Humanity on Quest 3: A fascinating game, well ported to the standalone format
Humanity is a unique puzzle platform game that plays and looks great on Meta Quest, after being released on other platforms.
In Humanity, you navigate a crowd of people through increasingly complex obstacle courses. As a dog, you leave instructions in abstract landscapes and watch as the crowd turns, jumps, climbs, pushes, swims, and relentlessly makes its way. A modern take on Lemmings with a focus on spatial puzzles.
I tried Humanity on Quest 3 and was mesmerized by the minimalist art style, the animated crowds, and the power inherent in my actions. Humanity is a beautiful game, both visually and aurally. It was developed by Tetsuya Mizuguchi (Rez Infinite, Tetris Effect) and designer Yugo Nakamura, and features a soundtrack by the musician Jemapur.
The game introduces you to the game mechanics and new challenges step by step. A definite buy for fans of puzzle games.
Humanity looks good on Quest 3
The game launched last week on Quest 2, 3 and Pro. It was first released in May 2023 for Playstation 4, 5 and Windows and features a VR mode for Playstation VR 2 and PC VR headsets. With its release on the Quest Store, the game reaches a wider VR audience and can be played on the go for the first time.
I haven't played the older versions, but the title looks excellent on Quest 3. I doubt that Humanity was optimized specifically for the headset, but it should benefit from a higher resolution than Quest 2 and Quest Pro, just like any other game. The image is sharp and it's a pleasure to watch the crowd move and jump around.
The Quest version has inherited some poor VR controls
There is one drawback, however, that is not unique to the Quest 3 version: The controls have not been adapted to the capabilities of the medium, resulting in tedious visual navigation.
As a VR user, you are used to using your hands to change perspective and effortlessly zoom in and out of a scene. In Humanity, there is no such thing, and you use buttons and the analog stick instead. A missed opportunity, especially in a game like Humanity where perspective and scale play such an important role! But with a little getting used to, you'll find your way around.
The game features 90 story levels, boss battles, and more than 8,000 user-generated levels.
Humanity offers a level editor on Playstation and Windows without a dedicated VR mode. With Meta Quest, you can use the same level editor on a 2D canvas and create your own levels. Both the level editor and the user-generated levels are still in beta, so full functionality is not guaranteed.
You can purchase Humanity from the Quest Store, the Playstation Store and Steam. There is a free trial offered for the Quest version.
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