There are some huge games landing this Autumn for VR headsets, some utilising existing IPs and some not. Out now for Meta Quest, PSVR 2 and SteamVR is the wholly original title from nDreams Elevation, Reach. Promising gameplay that’s fluid and dynamic, 131XR’s Reach review finds it excels in most areas, even setting new benchmarks.
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Reach a new level
Billed as a game that offers “full-body awareness” and “true-to-life interactions”, Reach is actually the first game from the nDreams Elevation team. A newly formed group within the venerable nDreams studio (Synapse, Phantom: Covert Ops, Fracked), nDreams Elevation’s sole purpose was to create AAA VR games.
And Reach is a culmination of all that effort and years of VR knowledge, giving players a rich, easily explorable world.
Reach Review
Physical freedom is at the heart of Reach’s gameplay. As 131XR notes early on, the game very much has a Mirror’s Edge vibe when it comes to traversing the world. You’re able to freely run, jump and climb across the environments, grabbing almost any ledge you come across. While you don’t have the same parkour wall-running skills found in Stride, the smooth, comfortable control scheme in Reach means you don’t notice it. And as 131XR proclaims, Reach sets a new standard when it comes to this level of movement.
Reach isn’t purely about running and climbing either. There’s a sci-fi narrative uncovering a spectacular underground civilisation, comprised of living statues. Stepping into the shoes of Rose, you must help one of these statues stop one of his kin from rising to the surface and endangering mankind.
Armed with a futuristic bow with unlimited arrows, you soon find yourself equipped with all manner of futuristic gadgets. From healing wristbands to a shield that can ricochet off walls to create new platforms, the verticality of Reach is seemingly endless.
nDreams is back!
nDreams is a British VR studio with a long and impressive history in VR. From its early days with games like The Assembly, the studio has shown a particular knack for creating exciting, feature-rich experiences. The studio was acquired by Aonic Group in 2023 and has since seen several restructurings in that time.
That saw the creation of several offshoots, including nDreams Orbital. Orbital has since shuttered, but nDreams Elevation remained, thankfully, bringing us Reach in the process. On the other end of the scale is nDreams Compass, a studio specialising in rapid prototyping, building games for a younger audience like the recently released Wreckin’ Raccoon.
Have you already bought Reach? Let us know if you think this is an AAA production VR game.
