An excellent VR game made better on the PSVR2.
Fight to survive as you journey Into the Radius (ITR).
The hit virtual reality (VR) shooter is coming to the PlayStation VR2 (PSVR2) on Sept. 19, immersing you in the strange and dangerous landscape of the Pechorsk Zone. This version of the game – previously released on Steam VR (2020) and Meta Quest (2022) – takes players on an even deeper journey to explore and fight, thanks to the use of headset technology like eye tracked foveated rendering, adaptive triggers, haptics and 3D audio.
The game – originally created by CM Games – was ported for the PSVR2 by VR Monkey (Nock, Galaxy Kart) and published by Fast Travel Games (Vampire: The Masquerade – Justice, Guardians Frontline). This version of the game boasts all aspects from the original release – including a campaign lasting more than 20 hours, numerous and varying locations for exploration, and pulse-pounding action.
ITR is the ultimate test of survival, as you are tasked with completing quests across an inhospitable and barren Soviet mining town. You are working for the United Nations Pechorsk Special Committee (UNPSC), stuck in an always dangerous zone and cut off from the outside world. Everywhere you look there is an artifact that needs finding, a mission to be completed and a new threat that wants you to fail.
You must use your wits, and guns, to complete each task and find your way out.
But mostly, this game tasks you to stay alive.
ITR was inspired by the novel Roadside Picnic by Russian authors Arkady and Boris Strugatsky. In the novel, the world is reeling after an alien visitation to the planet, which leaves six different zones full of strange happenings and valuable artifacts. Like in the game, the government keeps a tight control over the zones to ensure people do not enter or leave with artifacts. People known as stalkers scavenge these zones for the artifacts to sell – much akin to the role the player takes on in the game.
Success in game not only means avoiding certain death, but keeping track of things that most of the time are not even considered to be an afterthought. Sure there is managing your ammo, since resources are scarce and it costs a lot of hard-earned cash to buy even the smallest box of bullets, but this game makes you dive deeper and really think before you venture out into the wilds.
Have you eaten, do you have a health injector, are your guns cleaned and in working order? It’s things like this that make this game truly immersive, as you must take into account every aspect of your character, before setting out – lest you not make it back alive. While the game boasts a tutorial on the usual stuff – movement, shooting, health, basic gun cleaning – not everything is covered and you’ll end up having to learn how to do certain aspects on your own, if you hope to avoid certain death.
It’s suggested that players – especially those who are not use to shooters or survival mechanics – take the time to learn as the environment is harsh and unforgiving, and even the smallest of missteps can mean death and the loss of valuable resources.
The game being as open-world as possible, does also require you to explore and scavenge for items to use and sell. There are many mechanics which can feel familiar here, but there are a few things which set this VR game apart from the rest.
“Into the Radius (ITR for short) is quite unique compared to other VR shooters, firstly because of its atmosphere, secondly because it’s quite challenging (not for all players, but especially for newcomers to either shooters or the VR medium) and thirdly because it’s a rather long (for VR) single-player game,” said Konstantin Kruglov, senior influencer marketing specialist with CM Games.
And Kruglov is right, the atmosphere in this game is awe-inspiring and remarkably dark. There is danger around every corner and this version of the game gives you the best chance to take it all in – plus the implementation of headset features like 3D audio means you can get lost in this scary and beautiful world.
But the audio is just the tip of the iceberg that makes this game great. Playing ITR on the PSVR2 takes this to a whole other level.
“Haptics and sounds play a big role in games overall, but in VR they become even more powerful if you play to their strengths. ITR’s great strength is its atmosphere, which is a combination of game design + sound design + visual design, so we hope that all the additional features provided by the PSVR2 hardware will make the game even more memorable and immersive for players,” said Kruglov.
Getting attacked will register in your head via the integrated haptics and rumble, all while the audio allows you to hear the enemy coming up from behind to deal a fatal blow. It’s a strange and scary feeling as your health drops and your ammo runs out, as you’re surrounded and unable to escape; the development team did an amazing job bringing all this together so players can really up the level of fear.
But that’s not all players get to experience here thanks to the adaptive triggers. Pulling the trigger on your starter pistol feels remarkably different than that of a shotgun, AK series rifle and even NATO guns. What makes this really impressive, however, is that you can even feel the difference between having the safety of your guns off or on, allowing you to avoid wasting a bullet.
It’s this kind of thinking that really makes a game shine, and considering this is an update to something which has been around for a while, all fans – from early Steam player to newcomers – will all relish in this immensely captivating game.
Everything looks stellar in headset. While some parts of the landscape are flat and not as detailed as they could be, everything looks crisp and clean. Even the darkness can become overwhelmingly terrifying at times, with places looking as if you were stalking through an abandoned building with only a flashlight in real life.
This game is an incredibly well done port of an already popular VR game, and while there was nothing experienced during play that could be considered game breaking, there are some bugs that will hopefully be addressed.
Firstly, the framerate seems to have some issues which are noticed when you move or turn – but mostly turn. You can definitely tell that the system is chugging along to keep up as you turn because the environment around you looks choppy. This could also be the cause for why sometimes when you are moving and looking at the map, things look glitchy as if the map is bouncing around and coming to life.
This is something that was noticed every time you look directly at the map while moving. Now, it didn’t happen if you used your peripheral vision, only directly at it. This could also be a bug with the foveated rendering, but regardless, it’s one of the more annoying bugs encountered and hopefully it’s squashed in a day one patch.
Finally something that was a real annoyance during fights – and probably the biggest issue noticed – was how shaky two-handed guns were. Holding a pistol with both hands never replicated this issue, however, from the moment you finish the first mission and get your shotgun, holding it and other two handed weapons always resulted in some form of shake.
No matter how still you hold your hands – and trying this in various lighting conditions – it turned out the same results. Hopefully this is also something which can be fixed in a patch and not an issue with the hardware itself.
Aside from the issues above, the game played pretty well.
It looks good, and the higher graphics of the PSVR2 – combined with the advanced audio – truly puts you in the Pechorsk Zone and makes you feel terrified.
Your fight to escape the radius will be fraught with enemies, anomalies and other forms of danger which do not want you to make it out. Prepare yourself well before leaving your bunker, plan your route and think ahead. This game tests your skills and makes you realize how easy most gamers have it when they play other titles.
Something as simple as dropping your magazine on the ground can spell trouble for you in the future, so, even when things look bleak, don’t forget the little things, because this game will never let you forget your mistakes.
If you’re looking for an adventure/shooter game for VR, Into the Radius on the PSVR2 is an engaging and thrilling entry that will have VR enthusiasts yearning for more. At $39.99, the cost is well worth it for those looking for something new to play.
Into the Radius, was reviewed on the PSVR2 after receiving a pre-release key.
