Half-Life: Alyx

Half-Life: Alyx was a dream come true for legions of fans, but when Valve announced that it was a VR-only game – there was an element of skepticism associated with anticipation. But when Half-Life: Alyx was finally released, fans were elated with joy and all those skepticism washed away. In so many ways, Half-Life: Alyx is the perfect example of how to craft a AAA game for the VR platform – thanks to a potent combination of a meaningful story and well-designed gameplay ideas that leverage the capabilities of the platform to the fullest.

Sony has announced a spotlight on PlayStation VR titles for this week, starting today from 7 AM PST and lasting till Friday. There will be announcements and news for a number of different PlayStation VR titles, though the focus is on previously revealed games. This spotlight coincides with a PS VR promotion on the PlayStation Store stating on September 9th.

Some of the titles that will see discounts in the sale include Arizona Sunshine, Blood and Truth, Astro Bot Rescue Mission, Borderlands 2 VR, Farpoint, Superhot VR, Tetris Effect and more. The promotional sale will be available until September 23rd, 11:59 PM PST. Of course, the obvious question is: What about updates on the PlayStation 5?

Sony noted that there would be no PS5-related news for the week, which is a bummer. Nevertheless, with rumors stating an event happening sometime in mid-September, we may see something announced for next week. This would be in line with UK retailer SimplyGames’ emailing customers about pre-orders going live “any day now.” As always, stay tuned for more information in the coming days.

Vertigo Games’ Arizona Sunshine hasn’t been getting too much attention lately but it’s been doing fairly well on Steam. As a VR game with a focus on survival and shooting with zombies, Arizona Sunshine allowed players to compete in modes like multiplayer and the single-player Horde.

However, it seems Horde was only available to those with 5th to 7th generation Intel Core i7 CPUs. Though many developers have “recommended” requirements for the best visuals, this is the first time an entire mode has been locked away unless you had the required CPU. And unfortunately, players had to discover this on their own rather than having Vertigo mention it.

The inclusion of Horde for these certain CPUs was due to a partnership with Intel and the plan was to make Horde available to all on March 6th 2017. Following complaints though, it’s decided to unlock the mode for everyone. It did note that “We have recommended and still recommend using the Core i7 in order to maintain a constant 90FPS with advanced physics.

“We also realise that these chips cost money. We created bonus content that was not advertised as a reward for those of you who took us up on our recommendation.”

What are your thoughts on the whole rigmarole? Let us know in the comments below.

The virtual reality revolution continues. One of the genres best suited to VR gaming is horror, and if you want to see just what one of those titles would be like in virtual reality, you are in luck- newly announced zombie shooter Arizona Sunshine will be releasing with full support for SteamVR and HTC Vive (the VR headset that Valve and HTC have developed together in collaboration).

“Arizona Sunshine is a VR shooter built and optimized for room-scale VR from the ground up,” the developer explained, which makes the game unique in that it’s not just a case of VR being tacked on to an existing product- this game was made from the ground up specifically to leverage and utilize VR. “Step into the midst of a zombie apocalypse as if you were really there, and defend yourself against enemies close enough to touch. A custom-built physical animation system makes striking your undead enemies more thrilling and satisfying than ever before.”

As of right now, all that we know is that the game will launch some time in 2015, but stay tuned to GamingBolt for more coverage and information.