Category: News Bits

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‘Ultrawings’ Studio Teases Sequel, Promises Larger Open World & “healthy dose of combat”

Bit Planet Games, the developer behind Ultrawings (2017), has teased a few clips of the upcoming standalone sequel to the open world flight game.

The original Ultrawings offers up multiple aircraft to fly around in, and a variety of missions across its island-themed world. It’s been available across all major VR headsets, including Oculus Quest, PC VR headsets, and PSVR.

The studio isn’t saying much about Ultrawings 2 for now, however it released two clips of the game in action and sprinkled some info across its various social channels. Here are the clips:

Taking to Reddit recently, Bit Planet describes the game:

Imagine the first game with a much larger world, increased graphic quality, and a healthy dose of combat.

That’s just SOME of the improvements we’re making to our next game. Lots more will be revealed over the next couple of months

There’s still precious little information out there for now, however Bit Planet says it’s supporting SteamVR headsets and the Quest platform, and will also feature HOTAS support. The studio hasn’t mentioned a release date yet.

In the meantime, we’ll be keeping our eyes on the studio’s Twitter and YouTube channel for more info.

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‘Microsoft Flight Simulator’ Update 5 to Bring VR Performance Improvements

Microsoft Flight Simulator (2020) includes support for SteamVR headsets, however playing via VR requires some of the most modern (and consequently least available) PC components due to its demanding spec requirement. Now Asobo are getting ready to release a Update 5 which includes some major performance benefits across the board, including VR.

In its latest livestream, Asobo CEO Sebastian Wloch demonstrates the performance improvements on a PC with an Intel Core i7-9700K and RTX 2060 Super. Whilst playing in 4K on ultra settings at 40% render scale, Wloch shows the most recent update nearly doubes frame rate from 30 fps to almost 60 fps.

It’s a strong demonstration of just how much the team has done to improve performance on the PC version, and that directly translates to perfomance in-headset too.

Wloch says in the livestream that although the team hasn’t quantified it in the same manner as the demo above, there’s set to be a “positive impact on VR,” of course depending on your individual hardware setup.

We’re interested to see just how much update 5 does when it arrives on July 27th.

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‘Chess Club’ Brings Online Chess to Oculus Quest July 1st, Trailer Here

Chess has exploded in popularity recently, with the Netflix series The Queen’s Gambit bringing much attention to the age-old strategy game. Now Odders Lab, the studio behind VR rhythm game OhShape (2019), is set to release its next title Chess Club for Oculus Quest, which brings an immersive spin to the game.

Chess Club is set to be the first on Oculus Store for Quest to exclusively offer online chess, and is said to feature a number of game modes with either AI or online competitors, ranging from classic chess to immersive Holochess-style fight animations. It launches tomorrow, July 1st. You can find the store page here.

The game features support for both Touch controllers and hand-tracking, so you’ll be able to pick up pieces naturally for those long and pensive matches. Check out the feature set below:

Chess Clubs Features

  • Play against a friend or the AI
  • Avatars and Voice IP in online multiplayer
  • Casual and rated matches
  • Track your moves history during a match
  • Different time rules (bullet, blitz, real time, async)
  • 2 environments and set pieces: Grand Palace and Stonehenge
  • Fight animations and sound FX
  • Both Hand tracking and Touch controllers are supported!

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Quest Exclusive ‘Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing’ Releasing on PC VR & PSVR July 15th

Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing (2020), the Oculus Quest racing game based on the popular anime series, is finally leaving Quest exclusivity next month, with a SteamVR, Rift and PSVR release headed for July 15th.

Initially released on Quest back in October 2020, Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing offers up 10 tracks dotted across the anime’s lovingly recreated Luna Nova Magical Academy. The game features both single player campaign, where you race and purify ghosts, and online multiplayer. There’s no word on cross-play yet; we’ve reached out for confirmation and will hopefully update with a reply.

Japan-based indie developers UNIVRS do however say the PC VR versions of the game feature “updated graphics,” which isn’t always the case with Quest to PC VR ports like this. You can already wishlist the game on Steam here.

Directed by Junichi Yamamoto (The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, Batman Ninja), the game also features sound supervisor Yukio Nagasaki (Love Live!, Arc the Lad), TV series songwriter/composer Yuiko Ohara, and singer YURiKA.

A little backstory: the studio funded the game thanks to its success on crowdfunding platforms CAMPFIRE and Kickstarter, garnering the project over 18 million yen (~$165,000). This was after Studio TRIGGER, creators of the original anime and shows such as Neon Genesis Evangelion, released its second Little Witch Academia film, which also found success on Kickstarter in 2015 by garnering over $625,000.

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PSVR Shooter ‘Fracked’ Gameplay Trailer Reveals More Explosive Action, Coming Summer 2021

Fracked, an upcoming single-player shooter, just got a brand-new gameplay trailer that shows off more of its high-energy action.

Developed by nDreams—the same team behind Oculus exclusive Phantom: Covert Ops (2020)—Fracked is heading exclusively to PSVR sometime this summer. The updated gameplay trailer was revealed at both IGN’s ‘Summer of Gaming’ event and UploadVR’s game showcase.

In it, we get a look at some new action as you take on enemies skiing down a mountain, and have to fight through a horde of different baddies at a funicular station—that’s fancy talk for a train that can go up steep inclines.

If you’re wondering what the hell is going on, here’s what nDreams says about Fracked.

The corporation dug too deep unleashing the ‘Fracked’ from the depths. Across one day, take on an interdimensional army that combines hive mind mentality and gun-wielding supremacy – the perfect targets to unload round upon round into. Fracked is in-your-face action with a cutting commentary on corporate greed and the climate change emergency. Save the day, to save the world.

The studio says Fracked features a unique cover system as well as multiple first-person free movement methods. You’ll be able to lean into your skis as you traverse the game’s many mountains, physically climb to safety when, say, the funicular’s tracks have been destroyed, and make dangerous base jumps when you need a quick getaway.

There’s no clear release date yet, as nDreams is still quoting a Summer 2021 launch. We’ll have our eyes peeled for any news to pop up, so check back soon.

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‘Arcade Legend’ Lets You Run Your Own Virtual Arcade, Free Demo Coming Soon

Arcade Legend is an upcoming arcade simulator for PC VR headsets that not only lets you manage your own arcade, but also collect and play officially licensed arcade games too.

It’s been a rough year for arcades, yours included. Now it’s time to clean up the place, build your reputation among the quarter-dispensing public, and unlock all of the arcade games along the way.

With officially licensed games created by physical arcade cabinet maker LAI Games, you may recognize more than a few. From the lighting fast reaction game Speed of Light to the ever difficult Stacker, the cabinets have been lovingly reconstructed in VR with a bit of virtual flair added for effect. There isn’t an official list of cabinets available yet, but it looks like there’s slated to be plenty of ways to earn tickets, which you can use to buy items from the prize counter to customize your avatar.

The arcade simulator is set to offer both single and multiplayer modes, so you’ll get to focus on building out the arcade, going for high scores, and hanging out with friends too.

Arcade Legend is aiming to release on Steam Early Access for PC VR headsets sometime this year, although LAI Games says a free demo is coming in June. LAI says the demo will feature three of its arcade games, including Speed of Light, Let’s Bounce, and HYPERshoot. You can now wishlist it on Steam.

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‘Star Wars: Squadrons’ Will Be Free to PlayStation Plus Members in June

Sony announced that Star Wars: Squadrons (2020), the PSVR-compatible space dogfighter, is going to be one of June’s free PlayStation Plus titles.

Starting June 1st, Star Wars: Squadrons will be free to keep for PS Plus members, and will be available to claim until July 5th. The game, which was launched back in October 2020, is regularly priced at $40.

Other free PS Plus titles include Operation: Tango (PS5 version only) and Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown.

Star Wars: Squadrons may not be a VR-only title, although EA’s Motive Studios impressed with its ability to not only put you into the digitally recreated cockpits from the storied franchise, but do so with enough flair to feel like a VR-native adventure.

Its campaign is engaging, multiplayer has continuously evolved since launch, and broad cross-platform support across console and PC has been a boon for both SteamVR and PSVR users looking for a healthy population of other players. Check out why we gave Star Wars: Squadrons a resounding [9/10] in our review.

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Drum-based Rhythm Game ‘Smash Drums’ to Release on Quest Next Month

Smash Drums is a drum-based rhythm game that’s officially coming to Oculus Quest on June 17th, 2021.

Created by indie studio PotamWorks, Smash Drums will launch on App Lab with 21 indie songs, which can be played in 360-degrees in seven different destructible environments.

PotamWorks says the rhythm game offers a “rugged non-futuristic feel” with its focus on rock & roll tracks and strength-based gameplay. The studio promises plenty of replay value thanks to its four difficulty modes.

Smash Drums is a single player game, although you can compete against other players asynchronously via a Global Live Ranking board.

PotamWorks says Smash Drums will see free songs and environments added regularly post-launch, and will also have paid DLC with new bands and tracks.

You can check out Smash Drums today via free demo its free demo on App Lab. The full launch version is coming first to the Quest platform on June 17th, priced at $20; the game is set to launch on PC VR headsets later this year.

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Parkour-shooter ‘STRIDE’ Releases on Oculus Quest on August 5th

If you own an Oculus Quest and you’ve been salivating over the high-flying parkour madness of STRIDE, developers Joy Way have now announced it’s officially launching on the Oculus Quest Store August 5th.

Update (July 26th, 2021): Joy Way announced that STRIDE will release on the Quest platform on August 5th, and will be priced at $15. You can wishlist the game here.

To celebrate, Joy Way is throwing a video contest asking players to create viral videos using gameplay footage. Submissions are open from now until August 31st. Five winners will be selected by the studio, with a prize pool of $1.500 up for grabs.

The studio has also released a new gameplay trailer which appears to feature footage captured in-headset.

https://youtu.be/6JW3Rjrp7WM

Original Article (May 5th, 2021): Joy Way announced the news late last week, saying that while they can now officially plan for launch on the Oculus Store for Quest, that predictably more work is still needed to get it up to snuff.

In the meantime, Joy Way is offering sign-ups for a closed beta on Quest, however participants will need to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) to play.

Stride combines high-flying parkour action with the sort of run and gun rooftop madness of a John Wick film. It’s currently only available on PC VR headsets in early access, having launched on Steam back in September 2020. It’s also slated to arrive on PSVR at some point as well, however it’s since been delayed on PSVR to “late 2021,” Joy Way says.

Check out Stride in action in the gameplay trailer below:

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Facebook is Offering a Free Quest 2 to Tens of Thousands of Employees

Reportedly according to an internal Q&A, all Facebook employees are eligible for a refund from the company if they purchase a Quest 2 headset. The effort comes as the Facebook continues to justify deep investments in AR and VR with the belief that they are the next major computing platform.

Back in 2019, just ahead of the release of the original Oculus Quest, Facebook announced it would give the headset for free to all developers attending the conference.

Today the company is pulling a similar move with its latest headset, Quest 2. During an internal Q&A, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that all of the company’s employees could be reimbursed for the purchase of a Quest 2 headset, according to The Information reporter Alex Heath.

While not every one of the company’s employees is likely to take it up on the offer, it seems likely to be a much larger giveaway than what happened with the original Quest at F8. While F8 had some 5,000 attendees who were eligible for the free headset, Facebook reportedly has some 60,000 employees which could all be eligible to be reimbursed for the purchase of Quest 2.

From the outside, the offer looks like the company internally signaling its seriousness about its AR and VR initiatives to the rest of its employees that are working in other areas of the company. Further, it looks like an effort to get broader portions of the company to ‘dog food’ the product (use the company’s own product as an end-user) which could prompt feedback and new ideas that can be more quickly acted upon thanks to direct internal communications.

This all comes one day after Facebook’s latest earnings call, in which CEO Mark Zuckerberg once again underscored the company’s belief that AR and VR is a crucial part of Facebook’s future.

“Over time, I expect augmented and virtual reality to unlock a massive amount of value both in people’s lives and the economy overall. There’s still a long way to go here, and most of our investments to make this work are ahead of us,” Zuckerberg told investors during the call. “But I think the feedback we’re getting from our products is giving us more confidence that our prediction for the future here will happen and that we’re focusing on the right areas.”

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