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Commander Fury

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Posts posted by Commander Fury

  1. PSBlog Feed: Resident Evil 4 VR Mode interview: new gameplay features, learnings from RE Village and more

    in Playstation Blog

    Posted

    Later this week, owners of Resident Evil 4 and PS VR2 will be able to experience the survival horror’s VR Mode for no additional cost. Launching December 8, this DLC will allow players to step into Leon S. Kennedy’s shoes and experience the entire main story campaign in VR for the ultimate immersive experience. (And for PS VR2 owners yet to play RE4, a free demo drops the same day.) 

    To celebrate the release and learn more about the adaptation to PS VR2, we sat down to chat with Producer Masato Kumazawa and Director Keisuke Yamakawa, who brought RE4 VR Mode to life. 

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    (Left) Producer Masato Kumazawa and (Right), Director Keisuke Yamakawa

    Leveraging past experiences to encapsulate the thrill of Resident Evil 4 in VR

    PlayStation Blog: Did you have VR Mode in mind when developing Resident Evil 4? When exactly did the development for VR Mode start?

    Kumazawa: We announced the main PS5 version of Resident Evil 4 in June of last year, and a plan for VR Mode was already in motion back then. The actual development of VR Mode began early this year, soon after RE4 went gold. We completed it in less than a year, so we were on a very tight schedule. Nonetheless, we fully committed ourselves to bringing the thrill of RE4 to VR.

    Yamakawa: Although we had to make some tough choices, we made sure to include all the essential elements that we felt were indispensable.

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    PSB: How did the development process of VR Modes for Resident Evil 7 and Resident Evil Village influence VR Mode for RE4?

    Yamakawa: I also worked on VR Mode for RE7, and the Director who worked on VR Mode for RE Village aided us during the initial phases of development of RE4 VR Mode. I believe that the knowledge and expertise we’ve gained about VR over the years were put to good use in this game.

    Kumazawa: Capcom has its own proprietary game engine called the RE Engine, and VR Modes for RE7 and RE Village were developed using this engine. Having that experience helped the development of VR mode for RE4 go more smoothly.

    Yamakawa: Since VR Mode for RE Village was also compatible with PS VR2, we already knew what issues may stem from adapting to VR, as well as how the PlayStation VR2 Sense controllers can be best used for gun and UI mechanics. I think having this foundation allowed us to develop VR Mode for RE4 in less than a year and made it possible for us to achieve the final product. 

    For example, in RE Village, laser pointers that came out of both hands were used to navigate the UI. However, this caused a glitch where two items on the menu could be selected at the same time. So, in VR Mode for RE4, we made sure the laser pointer only came out of your dominant hand.

    Kumazawa: Since the early stages of production, we asked for a lot of favors and may have made some unreasonable requests to the development team, so that we didn’t keep players waiting for too long after the release of RE4 [laughter].

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    PSB: Did you make any changes to Resident Evil 4 VR Mode based on feedback from players who experienced VR Mode on Resident Evil 7 and Resident Evil Village?

    Yamakawa: Resident Evil Village revolved around the concept of playing as Ethan Winters, who was an ordinary man that got caught up in a chain of very unfortunate and horrific events. However, RE4 centers on Leon, an agent who works directly under the President, so the approach and experience for the players are very different between the two VR Modes. This isn’t necessarily a direct reflection of user feedback, but because Leon is a professional agent, we put an emphasis on incorporating actions that felt cool and stylish, such as parrying with a knife, melee combat, and one-handed shotgun pumps.

    Kumazawa: Personally, I would really like players to experience the knife fight with Krauser. This sequence features an intense battle focused on parrying, and I highly recommend players try it out.

    Yamakawa: In VR Mode, players can engage Krauser with a knife in both hands, which actually isn’t possible in the main game; you’re able to use both hands at the same time – only in VR Mode. This opened up new possibilities for us, and we made sure to incorporate mechanics and actions that leveraged this ability throughout the game as much as possible.

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    How the team took advantage of unique PlayStation VR2 features

    PSB: How did you leverage unique PlayStation VR2 features like eye-tracking and headset vibration in Resident Evil 4 VR Mode?

    Yamakawa: I really enjoy the adaptive triggers on the PlayStation VR2 Sense controller. In RE4, you have a variety of guns at your disposal. For example, there are two types of revolvers available, and the triggers will feel different between the single action and double action guns. If you like replica guns, I think you’ll be able to tell the difference and be quite surprised.

    Kumazawa: You’ll spot a lot of hidden details like that in the guns in this game, so if you’re into things like that, I encourage you to keep an eye out.

    Yamakawa: Also, when something happens that affects the environment, like explosives going off or the wind blowing, you can feel vibrations through the headset feedback. I think you’ll be quite shocked, especially when you get caught in an explosive trap. The headset also subtly vibrates when you’re riding a minecart or jet ski, which I think adds to the sense of realism.

    3D audio is another key element. The sound engineer on the development team was very particular about it and came up with all kinds of great ideas without me even asking. We even re-recorded all the gun sound effects for VR Mode. We put a lot of effort into 3D audio, so you’ll be able to detect enemy positions from the sounds they make, and you can hear the gun clicking right in the palm of your hands when you’re tinkering with it. 

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    PSB: Are there any improvements or enhancements compared to Resident Evil Village VR Mode, which also supported PS VR2?

    Yamakawa: Definitely the attention to detail that went into the guns. We were particular about this in VR Mode for RE Village, but we wanted to achieve something that wasn’t possible back then. 

    Even if it wasn’t directly related to gameplay, we wanted to make the handling of guns feel as realistic as possible. So in RE4, players can hold or use guns in ways that weren’t possible in RE Village. For example, in RE Village, you couldn’t return a weapon to its original location or inventory slot after it was removed. So, if you let go of a gun or knife to place it back in its original place, it would just fall to the ground. However, in RE4 VR mode, you can place your weapons directly back into your inventory slot. And if you drop a weapon on the ground, it just takes a little longer for the weapon to return to your inventory. As an added bonus for knives, its durability will recover a little if you manually sheath it back. I think the act of returning a weapon to its holster adds to the experience of playing as Leon in VR, so I recommend players get in the habit of doing that. 

    Also, in VR Mode for RE4, you can shoot guns while crouching. There are sections of the game where you can shoot at enemies from positions that weren’t possible in the regular, non-VR mode, so it may be interesting to scout for opportunities like that.

    Kumazawa: The main character of RE Village was a regular nobody called Ethan Winters, who had to survive a hellish nightmare where he was constantly near the brink of death. But this time, the main character is a seasoned agent who is capable of wielding all sorts of weapons to help him get through tough situations. 

    Yamakawa: One of the taglines for RE4 was “Cheat Death and Thrill in Conquer” and I feel like VR mode encapsulates this really well. If you own both RE Village and RE4, I think it would be interesting to compare the different concepts and approaches of the two games.

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    The change in perspective intensifies the tension of combat and the sense of terror

    PSB: The regular non-VR mode is in a third-person perspective, which positions the player behind the character, while VR Mode drops the player into a fully immersive first-person view. How did this change in perspective impact the development of VR Mode and the overall gameplay experience? Were there any challenges?

    Yamakawa: In order to shift the game from a third-person perspective to first-person, we completely reworked the system and mechanics related to weapons and character movements. However, we didn’t touch any of the content of the game itself. The biggest difference is that in the regular third-person mode, you control Leon with a controller, but in first-person VR Mode, you “are” Leon. In RE Village, the regular non-VR mode was also in first-person, so you were able to step into Ethan’s shoes in both modes. The regular non-VR RE4 was more about controlling Leon and making him do all the cool moves, while in VR, the players have to fully embody Leon and perform his stylish actions themselves.  

    Kumazawa: Since Resident Evil is a survival horror game, the first-person perspective brings the player closer to the enemy. The tension of combat sequences and the sense of terror from the horror scenes are much more intense. 

    One of the most exciting aspects of VR is being able to see how large in-game objects or characters are in comparison to yourself. I was shocked by how tall Lady Dimitrescu was in VR Mode for RE Village. I think we’re all excited to face bosses like El Gigante and Village Chief Bitores Méndez in VR Mode for RE4. 

    Kumazawa: Yes, El Gigante grabs you during one of the battles, and you’ll be able to experience that in first-person. 

    Yamakawa: When you parry a chainsaw attack, you’ll see the sparks fly right in front of your eyes as your knife connects with the chainsaw blade, which is also a very intense experience. However, some parts of the game can be switched to third-person, like moments when El Gigante grabs you. If you find the first-person perspective a little dizzying, feel free to switch perspectives. 

    This is also a small detail, but the camera for the first-person perspective is set a little lower than Leon’s actual eye level. If the camera is at the same eye level as Leon – who is quite tall himself – the Ganados (enemy villagers) will appear smaller. The Ganados approach and attack Leon from a low, forward posture, so if you get too close to them, you end up looking down at them which strips away the intensity. For this reason, we made some modifications, like deliberately lowering the camera, to make VR overall a more dramatic and impactful experience. 

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    PSB: What were some of your favorite gameplay moments or discoveries you made during development of VR Mode?

    Yamakawa: One discovery was the size of all the locations and how three-dimensional they were. I also worked on the main game so I have played the regular mode countless times, but I discovered many new things when playing in VR, like hidden details or objects in certain locations. I hope everyone who plays the game again in VR will make similar new discoveries like I did. I especially enjoyed riding the mine cart and other vehicles – so much so that I felt like that could be spun off into its own separate game. In the regular mode, there’s a section where you need to balance the mine cart by holding down the analog stick, but in RE4 VR mode, you can actually move your body to balance the cart.

    PSB: In the regular mode, there were sections where you could dodge enemy attacks by using the crouch button. Can you do the same by moving your body in VR Mode?

    Yamakawa: Yes, the game has two types of controls for crouching: using the controller buttons or actual body movement. Players who want to play while sitting can use the button controls like you do in the regular non-VR mode. Others who want a unique VR experience can choose to move their bodies in order to crouch, by toggling that option in Settings. And even if that option is turned on, you can still use your controller buttons at any time. 

    Kumazawa: Whether you want to play sitting or standing, the game’s settings can be modified to suit different playstyles, including how you crouch. We put a lot of effort into making the game easy to play.

    PSB: Are there any other elements that are different between the regular mode and VR Mode?

    Kumazawa: Although not all, some puzzles have been re-designed for a more intuitive interaction. 

    Yamakawa: Dial puzzles can be rotated with both hands at the same time to match the patterns, and for puzzles that require you to rotate and insert cubes at different angles, you can actually hold and spin the cubes in your hands. We made sure to implement features that players will expect from a VR game. 

    There is also a mode for viewing figurines that you’ve picked up along your way, and in VR, you can view the figurines in their actual size. For example, in VR mode you are Leon himself so you don’t usually have a chance to look at him closely, but in the figurine viewing mode, you can see his actual size up close. Bonus elements like these are sprinkled throughout the game, so we hope players find them and enjoy them as well. 

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    Lowering the barrier to convey the fun of VR to as many players as possible

    PSB: Like RE Village VR Mode, it is astounding that such a robust DLC is available for free.

    Kumazawa: The entire development team believes that it’s never too late to start building knowledge and development experience for VR, especially when there’s a possibility for VR games to become even more mainstream. It is also challenging to showcase the fun of VR games unless they are easily accessible to the players.

    Yamakawa: I think there is still a high hurdle for playing games in VR, but when you actually wear the headset and dive into a game, you’ll experience something special that is simply not possible in regular games. That’s why it’s important to lower the barrier so more players can experience the sense of immersion that is only possible in VR. 

    PSB: Lastly, do you have any words for gamers who are looking forward to the RE4 VR Mode? 

    Yamakawa: The tagline “Cheat Death and Thrill in Conquer” is something we always kept in mind when developing the main RE4 game, and in this VR mode, you can experience this with your own body and senses. We hope that many players will pick up the DLC and enjoy the game in VR.

    Kumazawa: I think VR mode will be a completely different experience, even for those who have already played RE4. And for those who have not yet played RE4, we are so excited for you to experience RE4 for the first time in VR. We are really proud of what we achieved in VR Mode and cannot wait for everyone to experience it. 

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    View the full article

  16. PSBlog Feed: Expanding the Avatar franchise with Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora

    in Playstation Blog

    Posted

    Hi PlayStation Blog readers! Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora will be out tomorrow on PS5, letting you to play as a Na’vi and explore a brand-new continent of Pandora: the Western Frontier. The team at Massive Entertainment – an Ubisoft Studio, in collaboration with James Cameron’s production company Lightstorm Entertainment and Disney expanded the world of Avatar, offering players the opportunity to discover new regions, clans, fauna and more.

    True to the Avatar ethos

    The goal for the teams at Massive and Ubisoft has always been to build upon the existing Avatar lore, allowing players to experience never-before-seen parts of Pandora firsthand. In order to do that the dev team worked closely with Lightstorm to comply to the logic of the Avatar universe. There were cultural Na’vi guidelines to abide by such as no written language nor monetary system. In addition to this, Na’vi follow Eywa’s three laws: You shall not set stone upon stone, neither use the turning wheel, nor use the metals from the ground. There were also broader guidelines for world building: Pandora being a metaphor for Earth must feel alien, yet familiar. Everything should be grounded in science, that is why the team refers to “science-fact” rather than ” science-fiction”. Finally, the world must feel epic in scale, and always combine elements of wonder and danger.  

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    The Aranahe Hometree is found in the Kinglor Forest.

    New regions with new biomes

    With these guidelines in mind, as well as a close collaboration with the Avatar filmmakers, the dev team was able to create never-before-seen regions of Pandora. The Kinglor Forest is a lush rainforest brimming with life and dense vegetation, the closer in looks to the environments seen in the first Avatar film.

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    The Kinglor Forest, a lush rainforest full of wonders and dangers.

    Other regions were designed to contrast this familiar landscape, such as the vast and windswept Upper Plains and the foggy and mysterious Clouded Forest.

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    The Upper Plains, open grasslands swept by the winds.

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    The Clouded Forest, cluster pines biome.

    New Na’vi Clans & cultures

    Within these regions dwell new Na’vi clans with their own unique cultures.

    The Aranahe clan of the Kinglor Forest is stylish, sophisticated, and intellectual. They have survived by valuing the needs of the community over the wants of the individual, and frown upon those who would question these ancient ways. The clan is led by Ka’nat and his daughter Etuwa, though the two do not always see eye-to-eye.

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    The Aranahe Clan, the master weavers.

    The Zeswa of the Upper Plains are nomadic and travel with a group of giant, docile, and empathic creatures called the Zakru, whose lifecycle is intimately connected with the clan’s. The clan is led by Nesim, a forceful and instinctual warrior. Her sister Minang acts as a counterweight to her warrior instincts, but she too is shaken by the cruelty of the RDA.

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    The Zeswa Clan, the nomadic fierce warriors.

    The Kame’tire of the Clouded Forest believe that all wounds eventually scab over and heal, so too all impurities of the spirit can be redeemed. They are taciturn and extremely reserved but extraordinary caretakers. While they may not go into battle for what they love, they will conceal, heal, and protect that which has value. The clan’s leader Anufi has slipped away from the clan, finding it easier to relate to the dead and the ancestors. In her absence, her advisor Mokasa is effectively in control, though his motives are suspect.

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    The Kame’tire Clan, the secretive healers.

    New fauna

    The dev team of Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora created 46 new creatures for the game, which range in size from tiny insects to huge, thunderous animals. Anatomy and function of animals rely heavily on real-life Earth references, while still being rooted into Pandora’s natural structure.

    As an example, the Echo Stalker lives in the Clouded Forest, a misty and mysterious region where creatures developed particular behaviors around hiding, as well as unique detection abilities. The Echo Stalker is a blind animal using echo-location to hunt. It’s the regional evolution of the Viperwolf, created by James Cameron’s teams for the rainforest of the first Avatar film. The bat was also an obvious terrestrial reference for this predator.

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    Be mindful of the noise you make in the Clouded Forest or the blind Echo Stalker might well hear you.

    Another example is the Soundblast Colossus, a massive herbivore that lives in the Upper Plains. If attacked, it generates a powerful sound blast that can injure surrounding predators, knock out the player and serve as a warning for nearby preys. As its special attack shows, the Soundblast Colossus was specifically designed to take advantage of the strong winds sweeping the Upper Plains.

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    The massive Upper Plains creature that is the Soundblast Colossus could surprise you with its Windblast defense. Only the strongest predators dare to hunt it.

    Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora is out tomorrow. PS5 players who purchase the game will receive the Aranahe Warrior Pack for free.

    You can purchase the game at PlayStation Store in multiple editions to start your own journey on Pandora:

    • The Standard Edition with the base game
    • The Gold Edition with the game and Season Pass, including two upcoming story packs ‘The Sky Breaker” and “Secrets of the Spires”, the “Familiar Echoes” bonus quest, a unique banshee, and more.

    The Ultimate Edition with the game, Season Pass, Ultimate Pack, and digital art book.

    Sivako!

    View the full article

  21. PSBlog Feed: Celebrating inclusivity: Access controller for PS5 launches today

    in Playstation Blog

    Posted

    Today is a special day as we celebrate the global launch of the Access controller for the PS5 console – a true passion project inspired by the accessibility community and fueled by our mission to break down gaming barriers and create a future of more accessible play.

    Five years ago, we started our journey by engaging experts and organizations like AbleGamers, Stack-Up and SpecialEffect, as well as PlayStation Studios, to help us craft a novel controller design that could deliver broad impact for the accessibility community. Thanks to their input, and drawing from 28 years of SIE’s design expertise and playtests with dozens of participants across three continents, we created a highly customizable accessibility controller kit that works “out of the box” to help gamers with disabilities play more comfortably and for longer periods.

    To celebrate today’s launch, we invited some friends from the community who consulted on this project to share their thoughts on how the Access controller will open up new ways to play:

    Play Video Celebrating inclusivity: Access controller for PS5 launches today

    Highly customizable play experience

    Every facet of the Access controller was crafted in close consultation with accessibility experts, focusing on three common challenges players with disabilities face: difficulty holding a standard controller for long periods, accurately pressing small clusters of buttons or triggers, or positioning thumbs and fingers optimally. The Access controller is designed to address all three challenges through a highly customizable play experience, including a carefully curated kit of 19 swappable button caps and 3 stick caps in various shapes and designs. Players can freely tailor these to suit their individual strength, range of motion, and physical needs, and create personalized control configurations through an array of other hardware and software customization features:

    Play Video Celebrating inclusivity: Access controller for PS5 launches today

    Every detail, down to the inclusively-designed packaging that’s openable with one hand, was inspired by our conversations with accessibility experts and playtesters.  To everyone in the community who contributed to this project, thank you from the bottom of our hearts. The Access controller would not have been possible without your passion, feedback and invaluable insights.

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    Getting started

    Here are some resources to help you discover all the configuration options the Access controller offers:

    If you’re curious how some of our accessibility consultants have been using Access controller in their gaming setups, check out the video below:

    Play Video Celebrating inclusivity: Access controller for PS5 launches today

    The journey forward

    We’re deeply grateful for the enthusiasm you’ve shown for the Access controller and can’t wait to see how you’ll take its expansive customization options into your own hands. Early next year, Logitech G will start rolling out the complementary LogitechG Adaptive Gaming Kit for Access controller, providing even more customization options for players with specific accessibility needs.

    Our highest aspiration is that the Access controller encourages more people with disabilities to experience the joy of play and try games they never thought were possible to play. Drop us a comment if you already have some ideas for how you’ll customize yours!

    Thanks for being part of our journey to create a future where play has no limits.

    View the full article

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