Beta: Come on!
We have to hurry.
From the moment I first put on the headset until I finished Red Matter 2, I couldn't
believe what I was seeing was running on the PlayStation 5.
For my PSVR2 Review I played a half a dozen or so games, and while they all looked good,
it was pretty obvious they were also all running below the headsets native resolution of 2000
x 2040 pixels per eye because they all looked just a little bit blurry.
Coming in to this review Vertical Robot, the developer of Red Matter 2, claimed the PSVR2
version of the game would have increased resolution and 4K remastered textures among a handful
of other upgrades.
This got me wondering just how good the game was going to look on the PSVR2.
Because for the Quest 2 version of the game they were able to deliver some absolutely
stunning visuals on what is really just a mobile phone processor, and their claims for
the PSVR2 version had me hoping to see some PCVR level sharp, clear visuals and they fully
met my expectations.
When I first put on my PSVR2 headset and started up Red Matter 2, I couldn't stop smiling because
the game looked soooo good.
I don't know if I'd say the graphics are as sharp as on my PC using my 3080ti, BUT they're
really, really darn close.
The Red Matter games are some of my favorite VR games.
The story is interesting and unique and there's tons of stuff you can interact with in the
environment of the game.
You can clean the toilets if you want, put a fresh roll of T.P.
on the roll holder and break bottles and dishes and all kinds of stuff if you feel like it.
As you may already know Red Matter 2 originally launched on the Quest 2 and PC in August of
2022.
The PSVR2 version is exactly the same as the PC and Quest versions when it comes to the
story and puzzles and everything and I have that review right here if you'd like to check
it out.
This video is to highlight the changes made for the PSVR2 version, many of which have
me feeling like this is the definitive version of the game.
According to Vertical Robot, Red Matter 2 runs at a native 120fps on the PS5 and does
NOT use reprojection; and I have no reason not to believe them because having played
through the entire game now, I can say it looks fantastic and felt very smooth all the
way from beginning to end.
One of the ways they were able to pull off this wizardry was by using foveated rendering
which is where they render the image directly in front of you at the highest resolution
they possibly can and then at progressively lower resolutions as they move out to the
periphery.
The only time I really noticed the foveated rendering though was when I was looking for
it, and I found the easiest way to spot it was to first look at an object directly in
front of me and admire just how good it looked, and then turn my head but keep my eyes on
that object and as it moved off to the side of the display I actively saw the clarity
of that object change.
When just playing the game though and enjoying the experience, I honestly didn't notice it
at all.
One of the visual upgrades I noticed over the Quest and PC versions of the game, other
than the absolutely amazing looking high resolution textures, is due to the OLED display in the
PSVR2 and it's support of HDR.
OLED's are famous for their vibrant colors and deep blacks and as expected Red Matter
2 looks gorgeous on the PSVR2.
The environments literally look like you could reach out and touch them.
In dark areas of the game where things are supposed to be black, they're completely black
and then with the HDR you get realistic looking light bloom where bright lights almost blind
you and illuminated buttons and stuff give off a realistic looking glow.
While none of this is exactly earth shattering, it's small details like these that pull you
into the experience that little bit more.
And when you couple those things with the high resolution textures, you really do almost
forget that none of what you're seeing is real.
While many of the upgrades made to the PSVR2 version of Red Matter 2 are to the visuals,
Vertical Robot also made sure to make use of the haptics in the PSVR2 to even further
increase your immersion.
One of my favorite features of the PSVR2 is the haptics in the headset itself.
They're used all throughout the game to varying degrees, probably the most memorable being
during an explosion toward the end of the game where you get a pretty nice head massage,
but one way they used it that really stuck out to me because of how subtle, yet effective
it was, is in a portion of the game where you're riding in this train car.
As the train goes around corners you get some haptic feedback in the headset reminiscent
of taking a corner on a roller coaster or something, but the one little touch that really
got me excited was there are these oval shaped structures that support the track and as you
pass through them the headset rumbles a little bit.
That vibration reminded me of riding a chairlift when I've gone snow skiing before.
Anyone that's been skiing or snowboarding can identify with this, as you pass the support
towers you feel the vibration in the chair of the cable passing through the guide wheels
and so in the game, when the train passed through these support towers and I felt that
rumble it almost made me believe I was actually riding in the train, which I felt was just
brilliant.
There's a few really cool things they did with the controller haptics as well; like
there are some puzzles that the vibration in the controller intensifies as you get close
to the correct solution.
And about, I don't know, a third of the way or maybe half way through the game you get
a flash light that doubles as a flare gun you launch flares with to light up areas further
ahead of you and depending on how long you hold the trigger down the flare will fly shorter
or further.
As a kind of indicator they used the controller haptics to let you know how charged up your
flare was and the vibration intensifies the longer you hold the trigger down.
Vertical Robot did do these same things on the Quest 2 as well but the haptics in the
PSVR2 controllers are a lot stronger, so it's more pronounced and is a definite upgrade
over the wimpy buzz you get with the Quest 2 controllers.
The thing that really puts it over the top for me though and has me saying this is the
definitive version of Red Matter 2 is the PSVR2's adaptive triggers.
When picking things up or interacting with objects, you feel some resistance that gives
you the impression that you're touching or holding something of substance.
Where as when you pull the trigger when not grabbing anything there is no resistance at
all.
Again it's another subtle little thing that you almost don't notice because it doesn't
feel weird or out of place.
It just feels natural.
Another cool way they use the adaptive triggers is with the laser pistol.
If you fire off too many shots too quickly the gun will overheat and when it does the
trigger seizes up and becomes very hard to pull.
The gun won't fire at all when it's overheated but feeling the physical difference in the
trigger is another one of those little touches that makes the game a little more immersive
and the experience just a little more special.
I need to give a huge thank you to Vertical Robot, not only for creating Red Matter 2
but for giving me early access to the PSVR2 version so I could check it out and share
all of this with you guys.
For those that have already played Red Matter 2 on the Quest 2 or PC there isn't really
anything new here that warrants buying the game again on a different platform.
However, Red Matter 2 is one of, if not the best looking game on the PSVR2 right now and
is an absolute visual treat.
And the fact it runs at a native 120fps while looking this good is just mind blowing.
For you PSVR2 owners who have not played the Red Matter games before, and if you like a
good puzzle/escape room style game then I think you're really going to enjoy this one
as it's an all around awesome VR experience.
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