We sat down with the developers of Requisition VR to find out more about the upcoming VR zombie game.
Set to release in early access this September, Requisition isn’t your average zombie game. Developer Arcadia is putting a heavy emphasis on the game’s DIY crafting system, allowing you to make weapons out of household items. Chairs can become four-pronged swords, for example, and baseball bats can be charged with electricity.
In the interview below, General Producer Oliver Smirnoff gives us an update on how the game’s progressing, its inspirations and what other platforms we might see the game on in the future.
UploadVR: What were some of the other VR games that helped inspire Requisition?
Oliver Smirnoff: We were definitely inspired by games like Walking Dead: Saint & Sinners and Resident Evil 4 which was exclusively released for Oculus Quest. But we obviously took inspiration not from VR zombies games only. Phasmophobia, The Forest and Into The Radius had such a great impact on our game as well.
At one point we even took some of the ideas from the Home Alone movie which led to creating a mode for the game.
UVR: Why was it important to add PvP to the game now instead of focusing on co-op at launch?
OS: I wouldn’t say that we shifted focus from co-op, we are still putting a lot of work to it. We had in mind the Home Alone mode which implies players to craft weapons and traps, and fight with each other. We did a bunch of internal tests and realized that this is the funniest mode we’ve ever seen in multiplayer games. That’s why we decided to add PvP mode. We’ve already had all the mechanics done and could continue work on a Horde Mode and a Story Mode.
UVR: You recently had a demo on Steam Next Fest. How, as a VR developer, is this helpful to you and what sort of data does it give you ahead of launch?
OS: During Steam Next Fest we got a lot of data that we’re processing right now.
First of all more than 4,000 people played our demo and it’s more than during our beta tests.
Secondly we got a lot of feedback on how we can improve the game and on how to simplify some mechanics. We consider the Steam Next Fest a successful experience as we have significantly increased wishlists.
UVR: How is development looking at this stage? Are you still hoping to release in September?
OS: We are still running beta tests at this stage of the development and working on the game’s polishing, melee and zombie behavior improvements, and optimization. We are running the 5th wave of the beta right now, and I would say that we are moving according to the plan to release Requisition VR in September.
UVR: You’re handling the release of Requisition quite differently to Hinge. What did you learn from that experience and take to your new game?
OS: We learned not to rush the release and collect feedback from the players long before the actual release. We want to release the game in September in the most polished and optimized state and we are also ready for any revisions needed after Early Access based on the feedback. And we keep in mind that Requisition could change a lot after the EA release.
UVR: Do you have plans for future releases on Quest and PSVR 1/2?
OS: Our biggest goal is to release the game on Quest. Probably you will hear an announcement about it in the next couple of months.
We are also planning to release Requisition on PSVR 2 in 2023. We are among others really excited about PSVR 2 and think it’s gonna be a great device that will beat the PSVR 1 and become a hit.
