Gungrave VR

Gungrave VR is a generic shooter wrapped in the new-tech allure of VR. For fans of the 16-year-old PS2 series, this will no doubt bring up some nostalgic feelings. But the incredibly small amount of content on offer will turn off most gamers looking for a fuller experience.

Gungrave, like when it debuted over a decade ago, is an acquired taste.

GUNGRAVE VR offers a short, outdated shooter that doesn't gain much from being in VR. There is a little arcade fun to be had but the price is far too high for what's on offer.

I was excited for the return of Gungrave. Especially since PlayStation VR had been so impressive for me recently diving into the technology. Sadly this experience is just not worth dropping the cash for. There are a ton of better VR experiences for Sony’s headset.

Regardless of the format, Gungrave VR doesn’t really offer any major reason to try it. It just exists, although even that is up for debate considering how little content is actually available. It’s a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it affair, the type of game I’ll forget I even reviewed a few months from now and should serve as more of a warning for the upcoming Gungrave GORE than a precursor. This gun belongs back in the grave.

Except for the nostalgia factor, which could entice at least the (few) fans of the series, there is not the slightest reason why we should advise the purchase of Gungrave VR Loaded Coffin Edition.

GunGrave VR has good TPS levels, but very poor other gameplay phases. Half of the game is nearly good, the other one is really bad.

Gungrave VR has a poorly implemented control scheme, a lack of story content, it doesn’t take advantage of the technology available in the PSVR headset, and ultimately lacks enjoyment in its core gameplay. Unfortunately, Gungrave VR has failed to raise the series from the grave and we’d advise everyone to let this one lay to rest.

Gungrave VR comes across as a game where the devs were hyped for the possibility of VR but didn’t know the best way to utilise it for an engaging experience. It’s very short, there’s no coherent story, the camera feels weird and not well implemented in the third person mode, and it all feels a bit bland. There are much better ways to spend your time and money unless you really have an hour to kill and Gungrave VR gets a very deep discount.

Gungrave VR will make you feel cool as you shoot your foes while dodging and occasionally reflecting their projectiles but it's so sloppily put together that it's hard to enjoy the action for longer than a few minutes at a time.

As a character, Grave fails to impress and comes off as a tryhard edgelord with his gothic-inspired coffin chained to both arms. Even the product page on the PlayStation website appears slapdash, with text seemingly lifted from Google Translate without any readability edits. Gungrave VR is a total headache (which has nothing to do with virtual reality) and no one, either series fan or VR enthusiast, should waste their time.

Gungrave VR is a game that not only tarnishes its own legacy but also leaves a bad impression of VR as a whole. The gameplay is shallow, as attacks feel slow and lack any sort of impact. The limited nature of the stages and the lack of any intelligent enemy combat makes the affair boring, but the clunky implementation of VR is what really drags down the game. The VR feels unnatural, and it doesn't safeguard one from getting nausea. There's still hope that the upcoming sequel will fare better, especially if it sticks with more traditional gameplay elements and presentation, but this VR take is one that players can easily skip.

What you get for your money is terrible, rendering the mid-level price insulting. There's no reality in which this is worth buying, virtual or otherwise. [Issue#158, p.97]

Gungrave was a poorly received shooter in 2002. 16 years on, Gungrave VR copies and pastes its mechanics, tacks on pointless VR support and builds about 50 minutes worth of new content into the game. That’s not exactly a recipe for a runaway hit, is it?