LOADING HUMAN
Sadly not a forklift driving sim
Given the PlayStation VR headset’s futuristic look, you’d think it would be perfect for sci-fi games. Loading Human: Chapter 1 is an early attempt at just that, but the results are mixed.
Set in the year 2184, you play as an astronaut1 whose scientist dad is about to peg it. Cryogenically freezing himself, your pops tells you to travel into deep space to find the Quintessence, an energy source that will reverse his ageing process. Don’t get excited, because you won’t be doing any spaceship flying in Chapter 1, save for a few VR simulations (“Yo, we heard you like VR…”).
Unlike many other PS VR launch games, Loading Human feels like a proper singleplayer adventure rather than a bite-sized experience. The puzzles are basic, tending to be little more than finding an object and putting it somewhere else, but have enough substance to push things beyond tech demo status. The environments are beautifully rendered, and using the PS Move controllers to pick up objects is oddly compelling, even if a lot of them feel like they’re there to artificially lengthen the game’s play time. 2
Ultimately, Loading Human’s weaknesses outweigh its strengths. The writing is abysmal, cliché-ridden nonsense. If you’re prone to motion sickness you may get woozy due to the need to walk around all the environments rather than just teleporting Batman: Arkham VR-style. More importantly,
£ 34.99 for a four-hour experience is just far too much, especially since the chapter ends before any of the real action starts. If you find it cheaper, give it a bash – otherwise there are too many niggles here to make it a must-have.