For the purpose of transparency, this hands-on was completed using a code provided by the company or their respective PR company. The use of a free code does not affect my judgement of this product.
Please note this hands-on was created using a product that is currently in Early Access, meaning some of the issues could be resolved over time.
Window Licker Games have released their game oVRshot in Early Access. This is a small three vs three, arena based bow and arrow combat game. As with other games in the Early Access, does it show promise?
This is an online only experience, so you really need to be comfortable playing others online if you are to consider buying the game. So, the main question you are probably asking yourself… do you have any difficulty finding games?
At the moment the game is quiet for users, but many Early Access games suffer from this on release – especially early in their life cycle. However, there is two guaranteed times when you will find people online, this is down the developers being online for game sessions to make sure people get chance to play and discuss their game with them. The times you will find the developers online are; 19:00 (GMT) and 19:00 (EST) – so the developers are doing a lot of work after the game has been released, and giving people chance to play the game with them.
As previously mentioned this a three vs three online arena game, at the moment it only has the one game-mode which is King of the Hill. Although in the lobbies you can see the future mode that is coming named Demolition, which the developers have informed me is going to be like the Counter Strike mode, with one team attempting to plant a bomb – this could make a fun mode within VR.
The main mechanic of the gameplay is the bow and arrow combat of course, with the objective on King of the Hill being to hold the point in the centre of the map. The game really has hit the sweet point (as the developers put it) with the bow and arrow play – which is something that seems to be a popular weapon choice in VR. You will have to reach over you back to grab and arrow with the bow constantly being in your strong hand you set-up. But, the most impressive thing about this is the hit detection with the environment, if there is a gap big enough for your arrow to fit through and your accurate enough with your shot it will go through this gap.
The game brings with it two classes, that you must select as the game starts by grabbing the red or blue orb at the beginning of each game, or you can swap mid-game when you re-spawn. Each class brings set abilities with it, meaning you can work as a team, by deciding between you which classes each member of the team will take. The two classes are listed below;
Assault Class
This will give you four types of arrows you can use in order to take out or hinder your opponent. You can switch the type of extra arrows (three in total) by pressing the grip buttons. You will have your standard arrow, one which splits into multiple arrows, a stun arrow and an explosive arrow. The three outside of your standard arrow all have a recharge time, but this isn’t a huge wait time – which is something I like.
Defence Class
This class gives you four arrow types also, and you will switch the types the same way. As with the assault class you have your standard arrow and the scatter shot arrow, but the other two are more about offering cover for you and your team mates. These arrows allow you to put down smoke, and the other will place a circular shield around you or your team mates. This can be shot into though, so the shield is not over-powered, this can be done by getting to higher ground and shooting into the circled off area.
As well as using your bow for combat, turning this gives you a shield to try and block the incoming arrows – this is part of both classes. In order to this you have to turn you bow sideways in-front of you, which means you can only use the shield or arrows, both can not be used as the same time. The shield is not big enough to cover all of your body, meaning you can’t just hold this up to deflect all incoming shots, some of your body will always be open to take a shot.
Speaking about your body, the game has taken the no legs and floating hand and wrist approach to the avatars in the game, when discussing with the developers they said it will always be this way. They have decided to take this approach due to arms and legs glitching out a lot in VR, and to avoid those annoying kneecap kill shots that are infamous in games like Call of Duty.
While looking at that we might as well discuss the rest of the visuals. At the moment there is only one map available, which is based in-doors. The map has that very futuristic clean look and is based in what looks like a storage warehouse, this is where the aforementioned hit detection with the environment really shows its strength, as you get arrows through the shelves. Again with discussion with the developers more maps will be coming to game, and some may be based or have out-door areas.
When it comes to playing the game, it is designed to be played using standing and room-scale – this is because you can crouch down behind cover and get lower the ground to try to dodge those arrows. The game is also played using the Tracked Motion controls, one that as mentioned has your bow in it constantly and the other you use to grab and fire the arrows. The only other buttons you use are the side Grips to change your arrow types, and holding the menu button to speak – they plan to make this open chat in the future, so the menu button is not needed to be pressed.
The game will allow teleportation and smooth/free locomotion, but at the moment there is some issue with the locomotion causing some motion sickness – but they are looking into this. After all the game is in Early Access, so there is going to be plenty of time to smooth out some of the issues.
At the moment it is hard to put a longevity on the game, because this will really come down to if the games picks up, and it becomes popular making rooms readily available. If picks up and more and more modes and maps are added to game, I feel it will be one players will be jumping into a lot – because with my time playing with people from Discord and the developers it really is fun.
Conclusion
oVRshot is a really fun game, and one I really hope takes off and becomes popular – as I would love to be able to put the game on and find games when I want one. Even with the one game mode and one map at the moment, you can see the potential the game has. The bow and arrow combat is really responsive and accurate, and the hit detection with the environment is outstanding. With the developers being open to feedback all the time to help improve and tweak the game, it shows they want their game to be loved.
Also available on Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality
Developer: Window Licker Games
