Hands-On: John Wick Chronicles
There’s so much untapped potential in virtual reality. The format presents unbelievable opportunities for players and consumers to literally get lost in something, and we’re only scratching the surface of what this medium can do. As more developers begin to embrace VR, new experiences will naturally follow, and we’re already starting to see more traditional gaming genres taking the plunge. First-person shooters have led the charge in this regard, and we got our hands on one such game earlier today. Making its playable debut here at NYCC, John Wick Chronicles is the near-ideal marriage of tight controls, engaging VR presentation, and deviously smart marketing.
The John Wick series and its trigger-happy action makes a shooter tie-in a no-brainer, but putting things in VR takes the experience to a new level. In this demo, An Eye for An Eye, you’re basically dropped into the middle of a shooting gallery and given ten minutes to blow as many people away as you can. You physically reach for and grab new weapons to use, which range from pistols and SMGs to sniper rifles you’ll need when ranged targets and helicopters come calling. The motion controls are very accurate and precise, which means you really do need to take aim before firing, and nothing beats lining up and nailing that perfect shot. You can blind fire from behind cover, and doing so when you’re pinned down and outnumbered does feel pretty badass. The whole setup feels a bit more generic than the mile-a-minute John Wick moniker might lead you to believe, but it’s really fun nonetheless.
Admittedly, much of why John Wick Chronicles succeeds is thanks to the Vive’s existence as (in my humble opinion) the best VR platform available. The beefier hardware needed to power the Vive ensures that the presentation is crisp, and as with most Vive games I’ve tried, that means the experience is a bit more immersive than that of competing platforms. The Vive’s controllers make picking up and switching weapons more natural, and the “room-based” design means you actually walk around to move and crouch to take cover. Every VR platform out there has its own strengths and weaknesses, but when games play to the Vive’s strengths, some pretty cool things can happen.
Given the timing of its promotion and release, there may be some temptation to dismiss the game as a marketing tool; the demo even begins with a trailer for John Wick: Chapter 2. That said, the core gameplay works well enough, and there’s definite fun to be had in flailing maniacally and shooting everything in sight. Pre-orders also happen to come with some in-game bonuses and a full copy of Payday 2, so you can definitely get value out of this purchase if that’s what you’re after. John Wick Chronicles is co-developed by Starbreeze Studios, Grab Games, GameCo, and (of all people) Big Red Button; it will be released for the HTC Vive next February.
