I've mentioned the curate's egg when talking about games before; here's another. The rotten core in this case is the PSVR hardware, or more specifically, the bits of it that had been hanging around for years before its release. But first, the positive bits!
When the tracking in this game works, it's fantastic. I've been banging on to friends about the times when you're trundling (and yes, you definitely trundle like BJ Blazkowicz at the start of Wolfenstein The New Colossus) through an exploosive action scene, popping the mooks with some incredibly fun akimbo weaponry. There's a sawn-off shotgun which is just apocalyptically powerful - point it roughly in the direction of an enemy, pull the trigger and he'll be yanked back like he's on a wire. The sub-machinegun is also excellent; clear feedback means that you're dialling in your aim in full auto, even when using two of them at once. Pistols also work nicely and there are a couple of stealthier areas where you can just headshot your way through with a silent 9mm - very fun.
The way the story's delivered works really nicely too. Your movement is limited and at times it feels a bit like a 90s FMV game with characters just talking to you but a lot of scenes, especially earlier on, let you fiddle with things nicely. There's a nice bit of choice at the end too.
Ultimately though, it doesn't work all the time, and it's a familiar problem - the PSVR tracking and move controllers. With the space I have, I can put my camera either straight in front of me or a bit above. Depending on the game a different position works better; I've been enjoying some Beat Saber recently (suspect it won't get a review as there's no way I'm finishing that campaign but that's a 5 if there ever was one) and the camera works best looking down from above. In that position in Blood and Truth, though, it results in quite a lot of headset swimming and the Move controller action becomes juddery. That rules that out. Playing with it in front isn't ideal either, though - while when using the guns in akimbo fashion works mostly fine, the tracking on the climbing works poorly, grabbing things is often frustrating, and basically as soon as you put one of the controllers in front of the helmet it basically stops working. This renders the long guns unusuable; you have to use them one handed. The rifle is just about usable as you can use it like a pistol, but the pump action shotgun is terible. And it should be amazing!
This is definitely a game I want to come back to next generation. I assume new hardware will help with the game resolution (even on PS4 Pro it's a bit blurry at times) but new VR hardware with more reliable tracking will make this a fantastic, if linear, experience. Of course, you might be fortunate enough to have a glitch-free PSVR setup - in which case add 2 to the score.
When the tracking in this game works, it's fantastic. I've been banging on to friends about the times when you're trundling (and yes, you definitely trundle like BJ Blazkowicz at the start of Wolfenstein The New Colossus) through an exploosive action scene, popping the mooks with some incredibly fun akimbo weaponry. There's a sawn-off shotgun which is just apocalyptically powerful - point it roughly in the direction of an enemy, pull the trigger and he'll be yanked back like he's on a wire. The sub-machinegun is also excellent; clear feedback means that you're dialling in your aim in full auto, even when using two of them at once. Pistols also work nicely and there are a couple of stealthier areas where you can just headshot your way through with a silent 9mm - very fun.
The way the story's delivered works really nicely too. Your movement is limited and at times it feels a bit like a 90s FMV game with characters just talking to you but a lot of scenes, especially earlier on, let you fiddle with things nicely. There's a nice bit of choice at the end too.
Ultimately though, it doesn't work all the time, and it's a familiar problem - the PSVR tracking and move controllers. With the space I have, I can put my camera either straight in front of me or a bit above. Depending on the game a different position works better; I've been enjoying some Beat Saber recently (suspect it won't get a review as there's no way I'm finishing that campaign but that's a 5 if there ever was one) and the camera works best looking down from above. In that position in Blood and Truth, though, it results in quite a lot of headset swimming and the Move controller action becomes juddery. That rules that out. Playing with it in front isn't ideal either, though - while when using the guns in akimbo fashion works mostly fine, the tracking on the climbing works poorly, grabbing things is often frustrating, and basically as soon as you put one of the controllers in front of the helmet it basically stops working. This renders the long guns unusuable; you have to use them one handed. The rifle is just about usable as you can use it like a pistol, but the pump action shotgun is terible. And it should be amazing!
This is definitely a game I want to come back to next generation. I assume new hardware will help with the game resolution (even on PS4 Pro it's a bit blurry at times) but new VR hardware with more reliable tracking will make this a fantastic, if linear, experience. Of course, you might be fortunate enough to have a glitch-free PSVR setup - in which case add 2 to the score.