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C-Smash VRS
Developer Wolf & Wood Interactive Publisher RapidEyeMovers Format PSVR2 Release Out now
Among C-Smash VRS’s many nods to Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey is the way the game opens. You warp through hyperspace to an unfamiliar solar system, where something catches your eye: a black oblong, not unlike a shrunken Monolith, floating in space. When it comes within range, you instinctively reach out to grab it, only for the cuboid to transform into a racquet. It’s not only an ingenious way to confirm your dominant hand, but an arresting way to welcome you into an alternate universe. One, perhaps, where Cosmic Smash wasn’t – as in our corner of the multiverse – an obscure Dreamcast title released only in Japan but an obvious candidate for a VR reimagining.
Still, it’s easy to be won over by the idea. If Pong and Wii Sports are any indication, racquet sports in videogames have significant mainstream potential. And with the paddle right there in your hand, offering 1:1 movement, VR should be even more intuitive. When everything connects, you feel the benefit of having precise control, rather than merely needing to swing your controller with reasonably good timing, as in Nintendo’s game. Despite the title’s suggestion, going for a smash isn’t always advisable; you might be better lobbing the ball overhead, chopping at an angle to put spin on it, or batting it back softly to buy a little time.