Sony announced a new range of PlayStation VR games later this year. Includes a virtual reality adaptation of Doom 3, as well as titles from some successful VR studios and some relatively newcomers to VR.
Sony announced a new generation of PSVR for its PlayStation 5 console last month. The headset will come with a redesigned controller, a single cable instead of the original decoder and a higher resolution screen, among other updates. But Sony did not reveal the headset or offer many details, and they say the device will not arrive in 2021. Therefore, today’s games will be released for PSVR – with the promise of a better experience in the future.
Doom 3 VR, the only title with an accurate release date, will be released on March 29 for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5. It is a “remade” version of the original 2004 shooter and its two expansions, designed for the PSVR Aim accessory, similar to a weapon. A small trailer offers a preview of the gameplay and updated graphics.
This is the second Doom game for PSVR, following the original VR 2017 Doom VFR. It is also not the first time Doom 3 appeared in VR. The game was originally promised as part of the launch of the Oculus Rift headset, but was canceled in the middle of a Doom ZeniMax rights holder. (ZeniMax was acquired by Sony’s rival Microsoft last year.) More recently, an unofficially ported modding team Doom 3 for the Oculus Quest.
Vertigo Games, creator of the zombie VR shooter Arizona Sunshine, will bring its cooperative follow-up After the fall for PSVR as well. After the fall was announced a few years ago and was expected to be released in 2020 on PSVR and PC-based VR. It was postponed in part because of the coronavirus pandemic, rescheduled for early 2021 – a window that Sony is reiterating here.
PlayStation VR will also support I hope you die 2 – a sequel to the hugely successful escape room title, originally announced for Steam in January. The game promises the same puzzles with richly interactive spy themes that I hope you die, which has proven to be one of the most popular virtual reality games since its launch in 2016.
The other games do not have the same immediate name recognition, but they are intriguing additions to the PSVR catalog. Fractured is developed by nDreams, the studio behind the kayak-based sniper Ghost: Covert Ops. Continuing the formula of the sport plus weapons, his new game is an action shooter built around skiing – alongside climbing, zip lining and old-fashioned duck and cover combat. Apparently, it is also a hydraulic fracturing facility that was “taken over by an army of interdimensional maniacs with firearms”. (It is unclear whether the maniacs are pro or anti-fracking.) The game will be released this summer for PlayStation Move controls on both generations of Sony consoles, but with better frame rates and resolution on PlayStation 5.
In a slightly calmer vein, there are Song in the Smoke in Galak-Z 17-bit developer. It is a VR survival game that focuses on breeding, hunting, cleaning and exploring in a mysterious world. A trailer shows some stunning landscapes and creature design, as well as mechanics such as bow and arrow. It will be launched at an unspecified point in 2021.
Sony also announced the launch of 2021 Zenith, a multiplayer RPG massively influenced by anime, founded on Kickstarter last year. It is set in a high-tech fantasy world designed for players to climb and glide, in addition to fighting with a VR-adapted version of conventional RPG combat.