Recent reviews by Cas

I finished the game and I loved every hour of it. Half-Life: Alyx has a lot of elements that you will recognize if you've played previous games - even chapter loading feels the same. This game consists of mostly shooting action with returning enemies from previous games (and some new ones!), you will explore City 17's alien infested buildings and dark underground areas which will feel familiar. Except everything is in new beautiful graphics. This is probably one of the best looking VR games to date, which CAN make the game pretty intense and scary in VR, but it will be worth it!

For VR, Valve added many new game mechanics, like the gravity gloves, manual gun reloading mechanics, a multi-tool for hacking & puzzling, which all works intuitively, and feel great. Most things around you are grabbable, throwable, and breakable. Most items have realistic weight too. I think that’s important as it encourages exploration and increases immersion.

And yes, the game works with most controllers, I tried it with the Valve Index controllers, HTC VIVE controllers & Oculus Touch controllers. They all worked perfectly fine, and it doesn’t make the gameplay any less fun. Although, I did find using the Index controllers to be cooler as it feels the closest to the gravity gloves in-game.

It also seems like Valve designed the game comfort-first. There are a lot of options available for the ones with VR legs and the ones who don’t. If you don’t have your VR legs, make sure to check all the comfort options on the menu. There are even accessibility options and streamer options.

There will be things that you might find lacking. Like, there isn't a lot of melee action and the progression is pretty linear. BUT the cons feel like nitpicks compared to what you do get: incredible storytelling, graphics like you're in a movie, and gameplay that won't bore you ever.

Watch my full review here where I go in-depth about these VR mechanics without spoiling the story: https://youtu.be/CyxPgJvaKcU

EDIT: I was not paid for this review. I only got the game for free. I finished the game in about 13 hours but explorers will get more hours out of this.

This game is polished and a game that shows the potential of VR in the future. I wasn't going to post a review, but since there are a couple of reviews in here that have negative points that I don't agree with, I just wanted to share my thoughts on this.

First of all, it seems like a lot of people are complaining about the game's length. I am 4 hours in and I haven't completed the game yet. One of the reasons is because I like to explore in VR games. If you do not like to explore in VR games, then yes, do not buy this game because this game is all about the exploring. You explore to get runes, coins, and souls to upgrade your character and to buy new weapons.

Then people say that the trailer is misleading, because the mechanics introduced in there, like fixing blades, smelting iron and cooking are only done in the first stage. It's true that you don't really need to do these things to get further in the game. I haven't found another place to fix my sword for example. I understand it is disappointing that this isn't part of the core gameplay further in the game. I did feel that for a bit too. However, I then found places in different stages where these little details were found too. Like there was a cooking pot on a table in the 2nd level, where I could make my own potion by cooking a mushroom, grabbing a bottle, uncap it and then dip it in the pot to get my potion. This table was easily missed if you don't go exploring though.

The reason I'm saying this is because these 'small' mechanics are awesomely made, it's polished and detailed. It's a lot of work to put these 'gimmicks' in. Developers don't have to do that, and sadly, a lot of the developers don't. One of the reasons I would recommend this game is that you can see the amount of work that was put in this game. And these little details are just fun to explore in VR. Sure, it could have been better, by really integrating all these small things into the core gameplay. Then the game would have been longer and should be more expensive too.

Although I also disagree a bit that you don't see the mechanics back in the game. You actually do see some of it back, for example you can burn your hands if you grab one of the melting irons that are on fire. You still get burned if you try to reach for a candle later in the game. You learn to climb ladders, wall plants/ hang from ropes in the first level, and in future levels you are gonna be doing this too. This might sound like small details, but those things are huge for me in VR. I like to be able to interact with the world.

I haven't even mentioned the shop mechanism in this game, and that you can actually bargain and talk to NPCs, is so fun, which you have to do throughout the game.

The combat is well done too. Of course, if you are lazy and just flail around your weapon, then, of course, it isn't as fun as actually parrying, blocking, and do long arching swings to hit. Plus the slow motion dismemberments/decapitating are a nice touch. The battle mechanics aren't as heavy duty as Blade & Sorcery, but I feel the combat is well-balanced and a lot of fun if you actually try to do it like you would 'in real life'.

So this is a game recommended for those that like exploring and like to do combat as the devs want you to. It isn't a huge RPG like Skyrim VR by far, but I think the combat system & interactive elements in this game are done better than Skyrim VR.

I don't think $25 is a lot if I can get 4-6 hours out of this game. A movie of 2 hours costs about $15 nowadays, so this is well worth the money. That is if you like to explore and trying out all the small mechanics that goes in this game.

The loading bug is a big issue though if it still exists. That should definitely be fixed.

We have been doing Mixed Reality for a while now, the original way that took a lot of setup time. Now we use LIV, because it's a great application that has helped us save time to do Mixed Reality videos. I had a small problem with the calibration part, but my question was answered quickly by the guys of LIV. They are very responsive, which I think is great, especially because creating MR videos can be an intricate process. Would be nice to have some more features added too, like an integrated calibration tool. VIVR can be used now, but that's an external paid app at the moment. Speaking with one of the guys from LIV, has told me that there is much more features in the pipeline for this app that sound really helpful, so we are looking forward to that.

EDIT: Got notified that VIVR is free now!

Apex Construct is a beautiful game, where graphics look stunning and detailed. The game has a powerful story that sucks me in, even though I’m only reading most of the story from a computer screen inside the game. The archery mechanics in this game is well done too. There is haptic feedback at the right moments, and the shooting feels accurate. The loud noises that come from the bow can be distracting though. The other sounds in the game, like the voice actor, the effects and music are nice to listen to too. The 3D sound is great, so definitely play with headphones on. Sometimes it the music does randomly begin or end, which can also be distracting.

The game has two locomotion options: teleportation and smooth. During the early access version, smooth locomotion needed work. However, in this version it works pretty great. There are some areas that you cannot get to, because you need to use teleportation. They have solved this well by making the upper part of the touchpad for teleportation-only and the left, right and bottom parts for smooth locomotion. This is great, because you don’t have to switch locomotion the whole time.

There was also the issue that you would bounce back from a computer when you got too close, making it impossible to type something in. In the final release, they have solved that too and now it works fine. It would be nice to be able to type in a quicker manner though, because sometimes I’m just standing in front of a computer struggling to type.

What I also like is that every level has secrets to find which adds to the replayability. As a completionist you will definitely be going through the same levels a couple of times to find them all. The secrets are sometimes in the form of a game throphy that you can actually pick up, bring back home and then put it on a shelf. I really love these kind of details.

If you like archery and story based games, then definitely get Apex Construct. You won’t regret it.

Gameplay video: https://youtu.be/LogtD80XoVo

Reficul is an interesting horror game. What intrigued us to play this is that the game has an open world, perma-death and no jumpscares. I think this makes the more unique than most VR horror games out there at the moment. Perma-death means that if you die, you will have to restart the game. If you stay alive, game will be saved each time you enter or exit an area and you can continue the game.

The game also features cool weapon mechanics. You need to do gun loading and reloading in the right manner, like you do in real life. This takes a bit more time, but I think that makes the game more immersive. The version we played however only showed Oculus controllers in game, so I had to use that controller to reload a gun and sometimes that felt a bit weird. I didn’t know when my in-game controllers would touch the right part of the gun to be able to reload it. I think it would be nice to have more intuitive hand animations that mimics real life hands for this kind of realistic weapon handling.

The gameplay is pretty challenging. There is no map that you can open whenever you want, so you have to pay attention to where you are, where you have to go and how much ammo you have left to be able to survive the night. Luckily in the game you can also find unlimited powered relics, which look like bibles. Some of them have special powers, like unlimited light. However you cannot store that in your inventory, so that means you got to think which one is the most handy to take with you.

The version we played did have some bugs still. Things like we could easily teleport inside a house through a wall or closed door. We hope to see this fixed soon. This might be fixed in the early access version though!
Overall, we think that the game is really interesting and even without jumpscares, the atmosphere makes the game scary. If you are into horror that is not linear and doesn’t have just jumpscares, then this one is definitely for you.

If you want to check out more of the gameplay, check out this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPQZxsW-4oY

OVERTURN is a first person shooter combined with puzzles and adventure. A combination that really appeals to us.
The first thing that really caught our attention is its anime styled character design. To us it is very cute and gorgeous to look at. The level designs fortunately are quite polished as well. The story is fun to read and the way it is presented really does remind us of an anime.

This game is made by a one person studio and we think that it is incredible that only one person could create a game like this. We do think that there is a small downside to that. It feels like the lack of a bigger development team made the game feel a bit unfinished. Or maybe “easy” is a better word for it. Sometimes it feels like the AI enemies lack intelligence. It is for example quite easy to punch or shoot them. Sometimes they don’t even move towards us after exploding a grenade right next to them.

You can however choose a difficulty selection that will make the enemies harder to kill, so that is definitely nice. However, the puzzles feel very easy as well. They are very straightforward and no thinking is really needed. I think it would be nice to have some harder puzzles. For example, there was an area where we had to put out fire. Some fire extinguishers were spawned randomly in a corner with a big text floating on it telling us to use the extinguisher to put out the fire. Instead of telling us that, why not let the player find the fire extinguisher themselves without instructions? Put it on a wall somewhere and kill the player if he doesn’t realize it in time. Making us think and explore a little bit would in our opinion add to the gameplay in a positive way.
The game does certainly become a lot more interesting after the first and second level though. As you gain a companion who helps you during fights with unique magical skills. AI are harder to kill and you have to strategize more, so that is very cool.
Multiplayer mode is also coming up and we really hope that there is going to be a co-op mode as well.

Overall, we think the game is entertaining because it is so versatile. Something that you can definitely play for a long time if you like its anime styled designs and story.

Video of the gameplay:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWO8UqpdFuI

Marshmallow Melee is a very cute, toy-scaled dungeon crawler where you gear up and control tiny Marshmallow warriors. Use strategy and a bit of luck to beat Steve, the evil wizard, who has been kidnapping the poor Marshmallows.

https://youtu.be/Ld0GlyC44AE
For those that don't want to watch a video, here's a summary of it:

Marshmallow Melee is a game that you can play comfortably seated. You guide your guys around with the trigger button, and pressing the joystick activates special abilities. You can use both controllers to move Marshmallows seperately or use one to move them all at the same time. It's up to you and what strategy you want to use. The fighting is automatic. It feels like that the game is designed to be as low-taxing physically as possible. Yet, it is a lot of fun.

The Shuffling Tower System randomizes the game every time you start it, which is cool because you never know what to expect. The game can get very challenging too with this, because if the store does not roll you something good, you can have a really tough time. I think this also really adds to the replayability. Every time you start the game you also get different weapons, so it depends a bit on NRG whether or not it's going to be easier for you.

If all of your Marshmallows die, you lose and have to start over. I've not yet been able to beat the whole game yet after 2 hours.

In conclusion I really enjoyed the game and did not want to stop playing. If you are looking for something more casual and a bit addictive, this title is definitely a must have. This game is 40% off until Friday, so make sure to get it now if you like what you saw!

Right now, the game doesn't have official Oculus support, but it works perfectly with it (I've played on both platforms).

Tractorball is a fantasy soccer game where you are strapped into a souped up farm tractor with an added rocket engine and a huge flipper on the front. Flip the super sized ball into the opponents goal and use funny dirty tricks to antagonize your opponent.

In this video: https://youtu.be/CDSWW6XH3Dg
We play the early access beta version of the game. So keep in mind that things might have changed at release.

So, this game really reminds us of Rocket League, except with tractors. It is intense and a lot of fun to play with friends. However I do have my doubts whether or not you will be able to find people online to play this game with. Without friends to play with this title might not be as fun.

The game currently has four course layouts in five game worlds. It offers co-op, 2 vs 2 multiplayer as well as unlockable single player leagues and tournaments. During a match you have a rocket boost and 20 different dirty tricks power-ups to use on your opponent, which can alter the course of a match in a blink. After each match you gain experience, which you can level up.
The version that we played was a bit buggy. One of the bugs that we encountered was that some dirty tricks did not work. Although we are going to assume that this is fixed in the final version.

Also, if you are a bit prone to motion sickness this game will make you sick. I got nauseous while playing this game for 5 minutes, my girlfriend did not get sick at all however. She's a bit stronger than I am. The game does offer a comfort mode, which gives you a vignette on your screen when you are moving, which can help the motion sickness.

Overall, we did enjoy this game. So if you like vehicular ball games you might like this title!

First impressions + review at the end here:
https://youtu.be/ibQ0h3C1Iaw

If you don't want to watch a video, that's cool! Here's a summary:
XING: The Land Beyond is an atmospheric first-person puzzle adventure for both desktop and VR. You are a soul escaping the world of the living and travelling the lands of the dead.

The first thing you will notice when you launch this game is that the game is very beautiful. The flat screen video might not justify it well enough, as it is gorgeous in VR. We didn’t even set our graphics in the highest settings, because our CPU couldn’t handle both recording and the high settings at the same time (we use an i7 + 1070). But if you put everything on high, it is definitely beautiful.

The game has soothing ambiance too, which makes it very relaxing to launch the game and be totally immersed in a fantasy world. The nice sound design definitely adds to this and we love it.

At first the puzzles seemed quite easy and linear, but thankfully they become harder over time. Especially when you find out that you can only use certain items by day and others by night. It takes some time exploring everything and finding out what you have to do, but definitely worth it.

Something that we did encounter in VR was that texts were blurry in VR. Mostly happened in the menus, making them hard to read. On desktop everything was good.

In VR everything feels great. You get free locomotion, snap turning and smooth rotation which definitely helps. Especially if you have a smaller space. Free locomotion was also very comfortable.

It seems like the game has a good length as well as we have been playing for almost an hour and we could see that we were only halfway of the first door. In the beginning we could see that there are 4 doors if I remember it correctly, which could indicate that there is enough content. However we haven’t been able to finish this game yet, so our opinion might change after progressing more.

We think this game is amazing. It is definitely something for people who like puzzles and more casual, relaxing games that you can dive into for hours. If you are looking for action though, this might not be something for you.

TLDR; Beautiful polished game with a casual relaxing feel. Recommended for anyone who loves puzzling in VR.

Check out our co-op video review (in mixed reality) here: https://youtu.be/tR6J5TwdVhM

If you don't wanna watch a video, that's cool! Here's a summary of the video:

Game is still in early access so a lot can change later on, as the devs are still pushing updates actively, but for now this is what we think of it. This is a party game that you can play with up to 4 couch players and 1 VR player. You switch the headset from time to time to make it more fair. I think it's a blast to be able to play with that many people at the same time. The local players will have to play in splitscreen, and they will see the VR player in-game as a big gorilla. Online multiplayer mode is coming later.

Currently there are 3 game modes in multiplayer and a couple of single player missions. They are entertaining, especially playing with that many people makes the game different each time you start it. The graphics style is very cute and that matches the gameplay. I think it makes a fun family game.

However the game in its current state definitely needs some polishing. Game mechanics doesn't feel 'done' yet and is still in need of more features/content. Game needs a bit of balancing. The gorilla is way too OP in comparison to the other players. Also not every vehicle that the couch player gets are as easy to use as the other ones. Some are not really helpful at all and doesn't do much except drive around.

Overall, did have a lot of fun with title as every time you play it with friends its different. Think this could also make a fun title to show friends who don't own a VR headset themselves. If you don't mind waiting for some updates and more content, get it!