Paper Beast provided PlayStation VR owners one of the most unique gameplay experiences to arrive for the headset earlier this year, with developer Pixel Reef confirming last month a PC VR version was on the way. Today, the studio has confirmed the date, and there’s not long to wait.
The PC version won’t be a straight port of the original as the team has used the extra time to further enhance the surreal experience. That means PC players will be able to enjoy continuous locomotion – not just teleportation – as well as upgraded visuals for more precise textures and shadows plus improved water and sand rendering.
The creative sandbox mode will also gain a few extra tweaks such as a bigger sandbox area, an expanded ecosystem with evolved vegetation; a new animal species and the ability to add more creatures in the area.
“The PC version represents a more polished version of the game in almost all aspects but also offers continuous move support, which we are very proud of because we handled it without compromise,” says Eric Chahi, founder of Pixel Reef in a statement. “Special care was also given to the rendering of water and sand. You will be able to see the turmoil at the surface of the water, and the delicate flow of the sand. You’ll be able to dive even deeper into the fantastic world of Paper Beast.”
VRFocus really enjoyed playing the PlayStation VR version, saying in its review of Paper Beast that: “Paper Beast offers PlayStation VR an exclusive experience like no other, a beautiful statement on the natural world and the influence technology can have on it.”
The colourful world formed from decades of lost code and algorithms inside the vast memory of a data server, creating a digital ecosystem of vegetation and creatures. Gameplay revolves around solving environmental puzzles but there are no text or verbal hints to help.
Paper Beast will support Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index and Windows Mixed Reality headsets, launching via Steam on 24th July 2020; retailing for $19.99 USD/€19.99 EUR. While you wait why not sample the videogame by downloading the free demo from the store. For further updates on Paper Beast, keep reading VRFocus.
Paper Beast gives you no clue as to what the hell is going on so anything you read about the videogame will be a spoiler of some sort. At no point does it let up on the playful weirdness, gently prodding you in the right direction without a word being spoken or written piece of information – that’s only partially true, bring the controller/PlayStation Move near to your face will show button info which is handy in this uninformative world.
For a videogame with no dialogue or written story Paper Beast does a magnificent job of creating emotion through creature behaviour and their roles within the narrative. At one point you’ll come across what can only be described as a paper sheepdog, a big shaggy thing which can erode sand as it walks. Handy for some puzzles, having this paper pooch as a companion does help to make the whole experience friendlier and sad when you part ways.
This is where a lot of players will find longevity in Paper Beast once the main campaign has ended. Here you have access to everything you’ve seen on your travels, all the creatures and plants to create your own little world. You’re given full terraforming capabilities to build sand mountains or flat plains, add a pool of water or make a flowing river. All the controls are straight forward no matter which scheme you use but the PlayStation Move did feel more intuitive and god-like which is always a bonus.
