Intuitive three-dimensional controls, good variety of game modes, customisation that directly impacts matches
Little single-player appeal, slow to find matches
On the surface, it's easy to mistake Sony's Starblood Arena as PlayStation VR's format-exclusive answer to EVE Valkyrie. It's actually something more important. It's virtual reality's Overwatch.
Comparison to the former can be forgiven. Both are fully immersive space shooters demanding lightning-fast reflexes and total spatial awareness from players as they pilot small, highly manoeuvrable craft and blast their enemies into stardust. Yet, where Valkyrie aims for spectacle, with massive gulfs of starry void for you to soar through while attempting to take down rivals, Starblood Arena lives up to its title with tightly-focused, expertly designed maps that players can – and must – learn the nuances of in order to achieve victory.
The arena itself is framed as an intergalactic TV show, part Gladiators, part Robot Wars. Each match is intended to placate the bloodlust of the audiences at home across the universe, with nine distinct characters battling it out for glory.
The cast – a range of humanoids, aliens, cyborgs, and even a triumvirate of hive-minded space gremlins – aren't just copy-paste stand-ins to add some visual difference to the shoot-outs. Every pilot has specialisations, emphasising play at different ranges, and with unique skills. Apollonia, a steampunk cowgirl, excels at up-close battles, with a ship capable of harpooning opponents and getting in close for a scattergun blast to the core, while Tik, Tak, and Toh – the aforementioned gremlin trio – are, surprisingly, a 'tank' class choice, armed with nukes and heavy shields. Gundo, a deranged robot, is the closest to an all-rounder, with various weapons exploiting close, medium, and long range tactics, but every character will reward players who master their attributes.
Each of their ships is customisable, too, with weapons loadouts and cosmetic exteriors adjustable to preference. Mixing and matching tools can have a significant impact on how matches play out and you'll soon zero in on favourites that work best for your chosen character. Upgrades, as is de rigueur for competitive shooters, come from loot and levelling up each fighter, with new options unlocked as they improve.
Where developer White Moon Dreams has really excelled is in providing a control system that's as involved as it is intuitive, blending familiar joypad controls with an immersive sense of movement. Aiming is simple, governed by where you're looking, with the tilt of the PSVR headset giving a natural and intuitive edge to the zippy battles. Focus on an enemy for a few seconds and you'll lock on, enabling you to launch homing missiles or a heavy assault attack, which charges over time.
Actually moving your ship is left to the conventional PS4 controller, with elevation, propulsion, and firing mapped similarly to a non-VR game. This creates a level of familiarity that won't alienate newcomers to virtual reality – you'll feel as comfortable playing Starblood Arena as you might Call of Duty. The speed the game can reach will occasionally be a bit dizzying, though, especially when you're pulling off sweeping arcs or spinning out of the way of oncoming fire. Those with motion sickness may want to avoid.
There are four modes to master the arena in – Carnage, Team Carnage, Gridiron, and Invaders. The first is a free-for-all deathmatch, every player for themselves, while its team-based cousin pits parties against each other, racking up points for kills and assists to claim overall victory.
Match modifiers kick in about halfway through, adding another layer to the competition. You may be perfectly happy winging it around, when hazards such as gun turrets or elemental shock spheres are added to the environments, putting you further on edge. Or repair drones may appear, making it that much tougher to take down enemies. The variety lifts Starblood's deathmatches above many of its rivals, VR and non-VR alike.
Gridiron mixes things up, offering a hi-tech game of techno-hockey. Teams battle to shoot a ball into a goal for a point (three points if you can avoid the opposition and score a 'touchdown') but must avoid enemy interference. In a nice twist, there's no destruction here – if your shields are depleted by enemy fire, you'll just be briefly immobilised, which can dramatically turn the tide of a match.
Finally, Invaders shows there is some co-operation in the arena, as players join forces to blast away waves of alien hordes. Teams of up to four will have to defend a set objective, with the 360° arenas keeping you on your toes in terms of avenues of approach. It's a simple game mode, but one given a fresh spin thanks to presentation.
Sadly, despite its charms played online, there's little real appeal to the game played solo. The same modes are available, with maps populated by AI allies and enemies, but with few of the same thrills you'll experience playing against humans. Alternatively, a 'Burn Circuit' lets you play through ten increasingly tough matches for each character – a glorified training mode, but one that at least rewards golden skins for bragging rights.
Conversely, we sometimes found it tricky to find online matches, with lobbies taking longer than we'd like to populate. Hopefully, this will improve as more players get their hands on the game.
Starblood Arena easily stands alongside the best competitive games, fostering a competitiveness and desire to improve as much as Rocket League or Overwatch do. Like those modern classics, there will hopefully be a long tail of content updates to keep gameplay fresh, be it extra characters to up-end team strategies or new modes to test hard-earned skills. There's a lot to love here, and it's a strong contender for PSVR's best game – a title it'll easily claim if Sony keeps the material coming.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
