#THE CLIMB VR STATUSES HOW TO#
#THE CLIMB VR STATUSES SERIES#

The Climb 2 is also a surprisingly capable workout, especially if you put weights on your wrists.

#THE CLIMB VR STATUSES SERIES#

But getting to the very top of each challenge rewards you with an amazing view, and I often find myself safe somewhere halfway up the mountain or building, hanging on for dear life with both hands, just looking around and enjoying the danger and solitude, two feelings that The Climb series helped me realize are often just two sides of the same coin. Looking down is a bad idea if you’re scared of heights, and if you want to avoid as much vertigo as possible, the game is still playable by focusing only on the climbing surface directly ahead of you and your next move. Which is fine, because the view is almost always spectacular. It’s just you, whatever you’re trying to climb, and the view. When you fail, you likewise have no one else to blame. While the risk of doing this sort of thing in real life seems bonkers to me, The Climb 2 showed me a bit of what I imagine to be the draw of the sport: When you succeed, you have no one to thank but yourself.

#THE CLIMB VR STATUSES HOW TO#

Learning how to move at the correct cadence, where you’re always a few steps ahead of your stamina gauge without being reckless about your choices, is a joy, and brings with it that coveted state of flow where time and “real life” disappear. Watching your stamina knowing where to go next learning how to spot shortcuts, branching paths, or secrets - all of that is key to doing your best, but you’ll have to keep moving. But putting the effort in is worth it if you’re chasing high scores and low completion time.įinding your rhythm in the climb is crucial if you’re hoping to do either, because the only thing that will kill you as often as rushing a climb is being indecisive. This half-grip technique requires a fair amount of muscle memory to get right if you don’t want to be looking at the indicator on your hands the entire time.

You replenish your supply by holding on with two hands by making sure you keep your hands chalked, which entails shaking the controller with the right button held down or by learning how to only press down on the grip button halfway. Hanging on with only one hand takes away stamina, though, and you also fall if you run out of it. I sometimes had to figure out where I needed to go next and reach out as far as I could with one hand, getting ready to grab on, while holding onto my current perch with the other hand before taking the jump. You’ll want to practice which is which, to avoid my first hour of unexpectedly flinging myself into oblivion when I thought I was just looking for the next step. If you want to see the very best of the best for your platform(s) of choice, check out Polygon Essentials. When we award a game the Polygon Recommends badge, it’s because we believe the title is uniquely thought-provoking, entertaining, inventive or fun - and worth fitting into your schedule. Polygon Recommends is our way of endorsing our favorite games.

That calm from being so far up, and so far away from other people and the distractions of modern life, combined with the sweat-inducing fear of falling, creates an appealing escape if you have the stomach for it. During one particularly surprising moment, I found myself face to face with a rattlesnake, which promptly bit me, causing me to lose my grip and fall to my virtual death. The first game focused on natural features located in a mostly static environment, but the sequel introduces cityscapes and livens up the experience with interactive animals and other distractions, surprises, or delights. The Climb 2 on Oculus Quest 2 is Crytek’s second pass at bringing solo climbing to virtual reality, and it’s a doozy. Otherwise, the drop I’m trying to avoid looking at will become a bigger problem than just something to fear. From the rapidly depleting stamina bar on my wrist, though, I know I need to move, and move soon. It’s quiet on the side of the mountain, and I’m alone.

The climb vr statuses