The remake adds a fun new feature that’s reminiscent of arcade games.
Announced during Sony’s TGS PlayStation conference, Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner is getting a remastered edition for PS4 and PC complete with VR support. The entire game can be played in VR and also includes a separate VR mode that I got to try out at Konami’s booth at TGS.
Though the main campaign seems to have gotten a complete visual upgrade, the VR mode doesn’t have much of a modern polish outside of the cockpit. Still, I enjoyed the simple, polygon style. It reminded me of sitting and playing an enclosed light gun shooter in an arcade, but this time I got to be fully immersed. The space I was allowed to fly in was a tad empty. That may have been for the best as the few waves of enemies that spawned kept me occupied as I tried to figure out my various weapons.
It takes a few minutes to get used to the controls, but a representative from Konami said the development team is still working on them. Once I got the hang of the targeting system and four weapons, I really started feeling like an impressive mech pilot and enjoyed taking out the final two ships with a better strategy in mind.
The demo was rather short, but I’m looking forward to seeing how the whole game plays in VR. Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner – Mars has a release window of spring 2018. For more previews and news from Tokyo Game Show, be sure to visit IGN’s TGS 2017 event hub.
Miranda Sanchez is an Editor at IGN. You can chat with her about video games and anime on Twitter.
