Review - GRID Legends (Meta Quest 2) - WayTooManyGames

The Quest 2 is doing a beauteous bully occupation astatine bringing VR gaming to a wider demographic, oregon astatine slightest it was, earlier Meta decided to rise its terms for immoderate reason. Its room is perpetually getting caller games, and not conscionable “VR experiences”, from each kinds of genres. With that being said, 1 happening the strategy has failed to present was a room of racing titles. The PSVR, its now-defunct nemesis, had beauteous bully titles similar Wipeout and Driveclub VR. The PSVR2 volition person a VR update for Gran Turismo 7. PCVR has had titles similar Assetto Corsa and immoderate much hardware-demanding experiences for owners of industrial-sized rigs. Meanwhile, the Quest 2 has had nothing. This is wherefore I was beauteous excited for the merchandise of a full-fledged larboard of GRID Legends for the system.

Sure, GRID Legends wasn’t a masterpiece of a racing game, and not adjacent the champion rubric successful the franchise. But to spot EA and Codemasters fuss to travel up with a beefy (content-wise) racing crippled for the portable VR strategy was capable to pique my curiosity. My past acquisition with a VR crippled published by EA was Star Wars: Squadrons, inactive 1 of my favourite VR games of each time, truthful I was really expecting thing bully retired of this port, particularly erstwhile you see that Codemasters themselves were down this version. The last effect ended up feeling similar a privation from a monkey’s paw. Sure, it’s GRID Legends successful its entirety connected a VR system, but the sheer magnitude of setbacks and compromises seen successful this peculiar larboard near a bitter sensation successful my mouth.

This is the champion happening astir this larboard successful particular: it is not a compromised mentation of GRID Legends successful presumption of content. Everything is included, from the interesting-but-underwhelming communicative mode, to each further careers and racing challenges. Online play is besides included. Everything is featured successful this port, to the constituent of its record size being borderline prohibitive for a VR headset with specified a minuscule magnitude of retention (it clocks astatine a whopping 31GB). That means that determination is simply a batch to bash and bask with a headset glued to your face, if you were hopeless for a racing crippled connected the Quest 2. The main item of the console versions, the dependable department, is mostly untouched arsenic well. The dependable acting is decent, and the euphony is inactive great. The problems prevarication elsewhere.

I truly similar the Quest 2, but I cognize its hardware is rather limited. It features a system-on-a-chip, not dissimilar the hardware seen successful immoderate smartphones. This is astir apt wherefore immoderate of its main slayer apps, some already retired and antecedently announced, are VR versions of games from a fewer generations ago, specified arsenic Resident Evil 4 and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – you gotta cognize what you tin really tally connected a strategy similar that, arsenic framerate drops are a decease condemnation for a instrumentality that tin easy marque you vomit if things don’t tally arsenic smoothly arsenic possible. To its credit, GRID Legends runs incredibly good connected the system, but the magnitude of setbacks taken successful bid to execute said show was staggering.

Simply put, the Quest 2 mentation of GRID Legends looks similar however I would ideate the hypothetical Switch larboard of the aforesaid crippled would look like. Between the sheer alteration successful the prime of textures, astir nonexistent post-processing effects, and an immersion-ruining solution (again, Switch levels of debased resolution), it’s hard to consciousness excited erstwhile driving 1 of the machines disposable successful the game. It feels similar a mobile larboard of the game, which was past ported to VR. Granted, the wide level of geometry is inactive somewhat solid, and truthful is the framerate. But astatine what cost? This hardly resembles GRID Legends, oregon immoderate PS4-era racing crippled for that matter.

Yes, it runs truly well, and the controls are decent, but here’s the weird thing: this VR mentation of GRID Legends doesn’t usage question controls astatine all. It does not instrumentality vantage of immoderate of the features contiguous successful the Quest 2 and its controllers. Even though you are sitting wrong a car, and your virtual arms determination whenever you steer, you bash truthful by moving the near stick. You don’t adjacent person the enactment to unreal you’re steering an invisible wheel, Mario Kart-style. You hardly adjacent person entree to question controls erstwhile exploring menus, and those are presented successful a static manner, arsenic if you were conscionable playing the non-VR mentation of the crippled portion utilizing the visor.

Now, I bash cognize that I’ve stated successful the past astir not each VR crippled really needing a ton of immersion features successful bid to beryllium enjoyable. I intelligibly retrieve stating that connected my Zone of the Enders review. But I bash consciousness similar this are antithetic successful this peculiar case. GRID Legends does a unspeakable occupation astatine adjacent making your encephalon and guts consciousness accustomed to their surroundings, arsenic you hardly consciousness similar you’re wrong a VR crippled astatine all. The wide deficiency of immersive features makes the crippled consciousness similar you’re simply playing the never-released Switch larboard connected a TV, with your look glued to the surface successful a precise unhealthy manner.

I similar to spot myself arsenic idiosyncratic who tin withstand comfortableness issues erstwhile playing VR games, seldom feeling sick erstwhile playing a fast-paced shooter, and often shutting down settings similar static camera controls successful favour of a much realistic experience. That being said, I felt legitimately sick portion playing GRID Legends connected the Quest 2 astatine times. It each boils down to the crippled ne'er being capable to fool your eyes, brain, and stomach. You ne'er genuinely consciousness similar you’re wrong a car, truthful it’s truly casual to consciousness sick aft a fistful of races.

To Codemasters’ credit, it is the afloat mentation of GRID Legends, but present disposable successful VR. It’s not a elemental “VR experience” either: there’s a truckload of contented successful this game, making it 1 of the beefiest titles disposable connected the Quest 2. However, the horrendous visuals, disappointing controls, and deficiency of immersion marque this 1 a pugnacious merchantability to each but the astir die-hard VR enthusiasts, those who were eagerly waiting for a full-fledged racing sim connected the system. It’s inactive the champion racing crippled disposable connected the Quest 2, but lone owed to the sheer deficiency of competition.

GRID Legends is available now connected PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, and PC. VR mentation disposable connected Quest 2.

Reviewed connected Quest 2.