Landfall Dev Announces Third VR Title Time Stall for Oculus Quest

Dutch virtual reality (VR) developer Force Field Entertainment has released a couple of title up to now, Term1nal for Samsung Gear VR and Landfall for Oculus Rift. The studio has now unveiled its third videogame – and it’s first for Oculus Quest – Time Stall.

Time Stall

As the name implies, Time Stall is all about time manipulation, namely slow motion. “Time Stall is loosely inspired by Quicksilver’s classic Pentagon kitchen scene from X-Men: Days of Future Past, where Quicksilver neutralizes all kinds of threats in slow motion,” states the developer in a press release.

Set in a luxury spaceship – which looks like the one out of Fifth Element – players have complete free-roam inside this semi-frozen moment in time where they have to solve a range of puzzles. From physics-based to time-based puzzles, these all need to be solved in order to save all the guests onboard.

The story goes that you play a Volunteer Safety Human aboard the Fantastic Leap, a crowdfunded luxury escape cruise. Alas, as a crowdfunded project which didn’t meet its funding goal lots of cost-cutting went into the design of the ship, leaving it with one or two safety issues. Which is where you come in, saving the ship from disaster over and over again, in any way you see fit. Those decisions can then lead to disastrous or hilarious results – depends on how evil you’re feeling.

Time Stall

“Designed with complete freedom in mind, Time Stall is a room-scale experience where you can freely roam through an action scene almost frozen in time, manipulating the trajectory of hazardous objects, as such the game is ideal for an untethered headset,” said Martin de Ronde, Force Field’s Chief Creative Officer in a statement. “Time Stall is a unique room-scale action-puzzler built exclusively for Oculus Quest.”

Since the launch of Oculus Quest, there hasn’t been a massive deluge of VR titles. Most recently Mozilla announced Firefox Reality support, Amazon Prime Video is now available in the UK and US, and Oculus Go emulation is on the way.

Force Field Entertainment will launch Time Stall for Oculus Quest on 15th August 2019. VRFocus will continue its coverage of TIme Stall, reporting back with the latest updates.

December 9, 2018

The VR Job Hub: Vacancies From Phaser Lock, Force Field & VRWERX

As the virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) industries continue to grow so do the opportunities to get involved if you have the right skills. Today’s job list features some of the leading innovators in the field, looking for new applicants to help create the next big immersive experience.

Location	Company	Role	Link
Los Angeles, CA	VRWERX	UE4 Gameplay Programmer	Click Here to Apply
Los Angeles, CA	VRWERX	UE4 Game Designer	Click Here to Apply
Los Angeles, CA	VRWERX	3D Environment Artist	Click Here to Apply
Los Angeles, CA	VRWERX	3d Character Artist	Click Here to Apply
Los Angeles, CA	VRWERX	3D Animator	Click Here to Apply
Los Angeles, CA	VRWERX	Community Manager	Click Here to Apply
Austin, TX	Phaser Lock Interactive	AI/Gameplay Programmer	Click Here to Apply
Austin, TX	Phaser Lock Interactive	Software Engineer	Click Here to Apply
Austin, TX	Phaser Lock Interactive	Network Engineer	Click Here to Apply
Amsterdam, Netherlands	Force Field VR	Producer	Click Here to Apply
Amsterdam, Netherlands	Force Field VR	Senior Producer	Click Here to Apply
Amsterdam, Netherlands	Force Field VR	Creative Department Manager	Click Here to Apply
Amsterdam, Netherlands	Force Field VR	Senior Technical Artist	Click Here to Apply
Amsterdam, Netherlands	Force Field VR	Systems Administrator	Click Here to Apply
Amsterdam, Netherlands	Force Field VR	Senior 3D Artist	Click Here to Apply
Amsterdam, Netherlands	Force Field VR	Lead Programmer	Click Here to Apply

Don’t forget, if there wasn’t anything that took your fancy this week there’s always last week’s listings on The VR Job Hub to check as well.

If you are an employer looking for someone to fill an immersive technology related role – regardless of the industry – don’t forget you can send us the lowdown on the position and we’ll be sure to feature it in that following week’s feature. Details should be sent to Peter Graham (pgraham@vrfocus.com).

We’ll see you next week on VRFocus at the usual time of 3PM (UK) for another selection of jobs from around the world.

June 16, 2018

Experience Anne Frank’s House In New VR Title From Oculus

Those who are familiar with the history of World War II will of some point heard of the name Anne Frank and her famous diary. Now, timed to coincide with Anne Frank’s 89th birthday on June 12th, Oculus Studios, Force Field VR, and the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam have announced their will be releasing a new virtual reality (VR) product titled Anne Frank House VR, as reported by Venturebeat.

Anne Frank

The new VR experience will offer users a chance to step back in time to see what it would of been like for Anne Frank during the Nazi occupation between 1942 and 1944. During this time Anne Frank hid in the Secret Annex that was home for herself and seven other people for two years before they were found. The experience will last for around 25 minutes, touring all of the rooms of the Secret Annex, which are still furnished as they were during the war.

Given how famous the story of Anne Frank, and her diary is, the Anne Frank House VR experience will be an immersive way for people to learn about her story. For those who have been unable to visit the museum in person as of yet will be able to do so with this new experience, which could also be used within education to help tell the story of Anne Frank and her diary to the next generation.

Force Field VR have a wide portfolio of VR experiences having worked on titles such as Landfall, a tactical action shooter videogame which puts players into the heart of futuristic battles. Other videogame titles they have worked on include Coaster Combat, Pet Lab, and Term1nal which VRFocus’ Senior Staff Writer Peter Graham reviewed saying: “Term1nal is an enjoyable experience from start to finish. In fact you probably won’t notice the time fly by and complete it in one run though, over the course of around 3 hours or so. That might put some people off, wanting more gameplay for their money but hopefully it won’t. Term1nal showcases Force Field VR’s knack of creating a solid VR experience that’s a delight to play, making it a worthy addition to anyone’s Gear VR library.”

The company are a good fit for the Anne Frank House VR project given they have worked on experiences in a similar vein including Meeting Rembrandt, which allowed users to travel back in time and feel what feel in 1642 during the Dutch Golden Age would of been like. Along with meeting with Rembrandt van Rijn, one of the world’s most famous painters.

The Anne Frank House VR experience will be launching on June 12th, at a ceremony being held at the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam. VRFocus will be sure to bring you all the latest on the title in the future, so stay tuned for more.

December 22, 2017

The Best Gear VR Games of 2017

We’re at the end of the second (calendar) year where virtual reality (VR) head mounted displays (HMDs) have been commercially available. And whilst the majority of talk when discussing both the past, specifically that of 2017 as a whole, and of the future for VR going into 2018 has been about the PC based HMDs like HTC Vive and Oculus Rift and console VR in the form of the PlayStation VR that doesn’t mean smartphone-based HMDs don’t still have a place in the conversation.

Whilst the Samsung Gear VR is the elder stateman of commercial VR, and arguably of this generation as a whole it isn’t done yet. And whilst some would have you believe that it is purely of use for 360 degree video those with a Gear VR controller would likely in turn ask them what on Earth they were talking about.

For this year in review we’re going to be taking a look back at some of the best videogame titles VRFocus has come across during 2017 for Samsung’s headset. Who knows, you may see something that you want to get to experience on your own Gear VR. Please note the below are in no particular order of importance or recommendation, but do feel free to check them out.

Augmented Empire

It would have been quite impossible to do this list and not include the title from Coatsink Software, best known in VR circles for their work on Esper and Esper 2. Featuring a top notch voice acting cast and a tight script, Augmented Empire is a strategy role-playing game (RPG) that takes you, effectively, into a VR diorama from which the story of the
island of New Savannah and the dramas caused by a society split through a rigid class system plays out.

Augmented_Empire_Screenshot_3

SBK VR

If you are a racer at heart then it might not be four wheels you should be considering on the Gear VR but two. The 2016 FIM Superbike World Championship came to VR in the form of SBK VR, complete with official licences for all the bikes riders and circuits. So, if you’re a Kawasaki fan, you’re sorted. Ducati? No problem. Honda? Yamaha? All there. The game comprises three modes: Quick Race and Time Trial, both of which are self-explanatory, with the third being Championship mode. Races here even containing qualifying sessions – although they are skippable. Almost surprisingly good in its immersion this is one racer well worth checking out.

SBK VR header

Spark of Light

Let there be light – Spark of Light, that is. A wave shooter from Dutch developer Pillow’s Willow VR Studio, Spark of Light is also available on a number of other HMDs, and recently featured in the reveal of the Vive Focus. On Gear VR though it remains a gem, with our only real criticism being that we’d have liked a lot more of it. A casual puzzler, in Spark of Light you take on the roles Nerow, a boy who lives with his sister in a magical land. Things are perfectly fine until the sun is stolen by the Moth King. It’s up to Nerow to use light to not only solve puzzles but bring it back to his world as a whole.

Spark Of Light 05

Skylight

When you’ve got a Gear VR title from the developer of Darknet and Tactera, E McNeill, you have an expectation that it will be something special – and VRFocus was very pleased to find that Skylight (which we gave a full five stars to in our review) lives up to the expectation. A turn-based strategy videogame, in Skylight you’ve got to control an armada of spaceships through a series of increasingly challenging levels. How you lay out your armada is up to you, capital ships, frigates, fighters, each have their own strategic strengths and weaknesses. Can you balance them all and lead your fleet to victory? With thirty missions in the single player mode and multiplayer too you’ll have plenty to keep you occupied.

Skylight - SS6

Term1nal

From one sci-fi title to another now but leaping from the strategy genre to stealth in the form of cybercrime videogame Term1nal. From Force Field VR, the makers of Oculus Rift title Landfall, Term1nal follows the story of Flynn Lightman. A hacker specialising in remotely controlling androids from the safety of his secret hide-out. Hired to infiltrate STRIDE Industries, a data security and advanced robotics company, Lightman takes control of one of STRIDE’s prototype android’s and delves into the depths of the facility alongside an over enthusiastic robot dog. Part third-person stealth title, part puzzle videogame, Term1nal‘s story blurs the line between organic and synthetic.

Term1nal - Screenshot3

August 13, 2017

The VR Job Hub: Ultrahaptics, Adobe Research, Force Field VR and more

Whether you’re an experienced designer, programmer, engineer, or maybe you’ve just been inspired after reading VRFocus articles, the jobs listed here are located worldwide, from major game players to humble indie developers – the one thing they all have in common is that they are all jobs in VR.

View the new listings below for more information:

Location	Company	Role	Link
Manchester, UK	Red Frog Digital Ltd	Mobile App R&D Software Engineer	Click here to apply
Bristol, UK	Ultrahaptics	Visual Designer (Contract)	Click here to apply
London, UK	Facebook	Software Engineer, Social VR	Click here to apply
San Francisco, CA	Adobe Research	VR Video Engineer	Click here to apply
Amsterdam	Force Field VR	QA Tester	Click here to apply
Amsterdam	Force Field VR	Lead Programmer	Click here to apply
Amsterdam	Force Field VR	Senior Character Artist	Click here to apply

As usual, you can check last week’s edition for further job listings. If you are an employer looking for someone to fill a role in a VR, AR or other related areas in the industry and want that position to be featured on next week’s VR Job Hub, please send details to either pgraham@vrfocus.com or keva@vrfocus.com.

Check back with VRFocus next Sunday at 3PM BST and every Sunday for the latest roles in the VR industry.

July 28, 2017

Oculus Rift Owners Can Play Landfall for Free Right Now

Force Field VR’s Oculus Rift exclusive twin-stick shooter videogame, Landfall, made its debut at Oculus Connect 3, San Jose, late last year. Since then, the developer has launched the virtual reality (VR) title on the Oculus Store and this weekend will be granting free access to all Oculus Rift owners, beginning immediately.

Landfall new screenshot 3

Landfall is a top down action shooter with both a single-player campaign and multiplayer modes included. The player is cast in the role of a military commander, with 12 different loadouts available to unlock each featuring specialised weapons and mechs. The mechs are the major armament in Landfall, providing a varied range of high-tech offensive and defensive capabilities.

VRFocus has previously delivered a hands-on report for Landfall, stating: “While all the modes offered a reasonable amount of variety, two-on-two multiplayer was certainly the best showcase for Landfall. When there’s four mechs on the ground, objectives to be completed and ordinance flying everywhere, it can be an intensely engaging experience.”

The free weekend for Landfall is active now, and will run until 6pm BST, 30th July 2017. The free version of the videogame includes the single-player and co-op campaigns as well as online multiplayer mode. Furthermore, developers Force Field VR will be livestreaming multiplayer matches today, from 7pm – 10pm BST. Those who jump into the multiplayer modes should look for P1ForceField, P2ForceField, P3ForceField, P4ForceField and P5ForceField.

Landfall is an Oculus Rift exclusive title, available via the Oculus Store for £22.99 GBP. VRFocus will keep you updated with further Landfall promotions and other forthcoming VR titles from Force Field VR.

July 13, 2017

Landfall Developer Force Field VR Secures €1m Investment in Series A Round

Force Field VR, the studio behind twin-stick virtual reality (VR) shooter Landfall on Oculus Rift and Term1nal, a puzzle title for Samsung Gear VR, has today announced the completion of a Series A funding round, securing the company an extra €1 million EUR of investment.

In a statement Force Field’s co-founder Arthur Houtman said: “Over the past year Force Field managed to acquire a leading position in the rapidly growing VR and AR industry, delivering a number of ‘best in class’ games and entertainment experiences. For the next years [sic] our aim is to further extend our lead into two strategic directions: the development of high-end location based VR and the creation of a series of unique new IPs for the home VR market. We will use this investment for those purposes.”

Term1nal - Screenshot2

The studio launched both aforementioned videogames over the last few months, and has now confirmed that six more titles are in the final stages of development. What these are and which platforms Force Field VR plans to support are still being kept quiet.

VRFocus reviewed Gear VR’s Term1nal back in May, giving it four stars and saying: “Featuring 12 missions, Term1nal is an enjoyable experience from start to finish. In fact you probably won’t notice the time fly by and complete it in one run though, over the course of around 3 hours or so. Term1nal showcases Force Field VR’s knack of creating a solid VR experience that’s a delight to play, making it a worthy addition to anyone’s Gear VR library.”

As Force Field VR reveals more details about its upcoming project, VRFocus will keep you updated.

May 19, 2017

Review: Term1nal

When you think of cyber crime – hackers infiltrating government institutions, banks, multinationals and so on – it likely equates to people sat behind a monitor going through lines of code, which doesn’t exactly make for a gripping videogame. So developers have thought of numerous ways to make the process far more interesting and engaging for the average player. Force Field VR, the team behind Landfall on Oculus Rift – has come up with an approach that mixes current tech with future tech in Term1nal, its first virtual reality (VR) title for Samsung Gear VR, and a cracking one to boot.

Term1nal is essentially a third-person stealth videogame for the mobile headset. Your task is to infiltrate a giant robotics corporation using one of their own robots, and download some data for the client that’s hired you. The entire title is viewed from CCTV cameras for a constant overhead viewpoint, apart from when you have to interact with terminals to hack, at this point Term1nal goes first-person.

Term1nal - Screenshot1

The experience is essentially split into two, there are the environment puzzles to navigate and the terminal puzzles. As mentioned this is a stealth videogame, so you’re completely unarmed throughout the entirety of the experience. Running around the levels you’ll need to avoid stationary gun emplacements, flying drones and walking robotic guards, each has a viewable area which if breached means you’re going to get shot (which restarts the area). So it’s basically a case of duck and cover, using the environment to block enemies gaze, or dive into a locker to avoid being seen.

Not particularly amazing until the introduction of a small dog named R.EXE, who’ll be your companion on this journey. With the addition of your four legged friend, Force Field VR has ensured that wherever you go a challenge will await, and commanding the pooch takes as much thought as the puzzles themselves. R.EXE can pickup several enhancements on route that can disguise you, lure a robots attention away or simply stun them to get by. This means at points you’re constantly multitasking between controlling yourself and the dog on the more complicated puzzles later in the videogame.

It’s this interaction that sits at the heart of Term1nal, and makes for a fun experience. The terminal puzzles – of which there are four – consist of connecting green power nodes, matching up grids of numbers, disconnecting wires and hacking a location by holding down a button for a certain length of time, are basic and easily solved. Even towards the end of the title the main difficulty increase tends to be time, so there’s nothing fiendishly tough that you shouldn’t be able to crack on the first or second attempt.

Term1nal - Screenshot3

This is a linear, story-driven experience however. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it does mean longevity does suffer to a degree. Featuring 12 missions, Term1nal is an enjoyable experience from start to finish. In fact you probably won’t notice the time fly by and complete it in one run though, over the course of around 3 hours or so. That might put some people off, wanting more gameplay for their money but hopefully it won’t. Term1nal showcases Force Field VR’s knack of creating a solid VR experience that’s a delight to play, making it a worthy addition to anyone’s Gear VR library.

80%

Awesome

Verdict

May 18, 2017

Enter a World of Cyber Crime with Term1nal on Gear VR

Force Field VR, the studio behind Oculus Rift title Landfall, has launched its next virtual reality (VR) title, a stealthy puzzle experience called Term1nal for Samsung Gear VR.

Term1nal revolves around the story of Flynn Lightman, a highly skilled hacker, who specialises in remotely controlling androids from the safety of his secret hide-out. Hired to infiltrate a data security and advanced robotics company called STRIDE Industries, Lightman takes control of one of STRIDE’s prototype android’s and delves into the depths of the facility alongside an over enthusiastic robot dog.

Term1nal - Screenshot2

Rather than first-person, the majority of the video game is viewed from overhead – basically through the company’s CCTV cameras – with players having to solve a range of puzzles, such as cutting wires, deciphering codes or connecting nodes in first-person. There will also be area puzzles which need to be completed using the robotic dog, all the while avoiding stationary gun emplacements or mobile security robots.

Featuring 12 missions, Term1nal has been inspired by movies like iRobot, Ghost in the Shell, Ex Machina and The Matrix, where the lines between the organic and the synthetic are blurred. Built with Unity, Force Field VR estimates an entire campaign run though will take around two to three hours.

Exclusive to Samsung Gear VR, the title will support a standard gamepad as well as the newly released Gear VR controller. Term1nal will retail for $7.99 USD or €7.99 EUR.

VRFocus will continue its coverage of Force Field VR, reporting back with the latest announcements.

March 20, 2017

Preview: Term1nal – Hacking gets a VR makeover

Force Field VR, the studio behind the recently launched Landfall on Oculus Rift, debuted its next project at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2017, a stealthy hacking adventure that’ll support Samsung Gear VR called Term1nal. Rather than the all out action of Landfall, Terminal goes for a far more thoughtful approach, demonstrating even at this early stage a nuanced approach to virtual reality (VR).

Set in a future of high tech robots and dangerous corporations, you play a hacker who’s been hired to infiltrate STRIDE Industries, a security and robotics firm. But rather than staring at reams of code on a computer screen, you remotely take over an experimental robot that’ll run through STRIDE’s security, sneaking past sentry robots, avoiding lasers, unlocking doors and hacking computer terminals.

Term1nal - WarehouseTransporter03

Term1nal is played from a lofty third-person viewpoint, essentially as the hacker you see everything through the building’s CCTV cameras. The videogame utilises a Bluetooth controller to move your character through the maze of rooms, hallways and traps in your path. As you navigate between them the camera angle will change depending on the room, but it’ll always provide the optimal viewpoint, there was never a moment in the demo where anything felt blocked.

This was an early build of Term1nal, and as such only one level was available to play through. But this was still enough to get a feel for the mechanics and the types of challenges that needed to be overcome. The goal of the demo was to locate a key in one area and bring it back to another. If you’ve played Landfall you’ll instantly be at home with running your character around, with the controls feeling precise. There are moments where you have to quickly duck around robots, hiding in lockers to avoid their gaze which never posed an issue.

Stealth is of paramount importance, you robot isn’t equipped with any weapons, get spotted and you’re restarting the area until you get it right. Once the key is found it turns out to be a small robotic dog that’ll follow you around and obey your commands. The dog can then be used to distract robots and unlock previously impassable doors. Term1nal certainly tries in this short period of gameplay to offer a variety of puzzle elements to keep you thinking on your toes, although that’s easy to do. The real challenge will be to see if Force Field VR can come up with a significant selection of puzzles without too much repetition, a trait titles in this type of genre can fall foal of.

Term1nal - CorridorOffice01

From this initial play though Term1nal has all the right elements to be a fun, engaging puzzle experience for Gear VR. Its looks nice, the challenges were varied and plentiful, with just the right amount of difficulty to make you stop for a second and think without being frustrating. For those that like this element in their VR videogames, Force Field VR looks to be on the right track with its first project for the mobile headset.