After a few delays, the high-flying parkour madness of STRIDE (2021) is finally making its way to PSVR today.
Created by Joy Way, the studio known for VR games OUTLIER and AGAINST, Stride is all about jumping and shooting your way through increasingly difficult environments.
It does this by combining some particularly clever locomotion methods with the sort of run-and-gun action you’ve probably seen in a John Wick film—or maybe Mirror’s Edge.
Playing with PS Move, user get up to running speeds by pumping both arms back and forth, almost as if you were drumming or running in place. To jump, you depress a button and release it while making an upward thrust with your controller. Together, it makes for a surpassingly comfortable and fast-paced way of getting around.
Having previously launched on PC VR and Meta Quest headsets last year, the PSVR release suffered several delays which pushed it from an “early 2021” release window until today.
We haven’t gone hands-on with the PSVR version yet—so we can’t tell whether it’s worth the wait or not—however when we reviewed Stride on Quest back in mid-2021 we gave it a very solid [7/10].
Stride’s single-player modes make for some great arcade-style fun, offering just enough reason to come back for more shooting action on both the game’s rooftop environment and procedurally-generated endless mode.
Since then, the studio has included multiplayer modes among a number of tweaks that have really filled out the game. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem multiplayer is coming at launch on PSVR though. You can check it out on the PlayStation Store here.
When asked whether Stride would also eventually come to PSVR 2 however, Joy Way responded this:
Stride’s newest 9.0 update brings parity to the Quest and PC VR version of the game, while adding some brand new features to both.
The development team has also outlined future plans for in-development content, including the game’s story and multiplayer modes.
The 9.0 update’s biggest changes include a new tutorial, more options for Endless Mode, power-ups, new interactive elements, reworked graphics and new enemy types. Arena mode also has new modifiers and enemies can throw grenades at the player, which can be thrown back.
Improvements and additions have also been made to enemy voiceovers, gun models and effects, and the general enemy AI. For the PC VR version specifically, a whole bunch of new additions and changes have been made that bring features to PC VR that were previously only available on Quest.
This is just scratching the surface — it seems like a huge update that adds lots of new features, bug fixes and improvements. You can see footage and details of the additions in the video from JoyWoy embedded above.
The bad news is that Story Mode is unlikely to arrive this year. However, the video gives a first-look at new environments designed for story modes, including new urban slum areas (pictured above) and more affluent skyscraper environments.
Joy Woy says the team are considering releasing the campaign split across several releases, in an episodic format, to get it out faster. The other option is to receive the whole campaign at once, but with a longer wait. Joy Way will take player feedback into consideration when making this decision.
With regards to multiplayer, Joy Woy thanked everyone who took part in testing and noted that the servers are being taken down temporarily to make improvements based on player feedback. There are also “several brand new online modes” in development, which will feature different modes to what was previously available in the Alpha test. More multiplayer tests will be available in the future, with no word on a full launch date yet.
The 9.0 update for Stride is available on PC VR and Quest now.
Last week’s launch of Stride on Oculus Quest seems to have gone down well for developer JoyWay.
The parkour game has already amassed over 450 reviews at the time of writing with a user review score average of over four stars, for starters. But, while reception to the game has been generally positive, some fans have been asking about possible new control options. JoyWay says that won’t happen.
To run in Stride, you need to shake your arms back and forth whilst holding an analog stick forwards. To then jump, you need to hold the A button and then let go as you thrust your arms upwards. It can take a lot of getting used to this method, and some fans have asked if running and jumping could instead be assigned to simple button presses.
“Stride is a competitive game and running only using a joystick or jumping only using a button would break the game balance,” Joy Way reasoned in a newly-posted FAQ, “as well as put the players in an unequal position. Furthermore, the entire gameplay is built around the locomotion system.”
The developer reiterated that these will remain the only ways to control the game.
As we said in our review last week, it can definitely be tricky to get the hang of Stride’s controls. Remembering to let go of a button and throw your hands up, in particular, takes some getting used to. But, with enough practice, we found we could master the controls. Instead, we took issue with the game’s lack of content, with a story and multiplayer mode still to be delivered.
What do you make of Stride not changing its controls? Let us know in the comments below!
Game shows like Ninja Warrior always look utterly impossible and completely exhausting yet time after time contestants manage to finish these endurance events. Being way too unfit to even remotely attempt something so physically demanding the closest any of us might are likely to get is a videogame like Stride, the new parkour experience from Joy Way, where you can wall run, jump from building to building and feel like you’ve had a decent workout.
Stride appeared last year in early access for PC VR headsets, showcasing some impressive free-running abilities that really immersed you in the experience. But it only had one gameplay mode, “Endless”. Now with its arrival on Oculus Quest, there’s a lot more to Stride, with three modes, modifiers and unlockables. More content is great yet there’s a noticeable hollowness to the whole experience.
As the name implies free running is about maximising the space around you, traversing the environment any way you please and Stride is very effective in that regard. It provides all the tools you’d expect and more, even going so far that it does blur the line between realism and being a bit too superhuman. You can leap and grab ledges, wall run to distant platforms and unleash a grappling line at specific locations. Once you’ve gone through the extensive tutorial – definitely don’t skip it – and completed a few levels there is a nice flow to Stride, if you don’t misjudge that next leap of course.
As you might expect Stride is an intense experience from start to finish, with locomotion purely stick-based with the option to run by waving your arms back and forth. This does help with the immersion but when you screw up (and you will), suddenly falling several stories before the game restarts never gets any easier. VR legs are a must here, don’t introduce someone to VR with Stride!
That being said, if you are a VR veteran you can have plenty of fun here. Those three modes are split between Timerun, Endless and Arena and they’re not too hard to figure out. Timerun is all about completing a series of set courses under a certain time, 12 levels with a maximum of three stars for each. Endless mode is just the same as any endless runner you’ve previously played, try to get as far as possible. You can fall but there’s a massive ominous wall of death continually encroaching which will end your run.
The final area is the Arena and this gives you the most scope for experimentation – with plenty of Mirror’s Edge feels – providing rooftops to run, leap and gun across. It’s also the one mode that is most underused and really could’ve provided the meat of Stride. Timerun and Endless are both fine little additions if they were opened up after completing a big campaign yet as two-thirds of Stride they quickly become throwaway modes. Endless does offer procedurally generated levels to mix things up although you’ll notice familiar patterns after a few sessions.
Whereas Arena’s potential is boiled down to run to this checkpoint or run and collect this bag as fast as possible. The changing level and ability to mix up your routes are what’ll keep you coming back. Joy Way has tried to further expand the Endless and Arena modes with modifiers which do help to a degree, where you can switch on Instadeath to increase the score or activate immortality which will decrease it. As mentioned, its clean-cut aesthetic and point focused gameplay robs Stride of some much-needed charisma, a videogame you can like but not love.
Let’s also mention the gun mechanics as they need a bit more work. Oculus Quest has some excellent VR shooters available for it so when you get a title that isn’t quite up to the task you quickly notice. You have a singular pistol to dispatch enemies with, grabbed from your shoulder for some reason. At close range it works well enough without feeling satisfying to use. At medium or longer ranges it really is pot luck. Now you might say this encourages exploration of the environment to get closer, however, on endless you don’t get that opportunity it needs to work the first time.
Stride is a very mixed experience on Oculus Quest. Whilst that might be due to the PC version still being in early access and you’re essentially getting the same version here, this is still a full release for Quest, hence the review. Stride’s parkour mechanics are what really sell the experience as there’s nothing quite like it for Oculus Quest. There are points where the gameplay is very addictive and engrossing as you try to perfect each jump and wall run. On the other hand, Stride can get repetitive too quickly and lacks that spark to make it a great VR game.
STRIDE has been in early access for SteamVR headsets for nearly a year, but now Oculus Quest owners can take a crack at the free running action, which effectively replicates a few ideas from the parkour-style platformer Mirror’s Edge (2009) and translates them pretty well into VR. Stride’s single player modes are fun arcade affairs which offer just enough reason to come back for more, although it will be interesting to see how the studio does with its upcoming campaign and multiplayer modes.
STRIDE for Quest Details:
Available On: Oculus Quest
Price: $tbd Cross-play: No (multiplayer planned for future)
Developer: Joy Way Release Date: August 5th, 2021 Reviewed On: Quest 2
Gameplay
Stride on Quest offers up some vertigo-inducing gameplay that will force you to move quickly, shoot accurately, and use the full gamut of movement options to traverse the crenelated rooftops of its heavily Mirror’s Edge-inspired world, as well as the obstacle courses that provide an admirable mashup of the game’s most challenging stuff. At present, there’s three modes, all of which are single player: arena, endless, and time run mode. It’s not a bunch, but it may be enough.
You can focus on honing your best parkour moves in endless and time run, but arena mode is more open-ended, requiring you to be a little more pragmatic as you digest all sorts of imposing jumps and surprise bad guys on your way to specific objectives. It offers up a seemingly Mirror’s Edge-style classic rooftop area which is chocked full of enemy waves and various tasks like stealing briefcases without being spotted by snipers or reaching random checkpoints.
You might even want to call it “Mirror’s Edge in VR,” but that’s not entirely accurate. It’s cool and well executed, but it’s smallish arcade-style affair that takes those wild parkour things and applies it to quick bursts of gameplay, and not a long-format game with a narrative, characters, voice actors beyond the tutorial—at least for now. There’s supposedly a story mode coming, but more on that below.
Anyway, you can mostly find your own way around and you’re almost always obligated to take out baddies, either by your trusty semi-automatic pistol or melee. This is where the game’s three-second slow-mo button comes into play, as you make epic jumps and cinematic kills for a truly John Wick-esque thrill. Slow-mo is recharged automatically, and can be handy when you find a gaggle of gun-totting biker dudes just around the corner or a sniper has his laser pointed at your head. It feels awesome when it all comes together and you can execute a jump, grab a ledge almost just out of reach, and pop over a wall to slow-mo shoot a group of baddies.
Although arena looks the most like the narrative-heavy Mirror’s Edge, this mode is essentially a straight forward race against the clock as you fulfill increasingly difficult objectives. While you’re definitely missing out on the overall reasonfor why you’re shooting dudes in the face, the game’s large format levels make way for a wider variety of movement possibilities than the more linear modes I’ll talk about below.
Endless mode offers up linear levels that are procedurally-generated and ramp up in difficulty until you lose all three of your lives. A red line follows you which can steal a life if you fall behind, and every bullet or nose dive to the ground detracts one too. A creeping black pixelization slowly infects the world around you so you know when the red line is near—a subtle but really useful touch. Once you reach the hardest difficulty, it becomes an unlimited series of the game’s most challenging stuff.
You can chose which level difficulty to jump into, or start from the very beginning and naturally progress your way to the hardest difficulty tracks, which require crazy wall-slides and the highest, most difficult jumps in the game by far. I am all about endless mode too. The red line offers enough incentive to keep you on your toes, and the masterful mix of obstacles are always a surprise to encounter, like successive windows that you can artfully crash through like a super hero, or successive wall-slides that transition into a zipline to an platform with two snipers waiting for you. It’s insane.
Finally, there’s time run, which presents you with about a dozen timed tracks to test your skills against the leaderboard. Time run feels similar to endless, however it’s compartmentalized so you can learn each level by heart and go against the game’s greatest players on the leaderboard. At first, this was the most daunting of modes since you’re almost assuredly going to be slower than anyone who’s mastered the game’s specific locomotion scheme.
One of the interesting ways the game uses to keep things feeling fresh is its reward system. Stride doesn’t reward quickly or easily, so you’ll have to spend time getting good in order to unlock even the most basic things like added health packs, full-auto fire, and a low level of armor. Across endless and arena mode you can also put on the training wheels for a zero-sum win if you just want to check things out and practice, or you can alternatively switch on more difficult modifiers for larger point gains, such as instadeath.
The combination of robust locomotion (more below) and challenging obstacles make for really fun moments, and that interplay is basically the main draw to the game. Were it any less interesting or well-done, these three modes might otherwise feel like sideshows to a main event which still needs to be added to the game. Joy Way is aiming to add both a story mode and multiplayer to the Quest version at some point in the near future, although those may just be icing on the cake for people looking to simply play an over-the-top game that promises fast-paced climbing, jumping, wall-running, and sliding down ledges.
If anything, it’s nice to see that the studio has taken the time to get the fundamental bits right before extending beyond arcade-style gameplay, but I really wanted to play online infection tag in Stride, which plays a lot like the breakout hit Gorilla Tag. I also would love to see more weapon options come into play with a greater range of enemy types, but I can concede that maybe Stride isn’t about being a shooter so much as it’s focused on getting players to build parkour skills.
Immersion
When people say Stride is “the Mirror’s Edge of VR,” I see what they mean in some fundamental ways. Sure, it has rooftop jumping and shooting action, but in Stride it’s extremely apparent from the get-go that you’re playing an arcade-style game with no lore or overall objective. The tutorial is a long and pointed bit of gamey gristle to chew through, which could be improved for more when it eventually adds a bonafide campaign.
That’s not a knock on Stride: it’s perfectly capable of selling itself through its collection of fun and interesting gameplay mechanics, but it’s still super clear you’re playing a game that plainly throws discrete objectives at you and nothing more. You kill the samey-looking dudes who randomly spawn. You always shoot the same weapon. To its credit, baddies aren’t dumb and they’re well-animated to respond to physical punches and pistol whips. And it’s a hell of a lot of fun busting through a pane of glass to get there.
On that note, the shooting experience is an overall adequate mix of arcade-style reloading—lower the pistol to your hip and it automatically reloads—and real shooting prowess which relies on iron sights. It’s a shame though that the gun is pitched at a slightly higher angle than many other VR shooters. I have some ingrained muscle memory from Pistol Whip, Space Pirate Simulator, and The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners. All of those seem to offer more or less the same physical pistol-shooting dynamic, so it took some time to rethink my natural shooting stance. A slightly lesser gripe comes down to wall-slides, which can be unpredictable at times if you’re not being completely deliberate with your movements. I didn’t know where to complain about that, so here it is.
In the end, the Quest version of the game proves to be well-optimized, which is probably helped somewhat by its more minimalist art style and mostly static environments, save the odd door to open or window to smash through.
Comfort
Considering how fast-paced the game can be, requiring frenetic combinations of jumping, climbing, and shooting, I found it exceedingly comfortable. This is because you’re nearly always in direct control of your virtual movement; the game’s running and jumping mechanic are cleverly designed to make those two actions super comfortable, and require a good degree of physicality to perform. Here’s how it works:
To accelerate to a running speed, you need to pump both arms back and forth like you’re drumming or running in place. To jump, you need to hit the ‘A’ button and release it while making an upward thrust with your controller. When the physical movement of your hand combines with artificial locomotion in-game, it removes a lot of the inherent weirdness of simply hitting a button and doing your thing.
The game is best played standing, although there is a seated option that includes adjustable height so you can dial things in. The game’s reload mechanic requires you to have access to your hip, which isn’t easy if you’re in an office chair with arm rests. You’ll also need to physically crouch to avoid overhead obstacles, which is absolutely a silly prospect when seated. As you’d imagine, it’s also a pretty intense workout, so make sure to have air conditioning/fan in the hottest months and some sort of cover for you facial interface if you don’t want to soak it with sweat.
Stride has the foundation for a fantastic VR parkour game, it just needs to apply itself properly. Find out more in our Stride review.
Note: This review is based on the Quest edition of the game. Stride is still in Early Access on Steam and the Quest version is essentially the same experience. However, as Facebook doesn’t label games as Early Access on the Quest store, we’re giving it a full review that we’ll update as new features arrive for the title.
You’ve probably heard by now that Stride is something like Mirror’s Edge in VR. That, it turns out, is putting it mildly.
Not only is JoyWay’s fast and fluid gameplay reminiscent of EA’s often overlooked franchise, but the game’s style and tone are practically carbon copies of it too. There’s the pure white cityscape, which is ripped straight from Faith’s adventures, and even the nimble combat tries to keep pace with its inspiration. Were it not for the fact that A. it’s in VR and B. EA seems allergic to actually making Mirror’s Edge games, you could easily mistake it for one.
Stride suffers from an identity crisis, then, reflected in the game’s aimless direction at launch. It’s all limbered up with nowhere to run, with three undeniably fun modes that should be appearing in addition to something bigger, not the meat of the experience.
Fortunately, Stride nails its core mechanics, making even the current build something that can get its hooks in you. To walk, you use the analog stick, but running requires moving your arms back and forth and jumping means holding the A button and swinging your arms up to propel yourself into the air. As I said when I previewed the game a year ago now, this takes some getting used to. The difference between then and now, though, is that I’ve actually had the time to get used to it. It’s still a little on the tricky side, tying your brain in knots as you try to process where your arms need to be and when to lift your thumb off of the button but once you’ve got it down, it works wonders. Throwing yourself over the map is weighty and physical, and really conveys a unique athleticism.
Stride Review – The Facts
What is it?: A VR free-running game that sees you leaping over rooftops and wall-running along courses. Platforms: Quest, PC VR in Early Access, PSVR coming soon Release Date:Out now Price: $19.99
Other moves are easier to grasp: wall running requires jumping at a surface at the right angle, sliding needs to you quickly duck, and you can grab ledges to propel yourself over the top, zip down lines and even swing across chasms with a hookshot. It’s a versatile moveset that controls better than you might think, keeping you on your toes for long stretches of gameplay with varied acrobatics. The more you play, the more you’ll spot opportunities to switch up moves in the map, with diverging paths offering faster ways to clear gaps and avoid enemies.
It is possible to get yourself caught in the environment from time to time, and the game could do with another pass on the wider polish front (the tutorial’s auto-generated narration highlights typos in the script, for example). But, considering just how messy you might expect this brand of VR to be, Stride is actually a remarkably cohesive experience.
The three modes on offer aim to change up how you approach the game, too. Endless Mode is still Stride at its purest, getting you to charge down paths, ducking to avoid enemy gunfire and — new to this build — avoiding traps set by drones you can shoot down. It’s brilliantly impulsive and fleet-footed, forcing you to make up plans as you speed head-first towards them. Arena, meanwhile, is an objective-based survival mode that sees you switch between hitting checkpoints, collecting items and taking out enemies in a small section of city skyline. Finally, Time Mode has you clearing set courses as quickly as possible.
Hold these modes up together and you can catch a glimpse of the game Stride should be. Arena’s my personal favorite, asking you to negotiate cluttered, confined spaces and make constant, breathless leaps across buildings. It demonstrates the potential for its agile brand of combat, including melee attacks and shootouts with a pistol, too. It’s as much an endurance test as it is anything else, and you’ll find yourself savoring the precious few moments to catch your breath between objectives. Think of it as VR’s answer to the beep test.
Stride Review – Comfort
Stride is, unavoidably, a pretty intense VR experience on the comfort front. Smooth locomotion is the only means over movement and, while swinging your arms does help convey a sense of realism, it can be pretty dizzying too. This definitely shouldn’t be your first VR experience.
Time Attack should be where the game really shines, but it’s quite easy as it stands and I was able to clear the final, hardest level with the highest score in just two attempts. And that’s ultimately true of the other offerings too; it’s not too long before Endless Modes’ regurgitation of a handful of paths becomes familiar, and cycling through the three main objectives means you’ll have seen all Arena has to offer in just a few goes. The game never really applies you and digs into the complexity of its mechanics for a truly challenging experience. And, aside from the hunt for high scores and a small system that unlocks power-ups within the given game type, there’s little in the way of progression.
Again, taken on their own these modes are fun and a great workout, but Stride needs to bash them into shape, throw them and other concepts into a cauldron and see if it can concoct something much more meaningful. Story and Multiplayer modes are on the way (the PC version is currently testing the latter) and have the chance to really set the game apart. Without them, this version of Stride is a bit of a false start.
Stride Review – Final Impressions
As it stands, Stride has a great foundation that doesn’t apply itself properly. A few tricky aspects aside, the game handles incredibly well, capturing the thrills, speed and exhaustion of parkour. But, while certainly addictive, the three modes on offer in the current Oculus Quest release don’t make the most of the mechanics, and feel like they’re in service to missing, larger modes. Those other options are on the way and we’ll take a look at Stride again once they’re here but, for now, Stride is a fun game with modes that can’t keep the pace going.
For more on how we arrived at this rating, read our review guidelines. What did you make of our Arcsmith review? Let us know in the comments below!
The long-promised Stride story mode and Quest multiplayer are still in the works, but they’ll arrive after this week’s Quest launch.
While Stride’s standalone launch won’t be completely identical to the Early Access PC VR version (there will be new features in some modes, but they’re being kept under wraps for now), the three core game types are still in place. That’s the Endless Mode for never-ending free running, Arena Mode for a more objective-driven game type, and Time Run for a race against the clock.
Stride Story Mode Incoming
But developer JoyWay has long been promising a story-driven single-player campaign for the game, too, and recently started testing multiplayer on the PC version. The former will also be coming to Quest, JoyWay has confirmed to UploadVR. It’s currently slated for a Q3 2021 launch on PC but it’s unclear if it will make that target and, if it does, if it’ll launch day and date on Quest. Expect the story mode to tell the origins of Stride’s world and introduce you to new characters.
Multiplayer, meanwhile, is currently in testing on PC. Buying the game gets you free access to the multiplayer pass. JoyWay also plans to bring a final version of these modes to all platforms in the future.
We’ll be bringing you full impressions of Stride when it launches on Quest later this week, so keep an eye out. What do you want to see out of a Stride story mode? Let us know in the comments below!
With two huge VR sequels and the latest PSVR exclusive, August is shaping up to be another great month of VR game releases. Here’s the full new VR games August 2021 list.
New VR Games August 2021
Stride (August 5th) – Quest
Stride is coming to Quest this month following its PC VR debut last year. If you need a sure-fire way of knowing if you want this title, it’s basically Mirror’s Edge in VR. Make of that what you will.
Price: $14.99
Disc Ninja (August 5th) – Quest
Disc Ninja is essentially frisbee golf set in a magical version of Fuedal Japan. There’ll be 50 different environments to enjoy at your leisure – which gives us Walkabout Mini Golf vibes.
Price: TBD
Carrier Command 2 (August 10th) – PC VR
Carrier Command 2 puts you in charge of deploying both aircraft and amphibious units as you launch your offensive to gain control of the area. It’s also a sequel to a classic 1988 game.
Price: TBD
Fracked (August 20th) – PSVR Exclusive
PSVR’s latest action-packed exclusive is coming towards the end of the month. Fracked was our Upload Access title for July so check out our exclusive interviews, gameplay videos and more right here on UploadVR.
Price: Standard $29.99/£19.99, Deluxe Edition $34.99/£24.99
Lone Echo II (August 24th) – Rift Exclusive & Quest via Link
Lone Echo 2 continues the story of Jack and Liv as you return to the rings of Saturn in this highly anticipated sequel to 2017’s Lone Echo. This is also the very last Oculus Rift exclusive, but you can also play it on Quest via Link.
Price: $39.99
I Expect You To Die 2 (August 24th) – PC VR, Quest & PSVR
The brilliant Schell Games is back with another installment of I Expect You To Die. Evil corporation Zoraxis believes you to be dead, which is the perfect time to go undercover to uncover what they’re up to. There’ll be plenty of puzzles and a chance to meet John Juniper, voiced by actor Will Wheaton.
Price: £24.99 / £18.99
Traffic Jams (August 26th) – PSVR
And finally, Traffic Jams is racing on over to PlayStation VR to finish off the month. Redirect traffic and survive less than normal situations in this fun party game, available either as a single-player campaign or get four other friends to unleash mayhem from their phones in multiplayer.
Price: TBD
We’ve got a few more games expected to release this Summer including Arashi: Castles of Sin, Song in the Smoke, Ionia and Pistol Whip’s latest story updates, so keep an eye out right here at UploadVR for the latest.
It’s currently raining which makes for a perfect excuse to not go outside and enjoy some virtual reality (VR) gaming instead. July has been an awesome month for new videogames, and as we welcome in August here’s a selection of titles that have caught VRFocus’ eye on the release schedule.
Everslaught – MobX
A hardcore action RPG designed for veteran VR players, Everslaught drops you in a fantasy world where you traverse an ancient city filled with randomly generating dungeons, monsters galore and an upgradable skill and weapon set to play with. It’s designed to be very fast and unrelenting, where you can mix up the combat between melee and ranged weaponry using a rather cool arm gadget.
A hospital simulator designed for training: “Valley General simulations are accurately representative of hospital environments. We present the truest to life training scenario from the audio environment to equipment interaction and lighting to accessories. Interactions are closely modelled on the real life-saving equipment for the most accurate and available learning.”
Released as a Steam Early Access title in 2020, now it’s the turn of Oculus Quest players to try their hand at disc golf, in a cool Japanese Samurai setting. Offering solo or online gameplay for up to three other players, Disc Ninja has 15 courses to complete, each with its own secrets including shortcuts and hidden loot which unlocks cosmetic items.
Another Steam Early Access videogame due to make its debut on Oculus Quest, Stride is a parkour experience all about running across rooftops, wall running and shooting bad guys. It consists of three modes Endless Mode, Time Run and Arena. Endless provides procedurally generated levels to get as far as possible, Time Run is all about being really quick and flying through the levels as smoothly as possible to score big points; whilst Arena Mode gives you the greatest freedom with challenges to complete over a wide-open area.
It’s a busy time for Russian virtual reality (VR) studio Joy Way. Not only has the team unveiled a new first-person shooter in the form of Outlier, but its parkour-inspired videogame Stride is now set to make its debut for Oculus Quest in August.
Initially, a Steam Early Access release for PC VR headsets in 2020 with one Endless Mode available, in that time Joy Way has fleshed the experience out into three different gameplay modes, all of which are coming to the Oculus Quest edition.
Stride is a mixture of freerunning and combat, where you can run across rooftop locations, leaping from one to another, adding a little wall running in or a cheeky slide underneath an obstacle. In Endless Mode this is a continual dash straight forward, trying not to let the big black wall of death catch up and kill you. It’s procedurally generated so each run is different – so no learning a perfect route – and you also need to keep an eye out for snipers.
Time Run mode is fairly obvious, be really quick and fly through the levels as smoothly as possible to score an awesome time on the leaderboard. Arena Mode gives you the greatest freedom, a big open arena to traverse however you please. There will be challenges to complete such as finding and collecting certain items, completing specified routes, killing all the enemies or stealing an item without getting spotted.
Eventually, Stride will also get a fourth mode, a full-on campaign to complete. Joy Way has been talking about the Story Mode since last year, saying that it’ll be released in Q3 2021. The studio hasn’t specified if it’s just for Steam, to begin with.
Stride is set for release on 5th August 2021 for Oculus Quest, retailing for $14.99 USD. For further updates on the videogame, keep reading VRFocus.
