Over 2 years ago a game called Polybius came out on the PSVR and was met with high praise from both reviewers and fans of PSVR. A lot of praise came from it’s insane visuals and unique experience that it brought to the headset, and since then we haven’t received anything else from the developer Llamasoft. But recently a game called Minotaur Arcade came out of nowhere and surprised me and a lot of fans. So, is Minotaur Arcade Volume 1 any good?
Minotaur arcade volume 1 is a PSVR game that contains two different arcade-style games. The games are Gridrunner and Goatup, I’ll start with discussing Gridrunner first.
Gridrunner is a game that originally released on the Commodore Vic 20 and was ported to other computer platforms later on. And now it has been ported, updated, and extended, for the PS4 with VR support. Gridrunner is a retro shooter that is similar to games like geometry wars. You play as a ship that is always shooting, and your job is to destroy enemies and survive as long as possible. Though sometimes when destroying enemies or objects you’ll receive one of many power ups which will can change the way you shoot, direction you shoot, how fast you shoot, or just make you go crazy and shoot in all directions. The game has tons of different levels and the further you progress the crazier they get. You’ll encounter new enemies, new styles, and the level itself will warp into a 3D level later on. Gridrunner has three different modes in it, casual, pure, and endurance. Pure is basically the default version of the game, you start at level one with three lives and no points, but you can earn more lives by completing levels. Casual lets you start at any level you’ve gotten to and gives you four lives, and a few thousand points. And finally endurance, which is the normal game except that you start off at three lives and can’t earn any more. Gridrunner is extremely fun and I don’t have any issues with it, this game is arcade perfection!
And now lets talk about the other game, GoatUp! GoatUp was originally released on iOS, so it’s not nearly as old as Gridrunner is. But just like Gridrunner, it has also been ported, updated, and extended for PS4 and PSVR! GoatUp is a game that has you jumping from platform to platform on the outside of a seemingly endless tower. On your way you’ll be attempting to collect 40 different unique items and survive as long as possible. On your way up you’ll also have to avoid falling off the screen or getting hit by enemies. If you get hit once you’re dead, so you’ll have to get goat kids that act as lives in the game. You can get goat kids by meeting other goats and then eating grass on platforms. One thing that keeps the game from getting boring is the constant change in environments, there are a lot of different areas with unique designs, mechanics, and enemies. This game is a lot more random than Gridrunner, the mechanics are funny, and I saw things like an image of a pony from My Little Pony…Which I’m really not sure if that’s legal. But that’s part of what makes this game fun, it’s not a boring concept and it plays well. I enjoyed Gridrunner a lot more than GoatUp, but this is still a solid game.
Both games work amazingly well, I didn’t run into any issues while playing them. Both games also have online leaderboards so you can compete with friends and the world, which is a great addition.
So now that I’ve talked about both games and how they are played, are these games any better in VR? Yes they are! Both games have really awesome 3D effects and there are an insane amount of particle effects on the screen, which makes for a VR experience unlike anything I’ve played before!
So overall, Minotaur Arcade Vol. 1 is awesome! Both games are addicting and fun, and are brought to life with the power of VR. If you like simpler arcade games like Pac Man or Galaga, than this is the game for you! The only reason I wouldn’t recommend this is if you are sensitive to bright and flashy lights or objects, because the entire game has them. But otherwise, this is a great VR experience that I think all players can enjoy.
