At the Tokyo Game Show 2023, I had a chance to try it Resident Evil Village VR on PlayStation VR2 – and find out what it’s like to be roughed up by everyone’s favorite The giant vampire Countess Dimitrescu made in glorious VR. The TGS demo begins with Ethan entering Dimitrescu Castle, and shortly thereafter he and Dimitrescu Mrs. and her three daughters meet for the first time. This expansion’s cutscenes are both the best part of the demo and the worst part. On the one hand, PSVR2’s improved visual fidelity makes this scene more visceral, as Mrs. Dimitrescu roughs you up and drains your blood before her daughters tie you up. On the other hand, if you’re in full control of the camera, you can easily miss what’s going on around you – like if you focus too much on the giant vampire lady, you’ll get hanged. On top of that, when the cutscene starts, you lose control of your arm (usually controlled by PSVR2 sensing device). This will give you a palpable sense of disconnection, since your arms in the game are completely different from those in real life. Another great example of this disconnect is whenever you are thrown to the floor. You can see Ethan’s body as your eyes are inches from the ground, even though you’re still standing in real life. It makes you feel more like you’re suddenly 6 inches taller than lying on the ground. It’s a strange feeling.
Unfortunately, it’s not the worst. Near the end of the cutscene, Ethan was looking around for some medicine to disinfect his torn hand, and my head was disconnected from Ethan’s body. I was suddenly about three feet in front of him, so when I turned around, I was able to see his headless body splattering the medicine into his hands. While repositioning the camera didn’t fix the problem, luckily it fixed itself once the cutscene was over. From there, I was basically free to roam the mansion full of ghouls, and the pistols had unlimited extras Ammo – and this is where the PSVR2 sensor controller comes into play. As usual, the left stick moves you, while the right stick controls the camera. However, unlike normal, the movement of the camera is ° jumping instead of smooth movement. While weird at first, it does go a long way toward eliminating vertigo from your head and controllers, which can affect where you see at any given moment.
When it comes to gun use, things are more dependent on motion control. By pressing the buttons that wrap around the spindle of the controller with your middle and ring fingers, you can pick up things—like a gun at your waist or a knife on your left forearm. From there, it’s a simple point-and-shoot or motion-controlled steady stab question. You can even use them at the same time.
Reloading, on the other hand, is much more complicated. You have to press the face button on the controller to release the clip, then grab a new clip from your left hip with your left hand, slide the new clip into the gun, and pull the slider back. I was able to do this fairly smoothly after my first try or two. My real problem with guns is loosening the grip of my right hand at the worst possible moment – effectively putting the gun back on my side.
All in all, my brief time in Resident Evil Village VR was fun, But I’m not sure if I want to try and play the whole game this way. I can’t imagine what some of the more challenging battles in the game would look like. That said, I fully expect Donna Beneviento’s house to be absolutely stunning on PSVR 2 — that alone might make the game worth playing. You know, that or every scene of Mrs. Dimitrescu. Resident Evil VR No release date has been announced yet. PlayStation VR 2 is scheduled to be released early2023. Richard is a professional with more than ten years of experience of anime and video game journalists live and work in Japan. For more of his work, check out his Twitter and blog. 2022
