Budget Cuts

Budget Cuts

released on May 31, 2018

Budget Cuts

released on May 31, 2018

Budget Cuts is a VR stealth game about evading enemies and searching levels using a teleportation gun.


Also in series

Budget Cuts 2: Mission Insolvency
Budget Cuts 2: Mission Insolvency

Released on

Genres


More Info on IGDB


Reviews View More

One of the mediums first great single player campaigns

A semi-clunky John Wick in a robot office simulator.

I'm going to rate this one fairly high because its core puzzles and mechanics were engaging, and it was a fairly solid overall VR game, so I feel like being a bit generous to it for understanding its scope. That said, considering the whirlwind surrounding it at the birth of the current VR wave, it does disappoint by that standard as it took a little too long coming out(and on my end, for me to play) so that other studios surpassed it overall in its touted high interactivity and quality VR integration. The teleporting mechanic being integrated does help it, and the preview bubble is a nice "looking around corners" stealth mechanic. It aids you enough in knife throwing that it helps if you're uncoordinated, while not shorting you in genuine skill to where it feels completely cheap. Visually, it's nothing amazing, but it has that pared-down "office space with large swaths of monochromatic decoration" aesthetic similar to Mirror's edge interiors or Portal. I do think, barring the games upgraded to support VR that were designed flat-first, so far it does have the best feel as a stealth game I've encountered. The plot is pretty straightforward go do this, do that, do this from a disembodied voice and it's clear from the beginning "something's not right" but it's all kind of vague and unnecessary, really. Also while there's a lot of good exploring spaces to hunt for useful items, but since most of it is nothing, some is a little worldbuilding(with extensive repeats), a little is collectibles, and very rarely is it a weapon, it both makes you extra glad to find useful items and a little sad that you waste all this time scouring. I do wish that they had just a couple more little toys or other interactive goodies to make it not feel entirely pointless. Some was there, like food objects and the stamps, but it just felt like it needed a few more.

Overall, again, an intentionally generous score, but the game truly is solid.

End Credits go hard and the stealth is mostly fun.

It is a bit confusing though and really short.

just not all that fun, and it ran HORRIBLY. undoubtedly a relic of early vr.

An early VR stealth-adventure sees you escaping an eerily human-less corporate office building where most of the security wants to murder you. Developed very early in VR’s life when control options weren’t all that well defined, the game’s clumsy controls and astoundingly frustrating finale make it hard to recommend.

Full Review: https://neoncloudff.wordpress.com/2020/05/02/now-playing-april-2020-edition/