Review: Rangi

Porting videogames to more powerful platforms isn’t always that easy. Graphics can be improved but the overall feel will always come across from the original. This can be especially noticeable when bringing a Samsung Gear VR title to Oculus Rift or HTC Vive, as the differences between a smartphone an a VR-ready PC are massive. Earlier this year Funsoft released its African themed puzzler Rangi onto the mobile headset, and now its arrived on PC with full motion controller support. So has it ported well enough to be a worthwhile purchase for PC users? It certainly seems so.

On first glance the look of Rangi is fairly basic. It’s a highly stylized, cel-shaded videogame with masses of bold colours and very little textures. While this design may have been not only for artistic reasons but also performance on mobile devices, quite frankly the videogame still looks lush on the Oculus Rift. The aesthetically pleasing world that Funsoft has created can then be seen in the puzzles and music that accompany you on this mystical and at points surreal journey.

Rangi screenshot 1

VR puzzle titles have a tendency to be fairly short experiences with the difficulty ranging from easy throughout, to just plain difficult from the outset. Rangi doesn’t have this issue, with the studio managing to find that perfect difficulty curve. So the first few puzzles are rudimentary and simple, each one taking just moments to complete as you get a hang of the controls – of which there aren’t many. You can only move to set teleportation points, which can feel restrictive giving the abundance of roomscale titles, but that does mean you’re not wandering around trying to find out what goes where and what does what. Just be observant at each point and you’ll figure it out.

While the first puzzles ease you in, being nicely compact and room sized, they soon expand into massive landscape moving challenges that’ll test your memory as well as your puzzle solving skills. The one let down would be that while they do change in size and complexity, a significant portion do revolve around the same idea, moving blocks or spinning boxes to get a mixture of colours to lineup and open the next door. It doesn’t necessarily get boring, it does mean you get into a rhythm of what to do quite quickly.

Rangi screenshot 2

Because of the style of puzzle, Rangi for the most part is a relaxing videogame, allowing you to take your time to complete challenges at your own pace. Funsoft hasn’t been entirely kind however, as there are certain sections that are all about speed, with rising lava or spiked walls trying to kill you. It’s a refreshing change of pace which can catch you unawares the first time, turning into frustration should you make a mistake as you’ll get sent back to the start of the area.

VR puzzlers can be equally entertaining and annoying at the same time, which is why they tend to have a popular following. Rangi is one of those enjoyable experiences that just works. Sure it can’t match the cinematic spectacle of FORM but then its not trying to, delivering a character all of its own.

80%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: TimeLock VR

Escape room videogames have become a popular puzzle genre on virtual reality (VR) headsets, offering thought provoking challenges inside immersive interactive environments. Naturally the quality difference can vary wildly, with some offering interesting gameplay mechanics while others seem to be more ‘by the numbers’. Whale Rock Games has just launched its take on the genre with TimeLock VR, a title that falls into the former of those two, offering a varied mix of gaming options, some which work, others which don’t.

TimeLock VR is episodic in nature with this initial release offering just one room to complete. There’s a very basic story about you being some sort of agent, a newly hired recruit for an agency that has the ability to time travel. You’ve been sent to a certain period in time to recover an object – an underwhelming vase – but to do so you need to solve the puzzles in the house.

Timelock VR screenshot

First off you need to get to grips with the control mechanics – which are plentiful – if you’re going to succeed. Movement is purely teleportation – there are no options for anything else – bringing up a green box that shows your play area. Unlike some titles where you can twist the box to fine tune the area you can walk in, TimeLock VR doesn’t. This can be awkward at points but it doesn’t hinder the puzzle solving. What is annoying is that the right touchpad, which activates teleportation, also doubles down as a laser pointer to grab items at distance. This is activated by pressing the top of the touchpad, with moments in the action sequences (more on that later) when its easy to switch on the laser rather than teleport.

The left touchpad is even busier, with four functions located on it. Pressing up equips a bow and arrow, right is ‘play’, down is ‘pause’, and left is ‘rewind’. So what are these for? Well not only can you travel in time, you can control objects with it. Throw something in the air and you can pause it midair, rewind it back to you or grab your bow to obliterate it. So in TimeLock VR you can travel to different time periods of the house, alter time wherever you are to manipulate objects, shoot stuff, and then there are the puzzles – there’s quite a lot going on.

How well this all gels together is another matter. The puzzles for example are of the most basic kind. Find a key, open the door, and find the next key. The fact that some of the keys can only be used in certain time periods is novel but the feature is sorely underused. The keys and the door locks are brightly colour coordinated so it takes little time to figure out. There are a couple of other puzzle variants in the videogame but these are nothing more than matching shapes or finding a four digit code, hardly brain taxing.

Timelock VR gif

As you progress things also get weird. As everyone knows (if you’ve watched any sort of time travel movie) messing with it has repercussions. You’ll suddenly find yourself in a strange reality, where everything is ripped apart with undulating levels. It’s here that the action sequences come in, as Space Invader style enemies suddenly come in for an attack. That’s when the bow and unlimited arrows come into play. It’s a bizarre change up from trying to find keys, whilst also refreshing to get out of the house.

It’s difficult to make sense of everything going on in TimeLock VR. There are so many gameplay styles that at points it doesn’t know what type of videogame it’s trying to be, or simply trying to cater to too many tastes. Whale Rock Games has certainly taken a different approach to the usual escape room and that’s commendable. The puzzles needed to be more intricate, and combined with the time travelling – the object time manipulation wasn’t required for anything – for greater effect. Really, this should have been an early access title that the Steam community helped grow and nurture over several months.  At present it can only be classed as an average VR videogame at best.

60%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: Dash Dash Run!

Videogames, whether they’re traditional monitor-based or virtual reality (VR), for the most part tend to be fairly non-athletic. But there is a growing trend in the VR industry in creating much more physical entertainment because of motion controllers, and these are naturally based around sports. Running tends to be an issue because at present feet aren’t tracked – this may change when devices such as the Vive Tracker become more widely available. That hasn’t stopped developers trying however, and PrimeVR’s first VR title, Dash Dash Run!, does that by getting you to swing your arms as wildly as possible.

The actual technique is nothing new, with Survios’ Sprint Vector probably the best known (even though its not been released yet). It’s a simple technique that works very effectively as a means of forward locomotion, helping reduce the possibility of simulator sickness.

Dash Dash Run! screenshot

In Dash Dash Run! there is one main goal, getting to the end of the course as fast as possible, the faster you do so the more points you’ll score at the end. Each course has a bronze, silver and gold time which are shown prior to the race beginning. Once the race begins it’s time to start waving the controllers back and forth to build up speed, whilst you tilt your head to steer.

None of the courses are a straight shot, they’re littered with obstacles that can slow you down should you come into contact with them. There are also items that can aid a win and improve scores at the end. A double green arrow adds a quick speed boost, while a red icon grants a temporary shield so you can run though objects. Whilst these two are sparsely found on courses, the tracks are littered with gold coins which all add to that final score.

Dash Dash Run! is very energetic, it’s cartoon aesthetic belies an quite intense videogame that’ll have you sweating in no time. The basic nature of the controls means that it’s very easy to pick and start playing straight away – there’s no tutorial to speak of – just choose a course and start. The biggest issue with Dash Dash Run! are the amount of levels available, there’s currently only four, and with three of them requiring a gold time of around thirty seconds you’re going to get through them very quickly – the rainbow road style track will take over a minute which certainly makes those arms burn!

Dash Dash Run! screenshot

There is a worldwide leaderboard so that even if you get gold you may not rank highly, encouraging you to go back for another try, and you do get to compete against the other top players during each race. Aside from that there’s very little else to Dash Dash Run! It does have a few quirky additions, such as the avatar selection button which will randomly create your character and name – sometimes to amusing effect. Plus at the start and end of each race you can make gestures at the crowd or taunt your opponents with a selection of gestures using the HTC Vive’s touchpad.

Dash Dash Run! is a fun, novel videogame that’s great if you want a quick workout to work up a sweat. Unfortunately, there’s so little to the title after running the small amount of courses a few times that after about half an hour you’ll be done, moving onto something that’s got more to offer.

60%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: Rez Infinite

During the 2015 PlayStation Experience, Enhance Games’ President and CEO Tetsuya Mizuguchi took to the stage of the show to announce Rez Infinite, updating the 2001 classic Rez for Sega Dreamcast. At the time of the original launch not everyone understood what the videogame was about, while others saw it as ahead of its time. Then along came virtual reality (VR) and the developer decided to inject new life into a title that’s over a decade old, creating Rez Infinite for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation VR, saying “With Rez Infinite, I feel like that time has finally come.” The videogame was available at launch for PlayStation VR and now it’s come to Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. So should VR PC players be excited?

Your first thought before playing Rez Infinite might be how well a title that’s now 16 years old holds up to current technology, especially VR. Such was the minimalist styling and design that in reality it looks just fine. Rez was never about flashy 3D graphics as developers at the time created evermore elaborate worlds. It was the synergy between highly stylized imagery, audio and a simple gameplay mechanics that won it legions of fans.

Rez Infinite AreaX 01

So what do you get in this improved version? Well the original five levels are still there, reworked to look better than ever – whether you’re playing on a monitor or a VR headset (which you should be). These levels are completely on-rails, with you looking at your avatar as it flies along. Enhance Games has taken into account the various controller options available to players, so the title supports the HTC Vive motion controllers, Oculus Touch, Oculus Remote and a normal PC gamepad. The reticule can be controlled by any of these on their own, head movements or both, depending on preference. While you might find it easier using one, in fact having both turned on doesn’t cause an issue at all, seamlessly transitioning from one to the other as the situation requires.

To be honest, while these first levels are an engrossing mix of some beautifully choreographed visuals and music – as long as you like electronic tunes – they do feel somewhat constrained. With most of the attacks coming from in front – occasionally from side to side – at pace, you’re given very little time to look around and fully make use of the VR headset you’re wearing.

Rez Infinite AreaX 02

Not to worry though as the studio created Area X, specifically for VR. And it’s here that VR truly shines. You’re now given a completely free roaming area to play in, controlling forward direction and stopping with a press of a button, while turning is completely in the hands of the headset – the reticule can still be moved independently with motion controllers. Even though the area was designed as an experimental level, it’s by far the most fun and exhilarating of those available. Area X takes the sensory assault of the original levels and turns them up to eleven, creating an enchanting, almost mesmerizing experience that’ll leave you wanting more.

Yes, Rez Infinite is somewhat short, with an initial playthough possibly taking around a couple of hours, but you’ll enjoy (or should enjoy) every minute of it. So much so you’ll probably keep replaying it, improving your score, evolving your character and just taking in the whole spectacle. In answer to the first paragraph’s question about whether Oculus Rift and HTC Vive owners should be excited about Rez Infinite’s release, this is one VR videogame that should be in your library. 

100%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: Just In Time Incorporated

Virtual reality (VR) videogame developers have come up with all sorts of quirky and imaginative titles that utilise HTC Vive’s immersive control mechanics. Some have been more inventive than others, one of the most popular being the ability to simply pick things up to interact with the virtual environment. Titles such as Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-Ality have shown how this can be expertly used to create an engaging environment for you to play in. Second Wind Interactive has gone down a similar road with its first VR videogame, Just In Time Incorporated, where you must use the environment to save lives.

Just In Time Incorporated revolves around you starting a new job as a ‘Death Prevention Insurance’ agent, helping the company’s clients evade certain doom. To do this you’re supplied with a pair of ‘Hyper-Gloves’, so that you can slow down time, move super-fast through areas, and prevent the untimely end of those who’ve paid for protection.

Just In Time Incorporated screenshot 1

The indie developer has created a load of individual assignments split over three difficulty areas. After a brief training introduction you’re then free to pick whichever level you like, only unlocking further difficulties once enough assignments have been completed. As previously mentioned, these revolve around saving a particular client or clients, using whatever means are necessary.

So that might require you to prevent someone being killed by a bomb, being run over, or shot by a helicopter gunship. The levels and overall idea behind Just In Time Incorporated are wonderfully fun and unique, having a dark irreverent humour that works well with the voxel-based art style.

You’ll be able to grab bullets and redirect them towards enemies. Find a grenade on an enemy’s belt and use it against them, or pick a samurai sword to engage in some lighthearted decapitation. While this all works well enough, you’ll soon find yourself repeating the same moves, just with more hostiles to deal with. And while there are items to find around the environment that’ll help you complete the level, these are actually few and far between, meaning that most assignments tend to be fairly linear.

Just In Time Incorporated screenshot 2

The other main issue with Just In Time Incorporated is that it’s just too short. This style of videogame would have been fine a year ago, but with the VR industry moving at such a pace gamers want more in-depth gameplay – something they can get their teeth into – rather than another title that feels like an extended tech demo. At best you might get an hour of gameplay out of the entire experience, which isn’t enough anymore.

Just In Time Incorporated is a VR title that you’ll enjoy from start to finish. With its comedy styling’s, slow motion mechanics and simple pick up and play gameplay, it’s suited to any VR player. Unfortunately it’s desperately missing that replay factor, there’s nothing to keep you coming back once you’ve completed it – which isn’t that hard to do. If Second Wind Interactive can expand upon this initial release then Just In Time Incorporated certainly has promise. In its current form however, it’s difficult to recommend over far more accomplished experiences.

60%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: Archangel

Skydance Interactive’s efforts to pursue virtual reality (VR) entertainment should be commended. Having deployed an in-house team dedicated to development of several VR works, the studio is aiming for high-end visual quality and immersive gameplay. The first title to emerge, Archangel, achieves the former with grace, but sadly feels outdated with the latter.

In Archangel, the player is cast as military personnel designated as the pilot of a skyscraper-high mech. The videogame plays as an on-rails shooter, with the player granted no control over movement or pacing at any point. However, they are afforded the opportunity to wield a large variety of weaponry in an interesting manner.

Archangel screenshot

Played with the HTC Vive motion-controllers (or Oculus Touch), each controller represents a different arm of the mech. Each arm is equipped with a time-limited shield, which the player can pull across their body to provide protection from incoming fire. The shields take time to regenerate and cannot be used whilst firing the weapon connected to that arm, resulting in quick-thinking to ensure full-body coverage whilst still being able to return fire.

The weaponry the player has available is vast in quantity and varied in execution, though finding a preferred balance of heavy-hitting and rapid fire will be easy for most. Archangel’s later challenging levels will put your dependence on favourite fire arms to the test, and may call for some changes in tactical aggression. However, the variety of enemies thrown into combat in the first half of the videogame won’t really provide much pause for thought.

On PlayStation VR Archangel feels right at home. The limited input options offered by the PlayStation Move controllers work well acting as the mech’s arms and the lack of manual navigation results in an experience that is paced perfectly for VR newcomers. On the more powerful and less restrictive VR hardware available for high-end PCs however, Archangel already feels dated.

Archangel screenshot 1

The HTC Vive (and, to a lesser extent, the Oculus Rift), allow for free-form movement, and while it’s not essential for every videogame – EVE Valkyrie and Elite Dangerous in particular – it does place Archangel in a box which the core VR audience would naturally deem ‘dated’. PC-based VR has made rapid progress in the quality and variety of content offered in the 17 months since launch, and on-rails experiences have long been considered passé.

What Archangel does manage to achieve is a remarkably high quality of visual design. Despite the demands VR places upon hardware, Skydance Interactive has managed to produce some remarkably detailed environments and character models for the war to wage with. Of the highest standard yet seen in VR, Archangel’s visual fidelity ranks alongside the likes of Robo Recall and Lone Echo in terms of graphical prowess, if not for pushing the boundaries of VR gameplay.

Archangel accomplishes much of what it sets out to do; a frequently intense on-rails shooter that looks spectacular and challenges players within its own predetermined rule set. However, it’s perhaps a case of limited ambition from the start that has kept Archangel from achieving more, as the genre chosen was one born of hardware limitation decades ago, and even now in these early days of VR those limitations are simply no longer there.

60%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: Front Defense

World War first-person shooters (FPS) have always been massively popular in the videogame community, putting players inside one of the darkest periods of recent history. That becomes even more pronounced using virtual reality (VR) with one of HTC’s internal development teams, Fantahorn Studio, focusing on the period for its first title, Front Defense, exclusively on Viveport. Putting you directly in the heat of the action, the experience feels like a safe bet for a platform filled with these sort of titles.

So lets get one thing out the way first, Front Defense may be set in WW2 and feature authentic weapons of the period but at its core it’s a wave shooter. That needed to be said as quite a few of you may just stop reading at this point, because frankly you’ll be thinking ‘if I’ve played one wave shooter I’ve played them all’, and for the most part you’d be right.

Front Defense screenshot

Front Defense pits you as the Allied forces against the German army, supplying you with a set roster of weapons that don’t really change through the videogame. At your disposal is an automatic rifle, a rocket launcher, grenades and a mounted machine gun. On the third stage you also given a .50 cal machine gun to take down aircraft, but that’s your lot.

There’s a heavy focus on realism with the rifle and bazooka both needing to be reloaded in the appropriate fashion. This realism also extends to the level design and look, with each stage set in a fictional European village that look like you’re really back in the 1940’s. Explosions are constant, with holes being ripped into buildings and the sounds of aircraft and sirens fill the air for dramatic effect.

HTC is heavily promoting Front Defense as a roomscale experience fully utilising the technology to make you move about the area as much as possible. You find yourself behind a sand barrier throughout the levels, going from one side to the other picking up ammo or the appropriate gun depending on the enemy. There’s just one little cravat, you’ll need an area at least three metres squared. That’s a significant amount of area needed to play the title, and will surely hamper players decisions on purchasing the title. If you don’t have that minimum area then quickly grabbing at any of the inventory – most of it is on the edges – then becomes a battle with whatever furniture or walls are in the way, significantly impeding the experience.

Then there’s longevity, Force Defense has just three stages. It’s the usual last as long as you can whilst killing as many enemies as possible for a nice big score which can then be shown on some global leaderboards. As previously mentioned you’re defending a post behind a sand barrier so there’s no teleportation or other movement mechanics to worry about – you’ll be doing a lot of kneeling to survive – and that doesn’t alter through each area. So you’ll have to carefully pick your moments to stand up and release an onslaught of bullets to reach the higher scores, just don’t stand up for too long or you’ll get shredded.

Front Defense screenshot

The other issue with it being a wave shooter is that enemies don’t tend to be overly dynamic. They’re all aiming for your one location so predicting where they’re going isn’t too difficult. Thankfully if they run across open ground and find cover it’ll be used, but at points you’ll see them shooting from balconies or elevated windows, just stood there waiting to be shot. Things do get a little more tense if you let yourself become surround by troops and a tank arrives, but by that point it just becomes a barrage of gunfire in your direction with little hope of success.

While Fantahorn Studio seems to have gone for a VR by the numbers approach there are nice flourishes of gameplay design. Grabbing a grenade for example, you need to bring it to your face to pull the pin – as if pulling it by your teeth – or when you get to call in an airstrike you have to select the area and time the drop for maximum effect.

Front Defense is an experience that leaves you wanting. It’s one of those titles in which you can see bags of potential in the individual elements but ultimately it just doesn’t fit together as a perfect whole. You’ll play it a few times, complete it, but then never be drawn back to face another wave of Axis forces.

60%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: Front Defense

World War first-person shooters (FPS) have always been massively popular in the videogame community, putting players inside one of the darkest periods of recent history. That becomes even more pronounced using virtual reality (VR) with one of HTC’s internal development teams, Fantahorn Studio, focusing on the period for its first title, Front Defense, exclusively on Viveport. Putting you directly in the heat of the action, the experience feels like a safe bet for a platform filled with these sort of titles.

So lets get one thing out the way first, Front Defense may be set in WW2 and feature authentic weapons of the period but at its core it’s a wave shooter. That needed to be said as quite a few of you may just stop reading at this point, because frankly you’ll be thinking ‘if I’ve played one wave shooter I’ve played them all’, and for the most part you’d be right.

Front Defense screenshot

Front Defense pits you as the Allied forces against the German army, supplying you with a set roster of weapons that don’t really change through the videogame. At your disposal is an automatic rifle, a rocket launcher, grenades and a mounted machine gun. On the third stage you also given a .50 cal machine gun to take down aircraft, but that’s your lot.

There’s a heavy focus on realism with the rifle and bazooka both needing to be reloaded in the appropriate fashion. This realism also extends to the level design and look, with each stage set in a fictional European village that look like you’re really back in the 1940’s. Explosions are constant, with holes being ripped into buildings and the sounds of aircraft and sirens fill the air for dramatic effect.

HTC is heavily promoting Front Defense as a roomscale experience fully utilising the technology to make you move about the area as much as possible. You find yourself behind a sand barrier throughout the levels, going from one side to the other picking up ammo or the appropriate gun depending on the enemy. There’s just one little cravat, you’ll need an area at least three metres squared. That’s a significant amount of area needed to play the title, and will surely hamper players decisions on purchasing the title. If you don’t have that minimum area then quickly grabbing at any of the inventory – most of it is on the edges – then becomes a battle with whatever furniture or walls are in the way, significantly impeding the experience.

Then there’s longevity, Force Defense has just three stages. It’s the usual last as long as you can whilst killing as many enemies as possible for a nice big score which can then be shown on some global leaderboards. As previously mentioned you’re defending a post behind a sand barrier so there’s no teleportation or other movement mechanics to worry about – you’ll be doing a lot of kneeling to survive – and that doesn’t alter through each area. So you’ll have to carefully pick your moments to stand up and release an onslaught of bullets to reach the higher scores, just don’t stand up for too long or you’ll get shredded.

Front Defense screenshot

The other issue with it being a wave shooter is that enemies don’t tend to be overly dynamic. They’re all aiming for your one location so predicting where they’re going isn’t too difficult. Thankfully if they run across open ground and find cover it’ll be used, but at points you’ll see them shooting from balconies or elevated windows, just stood there waiting to be shot. Things do get a little more tense if you let yourself become surround by troops and a tank arrives, but by that point it just becomes a barrage of gunfire in your direction with little hope of success.

While Fantahorn Studio seems to have gone for a VR by the numbers approach there are nice flourishes of gameplay design. Grabbing a grenade for example, you need to bring it to your face to pull the pin – as if pulling it by your teeth – or when you get to call in an airstrike you have to select the area and time the drop for maximum effect.

Front Defense is an experience that leaves you wanting. It’s one of those titles in which you can see bags of potential in the individual elements but ultimately it just doesn’t fit together as a perfect whole. You’ll play it a few times, complete it, but then never be drawn back to face another wave of Axis forces.

60%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: VR Slugger: The Toy Field

Baseball is often seen as a quintessential American sport – the World Series only features US teams unlike football’s World Cup – but it’s still popular around the world and usually features in videogames that include a mashup of sports. It’s the type of game that fits virtual reality (VR) really well, putting players inside massive stadiums using a motion controller to swing a bat to their heart content’s. So Poly Poly Games has taken the sport and mixed it up into an amusing, colourful experience that’s as much about hitting a home run as it is about just having some fun, with VR Slugger: The Toy Field.

As the name suggests, this isn’t a baseball simulator interested in finely tuned accuracy or trying to catch you out. Instead VR Slugger: The Toy Field is all about scoring points and hitting random targets across two different gameplay modes, Time Attack and Puzzle Mode.

VR Slugger: The Toy Field screenshot 2

Time Attack is the best place to start things off. Given a massive over sized bat you need to keep hitting as many balls as possible until your timer runs out. This is very much an arcade style mode where you can be as accurate or inaccurate as you please. To score the big points and get up on the global leaderboards you’ll need to be aware of everything that’s going on around you. Sure you can hit home-runs one after the other but there is much more you should be aiming for. Massive baseball gloves, giant rubber ducks, blimps, catchers and even lamp posts are all there to be aimed at and hit. You’ll spot people in the stands who’ll hold up mock banners with additional time or points to collect if you’re good enough.

While Puzzle Mode feels a lot more like the main campaign. The same principles may apply in terms of aiming for targets but the challenge is upped somewhat. Rather than aiming for whatever you please you’re given specific objects to hit, and each level won’t move on until you’ve done so.

Starting with five balls you’ll gain further balls as each level is completed, making progression that little bit easier so long as you don’t finish on one ball each time. If the pitcher runs out of balls to throw then it’s game over. To incentivise progression you’ll be able to unlock new bats to play with such as pencils, fish and guitars.

VR Slugger: The Toy Field screenshot 3

The actual physics of VR Slugger: The Toy Field are really good. The bat feels nice and precise with a good solid whack when the ball strikes. And just as in the real game itself, hitting the ball is one thing, getting it to go where you want takes time and practice, lots and lots of practice. This is where frustration levels can increase somewhat, especially in the Puzzle Mode, where Time Attack – even with a clock – is much more relaxed and enjoyable.

VR Slugger: The Toy Field isn’t a videogame where you have to enjoy baseball to appreciate the gameplay but it may help when you’re just constantly hitting ball after ball. It’s another one of those VR titles that works well enough but isn’t going to hold your attention for massive length’s of time, more of a dip in and out videogame for HTC Vive, when you’re bored of all the shooting titles available for the headset. If you’ve been yearning for a decent VR baseball title then you should give VR Slugger: The Toy Field a try.

60%

Awesome

  • Verdict

Review: Slice & Dice

Not a week seems to go by without another virtual reality (VR) puzzle experience being released – the last one VRFocus reviewed was FORM. So for a genre filling up with evermore brain taxing titles the need to be inventive and unique becomes a real must. Enter Slice & Dice from Korean developer VRotein, a videogame that’s all about cutting blocks to pieces to get a die into a goal. 

Slice & Dice isn’t some flashy puzzle experience that features a convoluted storyline, protracted sequences or any other fluff. It’s just you and loads of levels to to play through, each more fiendish and difficult than the last. As mentioned in the last paragraph, this videogame is about slicing blocks to manoeuvre a die from its position into a goal located in the floor of the level. To do this you’re provided with a tool that features three functions, singular slice, multi slice and explosive. All fairly self explanatory, the first only cuts one block, the second cuts through loads, while the last simply destroys one cube.

Slice & Dice screenshot 1

It’s this refined approach that works in Slice & Dice’s favour, rather than over complicating the gameplay mechanics. The levels are thoroughly thought out, mixing up these three core actions for some truly head scratching puzzles. And there are certainly a lot of them. Split across five stages each featuring 20 levels, as you would expect Slice & Dice eases you into the gameplay. VRotein gradually introduce new blocks in a fashion that’s not overwhelming so when red blocks (that can’t be cut) or ice cubes (that slide) it all feels like a natural progression.

As you delve deeper into the trickier stages you’ll find there’s somewhat of an art form to cutting blocks. This isn’t Fruit Ninja, where you’re wildly swinging away without a care in the world, this is precision stuff. To get the desired angle you can teleport around the area and notch yourself higher and lower. Getting this just right is a crucial factor as the die could just roll completely away from the goal. When you go to make a slice an area of the block is highlighted pink – signifying what’s about to be removed – and this can be done as many times as you like, although the fewer cuts mean a better score.

Completing levels earn you stars, do it within the allotted parameters VRotein has set and you’ll earn the maximum three. This is where Slice & Dice tries to mix in some replayability just as other puzzle titles do. Once you’ve finished all the levels you can go back and try to finish any that you didn’t max. It’s a tried and tested method, but with the inventiveness found through the rest of the videogame it’s a shame the studio didn’t come up with a more original solution.

Slice & Dice screenshot 2

VRotein claim Slice & Dice has over 20 hours of gameplay but that’s not necessarily the case as this is completely dependent on how good you are at this type of videogame. What can be said is that the latter levels will test your patience so you may want to put those controllers down once in awhile. If you want a novel VR challenge, you can’t go wrong with Slice & Dice.

80%

Awesome

  • Verdict