Playstation's Paris Game Show event showed a continued dedication to VR from Sony.

Many gaming pundits have been saying the PSVR has been missing from Sony's long term battle strategy due to a lackluster presence at both E3 and Tokyo Game Show. Despite the over 1 million PSVR units sold and the acclaim of content like Resident Evil 7 it does not seem to get the credit that the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift get.  Well it looks like Sony's strategy may be to the go to VR platform for all of Europe given the multitude of content presented today at the Paris Game Show event today.  Along with announcements of games like the very Pilotwings-esq Ultrawings the show gave several release dates for games like the upcoming League Of War VR.

We also were able to get a better looks at the upcoming Blood & Truth from Sony London Studios. This action packed game is from the makers of the Heist demo on the Playstation Worlds game. That was a very fun demo and usually what I have people try on the PSVR first. It is great to see the team fleshing out the concept and this may be the PSVR game I am anticipating the most. 

More highlights include the announcement that the latest game from Survios, Sprint Vector is coming to Playstation. Survios is well known for their hit game Raw Data and looks to continue becoming a trusted name in VR with its cross-dimensional arm swinging racer. 

Also on this list is Star Child,  side-scrolling platforming experience from Playful Corp the makers of the AMAZING Lucky's Tale.

Cute upcoming PSVR title Moss to incorporate Sign Language as a communication option.

Moss is a single player action-adventure puzzle game for all ages. Built for virtual reality from the ground up, Moss reimagines classic action-adventure gameplay in a first-of-its-kind fully immersive environment. When I first watched the E3 trailer for Moss I was filled with awes. Now after a recent tweet from the Animation Director of the project I am filled with lots of joy.

Since she can only squeak, I figured I'd play around with ways she can communicate with the player. Also a great perk for our deaf players. pic.twitter.com/BAiPc8CUMO

— Richard Lico (@Foofinu) August 3, 2017

The cute heroic mouse creature in Moss is called Quill. Though Quill does not speak to the player Quill does communicate through squeaks and actions to help the player. Recently the team decided to see if adding sign language as an option to communicate would be well received. The above tweet was met with great response and it looks like it will be incorporated as a feature in this already excellent looking PSVR game.

Moss will be Polyarc's first title but the team is made of ex-Destiny and Halo developers so the force is strong with them. 

We’ve wanted to make this game from the very beginning—to take the core of what makes a great game and then bring it to life with the magic of VR. We’re so excited to finally share it with the world.”

— Tam Armstrong, Co-Founder and CEO of Polyarc

I know all the CatsAndVR fans out there are excited for this super cute Legend of Zelda-esq Brian Jacques influenced Playstation VR game to help showcase Sony's platform this holiday season.  

Review: Superhot VR for the Playstation VR is a Masterpiece of overcoming hardware issues while playing an Octodad John Wick Kill Death Simulator.

First of all Superhot VR is an excellent game and perhaps my second favorite Playstation VR title right behind Resident Evil 7. According to the interwebs it is currently the top game for Playstation VR owners who also have cats.

The game has a low-poly look recalls the days when consumer Virtual Reality was still just a dream to be fabricated from source material like Tron and Lawnmower Man. The look creates a simulation like environment that always makes me think that this is my training sim for a real life hotline miami. 

When the game works it works soooo well. The satisfaction of this Super Kill simulator made me feel like Neo, John Wick, and Theodore Logan all at the same time. Throwing actual and dodging bullets by actually leaning, ducking and moving your body push the Playstation VR to its limits. Thats is where the problems come in. 

This game more than any other shows the true difference between a  PlayStation VR and a higher end HMD like the HTC Vive or Oculus Rift. The PlayStation Move tracking is basically ancient hardware in comparison to what the Vive and Rift are using. The PSVR motion tracking can be absolutely horrendous at times due to limited periphery. I never really cared about the PSVR's  lack of true room-scale tracking until now. 

Due to the issues of the hardware the game becomes a Octodad John Wick Simulator due to the PSVR hardware limitations. Often times I found myself squiggling around trying to beat a level while scrambling when I consistently was out of the camera range. Basically any tracking issue that occurs will kill you and then have you start back at the beginning of the set of rooms you have to deal with. I actually hit my camera off the tv several times and tried to play with a crazy perspective in order to now. I felt like I was playing Octodad playing John Wick having to punch 3 enemies and shoot a gun at a crazy angle and duck bullets. THE GAME IS A FUCKING WORKOUT!

The game will test your limits and It will make you hurt but yet it is still very satisfying. Though I would recommend Superhot VR on a Vive and a Rift, on PSVR it becomes a different beast and one worthy of a true hardcore gamer. Despite all the issues I kept going back to Superhot VR this week and it had some competition for my time in that I was trying to play the Destiny 2 Beta and Prey the same week. Superhot VR is an excellent game that excels DESPITE the hardware issues. The game is an award winner for several reasons an I commend the team for pushing forward on the PSVR despite the limitations they faced. 

I give Superhot VR  8.5/10 Cats: The game is excellent and one of the best title available on PSVR. It is a bit short for the price but still offers excellent replayability and oppertunites for exercise. 

Will Tekken 7 Playstation VR mode be fun? Here are Tekken 7 producer Katsuhiro Harada's thoughts.

At an event last week, Tekken 7 producer Katsuhiro Harada spoke a little about Tekken 7's exclusive PlayStation VR (PSVR) content adding he does not think it will be fun in the traditional sense for Tekken players but will still have some value.

"If you could imagine that you have some kind of a martial artist or pro boxer or something come and do shadowboxing right in front of your face, you can then probably begin to see how that’s not a very entertaining or enjoyable experience. Added to that, you’d be knocked into the air for, like, an aerial juggle or whatever – it’s really jarring and not very fun."

Harada went on to detail what we can expect from Tekken 7's VR mode. 

We ended up focusing more on the character elements of it, where you can customize your character and look at it from various angles, or with a fight against a CPU opponent slow down the match, and change the camera angles so you can see the game like you’ve never seen it before. These are the kind of things that make Tekken a more enjoyable experience in VR.

Personally I am looking forward to Tekken 7 in VR as the Tekken franchise is my favorite fighting game series. I am also looking forward to customizing King into to a cuddly cats.

catsandvr.com/blog/

Zen VR Puzzler Symphony of the Machine Available Now on PlayStation VR, HTC Vive

 Symphony of the Machine , a VR puzzle game where players revitalize a post-apocalyptic world by influencing the weather with a mysterious tower, is now available for PlayStation VR and HTC Vive in North America. It will launch across Europe and Oceania on April 26 and in Asia on April 27.

Set in a desolate landscape ravaged by an unknown catastrophe, Symphony of the Machine is centered around the scattered remnants of a lost civilization and an enigmatic tower. There, at the spire’s summit, awaits a series of tranquil puzzles that players can solve utilizing intuitive motion controls by bending, splitting or filtering light emanating from the arcane device.

This light can be redirected to symbols in the surrounding area which allow the player to summon the elements. Only with the correct mixture of precipitation, sunlight, wind and other effects can fauna atop the tower and the planet as a whole be restored and spring to life once more.

Symphony of the Machine provides an environment of discovery where players are unburdened by exposition and traditional cinematic storytelling. Without heavy-handed narrative dictating the experience, players can freely explore Story Mode, learning what happened to this world and how to fix it, or enter Sandbox Mode, where players are free to construct and expand upon their will, shaping and discovering new features and content long after the initial story has concluded.

“ Symphony of the Machine provides a soothing atmosphere to encourage discovery, creativity and experimentation,” said Vee Pendergrast, managing director, Stirfire Studios. “Players are free to set their own pace when uncovering the mystery behind the apocalyptic catastrophe and how to reverse the disastrous effects it’s had on the environment.”

Symphony of the Machine supports English, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Japanese, Traditional and Simplified Chinese, Korean, Russian and Brazilian Portuguese. The game is priced at $19.99 USD and €19.99.

CatsAndVR.com

Oasis Games, publishers of PSVR launch title Ace Banana back at it on Feb 28th with PSVR horror title.

Oasis Games Ltd, a leading independent Chinese publisher, today announced that its room escape horror game, DYING: Reborn , will launch on February 28 for the PlayStation ® VR and PlayStation ® 4 computer entertainment system. The release date for the PlayStation ® Vita handheld entertainment system will be announced at a later time.

If you have been reading CatsAndVR.com you know that I love the PSVR game Ace Banana also published by Oasis Games. http://www.catsandvr.com/blog/psvrbanana

I am excited that Oasis continues to bring quality weirdness at a decent price for the Playstation VR.  The upcoming DYING: Reborn for PSVR may be short and not compare with Resident Evil VR but at $9.99 it may be a good deal and a creepily weird little stop gap between the next big Horror VR title. 

DYING: Reborn is a dark, horror-themed puzzle game that creates a unique first-person room escape experience. Players will play as Mathew, a distraught young man on a mission to find his missing sister. After receiving a mysterious note from his sister, Mathew finds himself trapped in a strange and eerie hostel with no recollection of how he landed there. To escape the hostel and solve the mystery, Mathew must solve a variety of creative puzzles while exploring each spooky room in the building for clues. Scattered throughout the environment are items he will collect and use to piece together what happened while trying to find his sister.

The PlayStation ® 4 and PlayStation ® Vita games consists of six chapters of riveting gameplay, while PlayStation ® VR has three immersive chapters for a shorter but even more intense experience . Developed by NEKCOM Entertainment and published by Oasis Games for PlayStation ® VR, PS4 TM and “PS Vita” system, DYING: Reborn will be available on February 28 for the PS VR and PS4 TM on the PlayStation ® Store. The titles are available on PS VR for $9.99 and PS4 TM for $19.99. This game has been rated “M for Mature” by the ESRB.

Stay up to date on all of the PS VR titles from Oasis Games by liking us on Facebook at fb.me/OasisGamesConsole and following on Twitter at OAS_Games and Instagram at @OasisGamesOfficial. Get more information on all Oasis Games titles here: http://en.console.oasgames.com.

http://www.catsandvr.com/blog/psvrbanana

DiRT Rally now available for Playstation VR.

Codemasters has today launched the PlayStation®VR update for DiRT Rally®, the highest rated racing game on the PlayStation®4*. The update makes the entire game playable in VR and introduces a brand new Co-Driver Mode where a second player can give the all important calls using a controller and the social screen.

Available for existing players as a standalone DLC Add-on via the PlayStation®Store for £9.99 and as a ‘DiRT Rally PLUS VR Upgrade’ retail version from Argos and new digital bundle from the PlayStation®Store ( https://store.playstation.com/#!/cid=EP4001-CUSA03648_00-DIRTRALLY0001000) , the update fully immerses you in the world of rally, putting you directly at the wheel of some of the most iconic cars ever to ever take to a stage.

Every game mode within DiRT Rally is playable as the driver in VR including rallycross and hill climb. In addition, the new Co-Driver Mode means that on the rally stages a second player can become engrossed in the action as they use the buttons and touchpad on a DUALSHOCK 4® to give the pace note calls to the driver from the social screen. Timing and accuracy are vital, just like in real life, in order for you to complete the stage in the best time possible.

Get your game on with SportsBar VR for Playstation VR. Out Today.

Another VR game has come out for the Playstation VR for those looking for some additional content for your library. This may actually be the best title for those who work for a VR but need a break from the office but it's like 2 in the afternoon. 

Perilous Orbit and Cherry Pop Games released today their VR-enabled collection of pub games, SportsBar VR , for Sony's Playstation®VR in North America. SportsBar VR drops players into a fully immersive VR pub, where they can hang out with other players while battling in multiplayer pub pastimes like pool, darts and skeeball.

Much more than a collection of popular pub games, SportsBar VR gives players the ability to interact with the 3D world around them -- and to get rowdy! All set within an interactive virtual sports bar, SportsBar VR enables up to six players to play games ranging from air hockey to pool to darts, hang out, chat, roam the bar, or even make up their own challenges -- like throwing cue balls, smashing bottles and much more. Loosen up in the virtual bar without ever drinking a single drop of beer!

SportsBar VR Gameplay Features:

Tons to Do: Darts, pool, air hockey, skeeball and more. Just about every classic pub game is here… All in beautiful, realistic 3D VR.

Go on, Make a Mess! Had enough of being a good sport? Then enjoy throwing bottles, cue balls and sticks around – nobody gets hurt and nobody has to clean up!

Hang with Friends: A fully immersive social setting enables you to simply hang out and chat.

An Amazing VR Experience: Sports Bar VR is developed from the ground up for VR. Experience a fantastic VR environment, right from the comfort of your own living room.