SUPERHOT is a unique first-person shooter where time moves only when you do. This time around, it’s in virtual reality.
Story:
The story in SUPERHOT VR is really shallow. It focuses on a guy sitting near his PC rig with a VR helmet hovering above your head. The computers instruct you to put floppy discs into your PC, put on your helmet, and prove that you’re capable of destroying The Pyramid.
Like SUPERHOT, the VR version messes with your head using your own VR headset. I could go into detail on how it messes with you, but I’d rather not spoil it.
Graphics:
As with the original SUPERHOT, the art style is simple, but cool. Most environments are all white in color, and enemies are bright red. Everything else you can pick up and fight back with is colored black.
Your apartment (which acts as a sort of level transition throughout chapters) is a lot more detailed, with things like plants and pictures on the wall, among other stuff. In general, the visual design of the game is very appealing even though it’s incredibly simplistic.
Audio:
The audio design in SUPERHOT VR really basic. The entire game is silent except for gunshots, enemies being destroyed, and static when in your apartment. There’s some voice acting, but there isn’t much of it and even then it’s processed with a voice modulator. Overall it’s nothing special, but it does well for what it tries to accomplish.
Gameplay:
Gameplay is pretty similar to the original SUPERHOT, but with some differences. In SUPERHOT you could only wield a single gun. In SUPERHOT VR, you can dual wield anything from guns to melee weapons. The weapons you use to dispatch your enemies are varied enough. They range from sawed-off shotguns, Uzis, and pistols to hammers, ninja stars, hatchets, and more.
It’s best to have a weapon that can shoot, and to that end you can equip a gun in each hand. Like in SUPERHOT, you can throw weapons as well, but this I found to be a bit difficult to do. You have to be very precise with your throws, because most of the time your projectiles go off to the side instead of hitting the enemy. Shooting feels responsive, and it’s incredibly fun to wipe everyone off the map when you’re dual-wielding Uzis.
The game also adds some new features, like a mind wave attack which is used to pick one enemy and blow his head off with it. However, it has a recharge time, so you can only use it once every three in-game seconds.
Like SUPERHOT, the main selling point is the fact that time moves when you do, but in SUPERHOT VR it’s a little more slow. Since you can’t move around as you’re locked in a single place, time moves much more slowly. Sometimes you have to do a circle motion with your hands to advance time to a certain point. This becomes tiresome after a while. You have to do it slowly, as any quick movements advance the time too quickly.
Verdict:
Despite being incredibly short (two hours for the story mode), SUPERHOT VR is incredibly fun and worth owning for every VR headset owner with a PS4 or PC. It’s fun to mow down enemies with guns like a total badass. However I would suggest waiting for a bigger discount, as 25 dollars is pretty steep. Overall, though, this is one you should look into buying.
NOTE: This game was reviewed with a code provided by the developer/publisher.
