Pavlov VR is a multiplayer, tactical shooter designed to put you in the shoes of a Seal Team Six. The fun part is when you realize your skill level is much more Earnest in the Army than Black Hawk Down. You’ll become more effective as you develop muscle memory and learn map layouts, but the real fun is the learning curve to get there. You’ll fumble to reload your gun, accidentally drop a grenade at your feet, and goof up disarming a bomb, but have a blast doing so. It’s genuinely fun firing a fake weapon and trying to reload it. It’s even more fun when you’re doing so under pressure, and you know everyone else is watching.
Pavlov VR is one of only a few shooters launched for the PSVR 2. Furthermore, it’s probably the most polished gameplay in a shooter you’ll find until Firewall Ultra launches later this year. While the community is as unwholesome as you would expect from the internet, it’s still fun when you get a group of decent human beings who don’t want to team-kill or generally not play the objective. Since the core game has been out since 2017, gameplay mechanics of movement, aiming, reloading, and core stability are nearly impeccable.
Pavlov VR on the PSVR 2 was developed by Vankrupt Games. While originally released in 2017 has since become a staple for multiplayer shooters in VR. The game is named appropriately after Yukov Pavlov, a commander of the Red Army, who gained notoriety after defending a building during the Battle of Stalingrad in 1942. Originally hacked together by one developer on steam, the game is now published by Vankrupt Games Entertainment & Recreation out of Canada, formed in 2019 two years after the initial release. I mention this should anyone feel any discomfort around supporting a game named Pavlov in 2023.
The game’s original design was to ape counterstrike into a VR app, which I would argue go together like peanut butter and chocolate. While you’re still learning the maps it’s wise to take a moment and practice reloading, throwing grenades, and shooting. The game has an excellent tutorial that includes a “shoot-house” challenge. It was so good that for the first night it was all I played for two hours. Trying to beat your score and trying out new guns is an absolute blast.
Once you’ve gotten your feet wet with the tutorial you can jump into a variety of game modes that are pretty standard for shooters. The game supports, deathmatch, team deathmatch, search and destroy, TTT (trouble in terrorist town), and even a zombie mode. Furthermore, there are a few maps featuring a WW2 setting and vehicles. While the latter is far less popular than search and destroy and deathmatch, it’s nice to have the options. Far and away the level designs are centered around Deathmatch and S&D. Most of the maps are pretty well thought out, however, there is one bridge level that is exclusively for sniping, and this is the hardest weapon type in the game. So, I found myself skipping those.
The sound design is good, but not great where proximity chat works wonderfully, but footsteps are wonky. Enemy footsteps are almost non-existent while your own movement sounds seem to be coming over one of your shoulders. It’s not too much of a detractor, but it would be nice to listen for more than just gunshots.
The last criticism I’ll say is that after playing the PC version and seeing what other modders could do, there is definitely a feeling of lack when you overcome the initial learning curves and have seen all the game has to offer. While there was an endless supply of bizarre mods to try on PC, the gated garden of PlayStation is unlikely to permit the beautiful insanity. This can be alleviated if Vankrupt Games chooses to support this port with additional content and updates. All that to say, this is currently the best shooter on the market and there’s plenty of value in this package for the price point.
The most fun you’ll have is when your brain breaks, and you give up on reloading your gun. Something in you goes into fight-or-flight and you forget to chamber a round or drop your gun altogether. Some of my favorite moments came when people forgot how to use a knife or accidentally detonate a grenade in their faces. Like in Hitman, you’ll have the most fun when you have to improvise and inevitably flail your way to victory. I saw two players accidentally drop their guns while a third chased them with a knife. It’s these unscripted scenarios that make it feel like anything can happen in each game.
This is a great port of a longstanding multiplayer shooter on VR. The added resolution and power of the PS5 make it arguably the best version to play. However, without the support of mods and a progression system, I can see a lot of people who aren’t satisfied with just getting a win, but they’d like some experience points or a feeling of progression beyond bragging rights. I think it is well worth the price of entry and if you have three friends with PSVR 2 you’ll have a blast. I hope this version receives support as other platforms and we see more features get added, but for now, I’m perfectly happy to mute the lobby and live my childhood dream of Counter-Strike in VR.
