Raw Data developer Survios’ next game is nearly upon us.
Sprint Vector, a unique racing game that mashes Mario Kart with VR, is releasing on the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive on February 8th, with a PSVR release following just a few days later on February 13th. On PC, the game is getting a free launch pack featuring skins designed after the upcoming 2018 Winter Olympics.
In Sprint Vector the player chooses an athletic alien to race as, then speeds around laps by simulating running by swinging their arms. Courses are littered with obstacles and you’ll have to master the game’s mechanics, which include climbing and even flying, to perfect your lap times. Up to eight players can take part in races, complete with power ups to even the odds. Solo play with AI characters is all available.
Over the past few weeks players have been honing their skills during a Closed Beta. Survios hopes to spark an eSports scene with the game; will it catch on?
Having just celebrated a successful closed beta, which showed off some of the game’s new mechanics and solo challenge mode, Survios now says its infectious footracer Sprint Vector is set to launch on HTC Vive and Oculus Rift on February 8th. PlayStation VR players will have to wait until February 13th to join in the fun.
Sprint Vector features a unique locomotion system, which Survios dubs ‘Fluid Locomotion’. By pumping your arms, you generate forward motion, much like a skier might when using ski polls. But it’s not just about skating your way to the finish; you have to jump, climb, drift, fling, and fly at speeds that on paper sound impossible in VR. We’ve followed Sprint Vector since it was first revealed back at GDC last year, and can attest to just how comfortable the high-speed racing experience really is.
Much like the Mario Kart franchise, Sprint Vector features power-ups like weapons, traps, and nitro to keep things interesting; although you’d be forgiven if you forgot all about it while desperately pumping your arms, tossing yourself 30 feet into the air and flying to hit that critical speed boost to inch you into first place.
The closed beta only featured a fraction of the game’s content, so here’s a full list of the game’s features:
Competitive multiplayer matches: Public and private online multiplayer modes pit up to eight players against each other in intense, high-speed races as you vie for a spot on the Global Leaderboards.
12 competitive race tracks: Scale towering pyramids and plunge into alien ruins, leap across bottomless pits while dodging debilitating blobs of sludge, or survive the trap-riddled streets of an ancient city. A dozen complex race courses full of obstacles, alternate paths, and game-changing power-ups make for endless replay value.
Customizable solo play: Run the course at your own pace and learn the ropes with customizable solo game settings.
Nine challenge courses: Take on these diabolical courses designed to test your sprinting prowess to the extreme. Tackle three specific challenges across nine single-player challenge courses with Local and Global Leaderboards.
Eight intergalactic competitors: Choose from eight colorful characters pulled from every corner of the galaxy, from notorious street artist Daxx to ethereal Luna to streetwise hammerhead Hendrix, each with multiple skins to unlock.
Power-ups galore: Utilize a wide range of power-ups, from explosive proximity mines to nitro speed and racer-seeking rockets, to gain an advantage over the competition.
Survios also tells us that a cosmetic skin pack will be available to all PC racers free of charge, which are said to have an “international spin just in time for the 2018 Winter Olympic Games.” These international-inspired skins represent 16 countries and are available across all eight playable characters.
Sprint Vector, the upcoming VR footracing game from Raw Data (2017) studio Survios, went into closed beta last week. Now with a few multiplayer matches under my belt and a number of solo challenges (and possibly some overextended elbows), it’s clear the studio’s so-called “adrenaline platformer” is aiming to impress with a number of new modes, some new mechanics and a thick coat of polish.
I’ve had the opportunity to play Sprint Vector multiple times since it was first debuted at GDC last year. Every time I approached it, I got a little less horrible at drifting through the cartoonish courses. I was always relegated to playing head-to-head with a far too lenient handler or developer though, who more often than not were more concerned with showing me the ropes than punishing me outright. Now, having played what could easily be mistaken for a consumer-ready game, I am humbled.
The closed beta featured three solo challenge maps with three modes each, and three competitive maps which could either be played solo vs AI, or in an 8-player online race.
image by Road to VR
Having played a few times before, I thought I was clear to skip the tutorials and head straight into my first competitive race. Boy, was I wrong. Landing second to last, and seeing my fellow racers finish the course way before me, I decided to go back to the basics for fear of missing something important. Divided into three sections—basic, intermediate, and advanced—there’s plenty to learn when it comes to mastering the locomotion system in Sprint Vector; you have to skate, drift, jump, fly, climb – all while keeping an eye on your opponents.
Instead of hitting the multiplayer mode again (fool me once), I started out fresh from the tutorial on the newly revealed solo challenge maps.
While there are only three right now—Driftway – a deceptively simple beginner track, Killer Boost – a track littered with boosts and tons of jumps, and Sidewinder – a ‘grip stream’ nightmare—it was easy to lose a good chunk of time playing each of these through their three different modes: time trial, coin collection, and hardcore one-life. Hardcore one-life pumps you full of nitro so you never stop moving forward at high-speed, meaning you have to dial in on your steering, shooting and flying to get the best time.
I could easily spend time honing my skill to climb the respective leaderboards, but even after polishing for an hour, it became clear that I simply wasn’t anywhere near good enough yet to post any meaningful result on the challenge board, not yet at least.
Returning to the ‘skate park’, or the lobby filled with air boosts and grip streams, I spent some quality time pumping my arms, diligently playing attention to the speed meter at my lower register. Soon enough, after some more practice, I was getting some momentum to my strides, releasing the trigger button just as I pumped my arm down to my hip.
image by Road to VR
Now after some bonafide training, I was ready for my first multiplayer. This time I hit my strides correctly, picked up my power-ups and traps (just like in Mario Kart) and finished in a respectable third place. I got a chance to use the game’s weapons for the first time too – a standard mix of missiles, nitros, and slowdown traps that come part and parcel with these sorts of arcade racers.
It’s clear there’s still a lot to learn about each course and how to best attack it, but I felt I’d finally understood how to move in the world and have that 1:1 physical engagement with my surroundings. The wizards over at Survios have certainly boned up on their Oculus Best Practice Guide too, as it felt completely nausea-free throughout.
Interesting side note: I got a chance to prove to myself just how much of a workout the game really is. According to my Fitbit, I have an average resting heart rate of around 50-60 beats per minute (bmp). While playing Sprint Vector however, the heart rate monitor told me I had entered into the ‘fat burn zone’ for nearly 20 minutes, with my heart rate jacking up to over 94 bmp. If my heart pumped any faster (over 131 bmp), I would have inched into the ‘Cardio zone’.
There was one unfortunate side effect after playing a straight hour of multiplayer: tennis elbow. It seems during my quest to do my best, and pump my arms like crazy, I was overextending the joints in my elbow with my feverish downstrokes, leaving the telltale pain that I had felt back in high school when I was into karate. While it’s not a show stopper, I’ll have to pay more attention to how I play from now on so I don’t develop the world’s first case of Sprint Vector elbow.
Sprint Vector feels and looks ready. And now that I’ve had my real training, I’m ready to head into the full version, which is slated to launch globally on Rift, Vive and PSVR in Q1 2018.
Virtual Reality (VR) Arcade centres are becoming an increasingly popular method for people to try out VR technology, without the expense of buying a full VR rig or the limitation of mobile VR. Last year, Raw Data developer Survios announced its intention to enter the VR Arcade business, and that plan is now moving forward with the announcement of its first location.
Survios co-founder James Iliff posted a short video clip on Twitter of the Survios staff preparing for the opening of the first Survios VR Arcade location in the US. The Tweet confirmed that the Grand Opening of the centre would be coming soon to the Del Amo Fashion Center in Torrance, California.
The developers have created a new version of Raw Data to give visitors to the centres a more streamlined experience of the title. As such, Raw Data Arcade will feature faster loading times, simpler in-game menus and an improved matchmaking system as well as additional admin tools for arcade operators. The arcade version will have multiple game modes, including fully-unlocked quickplay, a match-based hero progression and customisable gameplay timers for both short and long gameplay sessions.
Recently Survios also signed a new distribution deal with Sony Pictures Virtual Reality (SPVR) to bring the VR tie-in to the movie Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle to its VR centres. Jumanji: The VR Adventure allows audiences to enter a fully interactive 3D jungle and take control of their favourite movie characters, building a team in order to lift the Jumanji curse.
Survios’ other major VR title, Sprint Vector will also feature as part of the arcade experience. Being tailored towards a fast-paced and very physical form of e-sports, Survios have announced that Sprint Vector tournaments will be taking place globally head of the launch date.
An exact date for the opening of the Survios VR Arcade has yet to be confirmed, but VRFocus will be sure to inform you once the date is known.
Beginning last weekend and running through this week until Sunday, LA-based studio Survios is running a closed beta for its next virtual reality (VR) title Sprint Vector. Applications were open to everybody with either an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive head-mounted display (HMD), with a select few being chosen to test the videogame out – or if you were quick enough VRFocus gave out some closed beta keys. Naturally, VRFocus has been testing out the current build to see how work has progressed and decided to film a couple of races for your enjoyment.
If you’ve been following VRFocus’ coverage of Sprint Vector then you’ll know that the title involves a small amount of fitness to succeed, with Survios employing its Fluid Locomotion System to get players to work up a sweat. Movement is achieved by swinging your arms back and forth to build momentum as players race down an obstacle course filled with jumps, ramps, gaps, boxes, walls and other objects to navigate.
As you’ll hear from the video VRFocus’ Peter is in fighting fit form, trying to catch his breath whilst frantically racing against a bunch of AI players in the single-player portion of Sprint Vector, testing out some of the tracks and challenges Survios has unlocked for the beta run.
Don’t forget to check out the most recent preview of Sprint Vector which goes into more detail about the build and what it’s like to play. Additionally, VRFocuswill also bring you an update on the multiplayer side of things, as the studio has allotted specific times over the weekend for players to get together and fight it out online.
Survios hasn’t yet confirmed when Sprint Vector is likely to launch, simply giving a window of Q1 2018. When it does VRFocuswill bring you all the latest details as they’re announced.
When Survios first showcased its follow up virtual reality (VR) title to the acclaimed Raw Data, few would have believed what was in store. Studios that’ve delved into the realm of VR and created a first-person shooter (FPS) often use this experience to build another title in the same genre, yet the LA-based developer decided instead to tackle one of the problems in VR head-on, and that’s movement, or more accurately fast paced locomotion. So Survios created Sprint Vector, and looking at the current build that decision has payed off.
Sprint Vector made its first public appearance at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2017, impressing those who played it – including VRFocus, check out the first look preview – with its ability to allow fast VR movement without inducing any nausea because of the videogame’s Fluid Locomotion System. While new and unseen in the VR industry at the time, the arm swinging locomotion found in Sprint Vector is no longer unique to the title, with other experiences like Dash Dash Run! and Vindicta both employing similar mechanisms to move around their virtual worlds.
With a year now past since that first reveal the question is now how well does Sprint Vector’s once unique system hold up against its rivals and does it offer enough engrossing gameplay.
This week has seen Survios launch a closed beta for players around the world to get their hands on Sprint Vector for the first time. It’s this build that VRFocus is previewing because it’s the latest iteration, solely looking at the single-player portion of the videogame, with a secondary look at the multiplayer coming latter.
At first glance Sprint Vector has all the hallmarks of Survios’ high quality production values as found in Raw Data. The lobby is bristling with colour and detail, placing you in the centre of a giant arena. Here there’s a floating hub giving access to a tutorial, single-player races, challenges and of course multiplayer. Additionally, there are a wealth of options to investigate such as choosing your character.
In this current beta there are three races to play on single-player, each offering their own landscape design and features. The courses themselves are a winding, undulating mixture that not only test your fitness but also your eye for detail. There are plenty of optional routes to take, both high and low, meaning that until a course is properly learnt finding that perfect line for the best time will take plenty of reruns.
Before mastering the courses you need to learn how to move, and move well. As mentioned the core of the Fluid Locomotion System is swinging your arms – like you’re running – to build momentum. You can’t just do this wildly however as you’ll go nowhere, think of it like cross-county skiing, you have to hold the trigger at the start of the swing then let go at the end. Get the sequence right and Sprint Vector will respond with visual sparks.
The system feels more nuanced than rival videogames using a similar method, requiring a focused approach to gain the speed needed to win, timing is everything. That being said it’s not particularly difficult to pick up. What does take a little more time to hone is the combination of turning and jumping so that they all become one fluid motion. Hit and obstacle, land in an awkward spot and that momentum will be lost, giving rivals a chance to catch up.
Even in its current beta form Sprint Vector still looks very promising. It’s a simple concept turned up to 11, a visual feast for the eyes whilst pitting the body in a virtual Ironman Challenge. And that’s just the single-player. Taking on opponents from around the world should naturally ramp up that element of competition which VRFocus will be testing soon. Needless to say Sprint Vector certainly has the makings of a competitive eSport and a high quality VR experience, which VRFocus will continue reporting on closely.
Sprint Vector is the latest game from Survios, the creators of Raw Data. In Sprint Vector you swing your arms at your side in a mad dash for the finish line as your characters race, jump, and fly across big, elaborate levels. You can race against both AI opponents and real players online.
We’ve gone hands-on with it a few times before and have really enjoyed it. Starting today and lasting until Janaury 28th, the game is entering Closed Beta, which means you need an exclusive download key to get access. Lucky for you, we’re giving away a bunch of codes right here at UploadVR!
For your chance at securing a Steam key for Sprint Vector’s PC Closed Beta, just visit this link and enter your email address and a code will be sent to you directly. You’ll have to input your email twice for verification and then verify you’re not a robot. Robots aren’t allowed to race.
And finally, to kick things off, here is the first Steam key for the Sprint Vector Closed Beta that will work with both Rift or Vive:
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All codes are being distributed on a first come, first served basis. Let us know what you think of the game if you’re lucky enough to get in on the Closed Beta down below!
Sprint Vector, the fast-paced, ludicrous, bombastic, and ridiculous racing game from Survios, is hitting Closed Beta this weekend. Join us here in our livestream soon for a hands-on look at the latest build as I swing my arms like a crazy person for your amusement. And I’ll probably sweat a lot too. Multiplayer times are specifically restricted to the weekends, but you can hop in during the week to play the tutorial and race against AI opponents.
Also — keep an eye on the homepage this afternoon because we’ll be giving away dozens of Closed Beta Steam keys for the game soon!
We’re aiming to start the livestream around 1:00PM (perhaps 1:30PM) and will go for about an hour or hour and a half. You can watch the stream right here when it’s live and afterwards once it’s archived:
Now that we’re in the new year we’re going to get back to streaming much more often. For past game streams, you can check out our archived videos all in this one handy Livestream playlist over on the official UploadVR YouTube channel (which you should totally subscribe to by the way).
Let us know which games you want us to livestream next and what you want to see us do, specifically, in Sprint Vector. The game is set to release very soon, likely within the next month or two. Comment with your feedback down below!
Last month virtual reality (VR) developer Survios announced it would be holding a closed beta for its upcoming competitive multiplayer Sprint Vector, for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. Today, the studio has revealed the closed beta will begin this Friday, 19th January.
The beta will be the first time Sprint Vector is publicly available for hands-on, online competitive platforming, showcasing Survios’s proprietary Fluid Locomotion system, which allows for player locomotion and comfortable gameplay even with intense speeds and movements in VR. The beta includes access to three competitive maps, a full roster of playable characters, all in-game power-ups, a never-before-seen challenge mode featuring two solo maps with unique challenges, and both quick play and private lobbies.
Featuring 8-player competitive online racing, Sprint Vector is a high-octane athletic competition mixed with an interactive game show element. Players can race downhill at 100 mph, scramble up skyscraper-height walls, leap headfirst off 1,000-foot towers and more, whilst using the Fluid Locomotion systems simple, running and climbing motions complete the courses.
Sprint Vector, will take place from 19th January through 28th January, 2018. Multiplayer servers will be open on the weekends from 5:00pm to 8:00pm PT in the US, and from 17:00 to 20:00 GMT in the EU. If you’ve not yet done so signup for the free beta at the Sprint Vector website.
VRFocus originally previewed the title at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2017 on HTC Vive, saying: “From this early demo Sprint Vector certainly does things differently, a VR Parkour if you will. VR developers are still learning the do’s and don’ts of the technology and Survios has decided to tackle a major challenge head on, and only time will really tell if this is a successful solution. Sprint Vector has all the makings of another stellar experience from the Raw Data studio.”
Additionally, during Sony Interactive Entertainment’s (SIE) pre-show for Paris Games Week (PGW) 2017, the company revealed that Sprint Vector will also be coming to PlayStation VR, although no date has been set yet.
Sprint Vector is slated to launch globally in Q1 2018, as further details are released VRFocus will keep you updated.
Starting this Friday, January 19th, the PC closed beta for Survios’ Sprint Vector will officially happen and lasts until January, 28th.
Sprint Vector sort of reminds me of that new food you tried at a restaurant once, unsure if you’d like it, but ended up loving it. In this way it can feel both brand new to your palette, but at the same time feel like it’s always belonged. Like it’s the game that you never knew you wanted.
This closed beta period represents the first time the game has been playable with its full complement of eight total players all racing online against one another. The limited demo environments we’ve seen it in thus far have only been with a single player against AI or just a pair of people racing against each other.
Since it’s just a closed beta, players won’t quite have access to the entire game, but it will include plenty of content between the three different maps and tutorial levels, all characters with default skins, all power-ups, two challenge maps, quick play and private lobbies, as well as up to eight player multiplayer during the pre-designated “online” hours listed below for each of the next two weekends:
If you’ve got a Rift or Vive and want to try out the closed beta over the next week or so, you can sign up for a chance right here. We’ll also be holding our own beta code giveaway at UploadVR soon as well.
Let us know what you think of the game from what you’ve seen down in the comments below!
