Despite being five to six years into current virtual reality tech, it still feels like the medium as a whole is in its formative years. There are tons of VR games on PC storefronts and PlayStation 4, but many of the bigger releases feel like demos for games that are still a decade away from full realization. As of now, the best available is what some try to call "experiences," games more akin to theme park rides than virtual worlds to visit. New PlayStation VR release Vader Immortal fits precisely in this camp, providing players with an interesting few hours of exploratory Star Wars fun without leaving behind much of substance.
Originally released for Oculus Quest across 2019, Vader Immortal is a three-part episodic game that casts players as a smuggler blasting through the Star Wars galaxy. Entering lightspeed after a successful heist, the player and their sassy hovering robot compatriot find themselves in the tractor beam of the Galatic Empire high above Mustafar. Darth Vader has identified the player's ship as a target of interest and has the ship escorted to his castle. Immortal sees the player explore the classic lava planet and come face to face with the Sith Lord, all while unraveling a new wrinkle in the lore of Disney's space epic.
From both a narrative and presentation standpoint, Vader Immortal shines, even on the lesser hardware of the PSVR. From giant caverns and the monsters that live there to the imperial halls of Vader's lair, every location is full of interesting vistas and high ceilings to gawk at. Like any good ride or experience, there are also a few moments borrowed from the source material. Naturally, these are fun to experience first hand. Scaring away a mouse droid, causing a stormtrooper to tumble over a balcony, it's all stuff that's ingrained into any fan's brain and it all takes a new meaning with the headset on.
When those kinds of moments work, they're a blast, but Vader Immortal has ambitions towards more than a walking tour. Players can "punch it" into hyperspace, wield a lightsaber and a blaster, and force push rocks across chasms with a wave of the PlayStation Move controller. For all those actions and everything else, it felt like there was a 25% chance that the experience would completely fall apart due to some form of a technical glitch. Maybe the PlayStation VR would move the player too close to a panel, maybe the helpful AI personas would stop talking for the one objective that isn't obvious, maybe the player's hand would decide to phase through an object rather than touch it. The precision just isn't there, to the point where the only option in several scenarios was to restart the game and try again. Considering how bite-sized each chapter was meant to be, it really detracts from the experience.
Beyond the hardware bugs, there are problems inherent to Vader Immortal's "gameplay." While understandable, the fact that the player is invincible to all forms of attack really kills the tension in any combat scenario. In one instance, a starfighter rains down laser fire, and the player needs to deflect them with a lightsaber. These are energy bolts designed to pierce the shields of an X-Wing, but the chosen smuggler can tank them like there's no tomorrow. The moment of taking down the fighter using the Force is more important than the minutes of taking fire while a droid yells "Good job, Captain!" on the sidelines, and that balance is upset here.
It all comes down to the fact that, despite its immense budget and production value, Vader Immortal feels small. Players can peek behind the curtain far too much as they fiddle around with Wii-era controllers that were never designed for this level of precision. The Oculus Quest version doesn't fix the problem of the simplistic gameplay, but the free range of movement and improved fidelity could only improve what's available on the PlayStation 4. Star Wars fans looking for a neat distraction and theme park fans who miss Disney World will likely get their money's worth with Vader Immortal, but there are plenty of other VR experiences on PSVR that offer much more fulfilling distractions. In addition, even games offering the same cheap thrills are often doing it cheaper.
Vader Immortal is now available for PlayStation VR and Oculus Quest. Screen Rant was provided a PS4 download code for the purpose of this review.