PlayStation fans will now have a chance to experience how it is like landing and exploring Mars with the new VR game by Winking Entertainment called "Unearthing Mars." The VR game, which is exclusive for PSN lets players experience operating a space craft, and discover some of the more esoteric side of the Red Planet. The game also lets players engage in first-person shoot outs and problem solving activities.
"Unearthing Mars" has 10 different levels. Each of these stages has its own unique game mechanic that will progress the story of discovering Mars. Players will be co-pilots of a space craft and members of a team that will retrieve parts of the Phobos satellite which could contain tthe secrets of Mars' ancient civilization, Gameranx reported.
The game will have a digital launch on March 7, PlayStation Blog reported. The scifi-adventure game is not just a documentary-style VR mode, but is like a novel complete with a story. Players will start out arriving to Mars and exploring it by foot, until things escalate later on.
According to the producers, the many gameplay mechanics involved in the game made developing the game challenging. Four teams were created out of the production staff. Each of the team had their own game mechanic to focus on and develop.
To make the movements of the characters and other elements in the game, the production team invested in body and facial motion. VR provides a realism factor to the player's experience, unlike the ordinary console games. Hand post-motion capture was used to achieve this realism.
The team used minimal on-screen user interface and went for full voiceovers to tell the story richly. The team had to fly to Korea, Japan, and Europe to record on-location for authentic voiceovers. Most comments about the trailer states tht the game is like Hello Game's "No Man Sky."
