After moving away from location-based entertainment (LBE) content and into the home consumer market, developer Joy Way has started making a name for itself with parkour title Stride. Recently, the studio has revealed work on an upcoming rhythm-action videogame which certainly takes a much more gruesome approach to the genre.
Currently, an unnamed prototype, the last time Joy Way showcased footage from the title was back in December which you can see below. While that was low-poly, giving a feel for what the gameplay is going to be like, the above GIF provides a darker, bloody aesthetic rarely seen within this genre. Looking like there’s a spot of Venom inspiration in there, the prototype is all about hacking and slicing enemies up in time to the music.
You’re instructed to cut these enemies up in a particular direction, awarded points for doing so whilst body parts fly across your view. Hopefully even with the new visual design Joy Way has kept some of the gameplay elements shown in the early video, switching between swords and guns to dispatch enemies, wall running to shooting them in cars, epic slow-mo sections and even a giant boss battle where you can run up its arm to unleash a slice to the face.
The VR rhythm-action genre is competitive and inundated with titles, two of the most popular being Beat Saber and Pistol Whip thanks to the very different ways in which they handle their gameplay. Joy Way’s project certainly has a bit of both in there, just with a very different look that’s definitely not going down the family-friendly route.
The studio has been holding a small closed beta this week which ends tomorrow for Oculus Rift and Oculus Quest (via Link), so it’s going to be a PC VR videogame at any rate.
As for Joy Way’s main title Stride, there’s plenty on the horizon. Released via Steam Early Access in 2020, a PlayStation VR launch is slated for 2021, whilst the first details of the story mode have been teased. Its arrival is currently stencilled in for Q3 2021, marking the official launch of Stride.
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Joy Way, reporting back with further updates on the prototype.
via Mint VR