Out of Ammo | PlayStation VR Review
As you all know, I love my PlayStation VR. When the chance comes along for me to try a new game on that platform, I’m going to take a crack at it. Out of Ammo is a tower defense game with the simple almost Minecraft-like graphics that gives you the ability to control your own small army. It’s developed by Zen Studios (makers of games like “Pinball FX” and “Castle Storm”) and Rocketwerkz and is also available on Steam.
The game is simple: defend your base with a variety of different soldiers. When you first load up the game, you are standing in a large army tent with different stations around you. The first thing that really grabbed my attention was a shooting range with a variety of weapons. These ranged from small arms pistols to a large sniper rifle, but the pièce de résistance was a single shot rocket launcher. I spent a good hour and a half in this area alone destroying various targets. After awhile, I figured I would move along and see what other gems were in the game. I also noticed grenades and throwing knives on the table, however the aiming and functionality of these did not have the same effect on me as the shooting range.
Upon further investigation, I found several other options here. First, there’s a radio to call friends to join you in the mayhem as backup. Next, there is an old-school overhead projector that displays high scores for certain missions. Additionally, there is a settings menu that allows you to change the floor height and graphics. In the final corner of the room, a dry erase board shows the different terrains and missions to be completed. I selected the first free-for-all area and dove right in.
The area in which I chose to play was the desert setting. The first thing you notice when you are transported onto the battlefield is that you are standing above your base. The play area is quite large, but you (the commander) are in a fixed point and can only turn in a circle. Your troops spawn below you in a small base, which can be replenished by random air drops. You can also spend your resources to build fortifications such as sandbag bunkers, watch towers and fortified gun positions. Your troops start as riflemen, snipers, rocketeers, engineers, and medics.
Enemies begin to come in small waves from random directions. You must help fend off the enemies by deploying your troops around your camp. Your radio lets you can call in sniper shots, artillery strikes, and helicopter strafing runs. You can even take control of any of your deployed ground troops and use their weapons to fight back. Each one of the specials is nice addition to help deter the enemy troops.
I did not care for the mission mode of Out of Ammo very much. There are three missions: one you play only as a sniper, one offers a horde mode, and the last has you teleporting around collecting ammo and weapons.
I enjoyed this game for the most part, but it does have its issues, the first being movement. Although you have the ability to move your head and look around, your hands stay pointed in one direction. You must use a 90 degree quick turn to move your hands in that direction as well. In the starting area, you have a teleport function which is a little touchy. On occasion, I actually transported myself inside static objects. This caused my hand tracking to go haywire and forced me to reload the game.
These weren’t my only issues with the game. As much as I like simple graphics, I really wish Out of Ammo looked more refined. My biggest issue, however, is selecting items. Targeting and selecting units and buildings on the battlefield is little off. Selecting your extra magazines to reload your weapons is also awkward. Since they’re located on what, I assume, is a belt, I was close to pushing my move controllers into my stomach. I actually found it easier to leave the soldier I was possessing and take control of a new unit.
“Out of Ammo” Final Verdict
I really did enjoy Out of Ammo, but the issues I had brought the enjoyment level down. The level layouts are well done and fun to experience. There’s a good amount of challenge to be had here as well. I also found myself trying to duck out of the way when a helicopter came flying in out of my peripheral vision. The free play mode and the shooting ranges in the game are definitely the biggest highlights. I’ve been itching to play both of those modes over a few of my other VR titles. I hope that they do add more missions with different scenarios in an add-on or a few more free play areas. The price of the game makes it a fun little game to play if you love virtual reality. I would recommend this game if you are a fan of tower defense games. Especially if you’ve always had a hankering to blow up or mow down a bunch of blocky Minecraft style villagers.
