What Blue Effect VR is
Blue Effect VR is a VR-only sci-fi wave shooter set on Planet Exo-277, a world belonging to an alien race that does not know defeat. You fight waves of ruthless, terrifying enemies and try to survive until the timer runs out. A round can be as short as three minutes, but the pressure builds fast. The game leans on atmosphere and sound as much as shooting: the audio and music were created by Epic Music Production, led by Jaroslav Beck, who has composed for Blizzard trailers and major film spots. The game uses its own control system, and it runs on Blue Effect energy, a rare energy source developed by Lumos corporation that powers your equipment and drives the mission.
Playing together
One player wears the VR headset and fights the waves. A second player picks up a standard game controller and takes over one of the monsters hiding in the darkened corners of the world, hunting, scaring and trying to exterminate the VR player. This is the Local Player vs. Player Hide & Seek mode, and it works as a way in for anyone who does not want to wear the headset. The Steam feature Remote Play Together is also listed for the game.
Tools and levels
Your main weapon is Little Buddy, a laser pistol that vaporizes anything in its path and doubles as a heavy melee weapon when enemies get close. The Enlightenment orb is illumination technology powered by Blue Effect energy, used to light up dark areas and spot enemies. Levels change how you play: in Warehouse you use the orb to reveal enemies and the gun to finish them, in Incubator you need two orbs to survive the waves, and another setup puts two weapons in your hands while you protect glory pillars.
Before you start
This is a VR-only title, so a headset is required to play. Expect an atmospheric survival horror tone with dark environments, and expect the rounds to be short but intense. The store text notes that more content is planned for the future.