Until I played Boneworks, I never knew how much fun the simple act of gripping and holding something was (get your mind out of the gutter, you!). Holding and gripping things is something we do every day; from this morning’s coffee cup to the mobile phone you might be reading this article on. Gripping and holding objects is second nature to most of us and as such it’s not really something that the average person would stop their day to think about.
When it comes to VR games though, the act of gripping and holding objects is often simplified compared to real life. Normally, the item will teleport to your hands when you reach out to grab it and then it’ll sit there, locked into the exact place the game’s designers wants it to be. Not so with Boneworks though. Items will still fly to your hands Force Pull style if you reach at them from a distance but after that? Well things change in a way that makes Boneworks one of the most realistic feeling VR games I’ve ever played.
You see, Boneworks has this really clever way of using both the grip and trigger buttons on your controller to allow you to hold things either tightly or loosely. This means it’s possible to slide your fingers up and down the handle of a sledgehammer to find the optimal swing point to deliver a cracking blow, or to twist a hammer around in your fist so you can use either the blunt end or claw to attack your foes. It’s such a simple thing, but it feels like a game-changer in VR.
You can watch me demonstrate the grip mechanics and loads more in this week’s episode of Ian’s VR Corner, which you’ll find in the video player below these words.
Boneworks Is The Best VR Game I’ve Played All Year – Ian’s VR Corner Watch on YouTube
As you can tell from the title of this week’s Ian’s VR Corner, I’m pretty sure I’ve found my VR game of the year with Boneworks. The way this game recreates real-world physics in a virtual world is just unbelievable and while there are certain ways to solve the game’s many puzzles, this realism allows you to play in a free-form, experimental way and it actively encourages you to cheat puzzles if you’re able to think outside of the box.