Video Goes Volumetric: Step Inside Henry Stauf’s Mansion in ‘The 7th Guest VR’

It’s been 30 years since The 7th Guest originally launched, helping to usher in a new era of CD-ROM gaming. So it seems only fitting that Vertigo Games is releasing The 7th Guest VR in Meta Quest 3’s launch window. While the original remains a stellar example of full-motion video (FMV) games, Vertigo’s take returns to Henry Stauf’s mansion and breathes new life into it through the use of volumetric video capture. Starting now, players can step inside the gameworld like never before on Quest 2, 3, and Pro.

Whether you played it in the ’90s or are new to the cult classic, The 7th Guest VR has puzzles, atmosphere, and mystery in spades. The plot goes a little something like this: Six guests have been invited to the home of wealthy recluse and toymaker Henry Stauf—but something sinister is at play. As you explore the eerie mansion, you’ll face an increasingly challenging series of puzzles, unlocking new rooms and uncovering hidden secrets—all while trying to keep your wits about you. Every shadow, creak, and flickering light adds to the tension and underscores the game’s quintessential questions: Who is the seventh guest? What does Henry want with them? And who will live to tell the tale?

We sat down with Game Director Paul van der Meer from Vertigo Games to learn more.

Paul van der Meer: Firstly, thank you for having me on your blog. We’re really excited to launch The 7th Guest VR—it’s been an honor to work on such a prestigious title with the cult following it has. As for myself, I’ve been active in the game industry for a little over 15 years now... sheesh, that long already?! I started at Vertigo Games as game designer on Skyworld about seven years ago and have since then worked on the Arizona Sunshine Quest port and free-roam Arcade levels and After the Fall. It’s been an amazing trip so far as VR has always been this exciting field for me. And it did not disappoint.

PvdM: What was kinda interesting is that we originally had the idea to start production years ago, but our focus moved to After the Fall following the immense success of Arizona Sunshine.

When that started to wind down, I sort of kitbashed a demo together in a few evenings, copied the design of one of the original puzzles, installed it on my headset, and gave it to our CEO saying, “Here, remember that 7th Guest idea? Play this.“ He put it on and immediately responded with, “Yes, let’s do it—right now!” Then things started rolling.

If we would have stuck to our earlier timeline it’s unlikely we could have launched on standalone at all, so we got lucky there.

We’ve been in production for almost three years now, although the first few months it was just a one-man band. Then we got a small team together to do a demo room (the luxurious Library). But things really started to ramp up in 2022 as the team grew internally and we started to work together with the dedicated developers at Exkee in Marseille.

PvdM: The response has been overwhelming, and it’s been a joy to see people so excited for our VR re-imagining. We knew the brand had a cult following, but we weren’t prepared for such positive sentiment and excitement from those who are new to the franchise also.

A puzzle game is a tricky thing to playtest. During our internal test sessions, sometimes players were just standing still looking at things for a whole minute. And we’re wondering, “Are they getting it? Are they having fun? Are they even still alive?” Then they go “Aha!” and we can relax again. If they’re taking the estimated time and had fun figuring things out, then we’re good.

For the volumetrics the response was very similar. People go “Oooh!” Get close, look from all angles, and then just accept it: Yep, those are people.

PvdM: Lots of nods to the original. We kept the story mostly intact, but we did rewrite everything. The same goes for the visuals. We stayed true to the atmosphere of the Stauf mansion, but we had to come up with a lot of detail that simply did not exist in the game in the ’90s.

We took our liberties with the puzzles and the layout of the house, just to make sure that the game isn’t stuck in the past but is the best we can make with current technology while taking full advantage of VR.

There’s a lot of new stuff to discover that still feels familiar. Atmosphere is very important to the franchise, and we think we’ve got it right.

PvdM: Well, there’s this brief summary you can download... I’m kidding. There’s no prior knowledge necessary. You might not realize what game this VR version is based on and miss some of the returning updated elements, but it won’t hinder you in any way—and with the added benefit that it’s all new to you. I envy new players in that way.

PvdM: Be very careful when you choose your props, clothing, and blocking. Intricate clothing patterns and lots of frills can work, but it will be harder to preserve those details. Ask many, many questions of the people running the capture facility. How about this ring? What about this hairstyle? What can be done is amazing, but there are limitations to be aware of going forward.

PvdM: First we looked to see if the original puzzles would translate well. And if not, we came up with something that would fit the theme of the room or of the character whose room it was. Then we thought about an interesting puzzle to solve and also if the interaction was interesting.

A relatively traditional puzzle can be fun due to the way VR allows you to manipulate it. At the same time, a very original puzzle where the interaction comes down to pushing a button again and again is not much fun in VR. Ideally you want to find something that is both original and fun to interact with.

PvdM: We worked with our longtime collaborator Jonathan van den Wijngaarden. We go way back. We both admire the original soundtrack by George “The Fat Man” Sanger, but we didn’t want to do a straight update to his tracks. Jonathan came up with a great balance of a layered jazzy soundtrack that can seamlessly loop while still containing cues of the original melodies that fans of the original will pick up on instantly.

Jonathan talked with George quite a bit, and I know Jonathan felt a huge relief when he played it back to him and got a big Texan thumbs up. We’re fans of the original, so we want to do it justice. There’s even a new performance by George on one of the tracks, so that was extra cool for us.

PvdM: I always liked the strange blend of the unnerving and the comical the original had. It was spooky, it was funny, even a bit sexy at times. It was just exciting. And the concept of a haunted mansion filled with puzzles is just timeless and works so well in VR where you have all the time and the possibility to investigate every beautifully rendered detail.

PvdM: We’ve got the opportunity to reimagine a classic game and got all the freedom to do so from Rob Landeros, the original designer. Internally people brought their A game. The game looks amazing, it sounds great, and the puzzles are fun. Our cooperation with Exkee went as if we’d been working together for years. The volumetric production at 4DR went smooth and was exhilarating. Arcturus greatly optimized the volumetric data to make it work on standalone devices. Sorry for all the name dropping, but I’m just very proud of what we all accomplished.

Finally, I just hope players will have fun with the game. That’s what we did it for: those little hairs that stand up on the back of your neck, or that moment of clarity where all the puzzle pieces fall into place.

Henry has opened his doors again, and everyone is invited.