Arizona Sunshine 2 (Meta Quest 2) Preview – Freddie’s (Un)Useless, That’s What I Mentioned

As certain because the solar will rise within the east, nothing is definite besides demise and taxes. However what occurs when that now not holds true and the lifeless stand up a second time searching for their subsequent feast? Arizona Sunshine 2 brings gamers again to the sunny Americana a mere two years after the occasions of the earlier title with gamers as soon as once more moving into the digital boots of the perpetually sardonic predominant character. My hands-on session was arrange on a Meta Quest 2 tethered to a close-by laptop computer by way of Quest Hyperlink.

For my preview, I used to be dropped proper into an early mission with no weapons and no concept of what was occurring, apart from the primary character’s new canine companion ready outdoors to go play fetch with a ball, zombie arm, or no matter else I might get my fingers on. It didn’t take lengthy for the motion to kick in and procured weapons popping up in all places to defend myself with, from a few kinds of pistols and numerous melee weapons that appeared to be much more efficient, particularly with the VR movement transferring 1:1 to assaults within the sport. A well-placed shot or knife swing under the knees might render a zombie briefly motionless and compelled to crawl in the direction of you searching for a tasty mind. Decapitating a Fred works even higher as that ensures they gained’t get again up one other time. There’s no scarcity of weapons to guard your self, from melee weapons, numerous pistols, all the best way as much as grenade launchers that capped off the top of my playable session by blasting away a horde of some twenty-some shamblers from the security of a close-by freeway bridge. Being that Arizona Sunshine 2 is a zombie/Fred survival sport at coronary heart, ammo could be a scarce commodity. Even melee weapons will not final you without end and a trusty hearth axe would possibly solely be good for a small group earlier than it shatters from zero remaining sturdiness. 

True to the unique, Arizona Sunshine 2 doesn’t draw back from unleashing campy quantities of blood and gore in entrance of the participant’s face. Freds can typically burst like swollen grapes with a bathe of blood whereas pictures land their mark. It’s taken to an nearly comical stage when a forearm could be shot off by the elbow, picked up, and thrown like a chew toy to play fetch together with your new animal companion.

Your new canine companion, Buddy, may be the one finest addition to Arizona Sunshine II by far. The canine’s loyal sufficient to take heed to the participant’s fundamental instructions, from sitting to ready patiently, or could be directed in numerous methods. Should you can’t fend off a shambling horde by your self, the buddy could be given a easy ‘sic’ command to each defend the participant and actively take out the undead. In a single explicit puzzle occasion, the canine could be guided right into a locked room via the window to snag a key for the participant. Should you come throughout a gun that you just wish to save for a later encounter, Buddy’s keen to hold a few weapons at a time on his protecting vest that may be picked up at any time. 

Consolation stays the biggest barrier of entry for my very own private enjoyment of VR experiences. Reality be instructed, I discovered it troublesome to benefit from the first Arizona Sunshine on PlayStation VR on account of among the locomotion and animations not being comfy to expertise firsthand. I’m wanting to say that Vertigo Video games has put in a variety of care into the consolation of Arizona Sunshine 2 and it ought to be extra readily accessible to VR novices that wish to check out the zombie shooter. I primarily performed with the everyday teleport-to-move motion possibility for a lot of the demo however switched to extra conventional locomotion and strolling, though the pie-segment turning was left in for my very own consolation. With both mode, I walked away comparatively unscathed and able to take pleasure in a five-hour airplane experience again dwelling following the intimate preview occasion. 

Self-deprecating humor intact, Arizona Sunshine 2 is a implausible evolution of Vertigo Video games’ work begun with the unique title and there’s lots extra to sit up for when the title launches later this yr throughout Meta Quest, SteamVR, and PlayStation VR2. And you’ll give the canine a hat to put on, simply saying.