Jeff Minter is again on PC with a trio of VR-optional games right now, considered one of which is so cool that Nine Inch Nails made a music video about it. Originally for PlayStation VR, Polybius is – as you’d count on – a trippy thousand-mile-an-hour arcade shooter with hypnotic visuals, though right now’s PC launch may be performed on a daily monitor too. Also out right now is Minotaur Arcade Volume 1 – remakes of Llamasoft’s arcade shooter Gridrunner and iOS platformer Goatup, extruded into the third dimension and likewise playable in VR. You actually ought to watch the NIN video under.
Polybius (named after the urban legend of a sinister arcade machine) is what occurs when Minter performs round with VR. It’s a neon headlong dive by way of a tunnel crammed with traps and lasers and explosive demise with a pulsing techno soundtrack. It’s straightforward to see why this could work higher in VR because the sense of velocity on a excessive refresh price headset have to be dazzling, but it surely’s elective now. While quick and arcadey, it’s additionally light in its construction – no bosses, no huge issue spikes, and a Game Over solely brings you again to the beginning of the most recent part reached. This PC model was used within the music video under – higher than any trailer.
As for Minotaur Arcade Volume 1, it looks like Minter is experimenting with a few of his older concepts. Rather than simply remaster the Vic 20 Gridrunner, this model re-imagines it as an early 80s arcade game, albeit with its pixels rendered as voxels, enabling you to smoosh your face proper up into it when you’ve got a VR headset. Goatup is a remake of considered one of his iOS games, initially rendered unplayable by Apple’s updates. It’s a easy arcade platformer a few nanny goat consuming issues, rescuing youngsters (of the goaty variety) and climbing a large tower stuffed with threats, now rendered as a 3D tube stretching endlessly upwards.
Polybius and Minotaur Arcade Volume 1 are out now on Steam for £14/€15/18 and £10/€10.79/$12.99 respectively.
