Zap your way through a classic in Super Stardust Ultra VR

Super Stardust Ultra VR is an arcade shoot-’em-up adapted for virtual reality. The game is an update of 2015’s Super Stardust Ultra. In this game, you command a spaceship flying around a small, spherical planet, blasting waves of enemies and obstacles. In addition to the familiar version of the game, there’s a new VR-exclusive mode, Invasion Mode, which adopts a first-person perspective, with aiming based on your head position.

A simple virtual reality shoot-’em-up

Some version of Super Stardust has appeared on numerous other PlayStation consoles, so the core gameplay here will probably feel familiar; the only real difference is the new Invasion Mode. Invasion Mode uses the same phase structure as a traditional Super Stardust game, but the different perspective changes the experience greatly. The gameplay of this mode is straightforward enough, and will be familiar if you’ve played other VR head-aiming shooters. The difference between the two modes feels like a disconnect, though; although Invasion Mode is fine, it’s so different from Super Stardust that the change is jarring.

Rudimentary but entertaining

Super Stardust Ultra VR isn’t very different from its 2015 predecessor apart from the VR mode, but if you like shmups you should find some fun in it.