Some of the most insane, action-packed videogames come from developers in Asia. Giant mechs, enormous overpowered weapons and ludicrous abilities, we love them all. This year VR fans are being treated to three exciting VR arcade action games from veteran VR studios in Japan and Korea, Soul Covenant, Strike Rush and Brazen Blaze.
Soul Covenant
Two of these titles are set to arrive on the same day, Soul Covenant and Strike Rush. Soul Covenant is the work of Japanese team Thirdverse, best known for Swords of Gargantua, Altair Breaker and X8. With traditional hack-and-slash gameplay, in Soul Covenant you have to save the last bastion of humanity from an AI with a god complex. Armed with transformable weapons that should be too big to wield, you get to fight huge robot bosses and hordes of weird human-esque machines.
If you’re a fan of Ghost in the Shell or Full Metal Alchemist then Soul Covenant has likely caught your eye. It certainly has here at XR Source, and we can’t wait for its arrival on 18th April for Meta Quest, PSVR 2 and PCVR.
Strike Rush
Also set to arrive on 18th April is Strike Rush by South Korean studio SKONEC Entertainment. They’ve not released a new consumer VR product for a while but they are best known for Mortal Blitz. Originally released in 2017, Mortal Blitz is a single-player arcade shooter that was re-released for Meta Quest in 2023.
Strike Rush, on the other hand, is a team-based multiplayer shooter. You can play solo, but its action is geared towards 4v4 matches set across huge industrial arenas. There are a variety of characters, each with their own particular traits and abilities. One of the more unique features is that every player has their own AI companion, be it a robotic dog, a mechanical spider or a flying drone. Each can offer support, be it defensively or offensively, depending on your strategy. Considering SKONEC’s expertise in location-based entertainment (LBE), Strike Rush has a lot of potential.
Brazen Blaze
And then there’s Brazen Blaze. A 3v3 multiplayer brawler from MyDearest Inc., this will be the team’s first multiplayer having previously delivered narrative-driven solo adventures Tokyo Chronos, ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos and DYSCHRONIA: Chronos Alternate. Almost mixing aspects of the other two games, Brazen Blaze is a melee-focused team-based brawler inspired by Nintendo’s Smash Bros. Characters are cybernetically enhanced so you can utilise the urban environments however you wish to gain an advantage.
The gameplay hook here is that no one can be defeated at range. A sneaky sniper won’t suddenly kill you with a shot you never saw coming. Ranged weapons can be utilised to weaken foes but that final blow has to be a smack in the face! All the characters have unique weapons and game-changing abilities called Ultimates. However, at the end of the day, if two fighters are weakened then it all comes down to a face-off. We can’t wait!
Brazen Blaze currently has a Spring 2024 release window for Meta Quest and PCVR headsets. So a launch might be around the corner.
Have you been keeping up with all three games? Which of these VR arcade action titles are on your wishlist for 2024? Let us know in the comments below.