Retro|Spective 203: The Final Tour of PlayStation VR

[Neon Ignition]

Game 06 - Astro Bot: Rescue Mission
The headsets platformer aimed to showcase the VR elements but despite relying on the standard controller it also tried to make dull use of its functionality as well. The result was a a simple game that came out of nowhere and became the unsuspecting love of many who came to own a PSVR headset.







Was the experience Astro-nomical for you?

[QualityChimp]

Farpoint - borrowed but not played.

Rush of Blood - actually really good! Some pretty harsh bits. Need to play it a bit more, but it's a pretty oppressive atmosphere to have your head trapped in!

Astro Bot.
At first I was disappointed as the demo Astro Bot game is co-op and a really nice way for two people to play, but the full game is single player only.
Then I started playing and it's easily a 10/10 game and a lovely, lovely experience.

It actually made me feel like a kid when you're first having your mind blown by videogames with all the exploration and seeing what can and can't be done. It's never an impossible game, that would ruin the fun, but there are some challenging moments.
The characters are all great. The bosses are huge and inventive and make you and astro feel tiny. Even the enemies are tough like growling puppies. The robots are all cute too, but Astro has just enough character to fall in love with him, but a blank enough slate that he doesn't get irratating.

The gadgets are all great too and add a real amount of variety, whether you're firing shurikens, launching a grappling hook and rope for Astro to walk on or using a water squirter to cool the lava path for him to get through.
Can you squirt yourself in the face? Yes, you get water splash your goggles and get an achievement because the designers were one step ahead of you.

Levels are varied an captivating from a Japanese forest (where you can chop bamboo with shurikens) to cities in the clouds, to deep underwater (I instinctively took a deep breath the first time I ducked beneath the waves).

Astro's handling is really good and any mistake is usually your own. You start to learn his limits and what can be done.

VR is the perfect medium too, because you're looking around the levels as you play, looking for hidden robots to rescue and camouflaged chameleons to spot. This adds replayability and each chameleon found earns you a bonus challenge.

I rinsed this game, found all the robots and chameleons and did all the bonus challenges, which were pretty tough and might sour the experience if you're finding them too tough, so be careful with them.

I was actually quite sad when the credits rolled and emotional that a sour old man could be made to experience wonder again.

[Brad]

Asura summed up far point really well.

Astrobot is the best mario game ever made.

The psvr hardware let it down. The head and controller tracking were both pretty poor and in a way that’s a real problem because some people will try that and go nah, vr is rubbish.

[Colin]

Astro Bot is just all kinds of wonderful. I’ve played other games I’ve really liked on PSVR, but this is just leaps and bounds ahead of all of them. And it’s one of those special games that if you leave a decent amount of time between replays, when you finally do you just completely fall in love with it all over again. Videogame game changer for me personally.

[QualityChimp]

Astro Bot is just all kinds of wonderful. I’ve played other games I’ve really liked on PSVR, but this is just leaps and bounds ahead of all of them. And it’s one of those special games that if you leave a decent amount of time between replays, when you finally do you just completely fall in love with it all over again. Videogame game changer for me personally.

My son started playing it, with his sister watching and I was a bit jealous that they got to play it for the first time.
I've no doubt she'll play through it eventually, too. I'll probably encourage it!

[Atticus]

I had a ton of fun with Rush of Blood. Felt like a proper shooting gallery with a horror vibe that's silly enough to keep it enjoyable.

Astrobot is brilliant. One of those rare games that gives you an experience you've never had.

[Neon Ignition]

I couldn't love Astro Bot more, I'd heard good things but even having those expectations set didn't stop it almost instantly winning me over. Just utterly lovely in every way.

[Neon Ignition]

Game 07 - Blood and Truth
Effectively a higher budget gun game, this title had you lighting to save your family in a setting that kind of picks up the baton from the Getaway franchise with its London gangster world setting back again. With big set pieces and lots of actiion,







Bringing out little VR journey to an end, where does the Truth lie with Blood?

[Colin]

My second favourite PSVR game this one, just rollicking good fun. I’ve unfortunately only ever played it with a pad though, I bet it’s awesome with the move doofers.

[Asura]

Game 07 - Blood and Truth
Effectively a higher budget gun game, this title had you lighting to save your family in a setting that kind of picks up the baton from the Getaway franchise with its London gangster world setting back again. With big set pieces and lots of actiion,
Bringing out little VR journey to an end, where does the Truth lie with Blood?

Might be my favourite PCVR experience, even more than Alyx as my PC wasn't quite up to the punishment that Alyx dishes out.

Started off from a simple concept - The Heist demo in PSWorlds was amazing, but only ~15 minutes long. Someone wanted the same, just 6 hours long with the appropriate fleshing out of the mechanics that were needed to sustain it, and the team absolutely delivered on that.

True, it's more of a shooting game than a true FPS, as you don't have absolute control over your movement, but it plays fantastically well.

The scene where you're on the rooftop, and you finally get two SMGs and go full-on John Woo for several minutes is one of my best-ever gaming moments full-stop.

[Neon Ignition]

That's exactly it, it's a game I'd pause to consider being my favourite VR game and one I'm desperately hoping gets a PSVR2 sequel. There's nothing 'new' about it but within the confines of VR it's just so distilled. Like having all of the very best elements contained within a single experience so whilst you're mostly just gunning down enemies it regularly has those little moments that stand out and keep you engaged.

[Asura]

That's exactly it, it's a game I'd pause to consider being my favourite VR game and one I'm desperately hoping gets a PSVR2 sequel. There's nothing 'new' about it but within the confines of VR it's just so distilled. Like having all of the very best elements contained within a single experience so whilst you're mostly just gunning down enemies it regularly has those little moments that stand out and keep you engaged.

It's also how it does so much.

It starts off in a warzone, then becomes a Guy Ritchie gangster movie. The action picks up and it becomes The Fast & the Furious. A bit of it's like Hard Boiled. Then for a chapter you're essentially a super-spy, parachting over the Thames to break into a hyper-secure building, building to a daft action movie climax.

Magnificent.

[QualityChimp]

This is one I've been meaning to play since before launch, but never got around to it as it's never really dropped to a tenner, my mental price I want to pay! £15 is the cheapest I've seen it, but I know I'd love it, especially after your glowing reviews over the years, Asura.

[Neon Ignition]

->Open Spoiler<-

[Atticus]

I never got round to finishing Blood and Truth ... just didn't connect. I seem to remember it being a bit faffy for some reason.