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What The Bat may be one of the most unusual games I’ve played in VR, and quite honestly, it’s a wonderfully bizarre puzzle game with a lot of comedy and a few issues.
What The Bat Gameplay
The game has a simple enough concept. Your arms have been replaced with bats, and you need to get through life. The levels are basically mini-games that take you through life from infancy to beyond. From simple things like putting the blocks in the right hole to doing your laundry, you’ll have to find imaginative ways to complete the puzzles.
Being a VR game, the controls are incredibly intuitive. You swing your arms! As the game is roomscale, you’ll want to ensure you have plenty of space to not run into issues with the game mechanics or, worse, hit things around you as you wildly swing your arms about. As a game, it’s a perfect introduction to VR without being too intense, but it’s also a fun puzzler and could be a great party game as you pass the headset and controllers around to take on the challenges.
With the PSVR2’s haptic feedback, the world feels immersive, despite being cartoony. Overall, the comedy is what keeps you playing, especially when combined with novel mini-game levels. Each level also provides something different, so it isn’t just swinging and hitting. Unfortunately, while very enjoyable, it’s also a pretty short game, although more content is apparently coming soon.
It’s not all a swinging hit…
When a game is transitioned to VR, it doesn’t always work, and sadly there are moments in What The Bat which doesn’t quite work in VR. Traditional puzzles, for example, don’t translate well. It isn’t unplayable, but there are moments which are less than ideal because it requires unusual movement or just hitting things until something happens. While the game never stops being fun, in these moments, it can certainly get annoying.
The fact you don’t have to move from a stationary position does make the roomscale requirement feel very restrictive for people with little space to enjoy VR.
Final thoughts on What The Bat
What The Bat is a wonderful spiritual next game in the What The… franchise and will provide endless mini-games that will make you laugh as well as provide a challenge in this crazy cartoon world. From hitting a banana to putting the square in the square hole, it’s bizarre, hilarious, and simply wonderful. Minor gripes aside, What The Bat is one to play. Put it up on a big screen, share it with friends and have fun!
What The Bat is developed by What The Games, and more information can be found on their website.
Comfort while playing
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