On his LinkedIn page under experience, Shabestari lists the aforementioned games and then also lists an ‘Unannounced Title (PSVR 2)’.
Firewall: Zero Hour launched in 2018, exclusive to PSVR, and was one of the most successful and popular multiplayer titles on the platform. After Firewall, the studio released Solaris: Offworld Combat in 2021 for Quest, PSVR and PC VR titles.
It’s now been over a year since the release of Solaris. The wording on the LinkedIn page implies that the next unannounced title could be exclusive (either fully or at least at launch) to PSVR 2. Given this, could the studio be working on a sequel to Firewall as an exclusive for PSVR 2? Or if not a Firewall sequel, perhaps the title is simply a new IP for the headset, available at launch or soon after?
Firewall: Zero Hour and Solaris: Offworld Combat developer First Contact Entertainment is developing a “next-generation project” for VR.
As spotted by Zuby_Tech on Twitter, the developer currently has several positions listed on its website, many of which point to a new VR project. Most telling is a listing for a Lead Engineer says the studio is seeking someone to “help us create the next generation of high-end VR games”.
Firewall Dev Working On ‘Next Gen’ VR Game
Other listings make mention of a “AAA VR” project and work on “next generation consoles”.
It’s speculation on our part, but those listings could suggest First Contact could be working on a project that’s compatible with PS5 and/or its upcoming VR headset. Sony is yet to reveal much about the device but we are expecting it to launch in 2022 and we know that the company is already reaching out to developers about it. You can catch up with everything we know about PS5 VR right here.
Plus, it would make sense to see First Contact return to PlayStation after the success of Firewall, which is regarded as one of PSVR’s best multiplayer VR shooters. The game has received continued support since its launch all the way back in 2018 and the studio eventually brought its follow-up title, Solaris, to PSVR too. We’ll have our fingers crossed a potential sequel to either could be on the way.
In other PS5 VR rumors, Sony itself recently acquired The Persistence developer, Firesprite. Yet more job listings confirm the studio is working on a big VR project tied to a popular console IP from the past 10 years.
Solaris: Offworld Combat is getting squad support in its biggest post-launch update yet this week. The update will also introduce a brand new map, several fixes and improvements, and will enable players to freely move their non-primary hand.
When Solaris first launched it delivered on the promise of fast-paced, easy-to-pickup-and-play thrills with addictive gameplay, satisfying gun mechanics, and vibrant map designs. However, the inability to group up and play with friends was a huge issue.
According to developer First Contact Entertainment via email, squad support was “probably the most requested feature” since launch, so it’s finally getting added.
A new version of Fury is coming as well, dubbed Fury Major, which will focus on centralizing player engagement with more close quarters combat moments. Stamina is also getting reworked so you no longer lose any for sprinting and you’re only impacted for spamming slide over and over.
The other major change which should improve player immersion dramatically, at least in my opinion, is that now your free hand has full tracking. Previously whichever hand was not your primary hand (for example your left hand if you are righthanded) would just be glued to the gun at all times even if you moved the controller around. Now, they’ve unattached it, just like in the main menu, so you can move it freely. Weapon accuracy is unaffected.
There are a handful of other changes as well, such as crouching in real life triggering a slide if you’re sprinting, daily XP bonuses and weekly challenges, balance adjustments, and more.
For more on Solaris: Offworld Combat follow the game’s official Twitter and YouTube and make sure to check out our full review and launch day livestream right here.
First Contact Entertainment confirmed that Firewall Zero Hour will offer PS5-specific improvements when playing the PSVR game on a next generation console.
As confirmed by Sony earlier this week, some PSVR games’ specific features will see improvements when played in backwards compatibility mode on PS5. We already know that PSVR exclusive Blood & Truth will feature a higher resolution and higher framerate on PS5, and now we have details for another PSVR exclusive — multiplayer FPS game Firewall Zero Hour.
Developers First Contact Entertainment put out a tweet with a video that details the improvements coming to Firewall on PS5.
— First Contact Entertainment is Hiring!!! (@firstcontactent) November 11, 2020
The text from the end of the video, detailing the changes, reads as follows:
Firewall Zero Hour played on PS5 offers reduced load times and improved visual fidelity resulting from an additional increase in supersampling pixel density from what is currently offered on PS4 Pro.
Firewall Zero Hour launched on PS4 for PSVR in 2018, and has continued to receive content updates ever since. The game recently entered its fifth competitive season, which added loads of new content and a brand new map as well.
Solaris: Offworld Combat, the next VR shooter from Firewall Zero Hour developers First Contact Entertainment, is out now for PSVR, Rift and Quest. Check out our impressions in our Solaris: Offworld Combat review!
Note: This review was originally published on September 26th, 2020. It’s now been updated to include the PSVR version.
Following up on one of the most successful and well-known PSVR games, Firewall Zero Hour, is no small task. Especially when your next game, in this case Solaris, launches first on different headsets (before the recent PSVR homecoming). But for all its differences and unique challenges, I think Solaris is still mostly a worthy follow-up to the breakout PSVR hit.
The big difference here is that Solaris is not a realistic-style tactical military shooter. At all. Whereas Firewall borrows heavy inspiration from the likes of Rainbow Six and Ghost Recon, Solaris is more like an alternate reality sci-fi version of Quake with its focus on pick-up-and-playability and quick-paced gameplay.
Everything in Solaris is about as streamlined as it can possibly get — for better and (in some small cases) for worse. For example, there are no game modes to pick from, maps to select, playlists to queue for, or anything like that. The main menu literally just says ‘Play’ or asks you to put on the helmet to enter a game. That’s it. From there you’re spawned into a match with seven other people in a 4v4 game to capture control points that move around the map, sort of like Headquarters in Call of Duty. It’s very quick and efficient and, above all else, very fun.
In addition to the four guns (starting pistol, automatic assault rift, grenade launcher, and rocket launcher) there are two equipment items: proximity mine and deployable cover shield. It’s enough gear to add some strategy to encounters, but does feel a bit light overall.
Another example of this streamlined approach is the lack of an inventory, weapon switching, or reloading. You walk over weapons to pick them up and then it auto-switches to that new weapon. You shoot the special weapons until they’re out of ammo and it switches back to your starting pistol. No reloading ever required. In this way the “weapons” actually function a bit more like upgrades since they’re temporary. It adds intensity because you can visibly see when others pick up the weapons and creates competition to see who can get them first.
Solaris: Offworld Combat Review – Quest vs Rift
Solaris: Offworld Combat is out on both Quest and Rift with cross-buy and cross-play support. So even if you only have one headset, you’re playing against and with people on both platforms at all times. Visually it’s extremely similar. So similar in fact, that other than a few particle effects and lighting enhancements you can barely tell the difference. Gameplay is functionally identical. The only difference I’ve ever really spotted from a performance level is at the start of a match on Quest, before you’re ever in combat, there is a little bit of jitter and stutter as things are initializing, but once you’re in the game and actively playing, that all goes away. Refer to the video below for a side-by-side comparison.
However, not all of the streamlining they’ve done is for the better. One great example of this is weapon handling. In Solaris, you literally cannot control your left hand at all. Every weapon in the game is essentially one-handed just like the pistol, which is fine in and of itself, Half-Life: Alyx did this as well, but in Solaris your left hand isn’t tracked at all. If you reach out with your left controller it doesn’t do anything, you’re only using it as a thumbstick to move around.
The issue with this is twofold: a lack of presence and immersion, but also a lack of gameplay opportunity. In games like Onward your left hand is equal to the right hand, you could pull your pistol with the left hand, cradle the gun on your left shoulder and even pull the trigger left-handed if you wanted to. But in Solaris your left hand is basically the left half of an Xbox controller in your hand without tracking.
All that being said — you will forget about it. While playing I tended to rest my right controller on top of my left controller to steady the aim regardless of weapon so it generally felt like I was using both hands in-game even though I wasn’t. I genuinely stopped noticing or caring about it during the heat of battle.
Solaris: Offworld CombatReview – Comfort Settings
Solaris: Offworld Combat should be avoided if you require teleportation movement to enjoy VR because smooth, direct locomotion is the only option. That being said, there are some settings you can tweak to make it more comfortable if you’re not extra sensitive. In the main menu options you can switch between smooth and snap turning or turn on/off the FOV vignette for turning and sprinting.
Another odd limitation is the restricted physical crouching. I know the Quest and Rift S are capable of accurately tracking me as I lay down on the ground, or even roll around, because I’ve done it in games like Rec Room and Onward, but there are invisible barriers in Solaris that only let you go down as low as the crouch button animates.
Probably more than any other shooter I’ve played in VR, Solaris is the most seamless to play. It’s pure entertainment that just works. You never have to fuss around with anything feeling wonky or off because all the things that usually cause those issues in VR just aren’t here. On the surface things can see simplistic, but in the moment they absolutely are there to ensure the game is as fluid and playable as possible from top to bottom.
Solaris: Offworld Combat Review Final Impressions
Solaris: Offworld Combat is more than just the sum of its parts. While it’s easy to nitpick some of the decisions made, like your left hand not really being tracked in the game or the lack of a party/friend system at all for launch, the fact of the matter is that it’s still just incredibly fun to play. Visually it looks great on both Rift and Quest and the gameplay has that quick and seamless feel of Quake mixed with a slick Tron-style aesthetic. Despite the issues, Solaris is easily the most accessible and streamlined VR shooter I’ve played in recent memory and scratches the arena shooter itch I’d forgotten I had.
Solaris: Offworld Combat is out now on Rift and for Quest with cross-buy and cross-play functionality across both platforms. This review was conducted using both versions of the game, but most time was spent in the Quest version. A PSVR version also release today, May 18th. For more on how we arrived at this score, check out our review guidelines.
First Contact Entertainment revealed new content coming to Firewall Zero Hour for its fifth season, as part of the Operation: Syndicate update. It includes a new map, a new contractor and some new weapons as well.
Season Five of Firewall Zero Hour begins from today and follows up the previous update, Operation: Black Dawn, that coincided with the start of the game’s fourth season. The game was also offered as a free PS+ title around the same time, so this new Operation: Syndicate update may be the first big content drop for many new players who joined back in February.
Perhaps one of the biggest additions is the new map, which is available for free to all existing Firewall players. Called Blacksite, this latest map is set in a heavily-militarized sector of a Middle Eastern city at sunset, and will feature some tight engagement zones spread across an open-air markets, alleyways and apartment interiors.
A new contractor is also included in the update — Lucia Gallo from Italy, better known by her ‘hacker handle’, Luna. She has a unique skill called ‘backtrace’ which allows players to see an outline of all signal jammers for 4 seconds. Luna will only be available to paid Operation: Syndicate Pass holders.
The update also includes 24 new cosmetic rewards available throughout the season, plus a new weapon and legendary weapon skin — the Custom ZS and Luna’s HZU. The former is a short-range submachine gun available to players who complete the Free Mission in the first week of the season. The latter is a Legendary Weapon Skin available to Op Pass holders who redeem 250,000 Crypto and complete the 24 Free, Premium and Bonus Missions available in Operation: Syndicate.
Will you be jumping into Operation: Syndicate? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Update: After publication we also added PokerStars VR to this list.
Just forked over $399 for an Oculus Quest? Congratulations! You’re ready to jump into a bunch of amazing VR experiences. But, unless you’ve already bought a lot of these on Rift with cross-buy support, you’re probably about to shell out even more for a bunch of games and apps.
We might be able to help you with that.
True, most of Quest’s more robust content has a price attached to it. But there are a few worthwhile apps that don’t require you to get your wallet out. Let’s run down those for you.
Resolution Games’ VR fishing game first proved popular on Gear VR and has since amassed more than two million players around the world. The Quest version is the first to bring six degrees of freedom (6DOF) tracking to the game, making the hours of content more immersive than ever. Note that there are in-app purchases, though this is mainly for buying equipment that you can also get with in-game currency.
You’re likely already familiar with First Steps; it’s the VR showcase you first experience when you boot up Quest. It’s a great way to show Quest’s 6DOF tracking and the power of VR. But you can also get First Contact. This was essentially the original Oculus Rift’s answer to First Steps, with its own array of minigames to try out. Neither will take you very long to see through, but both are great for introducing others to VR.
If you’ve ever dreamed of owning a virtual alien (who hasn’t?) then Bogo is for you. It’s like a Tamagotchi come to life, letting you feed and play with an adorable little critter. Again, this was a demo first intended to showcase the power of Quest to those that hadn’t yet tried it. It might be small, but it’s still worth checking out, especially if you want to introduce any kids to the magic of VR.
Even if you don’t like Poker, PokerStars VR is a fun social experience to sit around and hang out with people. It uses your Oculus Avatar as your character and the interactions are excellent. The Touch controller support is very appreciated and does a great job of affording interactivity. Plus, if you do like Poker, then it will likely end up being one of your go-to apps to unwind at the end of a day.
You could just as easily file Rec Room under games and experiences, but it’s a social VR platform first and foremost. In fact, it’s probably the best place to meet with friends online. A massive array of games awaits you here, from dodgeball to coop questing. Better yet, you can create your own games and rooms to show your friends. Extensive cross-play support also means you can join friends on PC and PSVR.
VR Chat is probably one of VR’s best-known apps, giving players a huge degree of autonomy. Again, it’s a space to hang out and catch up with friends, but extensive avatar support allows you to embody anyone from Bart Simpson to Batman.
BigScreen is unique among social VR apps in that it’s centered around flatscreen content. Crucially, you can project this content onto a giant screen and share it with your friends. It’s a great way to, say, watch a movie with people across the globe, or give online gaming sessions a local multiplayer vibe. Different events keep giving you a reason to come back, too.
Over the past few years there’s been a huge influx of 360 video content. It might not be ‘true’ VR, but lots of it can be compelling. There’s no place better to try the format out for yourself than YouTube. With the largest collection of free 360 degree content, you can spend hours getting lost in other locations here.
First Contact Entertainment announced that Firewall Zero Hour (2018), the tactical team shooter for PSVR, is getting what they call their “biggest update yet” next week.
One of the main changes coming is a new system of time-limited progression taking the form of missions, tasks, and cosmetic rewards.
First Contact says that each week you’ll be assigned a new mission to complete, which in turn will grant you new rewards. There’s also set to be new optional daily tasks that can net you XP and Crypto.
Image courtesy First Contact Entertainment
As for missions, you’ll find one free mission available every week, although more can be accessed through the paid ‘Op-Pass’, which lets you unlock additional premium and bonus missions in order to earn seasonal cosmetic rewards.
The Op-Pass will cost $10, and is supposedly works like the Battle Pass in Fortnite. And there’s another microtransaction type too on the way called ‘Hack Keys’ that let you auto-complete missions.
Here’s how it breaks down:
Operation: Nightfall update: Free update for all owners of Firewall Zero Hour-featuring new in-game UI, new Maps, and more. This update is viewable as soon as players load up Firewall Zero Hour.
Nightfall Op-Pass ($9.99 USD): Obtain the Op-Pass, which allows access to all Operation: Nightfall Missions, Tasks, and Rewards.
Hack Key x5 Pack ($4.99 USD): Each Hack Key will instantly complete one Operational Mission. You will not gain any XP for Missions completed this way, but you will be instantly awarded full Crypto, in addition to the Mission Reward (cosmetics only). Hack Keys are a great option for players who don’t have as much time to play as they would like.
Nightfall Op-Pass + 25 Hack Keys Bundle: Includes access to Operation: Nightfall, in addition to 25 hack keys to be used on any Operational Mission. You will not gain any XP for Missions Completed this way, but you will instantly be awarded full Crypto, in addition to the Mission Reward (cosmetics only). Another great option for players who don’t have as much time to play as they would like.
If microtransactions have you bummed out, First Contact has at least sandwiched them with a number of updates including a new map called ‘Hangar’, a new contractor type called Ruby (‘Thief’ type can steal Crypto), new weapons, better AI behavior, and a refreshed UI.
Another map and contractor is planned for later release during the season. To learn more about the specifics, take a look at First Contact’s blogpost.
Tactical team shooter Firewall Zero Hour (2018) took the top spot again as the most downloaded PSVR game last month.
Hailing from ROM: Extraction (2016) developers First Contact Entertainment, Firewall Zero Hour launched on August 28th, giving it only four days to vault to the top spot in August, where it surpassed long-time chart toppers Job Simulator (2016), SUPERHOT VR (2016), and Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality (2017).
Firewall Zero Hour, a PSVR exclusive, garnered a solid [7.9/10] in our review, owing to its immersive use of the PS Aim controller, excellent team play mechanics, and strong gunplay.
Now with more than a whole month under its belt, Firewall Zero Hour is still seeing active updates too, with a DLC pack headed to the PlayStation Store starting October 16th, which includes new items and skins to customize your character and weapons.
Image courtesy Sony
Survios’ Creed: Rise to Glory (2018) has done quite well for itself too, as the arcade boxing game was released on September 25th, giving it only five days to bypass Moss (2018), Rick and Morty VR, and Job Simulator.
The studio’s other recently released VR app, Electronauts (2018), unfortunately slid off the charts in September only after two months from release. While the music-making jamfest isn’t for everyone, it certainly rug a bell with us, as we gave it a respectable [9/10] in our full review.
Firewall Zero Hour is finally out! One of the biggest VR game launches is now upon us and the internet is abuzz with excitement for this 4v4 online-only multiplayer tactical shooter. It’s exclusive to PSVR, feels great with the Aim controller, and totally rewrites the way you should approach an FPS when compared to a non-VR game. You can lean out of cover, blind fire over and around objects, and do things you could never do outside of VR.
It’s pretty clear at this point that Firewall Zero Hour is easily one of the best VR shooters to date and lots of people are gonna be playing it over the next few weeks, so we rounded up these tips to help you get started.
Understanding the Game Modes
When you first load up Firewall Zero Hour the main menu has a Tutorial, Training, and Contracts listed as the game modes. You should definitely do the Tutorial first. In fact, I’d say that even if you’ve played a ton of shooters in VR and outside of VR, you should definitely do the Tutorial first. There are just a lot of nuances to this game that are best learned through the game’s official teaching mechanism.
Once you do that, jump into Training. I’d start with Solo and pick the Attacking side on an indoor map like Office or Hotel. That will get you comfortable with shooting enemies, hacking firewalls, and securing the laptop intel. It feels a little like Terrorist Hunt on Rainbow Six Siege.
Then, switch over to Defense on Training. This is really just a wave-based survival mode in which enemies constantly flood towards the laptop trying to secure it. If you can hold out then you win. You can do Co-Op training as well with some friends.
After all that, I’d say you’re ready for Contracts. This is the 100% PvP online 4v4 tactical mode that makes up the vast majority of Firewall’s appeal. Two teams of four are placed on a map in which the Attackers must hack a firewall access point then secure intel from a laptop while the Defenders must wipe them all out and/or protect the laptop. No respawns. It gets pretty intense.
Know Your Objectives
In Firewall Zero Hour it’s extremely important to understand what your objectives are. As it stands currently, there is no Team Deathmatch mode (although that may change in the future) so it’s crucial that you work together towards a central goal to achieve victory.
As the Attacking team, your main objective actual isnot to kill the enemies. Instead, you’re intended to hack one of two firewall access points (it doesn’t matter which) to reveal the laptop’s location. Then, you must secure intel from the laptop — in that order. That’s it. Wiping out the other team certainly would help make your objectives much easier, but it’s not required. In fact, if you kill the other team but don’t complete your objectives, then you still lose the match.
Then as the Defending team, it’s the opposite. You either can wipe out the other team to win, or just delay them enough so that they never access the laptop before time runs out. I’ve literally won on the Defending team before after we all died because the Attacking team wasn’t able to get the access point and laptop in time.
Communication and Teamwork are Crucial
Since Firewall Zero Hour is a team-based game, that means working together is absolutely critical. If you’re not talking to your teammates on mic, then you’re putting your team at a disadvantage. There are no respawns in Firewall, so calling out where you see enemies and objectives is extremely important.
You’ll need to practice actual, legitimate tactics in this game unlike any other shooter you’ve played. Even in Rainbow Six Siege, ARMA, Insurgency, and others you’re limited by the confines of your controller or keyboard, but in Firewall you can physically motion your gun to teammates, lean around corners, or blind fire over cover.
Deciding when to move, where to go, how aggressive to be, and calling out decisions not only makes your team better, but it makes the game better. You haven’t experienced the true intensity of VR until you’re suppressed, under fire, and chucking grenades over your head, blind firing, and yelling to a teammate to come back you up.
Take it Slow
Because of the lack of respawns and intense gameplay, Firewall isn’t the kind of game you should play like a lone wolf Rambo-era badass. This isn’t Call of Duty. You need to stick together, watch your flanks, and approach each scenario carefully. A couple well-placed shots can easily take you down.
That’s a big part of the reason why the default movement speed is so slow. It looks agonizing when watching a 2D feed of the game, but in practice it actually feels very realistic and appropriate. When necessary L3 lets you sprint, but it makes a lot of noise unless you have the right perk.
Utilize Your Surroundings
Every map in Firewall is very, very different. And I don’t just mean in the different tileset or skybox way, but in the “this feels like a different corner of the world” way. From the UK and Russia to the Middle East there is a strong sense of personality in every level.
Learning the maps and their various intricacies is extremely important. When you’re in VR, it’s easy to get tunnel vision and forget to check behind, beside, below, or even above you and almost every map has some element of multi-level verticality that you don’t want to forget about.
Once You Die You Can Still Help Your Team
Death isn’t the end in Firewall Zero Hour. For starters, if you’re just downed, then a teammate can come revive you up to two times — on your third downed state, it’s for good. And if the enemy finishes you off, then you’re dead. But even once you die, it’s not the end.
At that point you can start cycling through security cameras and relay enemy locations to your teammates via voice chat. This is an extremely important facet of the game and can be a major turning point if you’re able to communicate well and help your remaining teammates come back from your death.
But remember: the enemy can do the same.
Attacking vs Defending Advice
Finally, in addition to knowing your objectives (as explained earlier) there are some key tips to keep in mind for each side of every map as well. If you’re Attacking, remember that the objectives are all that really matter. If you’re confident enough, sending a lone wolf to distract the other team while everyone else focuses on the objectives could be a good strategy. Or, be aggressive, wipe them out, then clean up the objectives afterwards. The problem with that though is that you need to make sure you’ve got enough time.
Until the community starts to learn the maps better, playing Defense is a bit easier right now. You can hold down a position and wait for Attackers to approach, set traps like mines, and eventually unlock other gadgets like door blockers and C4 as well. Using all of the tools in your arsenal is important as a defender. Taking frag grenades every match might not be the best idea if you want a balanced team.
That just about covers the basics. If you’re still struggling don’t be afraid to ask people for help. Most people in the PSVR community are friendly and happy to assist, so you should feel comfortable asking for advice from your teammates. You can also just do more Training missions to get comfortable.
