At launch in 2020, Marvel’s Iron Man VR was a fantastic PSVR game where you can truly embody Tony Stark and his iconic armor. However, the game was also hampered in some places by the hardware it ran on.
With Iron Man VR flying to Quest 2 next month, it looks like developers Camouflaj can fully realize their original vision for the game.
“The team was really trying to get over its weight,” said Camouflaj founder Ryan Payton, pondering the launch of PSVR. “We delivered a pretty big game for the platform, we pushed some really impressive visuals. We brought out a gameplay dynamic that really hasn’t been done by any other game studio. [But] we did it in a way that doesn’t match the core qualities of the platform.”
After playing a few Iron Man VR missions on Quest 2 this week, it’s clear that Quest 2 is a much better fit for the game. “The core fantasy of the game can come through in a much purer way [on Quest]’ said Payton. Not only is it a more liberating experience, but several pain points of the PSVR release are nowhere to be seen.
The most noticeable change (or least noticeable, depending on how you look at it) is the very short loading times. On PSVR, Iron Man VR was notorious for being a fantastic experience let down by unfathomably long loading screens. While the Camouflaj team was pleased with the overall response to the PSVR release, loading times were an area that has always remained problematic, limited by the PS4’s legacy hard drive technology. “We wish we could have done more when it came to loading times [on PSVR]’ said Payton. “But it wasn’t due to a lack of effort.”
Thanks to the flash storage on Quest 2, this is no longer a problem. The solid-state flash storage makes all the difference, with movies and missions loading in a matter of seconds. You forget it was even a problem. “We had discussions about whether we even needed a loading screen for some missions,” Payton says. “It’s so fast, why do we even have to show the player that the game is loading?”
PSVR was also a tethered headset with only one external camera for tracking, which required some technical fixes and cable management to play around with 360 degrees of movement. On Quest 2, Iron Man VR is wireless and you can play with the full range of unobstructed movement. It’s wonderful to throw yourself in any direction with fast physical turns – 360 degree fighting and flying never felt so good.
“It feels like the players have been able to experience the essence of what we wanted to create from the start,” Payton said. “That’s the ultimate superhero fantasy that combines Iron Man with VR.”
Marvel’s Iron Man VR launches on November 3rd for Quest 2 – keep an eye out for our full review at launch.
Article updated after publication to clarify how it refers to Quest 2’s solid-state storage system.