One artificial knee. One knee with some weird orthopedic "pop" that no one can seem to define. Two rickety hips. And a new, exquisite torture has entered the field in the form of Plantar Fasciitis. And yet, somehow, with all my old-man leg problems, I look at the trailer for BlockStar VR and think "I'm totally gonna play that." Me and Advil will find a way.
BlockStar VR is an upcoming tunnel shooter; you know the ones, where stuff flies towards you and you either shoot it or duck out of the way (its the ducking that's the tough part). But there seems to be something different at work here in BlockStar VR that sets it apart from the typical VR shooting range. This game looks like it has production values.
There's a story at play here, and not just the whole "you're on a game show, so shoot stuff" narrative. No, there seems to be an entire world built out around this tunnel you find yourself in - a post-Earth society still plagued by social inequality, where the rich get richer off the backs of the poor. Into this world you step, a simple miner, taking their shot at fame and glory with your eyes on the ultimate prize. If you win, you get a life on Earth. If you lose, you die.
BlockStar VR is being developed by Immersive Division, a team of VR pros that have worked on such varied Hollywood projects as Blade Runner 2049, Allied, Wolverine, Warcraft, Blackhat, Snowpiercer, and Assassin’s Creed. How that expertise will translate into the gaming space has yet to be determined, but one look at that trailer and you can see that the visuals and character design are a cut above what one would normally see in a game of this type. Heck, you wouldn't normally see characters at all in a game of this type.
So, me and my old man knees are going to wishlist BlockStar VR on Steam, as much as we know we will regret it. If you want to take a look and consider taking the plunge, you can find more info at BlockStar VR's Steam page. Blockstar VR is expected to release in Q3, 2022.
