Metro Awakening It's one of the most anticipated VR games to launch this year, and we finally got the chance to try it out for ourselves on Meta's newly announced Quest 3S.
Metro Awakening It's coming to the Quest 2, Quest 3S, and Quest 3 on standalone headsets, as well as on PSVR 2 and SteamVR. In trailers, we've seen the high-end version of the game designed for PSVR 2 and SteamVR, but we're waiting to see how the game performs on the Quest.
I had the chance to try it out on the Quest 3S (which is functionally as powerful as the Quest 3) but it's not as polished as what we saw on the PC version, but it looks pretty good compared to the average Quest game.
While it can't escape the 'cardboard texture' look in most environments (almost unavoidable without the power required for more advanced lighting), I was pleasantly surprised by the level of detail achieved on the first NPC I saw in the demo; it was certainly one of the best looking virtual humans I've seen in any Quest game. Granted, this was a single NPC in a narrow corridor, meaning that almost all of the headset's power was used to render just this character.
This impressive-looking NPC is supported by much better voice acting and writing than average. The person I spoke to felt like a grey-haired veteran of this post-apocalyptic world, with a brutish yet subtly comical personality from a bystander's perspective. Overall, the encounter with this NPC gave the impression that the characters you meet will be an important part of the game's narrative, so it's nice to see the game invest in the look, sound, and feel of such characters.
The demo introduced me to some of the game's core mechanics right away. There are radioactive areas where you'll need a gas mask to get through, and a backpack on your shoulder holds additional air tanks that can be swapped out for your mask when your current one is running low.
The boxes physically hung from the backpack, along with some other equipment. It's an immersive approach that I appreciate compared to the backpack systems in games. The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners there are plenty of other players whose backpacks have lots of symbolic 'slots' where items neatly collapse into them. Or, heaven forbid, a floating menu appears in front of you to be controlled with a laser pointer.
Shooting is a big part of the Metro games, and I was happy to see that the first weapon I was introduced to – clearly inspired by the classic AK-47 – was noticeably more detailed than the environment. The detail wasn't just cosmetic either; there's a slot cut into the magazine to clearly reveal the bullets. This makes for an immersive way to keep an eye on your remaining ammunition.
When reloading, you can also use the new magazine to remove the empty magazine from the weapon. And when you insert the magazine, you'll see it engage with its fore-end first and then retract into the locked position. These are both essential details to the character of the real AK-47, so it's nice to see them recreated here—the developers clearly did their homework.
With the AK in my hand, I was happy with the quick feel of the shot. The solid sounds, effects, and enemy reactions made the weapon feel powerful and satisfying to use.
Enemies also felt smarter than what you find in your average VR shooter. They used plenty of cover, occasionally hiding and peeking out from behind a wall or box. And they shifted positions frequently. This meant that the biggest threat at any given moment could change as one enemy retreated into cover while another tried to advance.
Before the fight was over I ran out of AK ammunition and had to go back to my pistol. It did the job but it definitely lacked the firepower of the AK so finding more ammunition was a pressing concern.
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Before I left the area, I saw several of the enemy's AKs on the ground. Not only was I able to pick them up and fire them, I was also able to steal the magazines from each weapon and store them in my inventory.
Not only did this make me feel clever for realising I could get more ammo this way, it also made me feel like a scavenger barely making ends meet, which fit perfectly with the oppressive, survival-focused spirit of the Metro games.
I'm definitely pleased with the attention to detail that I've seen. Metro Awakening I've only gotten a small taste of the game so far, so I'm not ready to place a bet on whether it'll be a must-play game when it finally launches on November 7th.
Explanation: Meta provided accommodations for a Road to VR reporter to attend Meta Connect 2024, where information was collected for this article.