Tarzan VR reemerged last week with a new mixed reality (MR) trailer showcasing the work Stonepunk Studios and Fun Train have been up to. The title was originally slated for 2019, with Fun Train CEO Douglas Nabors recently informing VRFocus that the original plan for the experience has greatly expanded whilst still staying episodic.
Asking Nabors about the gap in updates since the last in October 2019 he did note that it had been ‘bothersome’ yet there was good reason as: “the scope of the game increased considerably, we have so much more than we originally set out to make.”
As the recent video revealed when it comes to features Tarzan VR will have plenty to play with, most being physical: “Tarzan features swimming, anywhere there’s water deep enough you can swim,” he explains. “And there’s things to discover under the ocean, in fact, episode three is more of a swimming episode. If you swim too deep into the ocean there are some surprises, we’ve spent way too much time on easter eggs and surprise moments!”
One aspect that had to be included was Tarzan’s vine-swinging which had to feel right whilst ensuring player comfort: “We spent about two months prototyping the swinging, looking at all types of swinging mechanics. We wanted to avoid the Spider-Man effect, vines don’t shoot out of Tarzan’s hands, Tarzan reaches out and grabs a vine and momentum creates acceleration and there’s deceleration,” Nabors continues. “Jason Morris at Stonepunk really found a nice middle ground that gives you that feeling of swinging whilst also not making you sick.” He also mentions that Tarzan VR will feature comfort settings such as blinders.
Alongside vine swinging players will be able to traverse the jungle on foot using smooth locomotion but there won’t be any teleportation. “A lot of the environment is climbable, certain trees, rock faces and vines can be climbed to navigate impassable areas,” Nabors adds.
Tarzan will also have plenty of enemies to face which shouldn’t get too repetitive by the sounds of it: “Stonepunk has built this system whereby the soldiers are all randomised, we have different head, body, voices and these are all randomised on the spot,” says Nabors. “They have camps which are always there but the types of enemies which are there change all the time. My favourite part is listening to all the fantastic chatter the cast has put together.”
At the moment Stonepunk Studios and Fun Train expect to release the first episode of Tarzan VR toward the end of 2020, although no date has been set at the moment. For further updates, keep reading VRFocus.
Source: https://www.vrfocus.com/2020/08/tarzan-vrs-scope-has-increased-considerably-since-2019/
