The VR marketplace is quickly becoming flooded with all sorts of space (and underwater) zero-G games these days, and Downward Spiral: Prologue is hoping to get added to that list with some classic space station exploration mixed in with a bit of online shooter action. But in a world where games like Lone Echo exist, can this bite-sized budget VR sample even hope to compete?
Offering solo, two-player co-op, and up to 8-player deathmatch, the most you can hope to enjoy from Downward Spiral: Prologue is the 20-30 minutes of solo adventure. The online community is all but non-existent; even six months after release. I suppose if you have a friend with VR you can at least attempt the co-op mode. This general lack of interest does not bode well for any upcoming installments in this “Anthology Series”.
So many games have attempted the zero-G feel of VR and nearly all of them have done it better than this. While the developers claim to have created an “innovative way” to move without getting sick the movement in Downward Spiral: Prologue totally breaks the illusion of floating in space. Like other zero-G games you can grab onto walls, rails, and any other bits of the environment then push off to float in the opposite direction. The big issue here is that if you brush up against anything along your way you will immediately stick to it and stop. Every other game would have you bounce off and continue floating.
You ultimately find yourself crawling hand over hand along walls, floors, and ceilings to get where you want to go. The only two times in the game where I actually felt like I was in space was floating down a long orange-hot power conduit and when I launched myself into the interior of this massive spherical room.
There are no real puzzles in the game aside from finding switches to unlock hatches so you can get deeper into the station. I was able to pick up things like a screwdriver and a roll of duct tape but you never get to use them. Even the H2O juice box had no payoff. Occasionally a security bot will attack and you can use your trusty laser pistol to destroy them, but there is no aiming reticle so make sure you aim down the sights just like a real gun. The game does a good job of checkpointing when you enter a new area, so when you get ambushed by a half-dozen bots and die you won’t have to replay much.
Available on Steam, Downward Spiral: Prologue works with both the Vive and the Rift and I played on both. Obviously the Touch made the Rift version a more comfortable experience, but other than that there were no differences in quality or gameplay. Room-scale is supported, but since you are floating in space and the world moves around you that feature is never needed.
There is definitely some potential here. The graphics are clean and interesting in places, even if they are a bit simplistic when compared to other titles in this saturated genre. Controls are good and there is a nice sense of physical interaction in the game whether you are grabbing a random item or moving an airlock handle into place. The music is quite good and very atmospheric; perfectly suited to the experience. Sadly, Downward Spiral: Prologue just didn’t click with me. It either needs to be a free demo or a more expensive Early Access title to be taken seriously.
As the name hints, Downward Spiral: Prologue is the setup for a planned series of action/adventure shooters set in the zero-G environments of space – a sub-genre of VR that is already flooding the market with copycat experiences of variable quality. Despite a valiant attempt to toss in a co-op and deathmatch element to extend the game’s 20-minute solo experience there just isn’t enough here to justify even the $2 price. I seriously doubt the future of this franchise, but would enjoy being proven wrong.
