Augmented & Virtual Reality Confabulation
What Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality developers are talking about
Borderlands 2 VR was one of 2018’s late surprises. It came out of seemingly nowhere and offered up one of the beefiest and most intense experiences the PSVR has seen yet. Despite axing co-op for this version, since release it’s gotten PS Aim Controller support and the promise of all past Borderlands 2 DLC coming over into the game, free of charge. We still don’t have a date for the PC VR version, but it’s certainly in the works we’d guess.
Now with the recent announcement of Borderlands 3, we’ve been waiting for news about a potential VR version once again. Unfortunately, it doesn’t sound like it’s in the cards just yet.
In an interview with Daily Star, Kate Pistick, Mission Designer on Borderlands 3, explains:
“There’s been talk about it, but there’s nothing really planned that I’m aware of,” Pistick says. “We had an internal team who worked on the VR stuff for Borderlands 2. They worked on it with an external development contracting company. A really small team – most of them were hired to work exclusively on that project.
“There wasn’t anyone leaving the main project to work on Borderlands 2 VR, just a couple of guys who might go overseeing or offering guidance when questions came up during development, porting that game from an older engine into a newer VR space.”
Hopefully that changes before the game releases in September, but if it isn’t part of the plan right now then expectations of VR support should definitely be squashed for the time being. Fingers crossed for a VR port in early 2020 then, maybe, hopefully.
For more on Borderlands VR, read our review of Borderlands 2 VR, watch our launch livestream, and check out our list of tips if you haven’t journeyed into Pandora just yet. Let us know what you think down in the comments below!
Tagged with: Borderlands, Borderlands 2 VR, Borderlands 3, Gearbox Software
The post Borderlands 3 VR Has Been Talked About But ‘Nothing Really Planned’ appeared first on UploadVR.
Twitch's new Echocast extension gives Borderlands 3 streamers a chance to share the items they're carrying and also give their audience a chance to earn a copy of items found in chests opened during the game.
The post New Twitch extension gives Borderlands 3 stream audiences a chance at loot appeared first on Digital Trends.
Mayhem was unleashed a bit early as the official Twitter account shared the Borderlands 3 release date, a pre-order bonus weapon skin pack, and how the game will be distributed for PC gamers.
The post Borderlands 3 release date leaks on its own Twitter account appeared first on Digital Trends.
World famous magical duo Penn & Teller might be better known for their tricks but they do dip into other forms of entertainment. Most notably videogames and virtual reality (VR) in particular thanks to weird driving sim Desert Bus by Gearbox Software. Well, it seems there are more VR plans afoot thanks to an announcement during PAX East this weekend.
During the event Gearbox Software revealed work on Penn and Teller VR: Frankly Unfair, Unkind, Unnecessary & Underhanded. The title will feature the magicians in some way, supporting HTC Vive, PlayStation VR and Oculus headsets when it arrives this summer. Other than that currently nothing else is known about the experience. How will Penn and Teller make their appearance, what will the gameplay involve and does ‘Oculus headsets’ mean, Oculus Rift, Rift S and Quest?
Whatever Gearbox Software and the duo have planned it can’t be much weirder than Desert Bus. Originally part of an unreleased Sega CD title called Penn & Teller’s Smoke and Mirrors, Desert Bus was a mini-game that involved players being challenged to drive a poorly-maintained bus on the long journey between Tucson, Arizona and Las Vegas, Nevada.
The twist was that completing the videogame involved driving the bus for eight actual hours. Unfortunately, the bus had tracking and steering problems, which meant that if you came off the road you’d be picked up and carted back to the start all in real-time. It’s become a cult classic with competitions based around it. It’s currently available for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift.
Gearbox Software had plenty of announcements to make during PAX East, the biggest involving Borderlands 3. But it did happen to mention a new partnership with Squanch Games that’ll see Gearbox Publishing create a physical version of Trover Saves the Universe for its PlayStation VR release on 31st May.
And for fans of Borderlands 2 VR, don’t forget that the studio also confirmed last week that the title will be getting all the DLC ever made for the standard version ported to VR, set to arrive soon and completely free. For further Penn and Teller VR: Frankly Unfair, Unkind, Unnecessary & Underhanded updates, keep reading VRFocus.
The biggest Christmas 2018 videogame release for PlayStation VR was most certainly Gearbox Software’s popular shooter Borderlands 2 VR. However, in the run-up to launch the studio confirmed it would only be the core experience with none of the DLC included. The team did say that any future updates would highly depend on player feedback which first saw its effects earlier this month with the release of Aim Controller support. That has now continued with the confirmation that all the DLC for Borderlands 2 VR will soon be released for free.
The original Borderlands 2 which launched in 2012 has quite the treasure trove of DLC content, with a quick browse on Steam bringing up 46 different packs. Now quite a few are different skins to customise your character but there are some goodies to be had, including different character classes such as the Mechromancer as well as campaign expansions to greatly increase the size of the videogame.
With Gearbox Software quite clearly stating on Twitter that: “We’re bringing you ALL the DLC for Borderlands 2 VR straight to your eye-holes!” that should be one colossal update, so PlayStation VR players may need to clear some hard drive space.
The recent Aim Controller update didn’t just include additional controller support, it helped to improve Borderlands 2 VR further by including options for swapping buttons and sticks, movement refinements and simple things like toggling the crosshairs on and off. Gearbox Software did mention at the time about: “improvements to the HUD and height offset along with fixes to an unreachable chest, teleport, and more,” which could well land alongside the DLC.
Borderlands 2 VR was well received when it first launched with VRFocus giving it a maximum five-stars in our review, saying: “it’s somewhat of a surprise that Borderlands was the first AAA the studio decided to go with. A pleasant surprise, that is, as Borderlands 2 VR is most certainly a highlight of this year’s VR releases and one of the best titles yet to hit PlayStation VR. Its still Borderlands 2, sure, but you’ve never played Borderlands 2 like this before.”
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Borderlands 2 VR, reporting back with the latest updates.
Just before the launch of Borderlands 2 VR for PlayStation VR last December, Gearbox Software revealed to VRFocus that when it came to updating the videogame after launch that would very much depend on the fans and what their feedback was. Well, the studio has been listening and released a free update with several additions, the biggest being Aim Controller support.
The Aim Controller has proven to be a popular accessory for virtual reality (VR) first-person shooters (FPS) on PlayStation VR. First introduced with Farpoint, titles such as First Contact Entertainment’s Firewall Zero Hour have made it the preferred control scheme and now Borderlands 2 VR fans can use it.
Gearbox Software made the announcement via Reddit, giving further details:
That’s not all, thanks to several other community suggestions the studio also implemented an improved scope with a larger window, the crosshairs can now be toggled on and off, and so can the scope with an options menu setting to switch to iron sights.
And it looks like the team isn’t stopping there: “Please look forward to community suggested updates such as improvements to the HUD and height offset along with fixes to an unreachable chest, teleport, and more.”
Highly anticipated before launch, Gearbox Software didn’t disappoint when it came to Borderlands 2 VR, with VRFocus’ review giving it a full five -stars, saying: “Borderlands 2 VR is most certainly a highlight of this year’s VR releases and one of the best titles yet to hit PlayStation VR. Its still Borderlands 2, sure, but you’ve never played Borderlands 2 like this before.”
For further updates on the videogame, keep reading VRFocus.
Borderlands 2 VR (2018) launched on PSVR late last year with support for DualShock 4 and PS Move, and while it also seemed to be a perfect fit for the platform’s dedicated gun controller, PS Aim, users just had to make do. Now developers Gearbox Software and 2K Games have announced they’ve officially added PS Aim support including a few other shooting specific improvements that should keep you happily blasting bandits and looting vaults with greater ease regardless of your chosen controller.
Looking through the options menu, you’ll now find options for swapping sticks, buttons, or both—something the dev team said in a Reddit post was added “to help with Lefty Swap and to allow for more custom options to use the Aim Controller.”
Users can also assign forward movement either according to their head’s position, or movement relative to PS Aim.
“For example, you can shoot straight forward, while looking to your right. If your movement is Gun relative, pushing forward on the control stick will move you based on where the gun is pointing. If your movement is Head relative, pushing forward on the control stick will move you based on where you’re looking,” the developers say.
There’s also a few new features that come to the game as the result of community suggestions:
Moreover, the dev team says they’ll be working on updates such as “improvements to the HUD and height offset along with fixes to an unreachable chest, teleport, and more.”
Although we weren’t wowed by Borderlands 2 VR in our review, it’s good to see the developers taking the time to mold the game a little more to the medium, as some of the negatives we noted in our review seem to be alleviated by the recent update; being able to aim down iron sights of a physical gun without a gaze-based reticle constantly floating around is certainly a step in the right direction in the immersion department, although we would love to see more updates that help make the game more of a true VR native considering it commands premium price tag of $50.
The post ‘Borderlands 2 VR’ Gets PS Aim Support & Improved Shooting for All Controllers appeared first on Road to VR.
Ask and ye shall receive — sometimes. Gearbox Software have officially added PS Aim controller support to Borderlands 2 VR! When the FPS launched late last year as a PSVR exclusive the omission of the headset’s best peripheral, which is designed specifically for shooters, was glaring and strange. Thankfully that’s been remedied now. Too bad they probably won’t ever add co-op support.
The PS Aim support is included in today’s latest patch which also introduces some bug fixes and performance optimization. You can read the full patch notes right here for more details. And if there’s any doubt why Aim support was introduced, these patch notes officially label the feature as a “Community Suggestion.”
A new Borderlands 2 VR Update is out today, including performance optimizations and bug fixes. Also, WE NOW HAVE AIM CONTROLLER SUPPORT!!! Read more about the patch here -> pic.twitter.com/w0xuDizH82
— Gearbox Official (@GearboxOfficial) March 7, 2019
Other than standard bug fixes the other really, really great thing this patch does is fix the scope. In the base game the scope was just a little screen that popped up in low resolution with awful framerate — reportedly, the screen is now bigger with better framerate.
We haven’t gotten a chance to try out this patch for ourselves yet, but it sounds like two welcomed updates that a lot of people were asking for.
Read our full review of Borderlands 2 VR to see what we think of the game as a whole, read our tips for getting started if you’re new, and keep an eye out for it on other headsets, like Rift and Vive, later this year. Let us know what you think of this update down in the comments below!
Tagged with: Borderlands 2 VR, Gearbox Software, PS Aim
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