Ten years ago, when VR was reemerging as a gaming platform, one genre that became quite ubiquitous was wave-based arena shooters. Titles like Space Pirate Trainer and Blasters of the Universe offered exciting arcade action without having to worry about locomotion; just point a gun and shoot. This genre has waned in recent years as gamers want to be more involved, but it’s not entirely died out. Psychic Shooter is the latest to arrive, with 131XR’s latest review finding a cheap, no frills experience.
Giant Sweetcorn Attack!
In Psychic Shooter, the idea is to fend off wave after wave of enemies and see how far you can get. You have a couple of weapon choices, and once you complete a wave, these will be upgraded. Die, and you return to the start to try again.
And that is essentially it. The one notable standout feature is the enemies themselves, an unusual collection of giant angry corn in various colours, some flying tomato/swede things with spider legs and tiny corn. To say the assortment is bizarre is an understatement.
Psychic Shooter Review
As 131XR finds in its review, Psychic Shooter isn’t pretending to be much more than it is. Developed by Bit Bang Studio and published by UNIVRS, Inc. (Attack on Titan VR: Unbreakable), you’re dropped in the middle of a rather grey, blocky landscape with not a lot going on. Around you is a circle, and once those angry vegetables get within reach, that’s when you’ll start taking damage.
To stop this, you have two weapons (of sorts). There are no guns in Psychic Shooter, instead, you ‘psychically’ conjure either ‘Normal Bullets’ or ‘Homing Bullets’. The Normal Bullets appear as yellow squares before firing off in a straight line from whichever direction you are pointing. Whilst the Homing Bullets do just that, finding nearby enemies with ease. The caveat is that the Homing Bullets only have a limited use and need to recharge before each use.
Like the rest of Psychic Shooter’s basic setup, there’s no clear indication of how long or when the Homing Bullet is recharged. Similarly, when these weapons level up during a wave, you have no idea by how much.
Mitigating some of this lack of depth is the price. As 131XR points out on more than one occasion, Psychic Shooter retails for £1.99 GBP for Meta Quest. And for that tiny price, you get a game that provides a couple of hours of entertainment if that’s what you’re after.
Not the Usual UNIVRS Game
Psychic Shooter is the second game from Bit Bang Studio – the other being 99 Drops. Both of which have been published by UNIVRS, a Japanese studio with a far higher pedigree. UNIVRS first made a name for itself with the release of Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing, a delightful racing game with an anime aesthetic.
The studio then came to prominence by announcing Attack on Titan VR: Unbreakable in 2023. Several delays followed, and the launch wasn’t an initial success, but after a few updates, there are now plenty of fans of the game.
This is very different to the likes of Psychic Shooter, which doesn’t showcase the level of quality UNIVRS is known for.
Will you be picking up the bargain basement Psychic Shooter for Meta Quest? Let us know in the comments below.
