SolidusDave
Member
Maybe all the VR news and especially Sony delivering a very competent VR headset for the PS4 has gotten me a bit hyped but I've been thinking about games I would want to play in VR.
I was wondering which "traditional" and more open(world) gameplay would be suited for early Morpheus games. Heavily scripted experiences will be the best choice initially, while something like infamous might be a bit much maybe.
So IMO a photo safari game like Afrika would be pretty fitting for a more slow paced, open world exploration VR game that probably most people (new to VR) can enjoy for long play sessions.
For those who don't know the original game. It's basically an open world game covering a couple of climate zones in Africa in which you play a photographer who has to take specific photos for magazines etc. You can move around freely and you are rated on how well your photo covers the requirements (some are tricky to find out or require patience). On some level it was also a photography simulator with original Sony cameras&lenses as well as photo settings.
It's definitely a very niche game and can be described as relaxing to play.
Some ideas on VR specific gameplay elements and how to built on the original game:
Pet mode:
I realize most of this must sound pretty lame, but you have to consider that all of this will be experienced in a VR environment that will give you a presence.
Meeting that angry elephant above in 1:1 scale for "real" would be quite different than in the original game. Or induce fear of heights while climbing mountains to take a close-up of an eagle's nest.
Still, a virtual safari trip, not a P.T. experience. Can be played for hours w/o exhausting/overwhelming you too much (and can be enjoyed by pretty much all ages as there's no violence).
/in before Aquanaut's Holiday submarine VR game.
I was wondering which "traditional" and more open(world) gameplay would be suited for early Morpheus games. Heavily scripted experiences will be the best choice initially, while something like infamous might be a bit much maybe.
So IMO a photo safari game like Afrika would be pretty fitting for a more slow paced, open world exploration VR game that probably most people (new to VR) can enjoy for long play sessions.
For those who don't know the original game. It's basically an open world game covering a couple of climate zones in Africa in which you play a photographer who has to take specific photos for magazines etc. You can move around freely and you are rated on how well your photo covers the requirements (some are tricky to find out or require patience). On some level it was also a photography simulator with original Sony cameras&lenses as well as photo settings.
It's definitely a very niche game and can be described as relaxing to play.
Some ideas on VR specific gameplay elements and how to built on the original game:
- first person instead of third person
- Still played with a DS4. Analog stick for character movement. Holding the controller up like a camera (similar to the original game) to take photos, R1 shoots. Driving is done by turning the DS4 like a wheel (at least the default option).
- includes a hunting mode. Obviously killing animals doesn't fit this game so it should be tranquilizer darts to bring animals in for research/surgery/equipping them with cameras/chips for later missions etc. Still, you will still need to track down and sneak up onto the specific animal.
- special pet mode for all the animals you brought in to view them in higher detail (fur shaders etc.) and have some funny VR experiences/shocks (lion trying to bite you when you try to pet it, cute Nintendog-esque baby animal reactions etc.).
- Heavier focus on exploration instead of only missions triggering certain events&animals.
- content-wise it should be several continents this time, covering savanna/desert, rain forest/rivers, mountains/ice. Savanna would be the easiest to go around while you mostly can't use a car in the other ones (but a flying drone can carry your gear or something)
- of course environments have dynamic lighting and weather which also affects the animals that you can find.
- You should be able to go scuba diving. Think of exploring underwater caves in the Amazonian jungle.
- going to your gear in your car/drone switches to a close-up mode that allows you to check on all your gadgets, manually switching the official lenses on your camera via controller tracking and touchpad interactions etc.
- other VR interaction gimmicks should be stuff like colleagues telling you animal positions via your walkie-talkie that you answer by holding the controller to your head and hold a button to reply etc.
- Slightly more story content, maybe even more fantastical like in Aquanaut's Holiday. Ideally this would lead to some endgame level in which you do all this stuff with prehistoric animals to prevent it from being purely dry simulation.
- Your NPC buddy returns for some friendly VR moments, but during gameplay he/she can also be controlled by another player during online-coop while also snapping a few group pics with a tripod.
- More interactions with the local tribes people, ideally trying to actually gesticulate in VR and if you do it right beyond just greeting them they will give you additional information about animal whereabouts and whatnot.
- Still collaborate with National Geographic or someone like BBC Earth to incorporate again real footage and infos.
Pet mode:
I realize most of this must sound pretty lame, but you have to consider that all of this will be experienced in a VR environment that will give you a presence.
Meeting that angry elephant above in 1:1 scale for "real" would be quite different than in the original game. Or induce fear of heights while climbing mountains to take a close-up of an eagle's nest.
Still, a virtual safari trip, not a P.T. experience. Can be played for hours w/o exhausting/overwhelming you too much (and can be enjoyed by pretty much all ages as there's no violence).
/in before Aquanaut's Holiday submarine VR game.
