Category: Lies Beneath

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Hold Your Nerve With These Scary VR Horror Titles

Lies Beneath

Halloween is almost upon us and while the events of 2020 may hamper traditional activities such as Trick or Treating, there are plenty of other ways to enjoy the season. You could carve some pumpkins, dress up in some ghoulish face paint or if you’re really really brave play some of the virtual reality (VR) videogames listed below.

Affected: The Manor

AFFECTED: The Manor

This scary title has been doing the rounds for several years now, available on most platforms with recent updates adding a speedrun mode called The Gauntlet whilst The Darkness update upped the intensity by adding just a single candle for illumination. AFFECTED: The Manor isn’t so much a game rather a haunted house experience with multiple routes and endings if you can handle returning.

Five Nights at Freddys VR

Five Nights at Freddy’s: Help Wanted

The long-running franchise came to VR in 2019 and was all the better for it. Full of bite-sized mini-games that will get your heart racing, the scenes from the previous editions have been updated for VR whilst new ones were added. If you like jump scares (or don’t) it doesn’t get much more intense than this.

In Death: Unchained

In Death/In Death: Unchained

Whether it’s In Death for PC VR and PlayStation VR or In Death: Unchained for Oculus Quest, what you get is a frantic fight against hordes of demons, with only a bow for company. Procedural levels mean that each run is never quite the same and death sees you placed back at the start.

Lies Beneath

Lies Beneath

A good horror game needs to be super creepy, usually with a nice mix of impending doom and some horrible looking monsters. If that’s what you’re looking for then Drifter Entertainment’s Lies Beneath should suffice. With some striking artwork and a comic book style delivery, this should easily keep you on edge.

Layers of Fear

Layers of Fear VR

Set in a hauntingly twisted mansion, Layers of Fear VR is a remake of the pancake original, adding immersive controls for a more intense experience. You play as a painter trying to finish his Magnum Opus yet as you wander his Victorian mansion his mind begins to unravel.

Propagation VR

Propagation VR

Time for one of the newest horror titles on this list, Propagation VR is the work of French team WanadevStudio. Normally creating videogames for VR arcades this is a wave shooter set in a dilapidated subway station after a virus has broken out. With no locomotion the action comes from all sides, creeping out of the darkness for some frightening moments. And the best bit is Propagation VR is completely free!

Phasmophobia

Phasmophobia

The current indie hit on Steam which only arrived into Early Access during September, Phasmophobia is a 4 player online co-op psychological horror. Whether you’re in VR or on PC, you and your team are paranormal investigators searching haunted locations for evidence of ghostly activity.

The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners

The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners

For those after an awesome zombie survival experience in VR then look no further than Skydance Interactive’s The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners. From the safety of your base where you can craft weapons and useful tools you need to head into the streets of New Orleans, searching houses for resources and finding other survivors to uncover their stories. And of course, removing a few walkers along the way.

The Room VR: A Dark Matter

The Room VR: A Dark Matter

Maybe not everyone’s definition of a horror experience, those that love a good atmospheric puzzle title should take a look at The Room VR: A Dark Matter. Expanding upon the popular mobile series you’re sent back to London circa 1908 to the British Institute of Archaeology where an esteemed Egyptologist has disappeared and a spine-tingling world awaits.

The Exorcist Legion VR screenshot 3

The Exorcist: Legion VR

Pretty much a staple of most VR horror lists, The Exorcist: Legion VR was released back in 2018 by British studio Wolf and Wood. An episodic story spilt across five chapters, you play the role of a detective investigating grisly murders. Needless to say, these all have a paranormal twist.

Blair Witch Oculus Quest

Blair Witch: Oculus Quest Edition

This final is a little extra because it’s not quite out yet. Another standard game port into VR, Blair Witch: Oculus Quest Edition has been redesigned for the headset with lots more interactive features. This probably makes it more terrifying to play as you wander into those haunted woods. It’s set to arrive just in time for Halloween on 29th October 2020.

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Best Oculus Quest Horror Games: Scariest Standalone Picks

Looking for the best Oculus Quest horror games? Dare yourself to read our list below.

The Oculus Quest is a smashing success in the VR space for lots of reasons, but one of the main contributors is the stellar library of content. And as it turns out, some of the very best VR games out on Quest are also some of the very best VR horror games available. In this list, we’ll go over the best Oculus Quest horror games.

Note: This list was originally published in August 2020

Playing VR horror games is a totally different prospect than playing one outside of VR on a normal, flat monitor screen. The growing sense of dread, terror, and tension is palpable as you feel the chills run down your spine while twisting your head all around in search of what’s stalking you.

All of these horror games are excellent at making you terrified to even open your eyes. If you’re after a good fright on Oculus Quest, then look no further. This is our definitive list, as of May 2021, of the best Oculus Quest horror games. You can grab these games over on the Oculus Store. If you want our definitive rank of the best Oculus Quest horror games, head here.

Best Oculus Quest Horror Games

Affected: The Manor (Also On PC VR And PSVR)

While Affected: The Manor has been around for years and years, first releasing way back on the Gear VR, it still earns a spot on this list due in no small part to its sheer adaptability. Despite showing its age a bit now visually, it still manages to kick up a solid scare and is an excellent introductory VR experience for fans of horror. You can complete the whole thing in well under an hour and it nails that sense of atmospheric exploration that so few VR horror games really do.

Additionally, it just got a new update recently that adds a “Gauntlet” mode as a sort of horror-themed speedrun through a series of haunted hallways. It’s fun to try and get through as quickly as possible and rank on the leaderboard as a fun diversion. If you’re the type of person that shows off VR to friends and family often, Affected should be a staple of your Quest library.

You Can Read Our Review Here

Face Your Fears II

Unlike its predecessor, which was a collection of bite-sized vignettes rather than full VR horror games, Face Your Fears II is a proper single-player narratively-driven campaign that’s laced with frights from top to bottom. You’ll explore a dark, haunting world full of classic horror tropes such as giant spiders, creepy old houses, and spooky graveyards.

If you’re the type of gamer that wants something meatier that will take at least a few hours to get through and can’t be beaten in a single go, then this is right up your alley — especially if you’re down for some jump scares. This is one of the scariest VR games out there and one of the best Oculus Quest horror games for sure.

Jurassic World: Aftermath

Jurassic World: Aftermath falls somewhere between two genres – it’s mostly a stealth game, but there’s certainly elements of horror that make it worthy of being on the list. Certain segments, mainly in the middle of the game, take a bigger turn towards horror, but even the stealthy segments can still be pretty frightening. 

Fans of the Jurassic Park/World franchise will be pleased and no doubt have fun hiding from the different types of dinosaurs. Overall, it’s a visually stunning game that falls a bit short of being excellent and isn’t complete just yet – the game currently only has part one included, with part two supposedly available sometime later this year as paid DLC.

You can read our review here.

The Exorcist: Legion VR (Also On PC VR And PSVR)

This is without a doubt one of the scariest VR games to date and the Quest port does a fine job of translating over the experience. Visually it’s a bit paired down, as expected, but you can hardly tell since the PC VR version wasn’t much of a looker anyway. In it you take on the role of an investigator that’s looking for answers following a series of strange happenings that first kickoff in a large chapel. The game spans multiple episodes and culminates in a final set piece moment worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster horror film.

You can finish the whole thing in a few hours, but it’s full of tense moments and chilling scenes. There’s one particular level that utilizes a possessed baby and mannequin dolls to great effect — two of my absolute most triggering things in horror media. Highly recommended, despite the relative brevity, and easily one of the best Oculus Quest horror games.

You Can Read Our Review Here

Lies Beneath

This is the most robust Oculus Quest game on the list in terms of single-player story-driven content. The narrative is both rich with details and well-acted complete with a strong campaign full of twists and turns. Visually it features striking cel-shaded art style with comic book panels for narrative moments that really make you feel like you’re living out the pages of a graphic novel. Gameplay is split between using guns like shotguns and revolves and relying on melee weapons to fend off the hordes of monsters.

Lies Beneath may have very well ended up in the top spot on this list were it not for the purely concentrated doses of distilled tension the top spot offers, but make no mistake: Lies Beneath is a deeply immersive and incredibly unsettling adventure all horror fans owe to themselves to try out.

You Can Read Our Review Here

Cosmodread (Also on PC VR)

From the developer that made Dreadhalls, the cult-classic grandfather of horror VR games, Cosmodread is a worthy successor and another one of the best Oculus Quest horror games.

Visually, it leaves a bit to be desired and it employs a roguelike design that can sometimes feel a bit repetitive. However, it makes up for those faults completely with its use of VR horror. “Although it doesn’t do a whole lot to push the genre forward in many meaningful ways, it absolutely nails the suffocating terror, incredibly immersive atmosphere, and unnerving tension that makes VR horror so powerful,” we said in our review. 

You can read more here.

Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife

Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife is a new VR entry in the World of Darkness series (that otherwise consists of horror-themed tabletop RPGs) that takes a psychological approach to horror instead of relying on just jump scares. It builds tension through atmosphere and tells a compelling story about a photographer, Ed, who is called to Barclay Mansion where things quickly take a turn for the worse.

It’s a slower-paced horror game that might not be for everyone, but it uses horror in the way that plays to VR’s strengths very well, making it an essential part of the Quest’s horror collection.

You can read our review here.

Five Nights At Freddy’s VR: Help Wanted

Did you even have a doubt in your mind? Five Nights at Freddy’s VR is an excellent example of how to focus in on a core, specific idea and knock it out of the park. The premise here is that you are a caretaker for a chain of pizzerias similar to Chuck E. Cheese restaurants, however, after hours the animatronic characters come to life and hunt you. Staying alive is your goal and it’s much easier said than done.

Five Nights at Freddy’s VR is mostly a series of mini-games, but they’re each paced so well that it’s nearly impossible not to jump, scream, and/or rip the headset off over bouts of unbridled anxiety. If you think you’ve got nerves of steel, I dare you to take more than a few minutes of this one without suffering from the chills.

You Can Read Our Review Here

Resident Evil 4 VR

It’s still quite hard to comprehend that Resident Evil 4 VR not only exists on a standalone headset, but plays better than it has any right to. But RE4 VR is a very thoughtful port, with full motion control support, drastically reworked systems and even upgraded visuals over the original. Somehow developer Armature was able to take the near-faultless combat of the Capcom classic and translate it to VR without losing all of the nerve-shredding intensity the original delivered.

There are some rough edges like bad QTEs and constant cutscenes, but RE4 VR is an amazing way to re-experience the classic.

You Can Read Our Review Here

Those are our picks for the best Oculus horror games and other headsets, but what are yours? Let us know in the comments.

Update 10/29/21: Resident Evil 4 VR was added to the list.

We’re always updating our lists and writing new ones for various VR platforms and game genres — keep an eye out for more in the near future. In the meantime, check out our list of the 5 best shooters on Quest and our list of the top 25 games and experiences on Quest.

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Comic Book-inspired Horror Survival ‘Lies Beneath’ Now Available on Rift

Lies Beneath (2020), the Oculus-exclusive survival horror VR game from Gunheart (2018) creators Drifter Entertainment, launched late last month on Oculus Quest. Now Rift users can get into the fun too, if you can call being slightly traumatized “fun”.

We generally liked Lies Beneath on Quest, giving it a solid [7/10] in our review for its intense graphic novel visual style, interesting hand-drawn enemies and environments, and serviceable action.

While Lies Beneath a pretty bare-bones shooter at its core, this gritty standalone adventure has a lot going for it though. The level of fear and violence in the game’s dark and foreboding universe is a big standout for us in general, although melee fighting and object interaction don’t really shine as much as we had hoped.

Although clearly built with Quest in mind first, Lies Beneath made some interesting design decisions which give it a look more befitting of the PC VR platform, namely its dark, claustrophobic levels and cool cell shaded environment. This, even if it’s a 1:1 port, shouldn’t put you off, or feel overly ‘mobile-y’. That said, you’ll easily sink in the 6+ hours to complete, and maybe come back for more on a higher difficulty level.

You can find Lies Beneath on the Oculus Store for Rift now, priced at $30.

The post Comic Book-inspired Horror Survival ‘Lies Beneath’ Now Available on Rift appeared first on Road to VR.

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Survival Horror VR Game Lies Beneath Now Available For Oculus Rift With Cross-Buy

Newly revealed survival horror game Lies Beneath is now available for the Oculus Rift and Rift S through the Oculus Store. The game was developed by Drifter Entertainment and published by Oculus Studios, with an exclusive pre-Rift launch on the Oculus Quest at the end of last month.

Drifter previously worked on the Quest port of Robo Recall, and developed co-op shooter Gunheart before that. The team first teased Lies Beneath in a mysterious trailer earlier this year, and now that it’s been out on the Oculus Quest for two weeks, it’s available for the Oculus Rift as well. However, if you already purchased the Oculus Quest version and want to play it on Rift, don’t fear! The title is cross-buy across the two platforms, so one purchase will give you access to the game on both platforms.

We reviewed the Quest version of Lies Beneath on release and David was pretty happy with how the game panned out. While it’s not the pinnacle of VR scares and horror, it carries a tense atmosphere and stylish art style throughout:

While Lies Beneath doesn’t pack enough true terror to be considered a new peak for VR horror, it does manage to craft an intriguing story in a stylishly formed world with mostly satisfying combat and palpable tension. It’s exciting to see a developer that was so previously rooted in the fast-paced action shooter category branching out to something more slow-paced, narratively-driven, and visually unique.

You can read the full review here. 

Lies Beneath is available for the Oculus Rift and Rift S on the Oculus Store now for $30.

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The VR Game Launch Roundup: Wizards and Wave Shooters

Here are five new virtual reality (VR) titles to look forward to over the next week. Featuring a mixture of new AAA experiences, indie games and re-releases, this week’s list features content for every headset. Make sure to check out the accompanying YouTube video for more information on each title.

Lies BeneathLies Beneath – Drifter Entertainment

Previously just released on the Oculus Quest, Drifter Entertainment’s well-received action-horror survival videogame is now getting the Oculus Rift treatment. Set in the town of Slumber, Alaska. College student Mae is on a mission to save her father from the townsfolk and creatures who have infected her hometown. Featuring various levels of comfort and difficulty, you are tasked with fending off hordes of monsters using various unique weaponry such as shotguns, knives and explosives while solving various puzzles along the way.

  • Supported platforms: Oculus Rift
  • Launch date: 14th April

Dragonride VR – TypeEh Studios

Following a delay, indie studio TypeEh Studios is finally releasing dragon-flying experience next week. Race through the skies of three different interactive fantasy worlds. Featuring a range of different comfort modes while travelling, users can complete time challenges, shoot targets and cast magic spells while flying through stunning landscapes.

DragonRide VRDjinni & Thaco: Trial By Spire –

In this first-person VR tower defence title, you take on the role of powerful magical spirit Djinni, who has been sent by the wizard Thaco to defeat the armies sent by enemy King Crambone. Featuring over 30 hours of gameplay, use hand gestures to perform spells to take on the hordes of strange enemies, such as knights, pixies and giant clock robots.

The Under Presents – Tender Claws

Previously released for Oculus Quest in November 2019, The Under Presents is a theatrical VR experience featuring pre-recorded and live actors in a multiplayer hub as well as a solo mission called Timeboat! Brought to you by LA-based studio Tender Claws, you enter a dimension that exists outside of time and space, encountering a mysterious being known as “The Under.” You interact with both other VR users and scripted film characters in an experience described by the studio as a place where “immersive theatre meets VR gaming.”

KongfusionKongfusion – ZMVR

In this single-player indie action VR Kung Fu title, you are faced with taking on hordes of numerous incoming Kungfu enemies which you must work quickly to dodge. Featuring two game modes, ‘Arcade’ and ‘Endless,’ the enemies fly in to block the player’s progress. You must use your fighting stick to fend off any enemies in your path, along with other obstacles and traps that stand in your way.

That’s all for now folks. Make sure to subscribe and follow VRFocus across all our social channels and be the first to see all the latest news, updates, reviews and updates on all things VR and AR.

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New VR Game Releases For April 2020

Every month we aim to round up each and every VR game release for you in one single place — this is April’s list for 2020. Check the bolded entries for ones we feel are particularly worth your time.

Well, it’s been a while since we did these lists! No real excuse other than I kept forgetting and other stuff got in the way. Aiming to stick with it more this time like before!

And don’t forget to watch VRecap every Friday to stay on top of the top news stories, top new releases, and our weekly VR game giveaway.

If you’re a VR game developer planning to release a game soon that isn’t on this month’s list or will be released soon in the future — let us know! You can get in touch with me directly by emailing david@uploadvr.com or hit all of the editorial team by emailing tips@uploadvr.com. Please contact us about your upcoming releases so that we can know what you’re working on and include you in release lists!

Unless otherwise stated, all PC VR releases are the Steam versions.

Rift, Vive, Index, and Windows VR Game Releases For April 2020

2MD: VR Football Evolution ($12.99) – April 1st – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR (Read Our Review Of The Quest Version)
A Giant Problem ($9.99) – April 1st – Rift, Vive, Index
GRIP: Combat Racing ($29.99) – April 1st – Rift, Vive, Index
Dead Ground Arcade (Free) – April 1st – Rift, Vive, Windows MR
Reiko’s Fragments Oculus Home Version ($9.99) – April 2nd – Rift, also on Steam (Read Our Impressions)
Mission Ring Impossible ($4.99) – April 2nd – Rift, Vive
Soundart ($19.99) – April 2nd – Rift, Vive, Windows MR
Zombie World Coronavirus Apocalypse VR ($14.99) – April 3rd – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
Basketball Madness ($4.99) – April 3rd – Rift, Vive, Index
Iron Blood VR ($19.99) – April 4th – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
Hobo Living VR ($9.99) – April 4th – Vive, Index
VERz ($12.99) – April 5th – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
No Man’s Sky: Exo Mech Update (Free If You Own The Game) – April 7th – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows VR
Disaster Report 4: Summer Memories ($59.99) – April 7th – Rift, Vive, Index
Boiling Steel: Preface (Free) – April 7th – Oculus Home
Virtual Viking (Free) – April 8th – Rift, Vive
Ironlights ($19.99) – April 8th – Rift, Vive, Index (Read Our Full Review)
HoopLord ($6.99) – April 9th – Rift, Vive, Index
Virus Popper (Free) – April 9th – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
Boom Boomerang ($12.99) – April 10th – Rift, Vive
VR Mini Bowling 2 ($12.99) – April 10th – Rift, Vive, Index
Box: Boxing ($0.99) – April 11th – Rift, Vive, Index
DragonRide VR ($19.99) – April 12th – Rift
Lies Beneath ($29.99) – April 14th – Rift (Read Our Review Of The Quest Version)
Cryptic Rooms ($7.99) – April 14th – Rift, Vive, Index
Straight on 8 ($10.99) – April 14th – Vive, Index
Virtual Battlegrounds ($19.99) – April 15th – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
Heavens Tournament ($7.99) – April 16th – Rift, Vive, Index
Food Girls – Bubbles’ Drink Stand VR ($13.99) – April 17th – Rift, Vive, Index
Waves of Death VR ($19.99) – April 17th – Rift, Vive, Index
Smashing Healthy ($19.99) – April 18th – Rift, Vive, Index
Tabletop Playground Beta (Free) – April 19th – Rift, Vive, Index
Cast VR ($14.99) – April 20th – Rift, Vive
Baby Shark VR Dancing ($9.99) – April 20th – Rift, Vive, Windows MR
Swords of Gurrah ($19.99) – April 21st – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
Survival Denied ($11.99) – April 21st – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
A Walk in the Woods ($1.99) – April 21st – Rift, Vive, Index
HookShot VR ($6.99) – April 22nd – Vive
Xenociders ($24.99) – April 22nd – Rift, Vive
SoundSelf: A Technodelic ($29.99) – April 22nd – Rift, Vive, Index
Food Factory VR ($9.99) – April 22nd – Rift, Vive, Index
Crawling of the Dead ($24.99) – April 23rd – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
Henchman for Hire (Free) – April 23rd – Rift, Vive, Index
Slinger VR ($14.99) – April 23rd – Rift, Vive, Index
BoxVR – Essentials Pack DLC ($9.99 | Requires Base Game) – April 23rd – Rift, Vive, Index
Pixel Ripped 1995 ($19.99) – April 23rd – Rift, Vive, Index (Read Our Review)
Lost Circus VR – The Prologue ($4.99) – April 23rd – Rift, Vive, Index
SpellPunk VR ($19.99) – April 24th – Rift, Vive
Wacky Golf Land ($14.99) – April 24th – Rift, Vive, Windows MR
Arcsaber VR ($4.99) – April 24th – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
VainPlanet ($4.99) – April 25th – Rift
Galactic Protection Squad: Episode 1 ($9.99) – April 27th – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
Joe’s Fists ($6.99) – April 27th – Rift, Vive, Index
Mission: In Boxes ($14.99) – April 227th – Rift, Vive
Teleporter: World of Gamers Alpha ($TBD) – April 2020 – Rift, Vive, Index, Windows MR
Panther VR Early Access ($TBD) – April 2020 – Rift, Vvie, Index, Windows MR

 

Oculus Quest And Go VR Game Releases For April 2020
(Read Here For How To Use SideQuest)

Snake in a Box ($3.00) – April 1st – Quest via SideQuest
Guns’n’Stories: Bulletproof ($9.99) – April 2nd – Quest
Virtual Coaster Hand Tracking (Free) – April 3rd – Quest via SideQuest
Pinata Party (Free) – April 4th – Quest via SideQuest
Turbokites (Free) – April 6th – Quest via SideQuest
Beat The Coronavirus (Free) – April 6th – Quest via SideQuest
Dino Encounters Hand Tracking Demo (Free) – April 7th – Quest via SideQuest
Ironlights ($19.99) – April 8th – Quest (Read Our Full Review)
Audioshield ($19.99) – April 16th – Quest (Read Our Full Review)
The Key (Free) – April 16th – Quest (Read Our Impressions)
Pixel Ripped 1995 ($19.99) – April 23rd Quest – (Read Our Review)
Supernatural (Free Trial, $20/mo After) – April 23rd – (Read Our Impressions)

PSVR Game Releases For April 2020

Megalth VR Complete Edition ($24.99) – April 2nd – (Read Our Impressions)
Headmaster: The Lost Lessons ($7.99) – April 3rd – (Read Our Original Game Review)
Form ($14.99) – April 7th (Read Our Review)
Disaster Report 4: Summer Memories ($59.99) – April 7th
No Man’s Sky: Exo Mech Update (Free If You Own The Game) – April 7th
A Room Where Art Conceals ($9.49) – April 8th
Sharknado VR: Eye of the Storm ($8.99) – April 8th (Read Our Brief Preview)
Spuds Unearthed ($9.99) – April 23rd
Down The Rabbit Hole – April 2020 (Read Our Quest/PC VR Version Review Here)

As a point of emphasis: reach out to david@uploadvr.com or tips@uploadvr.com to let us know about your upcoming VR game releases!

Editor’s Note: This list will be continuously updated.

Last Updated: 4/28/2020

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Vive Cosmos Headset Only, RIP Mobile VR & Win Arizona Sunshine on Quest! – VRecap

This week has seen the rise in PC VR numbers and the fall of mobile VR’s biggest platform, and we can’t forget the new releases. Let’s wrap up the week’s top stories!

https://youtu.be/4BpVHPYGJak

First up, HTC will be shipping Vive Cosmos Elite SteamVR headset by itself for $549, and existing owners can get a standalone faceplate for $199. We still have no word on Vive Cosmos Play, though!

Next up, mobile VR gets what seems like one of the final nails in its coffin with the discontinuation of support for Gear VR. Not only that, but you won’t be able to access films you’ve purchased on it or even download the Oculus app. Thank you for your six years of service, Gear VR.

We now have more accurate data to tell us about how many PC VR users there are on Steam thanks to the platform’s latest update to the Steam Hardware Survey. The number? 1 million!

As for this week’s releases, we have three big titles: Lies Beneath on Quest, The Morrigan gets a full release on Steam, and Good Goliath on PSVR and PC VR.

We’re giving away Arizona Sunshine codes for Quest! You can enter below for a chance to win – best of luck.

GIVEAWAY: Win A Free Copy Of Arizona Sunshine On Oculus Quest!

Want to know which others stories topped the week? We’ve got them here:

That’s all for now! Make sure to stay safe, stay inside, and follow us on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook to stay up to date on VR news.

The post Vive Cosmos Headset Only, RIP Mobile VR & Win Arizona Sunshine on Quest! – VRecap appeared first on UploadVR.

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‘Lies Beneath’ Review – A Nightmarish Shooter Oozing with Comic Book Style

Lies Beneath is a single-player survivor horror from Drifter Entertainment, the studio behind Gunheart (2018), Rise of the Gunters (2018), and the Quest version of Robo Recall (2016). Departing somewhat from its previous VR titles, Drifter has delivered a gritty, stylish standalone tale that serves up equal doses of violence and fear, making for a unique offering in Quest’s still fairly demure library of games. A few issues keep me from truly loving it, but Lies Beneath still proves to be a super stylish and serviceable shooter.

Lies Beneath Details:

Developer: Drifter Entertainment
Publisher: Oculus Studios
Available On: Oculus Quest (Rift coming soon)
Reviewed On: Quest
Release Date: March 31st, 2020
Price: $30

Gameplay

Playing Lies Beneath was a pretty daunting task. At the beginning, the game sets the stage by suggesting users wear headphones for complete audio immersion. It’s not a bad idea if you want to shut out anyone else in the house who’s idly bumping around, because after a while you’ll begin to tune into every directional audio signal for signs of your imminent demise from the game’s ghoulish creatures.

While keeping out those random outside jostles can be important to maintaining your sanity, I still opted to go with Quest’s default audio because I kind of instinctively wanted some semblance of separation from the game’s gritty melange of vibes, which felt like equal parts Tales of the Crypt, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and Sin City.

Image courtesy Drifter Entertainment

Firstly, Lies Beneath is a Quest game that’s punching above its weight class. It cleverly hides its mobile roots with a hand-drawn, cell shaded style that plays out in an extremely dark and super claustrophobic swath of environments. As a result, loading new areas is invisible and instantaneous, enemies are always lurking around each corner, and you’re left with very little break in pacing as a result. Pressure on the player to move forward is at a near constant, which in part justifies the game’s singular gauntlet; there’s little exploration to be had outside of the main pathway, but you may easily be fooled into thinking otherwise with how long and truly winding the game’s levels are.

The game’s constant pressure is relieved only momentarily at generic rest stops, which oftentimes includes the same set of ammo supply crates, weapons, food for mobile health regen, and a fire that cures any wounds you may have. Outside of these periodic stops, there are also save points scattered throughout the game in the form of lightable lanterns.

Image courtesy Drifter Entertainment

These stops add a much more ‘gamey’ feeling than I would have preferred, as you’re basically fed all of the kit you need (or accidentally drop along the way) at painfully obvious moments, and in the same predictable format. There are some tiny bits of exploration as you run across found items that allow you to find more loot at your rest stop, but like I said, you’re basically funneled through a very linear pathway.

As for making your way through the narrative, you’ll find a modest variety of weapons along the way, including things like pistols, shotguns, and bladed weapons such as axes, butcher knives, and machetes. Shooting, I think, is purposefully meant for mid to short-range kills; there are no iron sights, and virtual recoil makes shooting feel a little unpredictable at longer ranges, which puts most of the action a few meters away at any given time. Ammo is rare on all but the easiest of the three difficulty settings, making your shooting skills especially relevant as you default to keeping baddies at arm’s length.

Image courtesy Drifter Entertainment

Melee is a big part too, but it feels more like a simplistic last resort than a true alternative to shooting, as you can’t appreciably block or dodge incoming attacks, leaving you to swing frantically and hope for the best.

In all of this, your lighter provides you with a dim light as well as a constant hint as to where you need to go next, as the flame waves in the direction of your next objective. Not only that, but it also injects a simple reticle for your pistols, and also reveals enemy weak points for one-shot dispatches. The reticle helps cover up some of my shooting woes, but I’d rather have functional sights personally.

 

This, as you’d imagine, using all of these items keeps you on your toes, as you need to quickly juggle between bladed weapons, pistols, food, and two-handed weapons such as shotguns. The inventory system is minimal, relegating you to holsters; two points on your hips, two on your shoulders, and a single one on your chest reserved for the lighter. Playing seated can be a pain in the ass if you have arm rests, so you should either play standing or on a flat surface like a couch so you can easily reach down to holster and unholster items.

Image courtesy Drifter Entertainment

One of the bigger gripes I have with Lies Beneath is variety of enemies; it’s functionally on the low side even despite a dozen or so different character models. The game’s 20 levels are littered with interesting-looking baddies, although they’re effectively variations of weak or strong bullet sponges with a few weak spots sprinkled for good measure, which is underlined in a few wave-style battles that show them for their true colors. There are boss fights however to break up moments when complacency inevitably sets in, and thankfully a majority of bosses felt like they were designed with the expectation of the player using a previously learned skill. There was one in particular that threw a complete one-off curve ball which was an interesting turn of events.

In the six and half hours it took me to finish, I never ran into what I’d call a puzzle. There are obstacles, sure, but nothing that didn’t take some instruction that I’d learned only a few minutes prior. That doesn’t really bother me, although I think Lies Beneath could have gone the extra mile and inserted some interesting brain teasers to chew on amidst the never-ending howls and gnashing of teeth.

Immersion

Where combat fails to truly impress, the atmosphere takes the reins. It’s like stepping into a graphic novel, replete with comic book text bubbles littering the game at key points to tell the lion’s share of the story. The drab, unforgiving color palette reminded me of Sin City, albeit without the pop of pure momentary color among the game’s grey, black, brown, pale blue, and dirty shades of red. Some may accuse it of being repetitive and maybe too dark, but in the same breath the art style does an admirable job of suffocating any hope of reprieve.

Image courtesy Drifter Entertainment

As a result of the comic book motif, at times I felt the story was a bit difficult to process. The word bubbles seem more artistically driven, and not necessarily what the player would actually need after they’ve just been chased through a maze by a machete-swinging demon. I personally would have liked voice overs here to reinforce the narrative at key points when reading what essentially is a floating sign board, although to each their own. Although it’s not the most deep, or engaging of stories, it is undeniably stylish.

Pet peeve incoming: force grab is the only way to interact with objects, which at times can be a bit unnerving when you simply want to grab a nearby magazine, box of ammo, what have you. This is a pretty minor issue in the grand scheme of things, but I firmly believe you should be able to grab something if your hand can ‘touch’ it. To that effect, reloading is pretty much a constant pain. Running out of bullets auto-ejects your mag and replaces it with a new one. Snapping the revolver closed or shoving in the mag into the pistol can be done one-handed, but it’s not super intuitive since both the mag and revolver’s chamber aren’t physics-based. More often than not you have to holster an item in your non-dominant hand to reload a gun in your other, which in the heat of battle may leave you flailing around and cursing.

My last sore point: guns don’t double as melee weapons. No amount of flailing with an empty shotgun or bare fists will do any damage, although you can technically block incoming objects thrown from baddies.

Comfort

I found Lies Beneath to be a bit challenging comfort-wise in my standard default playing style, which is free locomotion and snap-turning. Everything is so twisty and turny that I found myself rushing around past gads of near-field objects, stopping, turning, and basically making myself feel queasy in the process.

Thankfully you can teleport and look around naturally, although you’ll really have to overcome the primal urge to get through to the next save point as fast as possible. I don’t hate teleportation, but free locomotion is so much easier and immersive, so I tended to stick to my preferred movement style and just take the game in smaller chunks.

If you’re a smooth turning fan, Lies Beneath has you covered too, although you should be aware that only a minority of players seem to be unaffected by what essentially is one of the least comfortable locomotion options.

The post ‘Lies Beneath’ Review – A Nightmarish Shooter Oozing with Comic Book Style appeared first on Road to VR.

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Review: Lies Beneath

At some point every virtual reality (VR) developer needs to do a horror title, whether it’s purely psychological or filled with jump scares, the genre is such an easy fit for VR purposes. Drifter Entertainment (Gunheart, Robo Recall: Unplugged) has done just that with its latest project Lies Beneath for Oculus Quest, offering a middle ground between those two whilst laying on plenty of action for an enjoyably terrifying experience.

Lies BeneathLies Beneath instantly grabs you thanks to its comic book design and story layout. It puts you under no illusions that you’re not in a realistic world and that doesn’t matter or make Lies Beneath any less suspenseful. What the videogame does, it does really well but there are a few little things here and there which stutter the experience.

One of the best aspects of Lies Beneath is its narrative and the way Drifter Entertainment lays it all out. That comic book style runs through the entire title, introducing the story of college student Mae and her father returning to the quiet Alaskan town of Slumber. There’s no narration, you have to turn the comic’s pages to uncover the story every few levels, a nice touch to keep a player’s attention as to what the hell is going on and what’s happened to the residents. Throughout the levels you’ll spot story snippets along the way, most of which are Mae’s internal monologue remembering her home town whilst trying to make sense of it all.

And this is one hellish landscape. Starting in the outlying forest before venturing into the town, the paths are winding yet fairly linear to keep you on the story track. There are the occasional offshoots which can reward you with useful resources but these tend to be dead ends or filter around to the main path. Not that you want to go exploring in the darkness as Lies Beneath has some monstrous creatures to deal with.

Lies BeneathMost of these tend to be of the humanoid variety, shuffling around screaming until they spot you, coming tearing forwards like they were out of World War Z. In true monster fashion, there’s no subtlety to their attacks, it’s all about closing that distance to you. So you can attack and defend yourself in several ways depending on whether you prefer close or ranged combat. Lies Beneath suitably caters for both, with pistols and shotguns offering decent stopping power whilst knives, hatchets (a personal favourite) and other spikey objects can be used to remove heads and even thrown.

The studio has gone for a little VR realism with the weapons to help ground you in the world, but not too much that it hampers the experience. You don’t have to manually reload the guns but you do still need to pop the chamber open or use the pump action on the shotgun. Likewise, the blades are super useful if ammo is low – there’s usually enough around – but they can become wedged in enemies’ heads and bodies which can leave you scrambling for another weapon.

Which leads onto the fact that Lies Beneath is a very mild horror in comparison to others. Now some may find it truly petrifying when the odd jump scare happens yet for those well versed in VR terror Lies Beneath won’t really prove to be too alarming. Actually, it’s the sections in between the action which can prove to be the tensest as the audio is superb, just the right mix of distant shrieks and groans combined with horror movie violins, so use some good headphones.

Lies BeneathIt’s a shame then that especially in the early stages the draw distance is so close, either with pure darkness or fog. If it was done for atmosphere then it’s not particularly effective, more annoying. If it’s done for technical reasons then why does it occasionally jitter, like the odd frame is being dropped? This darkness can be somewhat illuminated by the lighter but once again the reach isn’t great. Unlike most videogames the lighter proves to be super useful, activating checkpoints, burning effigies and highlighting enemy weak points. The pistol/lighter combo is one of the best in Lies Beneath.

Lies Beneath might not be one of the scariest titles on Oculus Quest but that doesn’t stop it being intense and suspenseful. Drifter Entertainment has created a dark and twisting journey which has wonderfully atmospheric moments supported by a strong storyline backbone. If you’re looking for perfect synergy between classic horror movies and VR on Oculus Quest, Lies Beneath is worth a peep; just don’t look behind you.

80%

Awesome

  • Verdict
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Lies Beneath Out Today for Oculus Quest, 10min Gameplay Video Inside

Now is most certainly the season for new titles on Oculus Quest with Down the Rabbit Hole, The Room VR: A Dark Matter and Covert arriving. For those who like their virtual reality (VR) experiences with a few more scares and gore, Drifter Entertainment has now released Lies Beneath for the standalone headset.

Lies Beneath

With an eye-catching visual style similar to that of vintage comic books and some nasty looking monsters Lies Beneath tells the tale of Mae, a college student returning to the sleepy town of Slumber, Alaska with her father. An accident occurs and they become separated, so Mae needs must fight to save her father, encountering the terrifying townsfolk and creepy creatures infecting her hometown.

Only revealed a few weeks ago, Lies Beneath offers players a heart-pounding experience where they can use an assortment of weapons to survive. From ranged weapons including shotguns and pistols to knives and spears for close combat, players will be able to dual wield their arsenal for maximum damage. Like any good horror Lies Beneath can get a little dark and creepy so players also come equipped with a lighter to illuminate those corners – plus it comes in useful when lighting checkpoint lanterns and fires which can heal.

If you want to delve a little deeper into the narrative Drifter Entertainment has created two pseudo websites dedicated to Slumber. The first is a tourist style ‘Visit Slumber, Alaska‘ site with a nice version about its history while the second takes a far darker turn by the Slumber Historical Society.

Lies Beneath

Available now on the Oculus Store for Oculus Quest, retailing for £22.99 GBP, take a look at VRFocus’ initial gameplay video ahead of our review. Lies Beneath will also be coming to Oculus Rift shortly, scheduled to arrive on 14th April. For all the latest Oculus Quest news and reviews, keep reading VRFocus.