded support so the PlayStation 4 owners who don’t have the headset can still play the award-winning videogame.
The “VR Optional” update not only means regular PlayStation 4 players get to play as an elite hacker, those with PlayStation VR can now switch instantly between virtual reality (VR) and non-VR gaming. DualShock 4 controller support remains consistent throughout.
“This is one of those opportunities that just made too much sense to pass on,” said Kevin Chorney, Senior Producer at Archiact. “We’ve brought the iconic visuals and mechanics of Darknet’s VR experience to traditional platforms, while retaining the depth and challenge of gameplay that has made the game such a definitive VR title.”
Originally released for Samsung Gear VR in 2015 before coming to HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, PlayStation VR and Google Daydream this year, Darknet’s puzzles revolve around you contracting out your hacking skills to retrieve data from the world’s most secure networks. Diving into the Net, you must install viruses, inject code, and hack your way through cybersecurity in an experience inspired by a classic cyberpunk vision of the future.
E McNeill hasn’t just been busy expanding support for Darknet, he’s also created two other strategy titles, Tacteraand most recently Skylight.
Darknet is available through the PlayStation.Store for £8.99 GBP/$14.99 USD. For any further updates, keep reading VRFocus.
TrainerVR
Little Einar
Light Strike Array
Nevrosa: Escape
Tactera
Boxed In
Quantized
Virry VR: Feel the Wild
