Titles like Before Your Eyes really show how virtual reality can upend everything you think you know about video gaming.
This is a well liked year-old game that comes alive on the new Playstation headset.
And there’s no doubt in my mind it is now the definitive way to play it.
The game drops you into the afterlife where a ferryman pulls you from the waters and promises to take you to the mysterious Gatekeeper to sell your story and try for another shot.
It’s cartoony in design and is immediately immersive as you don the VR headset and get sucked into an almost crayola world of simple, beautiful colours.
The big gimmick here is that you control the game by blinking. There are no controllers.
PSVR2 has state-of-the-art eye tracking tech which means the device can tell every time you voluntarily, or involuntarily, blink.
And the narrative fires along at a pace of your choosing, to an extent, as you blink forward to each next bit.
The voice-acting is superb as you relive your past life in its entirety for the ferryman so he can better push your case to the big guy above.
One blink could be a matter of moments, another years, as you slowly work your way through your character’s life from a baby to an adult, learning all about the joys and despairs along the way.
There are moments where you’re desperately trying not to blink to see more of a scene and you ping in and out of dreamlike moments, trying to piece together the storyline.
When you do, and it feels too early, it is terribly disappointing.
But all the time the mechanic adds to the overarching feeling that you’re dipping your toes into key, fleeting moments gone by.
Literally seeing a life flash before your eyes.
It’s beautifully written, has a subtle but evocative soundtrack and really a groundbreaking gaming effort, particularly for players who have never seen Before Your Eyes.
It’s a bit of a one-and-done game, so burns bright but dies fast.
That said, for £12, this is a wonderful example of the interesting places VR gaming can go in future.
VERDICT 4/5
