Curious about what a Jedi moonlighting as a club DJ might look like? Well wonder no more.
Most rhythm games tend to follow the same general formula: Trigger a particular note/sound at its designated point in the corresponding timeline in the hopes of building up combos for maximum points. We’ve seen plastic guitars, touch-sensitive dance mats, electronic bongos—the list of peripherals go on.
Now thanks to the motion controls and immersion that comes with VR we’re at the precipice of a new era in music games. And it starts with Beat Saber.
Available later this year, Beat Saber is a rhythm-based VR game that tasks players with slashing incoming cubes, aka beats, using two laser swords that happen to bare a striking resemblance to another “elegant weapon for a more civilized age.” By striking beats with a specific hand in the direction instructed, players will dance along as they jam to an original soundtrack chock full of intense electronic dance music. Hop into quick play mode for a short couple rounds or get your sweat on in career mode and keep the party going for hours.
“All the music is composed to perfectly fit the handmade levels,” states the games developer, Hyperbolic Magnetism. “Our goal is to make players almost dance, while cutting all the cubes and avoiding obstacles. Each cut is strongly supported by great sound and visual effects to emphasize the rhythm.”
On top of some excellent tunes, Beat Saber features some super sleek visuals. The interface glows with dark red and blue neon, the screen filling with bright, colorful sparks as your sabers destroy incoming beat cubes. The only thing cooler than watching the sparks literally fly is actually watching the user play.
Not only does Beat Saber have the potential to be one of the first great rhythm games for VR (aside from AudioShield), but it might actually be the first immersive experience that doesn’t make the user look like a total dork. The intuitive experience was designed around getting the user to “dance” as they strike beats in a rhythmic fashion. Simple motions at first, but as you venture into harder difficulties you’ll soon be pulling off sword moves that would make Darth Maul blush…
Beat Saber will be available at some Q1 2018. Hopefully custom track creation becomes an option in the future. I mean, who wouldn’t want to cut there way through the Imperial March?