Have you ever wanted a diomara set that took up no space? Look no further than Townscaper VR!
There’s nothing like the power to create. It is one of the things humans aspire to have. Townscaper VR gives Quest 2 users a taste of power. What can one do with such a power? What WOULD one do? While not a game in the traditional sense, imagine a set of plastic building blocks that doesn’t require cleaning up. From developer Oskar Stalberg and published by Raw Fury AB, comes a quaint sandbox playground that allows one’s imagination to reach new heights.
In some unnamed corner of the multiverse, an ocean exists that seemingly goes on forever in each direction. Build your single-story ocean town, or complement each building with skyscraping towers. How one chooses to design their quaint ocean city is up to them. While there may be a handful of limits in Townscaper VR, the colors that make up your picture is up to you.
Simply starting the application drops one right into the oceanscape that acts at the building area. There are no visual indicators, but there is a limit to how wide one’s ocean settlement is allowed to be.
To start, the ‘game’, which is more of a virtual playground, was pretty straightforward upon starting up. There is no ‘menu’ in the traditional sense. But controls are easy to see and get the hang of. Controls could be used in one of two ways. Looking at either the left or right controller from the top down, a Meta Quest 2 user can see shortcuts. These involved either pressing specific buttons, such as a, b, x, or even hitting one of the triggers. For a more comprehensive menu in Townscaper VR, one would simply turn their wrist and look at the ‘side’ of the virtual controller.
Pressing A or X would eliminate whichever block was highlighted by the tiny claw. It was great, especially if the mental picture isn’t what one ended up seeing. Pressing B or Y would ‘choose’ the color of the currently highlighted block. The shortcuts were cool, but it felt like they
Flicking the analog stick on either controller up or down would cycle colors. After choosing the color, the top trigger button could summon a building piece. The piece that popped in was wholly dependent on the level at which you hit the ‘create’ button. Level 1 would simply allow one to create a normal, one-story house one might see in a place like Venice, Italy. The real treat in Townscaper VR, however, is how each block naturally adapts to what is closest to it. If one were to connect two second-story rooms with a third center piece, an archway with a clock tower would form.
Level 2 is where a user in Townscaper VR would start seeing larger flights of stairs. Or they’d see a long ladder. When adding to the third floor of one’s structure, a pointed tower would settle atop the previous structure. This was a nice touch when it came to seeing what happens at different levels. Unfortunately, it felt like there was a bit missing when it came to the building aspect.
Being able to place plants or benches from a selection of objects would have complemented Townscaper VR’s diorama view of the playfield. I feel like it would have added to the inherent joy of playing with virtual Legos. Who doesn’t love occasionally playing with miniature versions of things? And when one pressed both grab triggers, a user might make their settlement as small as possible. Or make it so large, they felt a little bit smaller themselves.
While building a multi-level structure is fascinating on its own, the game suffers a bit from a lack of choice in some areas. Personally, it would have been wonderful to cycle through various chairs or plants, or even sets of plants. One of the ‘shining features’ was the sun itself. When one wanted to change the angle of the sun, the setting could be found on either controller’s side menu.’ Upon creating a sunset, the windows of each building suddenly become illuminated.\
Being in a virtual landscape allowed a wonderful control over the art. While the technology is new, something was inspiring about how Townscaper VR executed its sandbox approach. Having the ability to rotate and zoom in on a creation was once restricted to a mouse and keyboard. There’s no greater sensation than moving one’s toys in a 360 fashion without a mess.
When it comes to sound, there wasn’t much to speak of. There was a quaint sound of ocean waves as one messed around with building or deconstructing a piece. And when certain pieces were put together, it was possible to see flocks of seagulls settling onto the red roof tiles. Eliminating what they stood on would cause the flock to fly away and let out a few squawks.
Aside from that, Townscaper VR had a small hint of music that felt very distant. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a full OST. Or a small list of pre-selected songs to choose from. It suffers from a lack of soundtrack, leaving a player in a seemingly empty space, except for a handful of seagulls.
For those just stepping into the VR realm, Townscaper VR may be the perfect place to start. There is no complicated instruction manual to follow. Each controller uses the same button configuration. So whether you’re right-handed or left-handed, figuring out the controls is no issue.
Townscaper VR is one of the first sandbox titles to appear on the Oculus Store. While there could be more to it, simply being in the marketplace is one step ahead of competitors. Despite feeling like it lacked a bit of content, it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. I hope to see something in the way of future updates or content additions. But I genuinely appreciate what Oskar Stalberg has created here. If you’re looking for a soft introduction to the VR world, this solo-developed title is a perfect place to start.
Townscaper VR can be found on the Oculus Store for $9.99. A PC version of the game can be found on Steam for $5.99.
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