Category: PAX Australia

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New VR Title ROGAN Revealed at PAX Australia

PAX, in its various incarnations, has become a big event for videogame fans, and now the PAX events are starting to see big reveals and announcements. At PAX Australia in Melbourne, developer Smilegate Entertainment have revealed a new virtual reality (VR) title called ROGAN: The Thief in the Castle.

The new title was being showcased at the HTC Vive Free Playzone booth. ROGAN: The Thief in the Castle is a stealth-based action adventure set in the medieval era.

Players take on the role of Rogan, who is a thief who is involved in various intrigues as Castle Blackstone. The development team say one of the main selling points is an involving storyline that was written by a professional novelist.

The medieval castle has been carefully detailed, allowing players to fully explore the environment, and 3D spatial sound has been applied to ensure a more immersive experience.

Players will be able to enjoy the title in various different ways, as players can choose to engage in open combat, or use various abilities such as pickpocketing, hiding or distracting guards with various tools. There are also various difficulty levels, and the development team says the full story can only be revealed by multiple playthroughs.

“When we revealed the title for the first time at PAX Australia this year, we received countless favorable comments from players at the site for the sense of immersion and thrilling stealth action gameplay that they have never experienced before in other VR games. We are planning to continue developing more new VR games that satisfy the needs of players and move forward in new markets and platforms,” said Dae Jin Kim, Director at Smilegate Entertainment.

ROGAN: The Thief in the Castle is being developed for multiple different VR platforms, including HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, it is expected to be released in the first half of 2019. The official trailer is available to view below.

For future coverage of new and upcoming VR content, keep checking back with VRFocus.

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Sony Gears Up For PAX Australia With PlayStation VR Line-Up

With Tokyo Game Show long gone and as we approach Halloween the event season is pretty much over and done with in the Northern Hemisphere. Particularly in Europe and America, with the only real exception being Sony’s annual PlayStation Experience event set to take place across the 9th and 10th of December. Other than this however it’s more a case of waiting out the rest of 2017 and what Autumn and Winter bring until the new year.

But that’s not taking into account the Southern Hemisphere where it’s currently the end of Spring, not Autumn, and Australia is gearing up for its iteration of PAX once again. It also seems, much as with PlayStation Experience, there’s going to be plenty for PlayStation VR fans to try out.

The line-up is as follows:

Gran Turismo Sport

“In PlayStation VR you’ll quite literally have the driving wheel at your fingertips. From hitting the brakes to turning a corner, experiencing Gran Turismo Sport in the PS VR headset will let players experience a true-to-life driving experience.”

Gran Turismo Sport‘s VR mode is limited, but impressive, even to professionals.  Ardent armchair racers meanwhile can increase their experience with Thrustmaster’s Gran Turismo Sport racing wheel, which we covered at this year’s E3.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR: The Elder Scrolls V

“Skyrim VR is a true, full-length open-world game for VR from award-winning developers, Bethesda Game Studios®. Skyrim VR reimagines the complete epic fantasy masterpiece with an unparalleled sense of scale, depth, and immersion.”

One of a trio of Bethesda titles coming to virtual reality (VR) along with DOOM VFR and Fallout 4 VR. You can read our recent preview here.

MONSTER OF THE DEEP: FINAL FANTASY XV:

“Dive into the story mode for an exhilarating, action-packed showdown with the notorious MONSTER OF THE DEEP, or take in the sights, sounds and scenery of FINAL FANTASY XV as you kick back and cast off in the free fishing mode.”

A surprise from this year’s E3 and a replacement for the initial Final Fantasy XV: VR Experience, you can read our preview of MONSTER OF THE DEEP: FINAL FANTASY XV here.

Bravo Team

“It’s all or nothing in this heart-pumping PS VR firefight of intense combat and split-second tactical decision-making.”

A experience VRFocus likened to “Army of Two on steroids”, the title is one of two VR videogames in the works from Supermassive Games. (The other being The Inpatient.)

Bravo Team E32017 (2)PAX Australia is from October 27th-29th 2017 at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. News about the PlayStation VR is developing all the time, so be sure to check back with VRFocus regularly for the latest.