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Preview: Firewall Ultra proves there’s a lot to look forward to on PSVR2
After a barnstorming launch bursting with software, PSVR2 Experiencing a post-release lull. Games have largely dried up, and spirited discussions have shifted to whether or not the hardware looks like a flop. The only way to reverse that narrative is with major software releases, and Firewall Ultra from First Contact Entertainment. only A first-party PSVR2 project has currently been announced under Sony’s publishing umbrella.
It’s no surprise that the platform holder has enlisted the services of the Californian studio for a second time, as the original Firewall Zero Hour was a surprise hit. using the PSVR Objective Controller To great effect, this tactical Rainbow Six-style first-person shooter enjoyed a long life, fueled by a live service model that spawned several seasons. Dating back to release as late as last year, you’ll find a vibrant and committed community that’s all still playing the game.
We were lucky enough to be invited to PlayStation late last month to get a world-first demo of the sequel on PSVR2, where we played at demo stations in London against members of the team in Santa Monica – including the iconic YouTuber. PSVR Frank, which some of you may know now has a role in Developer. All presentations and Q&As took place within the game, in an interactive lobby area known as the Safehouse, which created an entertaining approach.
We also spoke with a representative from the studio right after our demo, this time in real life, and we were eager to understand if Firewall Ultra is a sequel, remake, or remaster: “It’s a brand new game from has been created At the ground level in Unreal Engine 5,” he said. “We consider Firewall Ultra to be the next evolution of the franchise. We have some of the same characters, but it’s five years later in the canon of the universe. “
We were able to experience two maps, both of which will be familiar to fans of the original: Oil Rig and Social. The first location is an industrial location at night, with tall scaffolding and alleyways between containers, while the latter takes place in the dilapidated office of a social media company, complete with rows of computer terminals and grand staircases. The team were keen to make a big point of the fact that the level now has a working lift – and yes it plays crackling music as you enter it.
“As you saw, the social map was in the first game, but it’s been completely redone and everything has changed,” First Contact Entertainment staff noted. “It was looted, raided – a lot of the lights don’t work anymore. And you’ll see a similar vibe in many of the maps, they’ve been completely redone. The same applies to contractors. Visually they have been rebuilt, so some of them may have new tattoos or different hairstyles. Something has happened in their life.”
The PSVR2 doesn’t currently have an analogue of the PSVR Aim Controller – although some equipment manufacturers are plotting shells into which you can snap the PSVR2 Sense controller – but we didn’t find this to be a problem. In fact, pantomiming holding an assault rifle feels great, and gunplay is sharper than ever, thanks to the addition of an aim down sights mechanic that allows you to further fine-tune your aim. Close one eye and the weapon will zoom further in, using eye-tracking for a transformative effect.
That’s not the only unique mechanic enabled by the PSVR2’s state-of-the-art technology: flash bangs will only block your view if you see them, meaning you can either cover your face with your hands or You can close your eyes completely to avoid being affected by them. And you can change your weapon by looking at other options in your inventory! “There are a lot of things we can do on PSVR2 that we couldn’t do on previous hardware,” he said. “So I think that really elevates everything and really makes it feel like a much stronger game.”
Our biggest criticism of the original game was its single round format. You can spend several minutes trying to find and load a team into the game, only to complete the action in a flash, and this is something the developer has worked to improve. But why wasn’t this obvious addition to Firewall Zero Hour? “I don’t know,” admitted our interviewee. “I know one of our other big changes is that Firewall Ultra is now on dedicated servers, so the original game was peer-to-peer and if one of the hosts left the whole game would crash, and here it’s not. “
The actual gameplay is very familiar. Working in squads of four, you’ll be tasked with defending or hacking a laptop at a key location within the map. Die and you’re out of the round, so firefights are top notch affairs. You need to move in groups and cover each other, and use your abilities to gain a strategic advantage; Defenders can deploy jammers, for example, to prevent an attacking team from directly hacking a laptop. It all leads to a tense dynamic that’s heightened by the presence afforded by virtual reality, but the rounds are short and snappy enough to make them more vivid.
It obviously looks incredible on PSVR2 too, running in the original Engine 5. The social map, in particular, has a stunning corridor where light is filtering through the tower block’s windows, and you can see the skyline from a distance dotted with tall skyscrapers. the buildings There’s still a fair amount of junk – your teammates will resist in all sorts of unnatural ways when you see them – but it doesn’t really hinder the gameplay experience.
One of the things that underpins the ongoing success of Firewall Zero Hour has been its continuous content pipeline, and we were keen to understand how challenging it is to keep a live service game interesting and engaging over the long term: “With Firewall Zero Hour, The live service model was a pivot that took place after launch,” revealed the First Contact Entertainment developer. “But the pivot we have with Firewall Ultra is that it’s being designed from the ground up as a live service game.”
He added: “Something you didn’t see in the demo today is we have a progression system. So you’ll earn reputation by completing missions with various merchants and market dealers in the game, and then you’ll go to them to buy upgrades for your weapons, such as grips, magazines, and optics. All that is built into the game as a great progression system to give you things to do and unlock as you play. And then after launch we’ll add new contractors, new maps, new cosmetics, so the game is built in a way that can scale.
Another way is scaling the game with its safehouse. This lobby area serves as your starting point in the game: it’s an interactive environment where you can test different loadouts at the firing range, meet friends, customize your character, or land. You can fool around with soccer balls. This location will also receive some TLC during the game’s lifetime: “[The safehouse] Will see updates, such as new decorations for seasonal items or themes for new content. So it will fit into the knowledge of these contractors who are working out of the safe house together.”
The ongoing popularity of Firewall Zero Hour, as well as the huge success of titles like Pavlov VR, prove that there’s probably going to be a large built-in audience for Firewall Ultra at launch. The game is largely what we expected: it’s got the same rich, high-stakes dynamics as its predecessor. But despite the lack of a PSVR Aim controller, the gunplay feels solid, and we really enjoyed all the ways the developer is using eye-tracking to elevate the experience in a way that Impossible outside of virtual reality.
If this is the kind of content we can expect to see in the later stages of the PSVR2’s lifespan, then the future is brighter than recent criticism might have led you to believe. First Contact Entertainment now knows its way around the technology, and while it’s not reinventing the wheel here, you get the sense that it’s more confident in its vision for what a firewall can be. If you already enjoyed the original, you’ll love what’s on offer in its successor – and even if you’re new to the franchise, we suspect you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what you find.
Thanks to Sony for inviting us to be among the first in the world to try out Firewall Ultra, and to the team at First Contact Entertainment – especially PSVR Frank – for saving our asses on several occasions in-game. Are you excited for this upcoming tactical shooter? Hack Laptop in the comment section below.
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