Japanese studio UNIVRS Inc. announced plans to bring its magic-based virtual reality (VR) racing title Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing to Oculus Quest a few months ago. Now the studio has confirmed a date, with the title set to arrive on 13th October 2020.
Based on Studio TRIGGER’s anime, Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing will feature a new storyline within the magical universe, where players find themselves as a guest student at the famous Luna Nova Witchcraft Academy.
Players will be able to grab a flying broom and compete across more than ten tracks, being able to customise their brooms and partner with characters including Akko, Lotte, and Sucy. Alongside the story campaign players can connect with friends via various online multiplayer modes.
UNIVRS Inc. completed a pair of successful crowdfunding campaigns in 2019 to help create Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing, managing to raise over $165,000 between Kickstarter and Campfire (the Japanese equivalent). It’s a trend the franchise is good at, previously a Little Witch Academia short film managed to secure $625,518 from 7,938 backers, leading to Netflix commissioning a 25-episode series.
“The fans are the lifeblood of the Little Witch Academia series, and that principle guided us at UNIVRS when creating VR Broom Racing,” said Naoya Koji, COO at UNIVRS in a statement. “We strived to make this as accessible an experience as possible for the fans, even if it’s their first virtual reality experience, and know we will live up to their expectations.”
When Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing launches on 13th October it’ll retail for $29.99 USD on the Oculus Store. The title includes both English and Japanese language text as well as voice acting. Additional versions are planned for PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift and other SteamVR headsets, with support expected early 2021. VRFocus will continue its coverage of Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing, reporting back with further updates.