Augmented & Virtual Reality Confabulation
What Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality developers are talking about
Gearbox Software is set to host a panel in March at PAX East, where it promises "never-before seen reveals." The next entry in the Borderlands franchise, Borderlands 3, is the only game known to be in development at Gearbox.
The post Is the wait nearly over? Borderlands 3 reveal could happen at PAX East in March appeared first on Digital Trends.
Oculus is planning quite the bumper year if the next few tech events are anything to go by. Today, the Facebook-owned company announced that upcoming standalone headset Oculus Quest would be on demonstration at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2019 and PAX East, as well as confirming a return to the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) this year.
Oculus Quest doesn’t have an official release date just yet, simply a ‘Spring 2019’ window – VRFocus expects the announcement will happen during F8 2019, just like Oculus Go the year before. In the run-up to launch Oculus is building that anticipation for the headset by taking it to GDC 2019 in San Francisco next month and PAX East in Boston shortly after.
While no specific videogames have been mentioned for either event, expect some surprises in-store. In a blog post, Oculus’ Head of VR, Nate Mitchell teased a new title from Face Your Fears developer Turtle Rock Studios, saying: “With Oculus Quest and much more on the horizon, expect more of that same magic we all felt in the beginning. I’ve been getting some time in with the games we’re bringing to GDC and PAX East, like the latest from Turtle Rock Studios. It reminds me of playing Zelda back when I was a kid—that sense of awe and wonder and larger-than-life adventure.”
As for E3 2019, this marks a serious return for Oculus – which hasn’t had a booth there since 2016. The company has confirmed that newly announced Asgard’s Wrath by Sanzaru Games and Oculus Studios will be playable there. More detailed specifics have yet to be released.
Oculus being at E3 2019 will be a massive boost for VR at the event. As VRFocus has previously discussed, there was going to be a massive VR hole left thanks to the departure of Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) for the first time in the event’s history. With the launch of Oculus Quest likely to have occurred by the time of E3 2019 in June, the company will have three head-mounted displays (HMDs) to demo and available at retail. Hopefully, it’ll have an impressive stand to match.
As Oculus release further details, VRFocus will keep you updated.
Oculus have announced that today during PAX East 2018 they will be showing off a selection of titles that include five new Oculus Rift titles as part of an Oculus Game Days in Boston.
Though at the show Oculus are showing a wide range of titles from AAA developers to independent developers, all push the boundaries of virtual reality (VR) in new ways. The Oculus Game Days is open to the public today between 2pm ET and 8pm ET in Boston, at 19 Drydock Avenue letting visitors try out these new titles first hand.
Including in the titles that are on offer are the recently announced Paper Valley, a zen-like VR adventure about restoring beauty to the world by throwing paper planes from developer VITEI Backroom. With its nonviolent design and accessible controls it is a title that any and all can enjoy.
The upcoming narrative-drive psychological thriller, Blind will also be making an appearance. Players wake up in a strange room only to discover their have lost their sight. Now players must explore a twisted, frightening mansion with only sound waves as a means to guide them through.
If giant mech are you thing then Vox Machinae is also being demonstrated and allows up to 15 players in both VR and standard PC setups to battle it out. With a number of different classes, plenty of customization options and a wide range of weapons and means to destroy your opponent, Vox Machinae is a combat action-sim dream.
Speaking of combat, how about combat in space with jetpacks? If that sounds good to you than Space Junkies from Ubisoft, with it’s arcade shooter inspired design will be the one for you. Once again this title will also be available to try out at the Oculus Game Days.
Finally, the fan favorite from the Oculus booth at the Game Developer Conference (GDC) 2018, Vaction Simulator will also be on hand to try out. VRFocus’ Senior Staff Writer Peter Graham previewed the title saying: “Vacation Simulator feels very much like a Job Simulator 2.0, rehoused and repackaged in a new, brighter skin. There are always going to be similarities with its predecessor, so Vacation Simulator needs to have enough of its own personality to stand apart – like a bratty teenager trying to show their parents how modern technology works. From this introduction the videogame certainly looks like its going to continue the studio’s strong lineage, with Owlchemy Labs promising a bigger experience with more of a storyline for the single-player title, and plenty more to do. If you were a fan of the developer’s other virtual reality (VR) titles then Vacation Simulator should be a 2018 title to look forward to.”
These five exciting titles are just the tip of the pile of what is on offer at the Boston Oculus Game Days running on the 5th floor of 19 Drydock Avenue in Boston today, 2pm until 8pm ET.
PAX East 2018 is open from 5th April until the 8th April in Boston.
For more stories like this in the future, keep reading VRFocus.
When it comes to tower defense games Sony’s PlayStation VR (PSVR) has been surprisingly lacking. While developers have aimed to introduce players to the world of VR through other genres, there isn’t a whole lot to choose from if you’re looking to quench your thirst for some good, old fashioned tower defending. Thankfully, Ancient Amuletor from TiGames has stepped in with a surprisingly fun, co-op centric, and most importantly, VR-friendly take on the age-old genre.
When I got my hands on Ancient Amuletor at this year’s PAX East convention, I was surprised by what I found. While the game is still fairly bare bones in terms of presentation, the basic idea is similar to any tower defense game: set in an ancient world, you’ll be pit against various magical monsters and creatures as they try to take down your base. You’ll have your pick of multiple heroes, ranging from archers, mages, gunners, and even a weird puppeteer-like character as you travel from pillar to pillar trying to keep various crystals from being destroyed.
Each round of Ancient Amuletor plays like a standard tower defense game, only in a first person perspective. Once the game started, I was able to transport to various pillars located around the map with the tap of a button on the Move controller. In a genre that often has you able to see an entire map at once, it was surprisingly fun to maneuver myself throughout the level in order to constantly check up on how an area is doing. Staying too long in one place meant that it was likely that another would be overrun, which added to the frenetic nature that those type of games already have.
Thankfully, I played the demo with another person, and it made for a better playing experience. There is no penalty for being on the same pillar as a buddy, and the game doesn’t restrict you to one of each hero as most others do, which is a pleasant change. We were able to take down the waves of enemies fairly easily, and after the last of them was defeated, the demo ended with a bang: a giant, towering (no pun intended) boss appeared above us. To defeat it, we simply had to time our attacks right; the boss swings in to attack, which opens a window of time to attack it.
The developers of the game, the China-based TIGames, have likened Ancient Amuletor to a MOBA in terms of how it deals with hero-based gameplay. That’s not entirely far off from how the game plays, as the heroes all feel like they bring something different to the table when you pick one. In my brief time with the game (I got to play through two full rounds), I was able to play as every character for a fairly decent amount of time. Switching between them is fairly quick and can be done mid-game, allowing you to invoke different strategies as the situation calls for. All of the playable heroes offer unique and interesting ways to play, especially for a VR title.
Of the four characters, the gunslinger is by far the most traditional and works the best in the VR setting. With two guns, you simply move from pillar to pillar and mow down enemies. The archer, as one might assume, was probably the toughest to control, as I not only had to be careful in drawing the arrow back to make sure I got a powerful shot off, but I also had to be precise in aiming, as the game was not too forgiving if I missed shots. The games other two heroes – the mage and puppet master – might not be the most powerful heroes in the game, but they certainly are the most fun to use.
As a mage (and also a right-handed person), I was given a spell book in my left hand and a hook-shaped wand in my right. With a press of the trigger button on the left Move controller, an orb would appear above the pages of the book. Dragging the wand over it allowed me to pick up the spell and then flick it down onto enemies to deal a fair bit of damage. You can even “stack” spells, so to speak, by summoning multiple orbs and leaving them to hang while you travel about and find the best place to rain down chaos on your enemies. During my time with Ancient Amuletor, the mage was easily the most fun character to use simply due to how fun it was to summon and cast spells in VR.
The final class, the puppet master, was also a bit fun if not a bit gimmicky. As the puppet master, you can toss a puppet onto the ground that will mimic your movements. While it’s fun to move yourself about and watch a puppet mimic you as you fight through hordes of enemies, it’s not a truly effective hero and didn’t offer much defense when it came to actually completing a round.
Ancient Amuletor may not be the most ground breaking PSVR game to debut on the system, but it’s certainly filling a hole that not many other companies have tried to do. By delivering a fun, easy to pick up and play twist on the tower defense genre for the PSVR, Ancient Amuletor looks ready to burst out onto the scene and capture a large slice of a market that’s ripe for the taking when it releases sometime this summer.
Despite only playing a couple of rounds during my demo, I could easily see myself picking this up and getting lost in it for some time, which is exactly what the PSVR needs now more than ever. If you’re a fan of tower defense games, make sure this one is on your radar.
Tagged with: Ancient Amuletor, pax east, PSVR, TiGames
Bethesda’s Vice President of PR, Pete Hines has announced that the virtual reality (VR) version of the post-apocalyptic RPG series, Fallout 4 VR, will make an appearance at the company’s E3 Press Conference.
Fallout 4 VR did get a demo at E3 2016, which VRFocus managed to get hold of for a preview. There a 5-minute demo of some gameplay from early in the story was available. Since Fallout 4 VR is due to launch at some point in 2017, it seems likely that the version that will be available at E3 2017 will be a fuller version that will show more of the game experience.
Bethesda have previously confirmed that teleportation-style movement will be used to reduce motion sickness symptoms. The developer has also claimed that the entirely of the original Fallout 4 game will be available within Fallout 4 VR, which adds up to a vast amount of content and many hours of gameplay.
Hines, in an interview recorded by Hip Hop Gamer at PAX East 2017 (and subsequently reported by GameRant) claimed he had been told by the lead designer that “Fallout 4 VR is the most incredible thing you’ve ever seen in your life. You can’t even imagine what it’s like playing in VR and how realistic it looks with everywhere you turn your head.”
It’s not yet clear what else will be shown at E3 by Bethesda, but most analysts are expecting a new Wolfenstein game, and the announcement of The Evil Within 2. It’s not known of the developer will announce any new VR projects.
A release date has not yet been confirmed, but Bethesda say that Fallout 4 VR will be available sometime in 2017, exclusive to the HTC Vive.
VRFocus will keep brining you the latest news on E3 and Fallout 4 VR
Leading independent Chinese games publisher Oasis Games has been enjoying a busy few days as part of PAX East in Boston. It is the company’s first ever appearance at a North American consumer event.
The company of course has several upcoming titles, such as PlayStation VR (PSVR) room escape horror game Dying: Reborn, colourful pixel shoot-em-up Pixel Gear and action PVP strategy game Tiger Knight: Empire War.
Oasis Games were previously responsible for releasing psychological puzzle-horror game Weeping Doll, in which a Victorian maid must unravel the mystery of a vanished family as a creepy doll stalks the hallways. In a sharp contrast, they also published slapstick shooter Ace Banana in which the player must defend a pile of bananas by using a bow and arrow to shoot potential banana thieves.
“We’re thrilled that PAX East is our first public event in North America,” said Alen Wu, Global Business Director for Oasis Games. “Attendees will be able to check out Dying: Reborn for all PlayStation platforms before the bundle is released, compete in 5 v 5 matches for Tiger Knight: Empire War and enjoy the fan-favorite PS VR game Pixel Gear.”
PAX East (Penny Arcade Expo East) finishes its run today, having been in Massachusetts on 10th-12th March, 2017 at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Centre. VRFocus will bring you further updates on Oasis Games when we get them.
Developer Telltale Games will offer an exclusive glimpse at its upcoming Marvel-licensed adventure game at PAX East this weekend, followed by an interactive gameplay session at South by Southwest.
The post Telltale’s ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ to make gameplay debut at SXSW appeared first on Digital Trends.