First off, Kudos to the dev for thinking ambidextrous out the gate, especially for such a physical game. For those that know me, I am a huge advocate for left-hand thinking in VR because it is often overlooked as it is in most FPS games. In a non-VR game this really does not matter and I could care less, but in VR imagine a game like this where you could only throw with your off-arm as a primary defense. Or draw a bow, holster a gun/sword, whatever it might be, it is frustrating at best. While not developing for left handed folk specifically I am sure, it's good to see an EA development go ambidextrous out the gate; More immersive, a better system, and friendly to all hands!
As for the game, it's definitely a bit rough around the edges, and you can tell from watching any of the game play videos. BUT, it's relatively well optimized for an EA title, and it's clear that the primary focus is on the core mechanics and ux at this point, which is right where it should be IMO. The videos also do not do the game's feel justice one bit. Don't get me wrong, it's fun to see the VR overlay of VR games, but this is definitely something much better felt than seen. The core concepts are quite strong, this is honestly not like any single game that I have played before, and that's refreshing enough as it is. Glitchy "smoothness" detection in gathering Chi, challenges that skip ahead, roll back, plethora of AI bombs, you name it and it's there, but nothing unexpected for an EA title. It's a bit pricey for what you get content wise, however if looked at as an investment the potential is well in my personal comfort realm for taking a chance. I would say that the next few weeks and overall developer engagement with the community will tell more than I could about risk/reward, however if jumping in blindly as I did, I can honestly say there is no buyers remorse. This concept seems too big for a wave shooter though, so I am curious to see where the devs go with that. Possibly trading in some of the constant Chi developing motion for locomotion, or even making the locomotion a part of it could open some distinct possibilities to raise a lot more hell with the fun toys you can produce once trained! :)
I played this on Vive, Rift S, Index, and Samsung Odyssey WMR, and even though the last two are not listed in support they seem to work decently, though I have not extensively pushed the technically unsupported platforms yet. I will say that if anything the Inside Out tracking systems like the WMR and the Rift S are a bit more troublesome with the constant arm movement requirement + need to "hold" position before drawing sword from the back etc. namely because some of this must happen out of the sight of the inside-out tracking mechanisms. I know this can work though as some other titles do it well, and being in motion is far easier to track through the physical sensors than other types of off-camera environmental awareness.
All that to say, if you manage your expectations going in, and like the very physical game style there is a good deal of satisfying destruction to be dealt here, while supporting a very interesting and VR appropriate concept at the same time.
