Arken Age

There is a reason why good games take so long to develop. The amount of detail that is poured into a video game takes time, but that extra effort is usually noticeably present in the final product. Arken Age is no stranger to this process, as it has taken over 3 years to be created by developer VitruviusVR and released finally on the PlayStation VR2 platform.  Arken Age boasts a beautiful 90FPS native mode and 60/120 FPS options depending on how you like your graphics presented. Regardless as to which of these you choose, dynamic foveated rendering can be found running in either mode. Extra PSVR2 features such as immersive headset rumble when taking damage, and custom adaptive triggers for weapons.  Speaking of weapons, Arken Age uses the PSVR2 eye tracking to assist when deploying thrown weapons such as the God Axe or grenades. You can even close one eye to enable the Sniper Scope for extra realism. These features set the PSVR2 version apart from the Steam VR release. 

The story puts you in the skin of an alien creation that has been asked to investigate why the Grand Arborist has stopped cultivating the planet and for some reason isn’t responding to messages. You must form an alliance with the Nara alien race and defend the planet from the evil Hyperion and his army. Starting off with an excellent tutorial in the Custodian’s Tower, Arken Age walks you through step by step everything you need to know when traversing through the world, whether it be running, climbing, swimming, or jumping.  It even sets up basic encounters with robot enemies to teach you how combat works within the game.  I appreciated this attention to detail as some other VR games in the past just throw you to the action without any help. The graphics in the game are top notch, and rival other VR games with excellent visuals such as Horizon: Call of the Mountain and Skydance’s Behemoth. Controlling your alien feels tight, and I encountered very little missteps when I went to reload a weapon over my shoulder, holster a weapon, or store an item. There also is a quick snapback for picking up an item or groups of items using the R2 button.  The action is intense, and never left me in a spot where I was bored or seemed repetitive. This does help that there is a wide variety of weapons to choose from including swords, axes, a saw blade, bow, and more. The AI is pretty intelligent too, being able to switch from long range guns to melee combat in an instant. One of the coolest features of Arken Age is a set of pickaxes that not only allow your character to mine for resources, but allow you to climb cliffs to access hard to reach areas. These resources can be collected and store in the player’s inventory to be used at crafting stations later to upgrade weapons and create items such as grenades and health syringes.

Overall, Arken Age is a AAA VR title that should not be missed. The environments are stunning and the combat is a lot of fun, especially with a wide variety of weapons at your disposal. The pickaxe climbing is cool, and you never really feel like the game “messed up” somehow like in other VR games. The sound design is well done and the extra bells and whistles that the PSVR2 version of Arken Age boasts allows for the player to become immersed in Arken Age.  Sitting and Standing play modes are both available, but I had the most fun standing while engaging in intense melee combat with foes.  The campaign lasts around 15 hours, but don’t worry! Using the Hyperion Console, players can keep deploying foes throughout the planet for additional replay-ability. The developers at VirtruviusVR have successfully crafted one of the best PlayStation VR2 video games ever made, and all other developers should be taking notes on what makes a great VR video game.  I really hope that Limited Run Games or another publisher picks up Arken Age for a physical release in the near future, as this is a title that should be preserved forever.