This short demo sees you using automated climbing tools to haul yourself up a cliff face in an environment that is brimming with dinosaurs, both winged and otherwise. You’ll need to do some dodging near the top of the climb to avoid falling dirt and the giant reptiles, but for the most part this is a passive, seated or standing experience.
Be careful if you do stand though, as the vertigo in this demo is very real: Our own Brad Bourque nearly took a tumble when he first tried it last year.
The one real danger in the whole experience though, is if you let go of both triggers on your controller, as that will send you plummeting to a fade-to-black. The proximity to the wall however makes the feeling of falling quite distinct, so if you have a problem with heights, hold on tight — you don’t want to let go on this one.
Back to Dinosaur Island 2 is a demo that first appeared at trade shows like E3 last year to give an idea of what Crytek was working on. This is a project that would eventually become PSVR exclusive Robinson: The Journey, but in this instance gives you a good idea of what high-fidelity virtual reality is all about.
Unlike the original Back to Dinosaur Island demo, this one does support positional tracking. However, it’s the textures that are all beautifully high resolution and the movements of the giant pteranodons as they soar around, behind and below that are mesmerizing.
