August is Game Time for NERF Ultimate Championship

Having revealed NERF Ultimate Championship, a multiplayer shooter using the iconic toys, almost exactly a year ago developer Secret Location has now released a new gameplay trailer and a release date. And there isn’t long to wait, coming to Meta Quest 2 in a couple of months.

Nerf Ultimate Championship

While the first gameplay trailer back in December offered just a teasing taster of NERF Ultimate Championship’s action the new trailer gives fans an even better look at what’s to come this summer. Players will start in a social lobby before honing their skills on the parkour course, getting a feel for the freedom the arenas will offer, thanks to double jumps and wall running mechanics.

After that, why not step into the shooting range a test all the guns out, from the single-shot weapons to the motorised blasters that need to be revved up first. The trailer then showcases some of the arenas like the Colusseum with a central point that needs to be captured.

Even though NERF Ultimate Championship is action-packed, to keep players coming back for more Secret Location will be releasing multiple seasons of free content. There will be unlockable skins, avatars, blasters, new maps, new game modes, and much more.

Nerf Ultimate Championship

“We want NERF Ultimate Championship to be a game that players keep coming back to over time,” said Josh Manricks, Studio Director at Secret Location. “There is a lot of exciting content planned for after release. We’ve captured the social and physical essence of NERF, with intense battles powered by dynamic, fluid movement, as well as some epic NERF blasters made exclusively for the game. All these elements, combined with maps that encourage fast-paced gameplay and constant updates of free content, will offer fans plenty of reasons to keep jumping back in with friends.”

NERF Ultimate Championship is scheduled to launch on 25th August 2022 for Quest 2. From today, eager fans can join the community Discord or head on over to Secret Location’s Dev Blog to learn more about its development. For continued VR updates, keep reading gmw3.

The VR Job Hub: VueReal, Ready at Dawn & Secret Location

Welcome to another VR Job Hub where every weekend gmw3 gathers together vacancies from across the virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) industries, in locations around the globe to help make finding that ideal job easier. Below is a selection of roles that are currently accepting applications across a number of disciplines, all within departments and companies that focus on immersive entertainment.

Location Company Role Link
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada VueReal Talent Acquisition Manager Click Here to Apply
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada VueReal Semiconductor Integration Engineer Click Here to Apply
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada VueReal Semiconductor Process Engineer Click Here to Apply
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada VueReal Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineer Click Here to Apply
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada VueReal Patent/Intellectual Property Assistant Click Here to Apply
Irvine, CA Ready at Dawn Audio Lead Click Here to Apply
Remote, US Ready at Dawn Senior Backend Services Engineer Click Here to Apply
Irvine, CA Ready at Dawn Senior Producer Click Here to Apply
Remote, US Ready at Dawn Lead Environment Model & Layout Artist Click Here to Apply
Remote, US Ready at Dawn Gameplay Programmer Click Here to Apply
Remote, US Ready at Dawn Senior Systems Designer (MP) Click Here to Apply
Remote, US Ready at Dawn Senior Lighting Technical Artist Click Here to Apply
Remote, US Ready at Dawn Character Artist Click Here to Apply
Remote, US Ready at Dawn Lighting Artist Click Here to Apply
Irvine, CA Ready at Dawn Community Moderation Associate Click Here to Apply
London, UK Secret Location Product Manager Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location 3D Animator (2-3 month contract) Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location 3D Environment Artist, Mid/Senior (2-3 month contract) Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Associate Creative Director Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Customer Service Manager Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Director, Business and Legal Affairs Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Illustrator Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Junior Accountant Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location QA Engineer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location QA Lead Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Senior Back End Developer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Unity Developer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Unity Developer Click Here to Apply

Don’t forget, if there wasn’t anything that took your fancy this week there are always last week’s listings on The VR Job Hub to check as well.

If you are an employer looking for someone to fill an immersive technology related role – regardless of the industry – don’t forget you can send us the lowdown on the position and we’ll be sure to feature it in that following week’s feature. Details should be sent to Peter Graham (community@gmw3.com).

We’ll see you next week on gmw3 at the usual time of 3PM (UK) for another selection of jobs from around the world.

Quest Team Shooter ‘NERF Ultimate Championship’ to Enter Closed Beta Soon, Signups Here

NERF Ultimate Championship is an upcoming VR arena shooter that’s getting ready to launch into closed beta later this month. If you’re looking to go hands-on, there’s still time to sign up for your chance to wall-run and blast your way to victory.

NERF Ultimate Championship is officially heading into closed beta in “mid to late March,” Hasbro and VR studio Secret Location say. “We will be contacting candidates as soon as we’ve matched them with folks in similar time zones and available timeslots.”

For your chance to participate you simply need to fill out a short questionnaire, which will be open until March 15th at 1:00 PM ET (local time here).

The NERF-brand 4v4 team shooter is headed to Quest sometime this year, so you might just get an opportunity to play it before everyone else, and even help guide development.

It seems the studio is selecting some specific criteria for the first round of beta testers—we aren’t sure what that is, so we can’t say for sure. The developers say selected participants should be contacted within a week however, which also includes an invite to the closed beta’s private Discord Server and instructions on the next steps.

We’re looking forward to seeing more of NERF Ultimate Championship in the coming weeks, as developers Secret Location are also known for bullet-hell shooter Blasters of the Universe (2017), VR retelling of Philip K. Dick’s The Great C (2018), and time-bending puzzle game Transpose (2018).

The post Quest Team Shooter ‘NERF Ultimate Championship’ to Enter Closed Beta Soon, Signups Here appeared first on Road to VR.

NERF Ultimate Championship Closed Beta Applications Open

Want to bring those hard trained NERF skills into virtual reality (VR)? Well, besides all the paintball/laser quest clones later this year you’ll be able to challenge your mates in the official NERF Ultimate Championship. Today, developer Secret Location has open sign-ups for the closed beta.

NERF Ultimate Champ Beta

Spots are limited for this initial closed beta so you’ll want to drop your details on the pre-screening survey as quickly as possible. You’ll also need a Meta Quest 2 to take part even though the survey does ask which VR devices you own. “At this stage, the game is still unfinished so we’re looking for valuable feedback from experienced players, however new VR enthusiasts are also welcomed to apply,” Secret Location notes.

The form will be accessible for a couple of weeks until 15th March at 1pm EST, with the playtesting beginning shortly after. When it comes to specifics regarding the closed beta the studio says: “we’ll be running testers through an entire match of our map Colosseum, a capture the point map, with all available blasters. We will be contacting successful candidates as soon as we’ve matched them with players in similar time zones and available timeslots.”

NERF Ultimate Championship was unveiled by Secret Location last summer during E3 2021, teasing the Meta Quest exclusive for this year. December saw the first gameplay trailer arrive and it was as colourful and manic as you’d expect a NERF VR videogame to be.

NERF Ultimate Championship

An arena shooter that utilises official NERF blasters, the mechanics will stay close to their toy roots with manual reloading, priming of weapons, revving triggers, dual-wielding capabilities, and unique dart physics to contend with. Plus there are a variety of characters to choose from, each having their own unique traits.

Secret Location hasn’t revealed a release window for NERF Ultimate Championship just yet, when that happens gmw3 will let you know.

The VR Job Hub: Singer Studios, Khora & Secret Location

VR Job Hub

Every weekend VRFocus gathers together vacancies from across the virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) industry, in locations around the globe to help make finding that ideal job easier. Below is a selection of roles that are currently accepting applications across a number of disciplines, all within departments and companies that focus on immersive entertainment.

Location Company Role Link
London, UK/Remote Singer Studios Senior Producer Click Here to Apply
Copenhagen, Denmark Khora Project Manager Click Here to Apply
Copenhagen, Denmark Khora Unity Generalist Click Here to Apply
Copenhagen, Denmark Khora CG Artist Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location 2D Illustrator/Animator Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Backend Developer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Backend Network Programmer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Content Specialist Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Digital Project Manager Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Game Designer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Game Producer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Graphics Programmer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Lead Developer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Networking Gameplay Programmer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location QA Engineer Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Quality Assurance Tester Click Here to Apply
Toronto, Canada Secret Location Unity Developer Click Here to Apply

Don’t forget, if there wasn’t anything that took your fancy this week there’s always last week’s listings on The VR Job Hub to check as well.

If you are an employer looking for someone to fill an immersive technology related role – regardless of the industry – don’t forget you can send us the lowdown on the position and we’ll be sure to feature it in that following week’s feature. Details should be sent to Peter Graham (pgraham@vrfocus.com).

We’ll see you next week on VRFocus at the usual time of 3PM (UK) for another selection of jobs from around the world.

First Gameplay Trailer Arrives for NERF Ultimate Championship

Nerf Ultimate Championship

One of the more unusual virtual reality (VR) announcements to come out of E3 2021 was Nerf Ultimate Championship by Secret Location. Continuing the raft of new gameplay videos today, Secret Location has just released the first footage of Nerf Ultimate Championship in action.

NERF Ultimate Championship

As you’d expect from a virtual reality (VR) videogame based on a toy, Nerf Ultimate Championship is a team-based multiplayer shooter pitting two teams of four against one another. While everyone can choose from a wide range of official Nerf blasters, the gameplay will feature plenty of fluid movement with parkour elements and double jumping. 

The mechanics will be kept realistic with manual reloading, priming of weapons, revving triggers, dual-wielding capabilities, and unique dart physics to factor in. During Hasbro PulseCon back in October, several characters were unveiled including Float, Vault, and Clash.

“We’re super excited to finally give fans a brief glimpse of gameplay,” said Josh Manricks, Studio Director at Secret Location in a statement. “One of our biggest goals was to amp up the high physicality and fun competition that characterizes NERF to this new medium, and we can’t wait for VR fans to experience the game’s intense action and spectacular arenas. We are also looking forward to opening up some opportunities for the community to get into the game and do some beta testing with the team early in the new year.”  

NERF Ultimate Championship

“NERF battles are great in real life, but we thought to ourselves ‘what would take a NERF battle to that next level’. This brought us to empowering players to do things they can’t in real life, like wall running and double jumping. Players can flow through the levels like a world-class parkour athlete, ” lead Game Designer Michael Sandercock adds. “We want NERF Ultimate Championship to feel like an enhanced and larger-than-life NERF Battle. All our blasters have a unique blasting pattern, with dart fall off and some variability to the dart flight.”

Nerf Ultimate Championship is expected to arrive for the Meta Quest platform sometime in 2022. Take a look at the first gameplay footage below and for further updates, keep reading VRFocus.

‘Nerf Ultimate Championship’ Arena Shooter Coming to Quest 2 August 25th

Hasbro and VR studio Secret Location announced at UploadVR’s Summer Showcase that its long-awaited Nerf-brand multiplayer shooter is coming to Meta Quest 2 in August. They also threw out a new trailer that drills a little deeper into Nerf Ultimate Championship’s gameplay, weapons, and locomotion.

Update (June 9th, 2022): Nerf Ultimate Championship is coming to Quest 2 on August 25th, the studios reveal. Secret Location also shows off some of the game’s wall-running action, double jumping, and shooting mechanics in the new ‘World Overview’ trailer. Check it out below:

Original Article (June 15th, 2021): Called Nerf Ultimate Championship, the arena shooter is said to offer what Secret Location calls “a wide range of new and classic blasters as you leap around fantastic arenas in intense head-to-head team matches.”

“Soak in the sound of roaring fans and master your skills as you begin your journey to become the Ultimate NERF Champion,” the studio says on the game’s official website.

The game, which was revealed in UploadVR’s E3 showcase, is still somewhat of a mystery beyond that description; the trailer below doesn’t show any gameplay (see update). Considering the Facebook/Oculus branding, we’re supposing the Quest platform holder will act as the game’s publisher, possibly making it a Quest exclusive.

Secret Location is known for a number of high-quality VR games and experiences including bullet-hell shooter Blasters of the Universe (2017), a VR retelling of Philip K. Dick’s The Great C (2018) and time-bending puzzle game Transpose (2018).

The post ‘Nerf Ultimate Championship’ Arena Shooter Coming to Quest 2 August 25th appeared first on Road to VR.

NERF Battles are Coming to Oculus Quest in 2022

NERF Ultimate Championship

It’s been a couple of years since Secret Location’s last virtual reality (VR) title Transpose but the studio is probably better known for its bullet hell shooter Blasters of the Universe. For the start of the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) 2021 today, Secret Location has begun teasing its next project, NERF Ultimate Championship.

NERF Ultimate Championship

Collaborating with NERF to bring those classic battles all kids know and love into VR, NERF Ultimate Championship is about digitally recreating that excitement pitting players against each other in team-based wars. Players will be able to select from a range of NERF blasters before heading into an arena to leap around and dodge darts in an effort to win the quick, physical matches.

NERF Ultimate Championship marks an important milestone for us as the first collaboration with our new parent company Hasbro,” said, Kathryn Rawson, VP Content, Secret Location in a statement. “Everyone on the team is excited to bring those epic Nerf battles from our childhood into the immersive world of VR and to the growing Oculus Quest audience when the game launches next year.”  

Outside of the arena players will be able to customise their avatars and blasters with plenty of vibrant designs the brand is known for. NERF fans will get a chance to go hands-on with the videogame later this year as Secret Location will be hosting exclusive playtest sessions.

NERF Ultimate Championship

“We are thrilled to partner with Secret Location to take our legacy brand NERF to new heights through the immersion of virtual reality,” stated Scott Ozarski, Brand Manager, Global Brand Marketing for NERF. “It translates the imaginative play, high physicality and fun competition that characterizes the property to an all-new and exciting medium for our fans.”

NERF Ultimate Championship is going to be an Oculus Quest by the looks of it, due to arrive for the standalone headset at some point in 2022. Check out the teaser trailer below although there’s no gameplay footage at the moment. As and when further details for NERF Ultimate Championship are released, VRFocus will keep you updated.

Blasters of the Universe: Infinity Forever Is A New Free-Roam LBE VR Shooter

Secret Location revealed Blasters of the Universe: Infinity Forever today, a new free-roam location-based VR shooter for up to four players.

The original Blasters of the Universe was one of the first room-scale VR interpretations on the classic bullet hell wave shooter genre. Instead of controlling a spaceship, you’d move your body to dodge bullets while returning fire in a neon-soaked retro-futuristic landscape. It was a blast (pardon the pun) and is highly regarded as one of the best early VR shooters with lots of replay value that eventually left early access after a couple of years.

Now, Secret Location (also developers of the excellent time-bending VR puzzle game, Transpose) is back with Blasters of the Universe: Infinity Forever, a free-roam location-based entertainment take on the franchise. Designed for up to four people, it follows a linear story structure as players make their way through a series of levels at actual physical VR arcade locations powered by SynthesisVR.

The choice to focus on LBE VR rather than at-home VR is an interesting one given the current state of the industry. Top-billed attractions like The Void are struggling to retain leases for their locations and arcades around the world, but most especially in the United States, continue to struggle.

“We have remained optimistic about the state of our industry in the past months as we continued to make our games from home”, said Michael Masukawa, Director of Strategy and Business Development at Secret Location, in a prepared statement. “We know that now more than ever, families and friends are going to be craving meaningful shared experiences and so we’re happy to be able to offer them exactly what they need. As family entertainment centers start to reopen with safety in mind, we are thrilled to be partnering with Synthesis on the launch of our first location-based VR game.”

What do you think of the move? Risky considering the state of affairs, or forward-looking as the world slowly tries to return to normal? Let us know what you think down in the comment below!

Reality-Bending VR Puzzle Game Transpose Is Free To Keep This Weekend On Steam

Transpose is one of the best VR puzzle games on the market and you can grab it entirely for free this weekend (from today April 10-13) on Steam. All you need is a PC VR headset and you’re good to go.

Free weekends aren’t rare on Steam, but usually when they happen they’re more like extended demos and you lose access to the games after the weekend period is over. In this case, if you redeem it for free this weekend, you actually get to keep it forever in your digital library as if you had bought it.

Developer Secret Location revealed the news yesterday on Twitter. The move is a response to current efforts by governments around the world to insist on people staying home as much as possible, limiting travel, and avoiding contact with people outside of your own household to undercut the spread of the coronavirus, officially known as COVID-19.

Thankfully, the puzzle genre is a natural fit for VR. It’s one of the most well-represented genres with several amazing games on every platform. Back when we reviewed Transpose in late 2018, it felt like a revelation. For me personally, I think it’s probably one of my all-time favorite VR games.

What makes Transpose unique is that you record yourself doing things and then have those actions played back by apparitions that act as echos of your past actions. Combining multiple echos with your real-time movements is key to solving the game’s 30+ levels.

In my original Transpose review I wrote:

Transpose is a stunning VR puzzle game that elevates the genre and delivers an out-of-body-like experience about manipulating gravity and bending time. There isn’t much of a story to follow and not all of the puzzles are as satisfying as the rest, but fans of the genre would be doing themselves a disservice to not play this excellent adventure from Secret Location.

On Steam Transpose has official support for Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Valve Index, and Windows MR headsets, but Oculus Quest via Link and any other SteamVR headset (such as Pimax) should work fine as well. Normally, Transpose costs $19.99.

Let us know if you grab it this weekend and what you think down in the comments below!

The post Reality-Bending VR Puzzle Game Transpose Is Free To Keep This Weekend On Steam appeared first on UploadVR.