We’ll be in our virtual studio broadcasting the VR Download podcast live to YouTube Thursday at 1 pm Pacific! More than one of us will be wearing Oculus Quest 2 for the conversation in our studio made in Unity by David Heaney and using both hand tracking and Oculus Avatars. If you have any questions about Quest 2 or VR in general, tune in live — we’re able to read all the YouTube comments from within the studio. Even if we don’t answer your question, there’s a good chance our helpful community might have the answer.
We’ll also be diving into the huge game release season that’s underway with hands-on reports, impressions and reviews to share for all the latest major game releases. We plan on talking about each of the following subjects in depth:
Just ask your virtual assistant to play “The VR Download Podcast” and you should be listening to our latest episode. Subscribe to our channel to get notifications for new videos and check back here at 1 pm Pacific time to dig through the latest VR news with us!
ViRTC allows you to stream your PC screen to your Oculus Quest entirely through browsers on both ends. It’s free and you don’t install anything on either end.
To use it, simply navigate to ViRTC.app in a browser on your PC. You’ll get a 6 digit code. Now load up that same website in Oculus Browser on your Quest and enter the code. It’s really that simple.
You don’t need to install anything, and the streaming quality is surprisingly great. This article was written using it. Annoyingly though, ViRTC doesn’t send input- you need to use your PC’s mouse & keyboard.
Oculus Browser treats ViRTC as a fullscreen video, so you can actually use it to watch 3D or 360 videos from your PC too.
So what is this sorcery? ViRTC leverages WebRTC, the open source real time communications framework built into every modern web browser. If you’ve used voice or video calling in a browser, it was very likely powered by WebRTC. It operates peer to peer and your PC connects to your Quest directly.
Of course, streaming is only one of the many features of Virtual Desktop. The $20 app is a result of years of work. Virtual Desktop lets you precisely customize the size, position and curvature of your screen. It lets you use your Touch controllers or hands as a mouse pointer. It passes through Bluetooth gamepads and keyboards. It has special environments like a cinema. It works even outside your LAN. It supports multiple monitors. And with the patch on SideQuest, it even turns your Quest into a wireless PC VR headset.
But if all you want to do is view your PC screen in VR, ViRTC can do just that.
What Virtual Desktop doesn’t have though is passthrough support. Since ViRTC uses Oculus Browser, you can set your Oculus Home to Passthrough+ to stay aware of the real world. Facebook doesn’t yet let apps support passthrough, but plans to next year.
Star Wars: Squadrons releases October 2nd (check out our info roundup for more details) and is fully playable not only in VR, but with a flight stick or full HOTAS (Hands-On Throttle And Stick) setup on both PC VR and PSVR. This is our list of the best options!
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One note worth mentioning is that Star Wars: Squadrons is not a space flight sim. This is an arcade-style space combat game. While you will need to manage power systems and fly well during dogfights, it’s relatively pick up and play compared to more complex games. As a result, it’s totally playable on just a controller, keyboard and mouse, or even a single flight stick without a full HOTAS if you wanted.
Since this very well may be the first real game many people have played with a flight stick or HOTAS, we’ve got a list of the best controllers to get for that game — or any compatible VR game.
Best Flight Sticks And HOTAS Controllers For Flight Sims and Star Wars: Squadrons
This is the HOTAS I have at home that I have continued to use personally after reviewing it back in 2017. while I haven’t too spend much time with it since I don’t play a lot of flight sims, it’s still been a great experience every time I have used it. The stick itself is extremely sturdy and feels fantastic in my hand. There is a throttle as well, but I personally usually just use the stick because it has a built-in slider at the bottom that acts like a throttle. So I rest my left hand on the left side and move the throttle slider with my thumb.
One feature I love is that you can twist the stick (in addition to pushing it forward, back, left, and right obviously) which is great in flight games for yaw control, or rotation of your ship. You can get just the stick for around $100 instead, which is what I prefer on PC as explained.
I have not personally used this one but it’s recommended often across message boards and Reddit, plus it has great reviews coming in at 4.5 stars after over 5,000 ratings. That’s quite solid. It’s more affordable than the previous option with similar functionality here — although the stick and throttle do seem to be connected. I love the ergonomic design and easily accessible buttons on both sides of the device though.
I have not used this stick, but plenty of people recommend it (4.5 stars on nearly 4,000 ratings) as an extremely affordable entry-level stick-only device. There’s no throttle included at all, but for this price it’s hard to beat. You get 12 buttons and enough stick movement to play most VR games that function with a stick only.
If you’re planning to play Squadrons on PSVR (or other games like Ace Combat 7 or EVE Valkyrie Warzone) then this is a great HOTAS to get. Jamie played Ace Combat 7 in PSVR with this and loved using it. I haven’t used it recently, but I did use it at an event once and really enjoyed the feel and design. It’s similar to the HOTAS X from above, but a little cheaper, and with PS4 support. There are only 440 reviews on Amazon as of the time of this writing, but it seems to be a good all-around choice if you want a decent HOTAS setup without breaking the bank.
This setup is a little pricier, but you get the benefit of a device that is tailor-made for the PS4. This even has a built-in PS4 touchpad so you don’t need to take off the headset or grab a controller at all. Additionally, like the T.16000 for PC and most other premium HOTAS setups, you can separate the throttle and stick for a more comfortable arrangement.
Good luck finding one, but this is one of the most premium HOTAS setups you can get for PC. As a premium offering, this setup is more than just a game controller — it’s an actual replica from the U.S. Air Force A 10C aircraft. All the buttons, switches, and physical components look just like they do in that aircraft’s cockpit. That’s pretty wild and it features over 19 buttons with fantastic precision.
That’s our list of flight stick and HOTAS recommendations for VR space combat and flight sim games. Are you excited for Star Wars: Squadrons? Do you have other recommendations? Let us know down in the comments below!
Before the end of the year, HP will introduce its next consumer headset, the Reverb G2, which has a promising spec list for virtual reality (VR) enthusiasts. When it comes to more focused enterprise solutions the company has just revealed the Reverb G2 Omnicept, packed with analytical tech for training and educational purposes.
The HP Reverb G2 Omnicept seems to have every tracking solution a company could want in a VR headset, eye-tracking to know where users are looking, the ability to recognise facial expressions for expressive avatars and heart rate monitoring to discern how a user is responding to an experience. With the eye-tracking, this also allows for foveated rendering to improve image quality and reduce GPU load.
Whilst this type of tech may feel invasive on a consumer level, for companies looking to use VR for training or if retailers want insight into key stock locations then all the data acquired can be invaluable. Keen to reassure those worried about all that data HP says in a statement that the headset is: “built with a highly secure pipeline for protecting end-user privacy. The headset’s firmware safeguards the sensor data at every moment of capture and no data is stored in the headset.”
As for the rest of the features the HP Reverb G2 Omnicept is the same as its consumer cousin, with four cameras for inside-out tracking, those off-ear Valve speakers and 2160×2160 per eye panel resolution. The announcement also confirms a dedicated software development kit (SDK) will be available for creators to make use of those extra features.
“We’ve designed a powerful, adaptive VR solution to dramatically accelerate the use cases for VR, its potential to transform society, and the way we interact with technology,” said Jim Nottingham, general manager and global head, Advanced Compute and Solutions, HP Inc in a statement. “The HP Omnicept Solution will open new possibilities for VR development and its impact on enterprise training, remote education, collaboration, research and development, and specialized wellbeing. This type of data-driven approach will be fundamental to creating user-centric experiences for better VR in the future.”
The HP Reverb G2 Omnicept Edition is slated to launch Spring 2021with the developer SDK available at the same time. No pricing has been confirmed just yet. For further updates on the HP Reverb G2 Omnicept and its consumer version, keep reading VRFocus.
Welcome to VR Roulette! This is our LIVE weekly game show on YouTube that’s streamed (usually) at 10AM PT on Wednesdays. We select a list of weird, quirky, and/or bizarre VR games and take turns spinning the wheel to see what we’ve all got to play next. Tune in with us live on YouTube! Read our announcement article for more details.
David’s out fighting space scuffles, so it’s time for an all-UK episode of VR Roulette with Jamie and Zeena!
No time for being overly polite and discussing foreign trade policy though (that’s the only Brexit joke we’ll be allowing). I’m afraid we’ll be busy chucking snowballs in Snowday, sorting eggs from bombs (for some reason) in Egg Time and fending off hordes of giant rats in the rather terrifying-looking MegaRats. There’s also a Doritos VR Battle game, which is the most exciting thing to happen to Zeena since the advent of the 3D Dorito. We even have our first request! But you’ll have to tune in to learn all about it.
But enough 90’s confectionary trivia; we’ve got a gameshow to make. Be here bright and early at 10am PT for all the usual shenanigans. Apologies in advance for this week’s thumbnail.
Do you have any recommendations for games or types of games you’d like to see in future VR Roulette episodes? Do you think we could do anything to make the show better (keeping in mind David lives in California and Jamie/Zeena live in the UK) or is it good as-is right now?
Let us know your thoughts down in the comments down below!
Facebook’s technical guide John Carmack spoke unscripted for more than an hour on September 16th.
Carmack’s talk followed a day of presentations and a news-packed keynote formally announcing the $299 Oculus Quest 2 powered by Facebook. The talk came at the end of the day and requires your full attention to process in real-time, so it’s totally understandable if you haven’t had time yet to watch it.
The densely packed talk covers the internal debate over the prospect of a wireless PC VR “Air Link” for Oculus Quest as well as the overall execution of Facebook’s social VR strategy. I’ve listened through the talk a couple times now and pulled out the following 11 quotations to highlight the most interesting things Carmack said.
Facebook Defying Distance
“This could be kind of insensitive but the global lockdown and pandemic should have been sort of the global coming of age for virtual reality where this was the opportunity to defy distance, defy reality, and all of that, but we’re only sort of accidentally benefitting from this, where not only were we sold out most of the time — we couldn’t just produce units that people wanted to buy, and that is not an easy thing to just rapidly change….but worse, all of our social experiences were basically killed or deprecated…so we made this huge bet on Horizon.” — 00:03:03
Location-Based VR Killed By COVID-19
“Unfortunately location-based VR has probably taken a terminal hit from this. It’s going to be a long time before people probably feel comfortable going someplace and putting on a shared public headset and that’s, you know, too bad.” — 00:05:12
Exercise In VR Is A Winning Application
“Exercise as a primary application of VR is really winning…People are ok with kind of making a sweaty mess in their own personal headset.” — 00:06:00
Quest 2 “Very Close To A Pure Win”
“The original Quest turned out to be more right than we really expected…Quest 2 is better, faster, cheaper, and we’re making a ton more of them…this is very close to a pure win…The actual resolution is 3664×1920 but it’s a full RGB stripe…that means it is a little over twice the number of subpixels [as compared to Quest].” — 00:14:06
“You Could Start Doing Real Work” With VR Now
“You can have multiple 1080 screens…this is getting to the point where you could start doing some real work with it, it might have some advantages over laptops in some situations.” — 00:16:33
Oculus Quest’s Wireless “Air Link”
“We still haven’t announced a full wireless connection system for Link and we have these interminable arguments internally about this — about quality bars — and I…can say right this very minute someone is using a wireless VR streaming system and getting value from it…we should have some kind of an Air Link.” — 00:31:29
Improved Headset Cameras After Quest 2
“Whatever the next headset is we’ve got to get higher resolution on the tracking cameras.” — 00:59:12
Ultra Lightweight Headsets
“We did look at this for the latter days of Gear VR, doing this kind of two part plug-in instead of drop-in, and there may still be some useful things to go there…There are still some things for which Go is the best headset.” — 01:00:45
VR Phone Calls
“Eventually putting on the headset should be as seamless as answering a phone call because eventually you might sort of be answering phone calls in VR if we get to where we want to be with communication…you want to be able to be paged, put on the headset and just immediately be there. …” — 01:02:04
Competing Visions
“Having things converged now on our VR platforms is an enormous relief. It’s really hard to overstate how much drama internally this has been over the years, where my vision for VR was always as this universal device — we should be able to play games, we should be able to browse the web, we should be able to do productivity things, we should be able to connect to a PC, to cloud services…its virtual, we can do anything, it should be universal. But most of the other founders were really about ‘we want this high-end awesome gaming system’ and this caused enormous tension through the years. And its kind of ironic how we wound up with this system where we have this lower-powered gaming focused device which wasn’t really what anybody was aiming for at the beginning…” — 1:02:31
Future Controllers
“Maybe you have a controller-free SKU but the controllers are more expensive but they never lose tracking.” — 1:08:47
HP stated that its upcoming Reverb G2 headset currently doesn’t support Xbox One consoles after a Microsoft Store listing suggested otherwise.
The listing is a free app that appears to be a utility for performing a first-time setup of the headset. Under both the minimum and recommended specifications, the OS category reads “Windows 10 version 15063.0 or higher, Xbox One,” as pictured below.
Reaching out to HP, the company told us that there is “no current support” for Xbox One with the Reverb G2. The listing is likely an error, though it’s still up and visible as of the time of this writing.
Xbox VR support has been rumored for a long time in one form or another. The Reverb G2 is made in partnership with Microsoft (along with Valve), so a partnership to bring the kit to console would make sense. Another reason the listing is likely a mistake is that only the Xbox One is mentioned in the app listing, and not the newer Xbox One S, Xbox One X, Xbox Series S or Series X consoles. However, if the original Xbox One model can support VR content, then the newer One models and the next generation Series models should hypothetically be able to as well.
While the application listing is specifically for the Reverb G2, that doesn’t rule out the possibility of connecting other VR headsets to Xbox consoles either. That being said, Flight Simulator will launch VR support exclusively for Windows MR headsets this Fall, and the Xbox release of the title is still forthcoming. Xbox VR could take a similar path, with exclusive support for Windows MR hardware to tie in with the launch Xbox of Flight Simulator around the same time.
Mark Scrhamm’s Gravity Lab is the next game to get a seemingly noticeable bump in graphics for the upcoming Oculus Quest 2.
The physics-based puzzler, which first released on PC VR back in 2016 but hit Quest a little earlier this year, just got the update for free. Quest 2 isn’t out for another few weeks, landing on October 13th, but at least this means this version of the game will be primed and ready for launch day.
Over on Twitter, Schramm provided a quick look at the differences between the Quest version and the Quest 2 update, which you can see below. It’s just a small glimpse (and we’ll hopefully bring some video coverage ourselves soon), but you can see that some of the instruments you use in the game are now look a lot, well, shinier.
Gravity Lab is a little like Lemmings with marbles. In each of its 30 levels — which each have three variations via different difficulty options — you need to transport a set number of objects from one point to another. This will require using a mix of ramps, gateways that alter item’s gravity, switches and more. Things start off pretty simple but the game quickly descends into some pretty devious challenges.
We thought the game wasn’t quite as groundbreaking as it might have seemed in 2016 when it arrived on Quest 1, but its accessible brand of trials made for a lot of fun. “This is an enjoyable, accessible and (whisper it) incidentally educational piece of to-the-point VR gaming that’ll still put a smile on faces today. Not a bad return for a face from VR’s past, then,” we said in our 3/5 review.
Gravity Lab is the second game we’ve seen get noticable visual differences on Quest 2 beyond a bump in resolution. The other, The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners, has some striking differences in its early gameplay demo. We’ll keep you up to date with other updates as we get closer to launch.
HP is planning an Omnicept Edition of its Reverb G2 VR headset for early 2021 with additional face-tracking sensors and the ability to measure “cognitive load”.
The upcoming PC VR headset can sense expressions, eye movements and heart rate, with the promise of “foveated rendering, this HMD delivers lifelike VR like never before,” a HP document pitches.
“By capturing user responses in real time, you can generate insights and adapt each user’s experience,” the document suggests. HP promises software development tools informed by the “cognitive load” of the headset wearer. Taken all together, you could have agents in a virtual world who know whether you are tense, what you are looking at, what you are interested in, and potentially much more.
HP Reverb G2 Omnicept Edition Revealed
“HMD firmware safeguards sensor data at every moment of capture and no data is stored on the headset. HP Omnicept powered applications help ensure the capture and transfer of data comply with GDPR and keep user data confidential,” HP suggests.
HP is selling the base Reverb G2 PC-powered headset without the “Omnicept” sensing capabilities for around $600. Made in partnership with Valve and Microsoft and boasting a 2160 x 2160 resolution per eye, the device is hugely anticipated by the PC VR community. New orders for the headset featuring Valve audio and lens technology are expected to ship in December.
When it comes to the Omnicept Edition of G2 in 2021, HP is pitching the product to developers and researchers seeking a “2% revenue share for profit” on applications built for the sensor-laden headset.
Here’s a look at the included APIs and terms that HP is pitching for Omnicept:
There’s obviously a lot of unanswered questions at this point regarding the Omnicept Edition of the Reverb G2 and the applications developers are likely to make for the system.
We’ll bring you updates as soon as we have them. For more updates on the HP Reverb G2 Omnicept Edition, stay tuned to Upload and our Youtube channel.
There was a time when virtual reality (VR) developers turned to location-based entertainment (LBE) to help improve their revenue streams when they struggled to find success in the consumer market. 2020 changed all that but some are continuing to support the industry with new content, Secret Location being one of them. The studio has confirmed this week that it has three LBE VR videogames on the way.
One is entirely new whilst the others leverage its Blasters of the Universe wave shooter. Revealed for the first time is Paranormal Pest Control, a free-roaming multiplayer where teams of up to eight players become paranormal exterminators to rid a home of mischievous little demons. Hiding in everyday items like books or the fridge, this light-hearted experience is all about dispatching the critters in fun ways.
Blasters of The Universe: VR Bullet Hell adapts the original home release version to add a cooperative multiplayer, so teams of four can fight waves of retro enemies whilst ducking and dodging incoming fire.
“As a studio, we’ve always experimented with ideas and narratives that push the boundaries of immersive entertainment, and creating content for the location-based market has been one of our key goals,” said Kathryn Rawson, VP of Content, Secret Location. “Our hope, as developers, is that these immersive experiences will bring some much-needed fun and escapism to all.”
And then there’s Blasters of The Universe: Infinity Forever which VRFocus reported on earlier this month. This turns the franchise into a free-roaming experience where teams of four players have to work together across four levels to defeat the evil super-lord Alwyn from the original videogame.
To ensure a global launch Secret Location has teamed up with distribution platforms including Hologate, SynthesisVR, VRstudios and Escape VR.
“At Hologate we pride ourselves in offering some of the world’s best immersive experiences. As our clients begin to re-open their locations we’re excited to be partnering with Secret Location to launch the HOLOGATE
adaptation of their popular VR game Blasters of The Universe: VR Bullet Hell,” adds Leif Petersen, CEO, Hologate.
Blasters of The Universe: Infinity Forever has already launched via SynthesisVR with Blasters of The Universe: VR Bullet Hell and Paranormal Pest Control launch dates to be announced. For further updates on the latest LBE titles, keep reading VRFocus.
Cyan Worlds’ classic puzzle title Myst has inspired countless videogames over the past couple of decades and by the end of the year, there will be another. Orichalcum Pictures and VR Connection have announced Ryte: The Eye of Atlantis, a puzzle adventure due soon for PC virtual reality (VR) headsets.
Ryte: The Eye of Atlantis will mix both myth and archaeological history together with environments inspired by ancient Greece and Egyptian civilizations. The first VR videogame from Orichalcum Pictures, the experience will transport players to the lost city of Atlantis, unravelling its mysteries to prevent a global catastrophe.
“With Ryte: The Eye of Atlantis, our team strives to offer an experience that appeals to fans of classic graphic adventure games like Myst and history buffs who appreciate authenticity,” says Clovis Rossillon, President at Orichalcum Pictures in a statement. “We are working diligently to ensure our vision of this mythical civilization is just as entertaining to play as it is true-to-life.”
Stepping into Atlantis using Plato’s depiction of the city, players will encounter markets and sacred temples to explore, utilising supernatural powers like telekinesis to manipulate the environment and solve puzzles. Stepping into the shoes of an Atlantean who is on the run, they’ll make allies and witness epic battles between giant centurions.
Being inspired by Myst, Ryte: The Eye of Atlantis is going to be filled with puzzles to solve, looking for clues to decode riddles or reading the stars to unlock magical energies. During the course of the adventure, players will also have moral decisions to make changing the outcome with four endings to unlock.
If you own an Oculus Quest then there’s always the original Myst to look forward to. Cyan Worlds announced during Facebook Connect that the title would be coming to the standalone headset this year, reimagining it with modern art, audio and VR interactions.
Orichalcum Pictures and VR Connection are working towards a winter 2020 launch for Ryte: The Eye of Atlantis, supporting Oculus Rift, HTC Vive and Valve Index headsets. Check out the first teaser trailer below, and for further updates keep reading VRFocus.
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Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series is a good example of interactive storytelling in virtual reality (VR), supporting home headsets like Oculus Quest and PlayStation VR. ILMxLAB then spun off it’s Lightsaber Dojo into a location-based entertainment (LBE) title in collaboration with Nomadic for a short popup run. Today, the pair have announced it’ll be returning for an improved experience.
Now called (deep breath) Vader Immortal – Lightsaber Dojo: A Star Wars VR Experience, the title is inspired by the Episode III Lightsaber Dojo where players could train with lightsabers, blasters, and the Force against waves of droids, stormtroopers and other creatures. The LBE title will be much the same, challenging players with a fight against Darth Vader at the end.
“The ILMxLAB team is excited to bring a new chapter to the Lightsaber Dojo experience,” said ILMxLAB Senior Producer, Shereif Fattouh in a statement. “Fans will soon have the unique opportunity to battle Darth Vader himself using all their abilities in the ultimate test of skill.”
Guests will be able to step onto Mustafar, selecting their lightsaber and difficulty before dealing with waves of Imperial Stormtroopers. At the end a leaderboard will allow players to see how they’ve done in comparison to their friends.
“Nomadic is thrilled to once again partner with ILMxLAB to bring guests into the world of Star Wars,” said Sean Griffin, President of Nomadic. “Our new form factor will deliver a more immersive experience for players, will provide a social viewing experience for their friends and family, and is more efficient for family entertainment centers and arcades to operate. We can’t wait for Star Wars fans worldwide to experience it.”
Currently, Nomadic has yet to details when and where Vader Immortal – Lightsaber Dojo: A Star Wars VR Experience will be available, as well as pricing. When those details are available, VRFocus will let you know.
Isekai Entertainment’s anticipated JRPG-inspired sword battling game, Sword Reverie, has passed its Kickstarter crowdfunding goal, and Quest and PSVR versions may yet happen.
We’ve been following Sword Reverie for the past few months. Fans seem to really connect with its colorful visuals and its sword-based combat does hold promise. Last week, Isekai launched its Kickstarter campaign, looking for $10,000 in funding. Days later, that goal has been passed, with $11,480 raised at the time of writing with the help of 242 backers.
Sword Reverie Quest/PSVR Port Possible
With that initial goal passed, the developers have introduced a long list of stretch goals for the project. It’s already passed the milestone for full Japanese voice acting, with an additional soundtrack and more enemies coming up next. But, for $20,000, Isekai will work on a Quest version of the game and, for $25,000, a PSVR version will be made too. Lofty goals, perhaps, but the campaign still has over three weeks to go until its October 22nd closing date, so it’s possible.
The game takes place in the Kingdom of Newcrest and sees players take the fight to an army of evil elementals. Though it’s inspired by JRPGs, the game is far more action-focused, getting players to swing their own swords and activate special powers to prevail in combat.
You can pledge $18 to get Sword Reverie’s Early Access release, which is estimated for March 2021. $25 will get you Alpha and Beta access, projected for November.
Are you looking forward to Sword Reverie? Let us know in the comments below!
When it comes to zombie-themed franchises The Walking Dead has to be one of the most popular, gracing comic books, TV and videogames over the years. Virtual reality (VR) fans were already treated to one title earlier in 2020 and now it’s time for another, The Walking Dead Onslaught. With two videogames based on the same franchise arriving in the same year it’s inevitable that comparisons are going to be made, so can the VR powerhouse that is Survios (Raw Data, Sprint Vector, Creed: Rise to Glory) offer up something new and refreshing for gamers.
Firstly, The Walking Dead Onslaught sets itself apart thanks to Survios’ collaboration with AMC – who makes the TV show. Therefore, whether you’ve seen a couple of episodes or watched every season as a die-hard fan you’ll know the Rick, Daryl, Michonne and some of the other characters. This does help that sense of being dropped into The Walking Dead universe, naturally feeling at home with these characters who’ve been trying to survive for years. That being said, you can still enjoy what’s going on if you’ve never seen the show, you’ll just miss the easter eggs. One problem for newbies is that none of the other characters really get introduced other than Daryl who’s most definitely the star of the experience.
The Walking Dead Onslaught is split into two distinct sections, its story-driven campaign following Daryl running around outside of the walls of Alexandria – your survivors encampment – and the Scavenger missions which are all about looking for as much stuff as possible whilst not getting gnawed on by a walker. In between these you can take a breather in Alexandria, crafting more buildings or upgrading your weapons with all the useful junk you find. But that is about it. There’s no making friends with any of the survivors or having a wander around the town as it grows, it’s a very self-contained bubble.
This is because The Walking Dead Onslaught is very much focused on action, grabbing a selection of weapons and killing as many walkers as possible – whilst maybe finding the odd item along the way. When it comes to Daryl’s story Survios has set it out so you can’t blast through it in one shot, to unlock the next chapter you need to find an allotted amount of survivors in the Scavenger missions. It’s a nice touch so that you have to explore the videogame and see what other elements have to offer. Plus Daryl is known for being quite moody so a different zombie mission is a nice change of pace!
Daryl’s campaign is a straight up linear story arc, A to B, with little in the way of exploration. Survios did manage to draft in Norman Reedus from the show to reprise his role for this VR outing, narrating throughout with hints about where to go – which aren’t really needed. While a boon for the developers, fans will instantly notice some of the other famous characters weren’t so lucky, making their scenes a little weird as the voice doesn’t match the face.
The core of gameplay really revolves around the Scavenger missions which are designed to be replayed so you can gain more loot, upgrade, build and so on. However, once you start playing these and get to grips with the mechanics, the well-designed environments and walkers start becoming a little hollow. At first The Walking Dead Onslaught starts off really well, with a decent tutorial taking you through all the movement and interaction methods so you can have a comfortable experience. Then those first few encounters are really heart pounding, as you grab a walker by the neck and lunge the knife into its head. All as gruesome and visceral as you’d hope and expect.
It’s not long before you start to realise the knife is good, really good, in fact way too good. There’s no need to grab a walker, just dash the knife in its head and move on – the knife also never gets stuck. As mentioned, because The Walking Dead Onslaught is action-oriented there’s no need to worry about stamina or durability, you never get tired and the blade never wears out. As you’d imagine this can get repetitive and boring. Swapping weapons, the standard pistol takes several headshots and the lever-action rifle is just pointless as it’s too slow. Other weapons like the crossbow are fun but why worry about running out of ammo and reloading. Side note, the machete works just as well if the knife is a little small.
Therefore in a videogame which should have elements of horror and dread, when suddenly finding a horde of walkers there is none. 10/15 undead blocking your way, no problem, a few quick stabs and you’re on your way. The Walking Dead Onslaught also lacks any stealth or survival elements to keep the gameplay varied. There’s no backpack or any sort of storage to worry about, pick up as much as you like and it all magically gets stowed away, plus there are no hip holsters or pockets, you can hold up to four weapons all selected via a weapon wheel. This method does give a nice uncluttered view of the world even if there is less to interact with.
Speed is of the essence in the Scavenger missions due to a feature called ‘The Horde’. Unlike the campaign where you can wander at your own pace, in these free form missions a giant red wall which is meant to convey a massive horde of walkers continually pushes you through the level. Presumably it’s meant to enhance that impression of threat yet all it does is chip away at your health until you die or get out, removing the enjoyment of exploration and replacing it with feeling rushed – like when staff want you out their store after closing time.
There’s been so much anticipation for The Walking Dead Onslaught thanks to Survios’ excellent back catalogue that it was predictable expectations were high. The studio has continued its high production values with a great looking VR game, a superb soundtrack and of course the official affiliation to entice fans. Yet there are clearly deficiencies in the gameplay such as the most dangerous knife ever created to the overall lack of depth. The Walking Dead Onslaught isn’t a bad videogame, it just doesn’t do anything special.
The Walking Dead: Onslaught from Survios is the second VR game to release this year based on the iconic zombie apocalypse universe and the only one to feature the same cast of characters as the AMC TV show. What it gains in familiar faces though, it loses everywhere else. Read on for our complete The Walking Dead: Onslaught review to see what we thought of this post apocalyptic action game.
The Walking Dead: Onslaught is not a very good game, but it could have been. The original demo I first tried nearly a year and a half ago back at E3 2019 had promise with its gory combat and focus on replayable co-op missions. There was a clear arcade-style focus there that seemed to fill a niche and had enough setting it apart from The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners by Skydance Interactive, but most of that initial charm is all gone now.
After Saints & Sinners was announced and released, something seems to have happened with Onslaught. For starters, we knew multiplayer was getting axed in favor of prioritizing the story. Norman Reedus took on a bigger part in the project, reprising his role as Daryl Dixon. Carol and Eugene are the same actors as the show as well, but Rick and Michonne are not — it’s immediately apparent. Those two performances are pretty hit or miss depending on the moment, which is a shame considering Rick is a major character in the game from start to finish.
As it stands, Onslaught is quite literally two separate games mashed together. You switch back and forth between them over the course of six or so hours. On the one hand you’ve got the story-driven campaign that ushers you along a collection of linear levels featuring narration by Daryl and Rick as you play through a series of flashbacks that eventually culminate in a larger event. Then there’s all the Scavenge missions. This is the real meat of the game and where Survios hopes you’ll want to spend most of your time replaying missions, getting more loot, and investing the time to upgrade your camp.
But the Scavenge missions have a huge, massive, glaring flaw: exploration is heavily discouraged. So much so that you’ll literally just die if you take too long. During missions a foggy red cloud slowly encroaches on you, closing in the level from the back like something ripped out of Fortnite or PUBG. The red haze is supposed to represent “The Horde” but there are no zombies anywhere in the red cloud. It’s just…foggy. And red.
If you stand it too long then you slowly lose health until you died. The game never explains this so you just sort of find out on your own. There is zero narrative justification for why “The Horde” is a red cloud and I can’t think of a single explanation gleaned from the show. It comes off as lazy and uninspired. I’d have preferred a countdown timer until “The Horde” arrives, at which point the screen fades and you die or something. Anything other than misty red haze that saps your health for no reason.
The functional results of this red cloud is that every Scavenge mission is limited, forcing you to memorize maps and try to loot as quickly as possible. This could have caused some interesting tension, but instead it’s just frustration. The discrepancy occurs because there is a complete and utter lack of fear. This isn’t a stealth game or a survival game, at all, and it’s hardly even a horror game unless you just get really creeped out by dumb, slow-moving zombies.
The Walking Dead: OnslaughtComfort Settings
The Walking Dead: Onslaught has about what you’d expect in the way of comfort options for a VR title in 2020, especially from Survios. In addition to snap and smooth turning, there are both teleport and smooth movement. You can also use their brand of arm swinger movement, similar to how it works in Creed: Rise to Glory. There are some FOV limiting features as well and that’s about it. Everything else is just good old fashioned swinging your arms and pointing guns. I found it most appropriate to play standing, but seated does work.
The Walking Dead universe is one where death can come for you at anytime as the relentless walkers will stop at nothing to gnaw on your face. But in Onslaught, they’re nothing more than a time sink due to how unbalanced combat is.
Everyone knows melee is usually preferable in a zombie game because it’s quick, clean, and usually the stealthier option. But in Onslaught, that mantra is taken to another level. Since there is no stamina system and no weapon durability system you have basically no reason to use anything other than the knife, machete, etc. With a tiny bit of force I can kill any walker with a quick poke to the face, yank out the knife, and keep on stabbing.
Meanwhile the pistol takes three headshots to down a single enemy. It makes no sense. Shotguns and assault rifles feel fine, but I have no incentive to use them. If anything, they’re more of a nuisance since you need to eject magazines and reload clips from your belt. Knives are just indestructible.
As you gather scraps and loot you can create upgrade mods for weapons, but once again you just don’t really need to. It feels like a half-baked feature that was added in at the last minute before being fully realized.
Visually, it’s not bad other than the bland yellow/brown tones on everything. Most textures and areas look pretty good, especially from a distance, but there is a lot of clutter to prevent you from going where you’re not supposed to go. Levels are very linear across the board, save for a few destroyed buildings you can poke around in briefly.
And you can’t interact with anything at all. All of the various objects on tables and items on shelves you see lying around? They’re bolted down and can’t be moved.
With all the leaps forward we’ve made in VR game design, especially when it comes to interactivity and physics in games like Saints & Sinners, Boneworks, and Half-Life: Alyx, Onslaught feels like a major step back.
The most unique and compelling thing Onslaught has going for it is Alexandria. The small village starts out looking like a run-down farm but over the course of the game as you gather gear and supplies from Scavenge runs you’ll start to rebuilt the settlement with new buildings and more survivors walking about. It’s satisfying to see your hard work paying off with actual tangible rewards that make the world feel more alive.
But the problem is, without a compelling gameplay loop to motivate you, there is little reason to keep building the town. Ideally, I’d want a feature like this tacked onto the end of Saints & Sinners, with co-op support, and a bit more customization about how you configure your camp and what each building does. Then it’d honestly be like the dream zombie game. But as it stands in Onslaught, the Alexandria settlement is another feature that falls short of really selling itself fully.
The Walking Dead: Onslaught Review Final Impressions
I’m struggling to think of a scenario in which I’d recommend The Walking Dead: Onslaught. Functionally, it works, and there are some bright spots here since you get to step foot inside the world of the show and interact with iconic characters — but the compliments mostly stop there. Campaign missions are extremely linear and uninspired, Scavenge runs utilize a ludicrous red fog to represent “The Horde” while you collect random scrap parts, and combat fails to ever give you much of a reason to graduate beyond the basic combat knife. I hate to say it, but The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners is just a much better example of how to create an immersive VR world, much better use of the source material, and much better game in general.
Thanks for reading our The Walking Dead: Onslaught review! Onslaught is out today for PC VR and PSVR for $29.99. This review was primarily conducted on an Oculus Quest using Link and Oculus Rift S.
