A fun arcade game with potential! I gave The Phoenix Gene three stars ☆☆☆ upon launch, but after revisiting the game almost two months later, I now give it 3.5 stars out of five. (Further details below)To start with, the visuals are fun and colorful! The phoenix character model looks very cool and is highly detailed. It's also super cute and well-animated, and I never got tired of looking at it in my hand over hours of play time.As a rail shooter, it's not afraid to go bold and try some really fun things with the camera (your perspective) - I won't spoil the details in this review. Despite the fun of some of the more adventurous (for VR) on-rails camera movement, I didn't experience a single moment of motion sickness! That makes this game very easy to recommend for both hardcore VR players with iron stomachs and casual players alike.Some of the voice acting is pretty rough in its current state, which did reduce my emotional engagement, but it's clear they've put a lot of attention into the story they're trying to tell. If they improve some of the voice acting, that would go a long way to improving the experience of the story. I *did* get confused at certain moments in the story, but that's likely just a result of my ADHD and inability to focus on conversation/narrative while engaging in gameplay. Likely not an issue for most players.Ultimately, gameplay is the most important thing here, and on that front, I can report that The Phoenix Gene is fun and doesn't overstay its welcome! This type of game is fairly novel for VR, and from what I played, there's enough variety of gameplay and environments to last the duration of the playtime (I estimate a full playthrough of the game would be roughly six hours, depending upon difficulty).I was personally unable to finish the game in my initial review due to my inability to beat a boss in Chapter 4 (the game has eight chapters), so I couldn't progress further. I tried several times for over an hour and got nowhere, but when I returned to the patched version post-release, I managed to beat the boss in only a few tries! I advise using the laser pointer "aim assist" for this battle if you're struggling. Regardless of this, I still enjoyed the roughly four hours of playtime otherwise in my initial review! I should note that, as I was playtesting the game, I did get it for free - but I was *very* mindful to review the game as if I'd paid full price for it, and now that I've written it, I feel the final review reflects that.UPDATE: playing the game a little over a month post-release, I feel there are some "telegraphing" issues for the upgrade/health system (I could never tell if/when I was low on health, and could find no instruction as to what the health indicators were). I also had some trouble following the story while engaging in gameplay, but I suspect this won't be an issue for most players. I enjoyed some of the adventurous moves of the on-rails camera (uncommon for VR), and if the experience shown in the trailers looks to be up your alley, give it a try!
A Fresh Twist on VR Shooting. The Phoenix Gene surprised me in the best way. It’s got a unique vibe that stands out from other on-rails VR shooters, both in how it plays and how it tells its story. The hand-switching mechat nic to control your dragon/phoenix is actually pretty cool once you get the hang of it, and adds a layer of immersion you don’t always see.The gameplay leans into bullet-hell territory at times with the color-switching shield mechanic (blue absorbs blue, orange absorbs orange), which keeps you on your toes and gives it some strategic depth. It’s not the easiest game out there, but the challenge is fair—and thankfully, you don’t have to restart everything from scratch when you fail.Visually, the game pops on Quest 3. The environments are colorful, the movement is smooth, and the dreamlike cutscenes sprinkled throughout the levels are an interesting touch. The story is there if you want to dive into it, but it doesn’t get in the way if you’re just in it for the action.That said, there were a few moments early on where reaching gems or items felt awkward—mostly due to the hand tracking and positioning. It’s a small thing, but having an option to tweak the reach distance or make the hitboxes more forgiving would go a long way, especially for seated players.If you’re into VR shooters with a twist and don’t mind a bit of a learning curve, this is worth checking out. Definitely one of the more memorable titles I’ve played recently.
Most Unique Rail Shooter I've Played. This is by far the most unique rail shooter I've played. I am playing it during Early Access/ testing period. Without giving away the story, you can change colors to defend/attack against different enemies and to pick up collectibles. It is definitely more challenging than it seems at first. I love the difficulty and roomscale options. I'm only 2 levels in and I can't wait to get further along.
A decent rail shooter that shows promise. First of all the story and lore surrounding the game is very well done and voice acted. While flat at times it is very appreciated that some thought and care was put into how you could consume the storyline.This is a rail shooter where your hand can be the protagonist.Pros: engaging storyline, voice acting and gameplay Cons: very minor things like I wish I could set.the default position of the player character more in line with where my hand actually is. When moving around it feels at times rubber bandy.I look forward to continued updates to this one!
Controlling a dragon is a blast. I've had a lot of fun testing The Phoenix Gene. The main control mechanic is really enjoyable. Controlling Firestorm instantly triggered my inner child. The range of difficulty and physical activity available is also impressive. The physical dodging and reaching is enough to get a workout. I also tried seated in a spinning chair, and that was surprisingly engaging as well, since I was doing quite a bit of rotating at some points. Catching the jumpers was my favorite level so far. The combination of laughing at the npcs I missed, and the exhilaration of falling was memorable. I'd like to see some more flexibility of Firestorm's animations when trying to shoot in directions other than straight ahead. The ability to unlock moves like barrel rolls etc. as well as time trial type levels without enemies could be fun. Maybe a button combo with trigger to allow an automatic fire mode to reduce trigger spam since trigger hold is used by the flame. Overall enjoyable game. Recommended.
Quest
Rift
109人
