While Meta Quest Gaming Showcase 2023 had plenty of exciting reveals to offer, anime fans will probably be most excited about Attack on Titan VR: Unbreakable. The game was first announced last year during the virtual reality games showcase, but very little was announced about the gameplay or features at the time. This year, a one-minute trailer showed off some pre-rendered footage of what appeared to be in-engine content, giving fans a first glimpse of how the virtual reality adaptation Attack on Titan could play out when it finally releases later this year .
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Attack on Titan VR: Unbreakable is being helmed by Japanese studio UNIVRS, which previously worked on another VR anime adaptation, Little Witch Academia: VR Broom Racing. With the studio’s previous title all about fast-paced movement in a VR environment, UNIVRS seems well-equipped to develop a game around the high-speed maneuverability of Attack on Titan’s legendary ODM gear. These gravity-defying motion systems are always an interesting idea to explore in virtual reality. Titles like Spider-Man: Far From Home VR and Marvel’s Iron Man VR offer experiences uniquely suited to VR that have fulfilled many childhood dreams in the past way.
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Attack on Titan’s ODM gear is a natural fit for virtual reality
In combat against 50-foot tall monstrosities, Attack on Titan’s comparatively feeble human characters can only succeed if they dash around the titans at breakneck speed with their omnidirectional mobility gear. The fact that a titan’s only weak point is in the neck is another important detail that translates well into hit-the-vulnerability-style gameplay, and this combination lends itself perfectly to a VR game. The reveal trailer shows the player soaring through the cityscape beyond the Wall, using the Quest’s touch controls to target locations to attach their zip lines. Although the footage is pre-rendered footage and not actual gameplay, it’s safe to assume that players will experience the game more or less like this.
Attack on Titan’s ODM gear also seems to be a surprisingly immersive movement tool with touch controllers compared to other games. For example, when playing Marvel’s Iron Man VR with touch controllers, the player is still holding a pair of controllers, even though the in-game tools are a pair of armored hands. This creates a kind of tactile separation between the player’s actions and what’s happening in the game. In Attack on Titan VR, the player holds a pair of swords, which more believably translate to handheld touch controls. It’s a small detail, but it can really make a difference when it comes to immersion.
Multiplayer is a great move for Attack on Titan VR
Teamwork is an extremely important aspect of combat in Attack on Titan, as it is often necessary for multiple people to work together to distract a Titan while someone advances and delivers the decisive sword blow to the neck. So it’s good news that Attack on Titan VR takes advantage of this with a multiplayer component. Online co-op will be limited to two players, and while it would be great to tackle the Titans with a full roster, it’s great to see players being able to recreate some of their favorite duo moments from the series.
Few more details about other content in the game were revealed, but it was pointed out that the longer players manage to survive, the more difficult the battles will become. It remains to be seen if this increased difficulty comes from the emergence of more powerful Abnormal Titans, or simply from a greater number of Normal Titans. The only environment shown in the trailer is the city behind the wall, so it will also be interesting to see if the game takes players to other ODM-eligible environments from the series, such as the Forest of Giant Trees.
Attack on Titan VR: Unbreakable is due out for Meta Quest in Winter 2023.
