Paper Beast

Paper Beast is a 2020 virtual reality adventure game developed and published by Pixel Reef for PlayStation 4 and Microsoft Windows. The game was created by Éric Chahi, who previously worked on Another World. In the game, players are tasked to navigate a world inhabited by various digital lifeforms. It received generally positive reviews upon release.

Paper Beast
Developer(s)Pixel Reef
Publisher(s)Pixel Reef
Director(s)Éric Chahi
Composer(s)Roly Porter
EngineUnity
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows
PlayStation 4
ReleasePlayStation 4
March 24, 2020
Windows
July 24, 2020
Genre(s)Adventure, puzzle
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay

Paper Beast is an adventure game played from a first-person perspective. In the game, players explore a large ecosystem composed of various digital life forms originating from lost Internet codes and algorithms deep inside the Internet.[1] In the adventure mode, the player assumes control of the first explorer and must navigate the world through manipulating the environment and interacting with the wildlife. Players are tasked to rescue them from dangers and predators, assist them in various ways, and use their abilities in order to progress in the game. The artificial intelligence, which governs the behaviors of these animals, will react to the player's actions accordingly.[2] Each species in the game also behaves differently and they have their own unique goals.[3] The player can also modify the terrain so as to overcome environmental obstacles.[4]

The game also features a sandbox mode, which has elements of a god game. This mode allows players to experiment with different actions, such as modifying the terrain by adding water, rocks, and sand, changing the weather, and growing vegetation. The game's physics system and AI will respond to these decisions, allowing players the observe the impacts of these actions. Animals also interact with each other in the world, and their interactions will also modify the terrain and leave behind imprints. Players can also add items into the world to further disrupt the ecosystem. For instance, players can be use an anti-gravity capsule to levitate the animals near it.[5]

Development
Éric Chahi, the game's creative director.

The game was directed by Éric Chahi, who previously worked as the creator for Another World. After working on From Dust (2011), Chahi went to work with a volacno museum on Reunion Island to create a virual simulation for the island's Piton de la Fournaise. When the project was completed, Chahi developed ideas around the volcano work for a virtual reality game, where the landscape and creatures within it, represented by origami-like forms purported created out of the landscape of Big Data, with procedural behavior. Origami-like forms were chosen as they felt that theys fit naturally with VR's "low-poly designs". Chahi founded Pixel Reefs in 2016 and started the game's production with four people. The development for Paper Beast lasted for approximately four years, and as of 2019, the team was composed of a total of 16 members.[6][7]

Like Another World, the story was conveyed to the players non-verbally, and it relied entirely on players' interaction with the wildlife. According to Chahi, this approach "empowers the players’ imagination and can impact their emotions more directly".[8] Chahi added that the game was "poetic", and that the game world was created to showcase the "mircales of life". While the game utilizes Unity, the team created its own engine to make the game compactible with VR systems. The team also used the engine to create its game physics.[9] Japanese punk rock band TsuShiMaMiRe and Roly Porter were the composers for the game's original soundtrack.[10] The audio team, which included 3 full-time staff, recorded sounds inspired by "papers, cardboard, adhesive tape, wifi waves, radio noises and natural tones" to create audio that is both "natural" and "artificial" at the same time.[8]

Announced on April 10, 2019,[7] it was released for PlayStation VR on March 24, 2020.[11] The game was also released for HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Oculus Rift S, and Valve Index in July 2020.[12] Compared to the PSVR version, the PC version was released with improved visuals, a continuous movement option and a new species for the sandbox mode.[3]

Reception

Paper Beast received generally positive reviews upon release.[13] Christian Donlan from Eurogamer described it as "a transformative VR odyssey", praising the game's world and the wildlife.[14] Rick Lane from PC Gamer described the game as an unique experience but felt that the adventure mode was "constrained by the physical limits of its vignettes".[15]

References
  1. Ashworth, Mack (December 10, 2019). "Paper Beast release date period confirmed, coming to PSVR next year". Game Revolution. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  2. Devore, Jordon (September 3, 2020). "It's a busy month, but Paper Beast looks like a gem for PSV". Destructoid. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  3. Clayton, Natelie (July 25, 2020). "Paper Beast's folded VR ecosystem is out now". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  4. "Paper Beast is coming to PC VR on 24th July". Gamasutra. July 15, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  5. Chahi, Eric (February 11, 2020). "Create Your Own Universe with Paper Beast's Sandbox Mode". PlayStation Blog. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  6. Vincent, Brittany (April 10, 2019). "'Out of This World' Developer Reveals 'Paper Beast' for PSVR". Variety. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  7. Plunkett, Luke (April 10, 2019). "Another World Creator Éric Chahi Is Back With A PS4 VR Game". Kotaku. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  8. "Explore the Wild Side of Data in 'Paper Beast,' Available Now on the Oculus Rift Platform". Oculus. July 24, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  9. Maher, Cian (September 16, 2020). "Paper Beast is a VR game that turns big data into a peaceful, ethereal world". The Verge. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  10. Romano, Sal (June 8, 2020). "Paper Beast coming to PC this summer". Gematsu. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  11. Romano, Sal (March 9, 2020). "Paper Beast launches March 24". Gematsu. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  12. Wales, Matt (June 9, 2020). "Another World creator's surreal VR ecosystem sim Paper Beast coming to PC this summer". Eurogamer. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  13. "Paper Beasts for PlayStation 4 reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  14. Donlan, Christian (April 6, 2020). "Paper Beast review: a transformative VR odyssey". Eurogamer. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  15. Lane, Rick (August 5, 2020). "Paper Beast review". PC Gamer. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
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