Review: On Point
Whenever people mention how the old light gun shooters would work perfectly in VR, the game I always bring up is Point Blank. On Point is now giving VR users this with a shooter in the same vein as this, I have now been checking it out but, is it still as fun as I remember now I am older?
Release Date:August 7th 2024
Developer: Actuator Digital
Publisher: Actuator Digital
Price: £16.75
Reviewed On: DPVR E4 Black
* Access Provided For Review *
Quick Judgement and Pinpoint Accuracy
On Point has clearly taken a lot of inspiration from Namco’s old light gun shooter, to the point that even the light gun in the game looks very similar to Namco’s G-Con 45 light gun that was used for the original PlayStation version of the game. Which instantly teleported me back to the many hours I spent playing the Point Blank games.
The game has multiple difficulties with Training, Amateur and Expert. Moving up the difficulties means you have to get through more levels with your three lives, with increased goals, less time and also offering more types of levels in total. Easy mode will see you taking on four levels out of a possible twelve, Amateur will increase this to eight levels out of potential twenty and finally Expert will be twelve levels out of a potential twenty-two.
When stating a game on any of the difficulties the levels you take on will be randomly assigned, it will then show four of the levels in a block and you can choose your order or let countdown to choose for you. These levels are like mini games, which will see you shooting targets, fruit, shearing sheep and stopping boulders landing on someone by shooting them to name a few. As mentioned you will only have three lives to get through all the four to twelve levels (depending on your selected difficulty). You will lose lives by either failing the goal or shooting a bomb on the levels that have them – but, you can only lose one per level, meaning if you fail and shoot a bomb in the same level you will only lose the one life.
As you get onto Expert level the difficulty ramps massively and it is going to require both quick judgement and pinpoint accuracy. With On Point I would advise playing training and amateur to get a feel for the levels but, move onto Expert as quickly as possible as this is where the most fun is going to be had with the game and the levels – as they become much more of a challenge. If you are a fan of leaderboards, the game also offers local to challenge family and friends that visit you house, and global leaderboards so you can aim to be the best in the world. With the twenty-two levels offered by Expert and the reactions required means topping these will feel like a real achievement.
The game will be launching in Early Access in Q3 2024, but even in this early access state it seems very accurate and runs smoothly and the aim seems pretty accurate. One thing I expect will come as it heads toward 1.0 release will be some more levels, as on Expert there is still five level slots that are not being used.
Colorful and Fun
The levels are all made up of bright, bold a colorful environments, again arching back to the look and feel of Point Blank. But now in 3D and you being placed into the environments from a farm to a theme park. With how the game plays and the craziness of some of the levels goals it fits this sort of look perfectly, and again looking at the G-Con style light gun in your hand is always great.
Each level is matched with upbeat music and environmental sounds that suit the location, for example: carnival music and the sound of kids having fun in the theme park. This is finished off with sound of your gun firing and the noises of hitting the targets, like pots and targets smashing and the sheep bleating as you shoot the wool off their backs. Which again works perfectly with what the game is doing and the visuals.
Comfort
The Verdict
On Point’s inspiration from Point Blank is clear to see throughout the whole game, which isn’t a bad thing because the game was so popular on the original PlayStation. The game is a bit simple on both Training and Amateur difficulties, so I would take a look at the levels available on these but, essentially move on to Expert as soon as possible. Expert is where the game offers its true potential in difficulty and catching the quick judgement and pinpoint accuracy that you want and a game like this excels in. I expect more levels will be added as it heads towards it 1.0 release, but what is on offer already is fantastic.