‘INVERSE’ Brings Asymmetric 4v1 Horror Home to Meta Quest 2 + Pro
If there’s one place where VR truly shines, it’s horror. When you’re fully immersed in the game world, the tension is palpable, the stakes feel higher, and the jump scares are, well, jumpier. So imagine our excitement when we heard that location-based entertainment (LBE) experts MassVR were getting into the home VR market with an asymmetrical 4v1 horror game. Previously available in early access on App Lab, INVERSE lets you play co-op as the Agents working together to restore power to the control terminals, unlock the weapons arsenal, and go on the offensive—or play solo as the Nul monster, corrupting and incapacitating anyone you can find as you power up your attacks, destroy locked doors, and avoid activated trap mines. And it’s available now on Meta Quest 2 and Pro for $29.99 USD.
We sat down with MassVR CEO Chris Lai and Operations Manager Kendall Roy to learn more.
Kendall Roy: Our experience in location-based VR gaming was invaluable in shaping MassVR’s identity and goals as a company. Our development offices were based in the same location as our LBE arena, so we could hear customers’ reactions while we were at our desks working on the next game. It was really rewarding to connect with our community IRL and see people having fun with friends, family, and strangers. There were a lot of unique challenges that came with designing games for free-roam playspaces, but we pushed our creative and technical boundaries and created games we are immensely proud of that focused on multiplayer engagement, next-level immersion, and high-fidelity graphics. We made the decision to focus our team on development for home VR platforms and are using the same design pillars to push the standard of what we can deliver to this larger audience.
Chris Lai: One of the games we developed for our LBE arenas was an 8v8 asymmetrical horror game, Hallow Realm. This was something completely different from our first title, VR Champions (a 4v4 FPS), but it taught us something really important: Scaring your friends in VR is fun! We figured it would also be fun at home, too, so we experimented and started changing mechanics to find what works in a smaller playspace with limited movement.
KR: Our specialty is in VR gaming, so when we start a new project, it will always focus on what’s fun and engaging to play in VR. This is a great place to be as a development studio right now, especially with so many major tech companies committing to the next generation of HMDs. INVERSE in particular makes sense for VR as horror is just so compelling when you can fully immerse yourself in it. We’re always looking for opportunities to engage gamers in novel and unique ways, and that may lead to some interesting mediums for our future projects, but for now we’re excited to continue to work on VR and AR games.
CL: With horror in particular, there are different levels that can make really memorable experiences. There are a lot of games that execute jump scares well and they can be fun, but to build something atmospheric in VR, that is full of tension, that is what we find makes horror in VR truly thrilling.
KR: I really love the asymmetric gameplay. Being able to play the game with a completely different strategy as the Nul is just so fun to me.
CL: My favorite part is actually being able to climb around and lurk as the Nul. I’m like the fly on the wall, watching the players below me, and can just bide my time and then pounce!
CL: I have a long history in game development. I started my first studio in college at University of Illinois and have carried that passion with me my whole life. I founded MassVR in 2017 and opened our first location-based facility to the public in 2018. I wanted to build a team of talented, passionate developers who are willing to take risks, and I’m happy to say our team is just that. What’s drawn me to VR is that it’s an active experience. I’m excited that VR gives people the chance to play games without being too sedentary. I hope the next generations of headsets continue to evolve into more active, full-body experiences.
KR: I started with MassVR in 2018, focusing on the business and operations of our brick-and-mortar locations. Over time, I naturally became a little more knowledgeable and involved with the game development process, focusing especially on the user experience. There’s a lot to learn, and I’ve only scratched the surface, but I like to think that I provide a unique perspective given my experience in customer service and operations.
KR: Our community response has been overwhelmingly great so far. We had a great community within our location-based operations, so we have a few “Day One fans,” but this is our first project released to the general public. We’ve been running external playtest sessions for about nine months, and not only has that helped us with balance and polish, but we’ve also gotten some great features and ideas from our early players. Sometimes as devs you don’t realize how close you are to a project, so having feedback from someone who is completely green to the project can be a real eye-opening experience. Multiplayer games live and die by the number of active users, so starting to build our community early has been key to us making sure this is something that will bring people back to their headset consistently.
KR: We have been working on INVERSE for about 22 months from the day we created the project repo to launch. We’re used to quick development cycles and rapid prototyping, which has been especially critical for us because sometimes there’s a difference between what you think will be cool and fun in VR and what is actually fun.
CL: There was a lot of work needed to transition from what we were developing on the backpack computers for LBE to developing for any standalone headset on the market right now. We had to limit things like dynamic lighting to maintain the standard of visual fidelity we wanted to achieve. Features like foveated rendering and Application SpaceWarp have been critical in developing for the mobile chipset. We also made the decision to not do peer-to-peer hosting and to have dedicated servers to lift a lot of the computing requirements off the headset.
CL: Take it in small bites because developing for VR is very different than for PC or other platforms. What sounds good on paper might not work or, more importantly, it might not be fun. Don’t be stuck on a rigid design doc—let it be a place to get started and let your project evolve naturally. That’s the beauty of developing in VR: We get to pioneer and discover things that are fun only in VR.
KR: We’re excited to continue to expand on INVERSE. We have plans for additional content and DLCs that will help expand the life and lore of INVERSE and keep the community interested. We’re also excited to start working on the next game and try something completely different!
