E3 2017: Blasters of the Universe Preview
Canadian developer The Secret Location had their VR game Blasters of the Universe on display at E3 this week and I had the chance to give it a go on the Oculus Rift. While my experiences with VR have ranged from horrible to just okay, it was difficult to know in advance what my experience might be like with this one. Fortunately, I can say that it was the best VR experience I personally have had and adds to the growing list of reasons to buy an Oculus Rift VR unit.
Blasters of the Universe is really like a modernized version of the shooting gallery. Your visual range was about 280 degrees in front of you (no need to turn around). Enemies popped up in front of you, shoot various combinations of bullets at you, and then pop out of the screen (only to pop up elsewhere). The only way for you to get hurt is head shots, shots to your body don’t count. So as little red bullets in shapes like circles and squares come at you, you’d have to avoid getting shot in the head by contorting your body to slip past the shots. You can also deploy a shield to protect you in a pinch (but the shield does get depleted if used too much). Eventually, enough successful attacks against the enemies would unlock your special shot; a devastating barrage of missiles that will kill anything on screen.
At the end of the level, a boss will appear. The boss, like the smaller enemies, pretty much does the same pop-in/pop-out moves, but has a different set of offensive capabilities like heat-seeking missiles and massive laser grids. I remember the first time the boss unleashed a massive laser grid at me – I had no idea where to go, but I could hear one of the team members at the booth shouting “duck, duck”… and so, I ducked, and survived to finish the fight (I’m pretty sure it was Nicole shouting “duck”… thanks for the assist Nicole!).
Visually, the game almost has an 80’s look to it, with neon colors that really pop. It really was a cool looking game. During the whole match, the evil Grand Master Alwyn was taunting me from a distance, spouting off silly one-liners and insults. It took a game that could have been a bit dry and added a layer of humor that was greatly appreciated!
I had asked the developer if there was a chance of this game coming to consoles and they said their immediate focus is PC, but after they would explore other possibilities. I really hope they’re successful in launching on as many platformers as possible, because Blasters of the Universe is a blast (ha!) to play and it has a great team of people working hard to make it a (virtual) reality!
Blasters of the Universe is available right now on Steam (Early Access) and works for both Oculus Rift and HTC VIVE.
