System: Valve Index, HTC Vive, Oculus Rift & Windows MR
Price at Time Of Review: £7.19
Comfort Rating: Yellow
Genre: Interactive Experience
Input: Tracked Motion Controllers
Best Playing Position: Standing
Multi-Player: No
Age Rating: 15+
VR Shop Score 1/100: 75
Description: Immerse yourself in an alien realm where the sights, sounds, and sensations that you experience all become clues for your survival. Touch a green glow and see its effects. Open a gateway to a new area. Experience new rooms, and descend deeper. Level by level, tap into your gaming intuition to solve each puzzle. Who or what is the “host” and what is your relation to this space?
With a focus on experiential-based gameplay, Garrett Fuselier has created a virtual reality to challenge and cherish. The dim glow of the swelling visuals and the fluctuation of the atmospheric audio (all created solely with voice work) build a new kind of gaming experience that, like its narrative, grows in intrigue and innovation. Recalling the classic situation-based puzzles throughout gaming history, you will find no UI, no voice over, and no buttons to press (on your controller).
Review: HOST is one of those odd games that would only really work in VR thanks to the extra levels of immersion you get from the technology. It’s kind of a weird, interactive nightmare of a game, without being too scary or dreamlike. My biggest complaint is that the experience is way too short for the current price tag of £7.19. Having said that, you need to play this game to appreciate its inner beauty. Yes, it’s weird and oddly claustrophobic, but it is also a great bit of escapism that only VR can deliver. As I said, the only thing I wish for is a lot more content.
