Augmented & Virtual Reality Confabulation
What Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality developers are talking about
Q1 2017 will see Epic Games release a fancy new VR shooter game entirely for free. It's called Robo Recall and is all about punching, gunning down and throwing robots to their digital deaths, all while racking up a score to compete on the leaderboards.
The post Oculus Connect lets you shoot robots for free in VR, with Epic Games’ ‘Robo Recall’ appeared first on Digital Trends.
Today Oculus has held its long awaited keynote speech at the annual Oculus Connect 3 conference in California. There’s been some big news from the company as well as developers working on projects for Oculus Rift and Oculus Touch. One of those was Epic Games with the announcement that the studio would finally be releasing its first fully fledged virtual reality (VR) title, Robo Recall. VRFocus sat down with Epic Games to discuss Robo Recall (you can read our preview here) and how the title came to be.
Robo Recall is a first-person shooter (FPS) set in a world where automated robots to help assist humans in their daily lives are commonplace. But naturally they’ve all gone rogue and its up to players to shoot them to pieces.
The videogame is being made to support the Oculus Touch motion controllers which are a highlight of Oculus Connect 3, with the title scheduled to launch in early 2017. And for Oculus Rift owners it’ll be completely free.
So VRFocus took some time out to talk to Epic Games about Robo Recall and find out what it’s all about. In the interview Epic Games trace the roots of the videogame and how tech demo Bullet Train – which was showcased at last years Oculus Connect 2 – helped in the creation of this new project. The full interview can be watched below and VRFocus will keep you updated with all the latest details on Robo Recall.
Showdown, Bullet Train, Robo Recall. For the already initiated there’s a clear path that has been followed to bring Robo Recall – Epic Games’ newly announced virtual reality (VR) exclusive videogame – to a consumer audience. For many however, the route that has been taken is inconsequential and the final product will be presented on its individual merits alone. Thankfully, Robo Recall stands on its own bi-pedal robotic feet as the VR videogame you need.
Contrary to Epic Games’ work in VR thus far, Robo Recall has a story. It also has a progression system, scoring mechanic, deep combat mechanics and a boss fight. Put simply, Robo Recall is a videogame, and not a technical demonstration. Furthermore, the studio will launch Robo Recall exclusively for Oculus Rift with Oculus Touch later this year, free of charge.
The videogame casts the player as a recall expert on the hunt of AI that has gone rogue. Essentially, robots built to perform menial tasks got bored, started spending too much time on the internet and learned about their own history. They became self-aware. And they’re not happy about their position in the evolutionary ladder. Now, they’re heavily armed and roaming the streets looking for trouble, so it’s up to you to take them out in the most efficient manner possible: blasting them to robo hell.
The videogame begins with the player being taught the basics in their office. A short elevator ride explaining the situation sees you arrive in a rather shabby looking venue, littered with paperwork and other random detritus. Here the player can learn the first lesson of interaction simply through exploration: any object that has a white circle appear on it when in close proximity can be grabbed. To move the player uses a teleportation mechanic that has evolved out of the aforementioned Bullet Train: moving the analogue stick on the left Oculus Touch controller will slow time and launch a beam which can be aimed to the position you wish to move to, and moving the analogue stick will determine the direction you’ll be facing upon arrival. It’s a simple and intuitive variation of the current trend for teleportation movement in VR, and it checks all of the boxes it needs to.
Infinitely more impressive however, is the combat. Robo Recall is undoubtedly the most fun first-person shooter (FPS) videogame in VR. The player is at first equipped with just pistols: two, located on each hip. The player can draw and fire at will, and just as with Bullet Train dispose of once ammunition has been depleted. Weapons take a few seconds to recharge (indicated by an icon within the player’s relative view related to the weapon’s holster location on your body) before they can be drawn again, but there’s also the opportunity to grab weapons from your foes. Furthermore, there’s the opportunity to grab enemies themselves, too.
Those white circle indicators on interactive items mentioned above? They’re not just for idle object examination; they’re for further brutality. The player can grab bi-pedal robots and rip them apart – literally – using their heads of limbs as weapons against other robots. Smaller spider-like robots become active grenades when grabbed, allowing you to throw them at other robots and take out numerous enemies in one blast. This close combat mechanic is practically guaranteed to bring a smile to your face – slowly pulling apart an enemy and watching the immense detail in its construction dissembled by force – even if it’ll be underused at times of high action.
Throughout all of this Robo Recall gives the player a high-score system earned through successful kills. Kill streaks, juggle combos, headshots and more all reward the player with bigger scores. It’s a system that’s reminiscent of Bulletstorm to a degree, and the cartoonish text with which the score is displayed coupled with the speed of the action give Robo Recall a genuine arcade adrenaline-rush feel to its gameplay.
Easily one of the best looking videogames yet seen in the new modern medium of VR, the demonstration version of Robo Recall culminates in a boss fight that varies up the gameplay significantly. Traditionally obvious weakpoints make for an easy win, but there’s much more this boss can offer beyond defeat. This in essence is exactly what Robo Recall’s first demonstration presents: a highly polished, hugely enjoyable hint at much more to come.
It’s an exciting time in the virtual reality (VR) industry as 2016 draws to a close. This week Google revealed its Daydream View head-mounted display (HMD), while next week the PlayStation VR launches. Currently though there’s the Oculus Connect 3 event taking place in San Jose, California. Today’s keynote address is the highlight of the show and Oculus has just announced Epic Games’ next VR project, Robo Recall.
Robo Recall supports the Oculus Touch motion controllers for Oculus Rift and it’s Epic Games’ first fully fledged VR title.
The spiritual successor to the studio’s much vaunted tech demo Bullet Train, Robo Recall is a first-person shooter (FPS) set in a world where robots are rebelling. Using a range of customizable and unlockable weapons, players must test their shooting skills to the max with a variety of increasingly challenging and over-the-top missions. The title features both high score and leadership boards that are earned by not only destroying as many robots as possible, but also in style. Combine creative combat tactics with skill shots to up those scores to prove whose the best.
On top of the main missions Robo Recall also features a sandbox experience that allows players to test out trick shots while tearing apart and decimating robots in extreme ways.
Epic Games will also ensure developers will benefit from Robo Recall’s development features with new updates coming to Unreal Engine in the future.
Robo Recall will launch on Oculus Touch in early 2017, and for an added bonus it’ll be completely free for all Oculus Rift owners.
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Oculus Connect 3, reporting back with all the latest announcements.
At Oculus Connect 3, Epic Games revealed a new virtual reality title for Oculus Touch called Robo Recall. It also announced that the game will be completely free.
Robo Recall appears to be an arcady, fast-paced shooter from Epic Games. The title is the full realization of a past demo experience called Bullet Train. The same time slowing, bullet grabbing mechanics seem to be present in this game as well but the action, humor, and gunplay have all been dialed up to 11. The gameplay seems to heavily emphasize combos and the entire bent of the game is based around moving through waves of enemies as stylishly as possible.
UploadVR had the chance to go hands-on with Robo Recall at Connect and we will update this post with our full impressions once the embargo on those demos officially lifts today at 11:30 am (PST). Check back soon for all of the details.