Foggy Box Games’ Startenders is a new VR bartending experience heading to Meta Quest, Meta Quest 2 and PlayStation VR on 17th March, 2022. The team has now confirmed a Startenders PSVR2 version is also in the works, along with PC VR.
Startenders is an immersive arcade-style game with narrative elements. It puts players behind the bar to mix cocktails for a galaxy of patrons from across the universe. As a newly enrolled intern in the Startenders Academy, players will have to shake, slice, cryo blast and serve to level up their skills behind the bar.
Startenders offers Story, Free Mix, Pass the Headset and Daily Run modes. These range from a narrative adventure and meeting new alien species, to experimenting with the craziest cocktails imaginable or comparing their drinks-making skills with the rest of the world in daily challenges.
Between shifts, players can explore their habitat. Here they can purchase blueprints, unlock new cocktails and learn about the universe with the Startendipedia. Players can train with the reflex trainer, the sports machine or on the Startenders Interactive Training System. Players can also spend their hard earned Kredits on blueprints and upgrade machines. The workshop allows players to build new machines, with every upgrade bringing the chance to up serving speed.
“We wanted each player’s Startenders experience to be unique, so we built a system that can provide endless procedurally generated shifts, with different customers and orders each time you play.
“We strove to create an experience where the players are not punished for having fun, even if it means going off script. The game doesn’t have fail-states or restarts, you might just find the customer’s do not react too kindly to you messing up their order”
Chris Youles, Creative Director of Foggy Box Games
Startenders features a range of VR specific accessibility options for players. It can be played standing or seated. In the Habitat teleport node-based locomotion is utilised, with optional snap turning. Seated mode height offsets, and all surfaces can be individually height adjusted.
Startenders will be available for Meta Quest, Meta Quest 2 and PlayStation VR on 17th March, 2022. It will be priced $14.99 / £11.99 / €14.99. There’s currently no word on the date for the Startenders PSVR2 version and the PC VR release.
Are you ready to get your extra-terrestrial mixology on? Let us know in the comments below!
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