Archiact, the studio behind VR games Evasion (2018) and Waddle Home (2016), are diving into new territory soon with an upcoming VR experience that promises to give claustrophobics and thalassophobics (people afraid of open bodies of water) a shared reason to never put on a VR headset ever again.
Called FREEDIVER: Triton Down, the underwater adventure is said to make use of ‘gesture-driven’ movement, something Archiact maintains will be an intuitive and immersive swimming and diving mechanic in VR.
The game is said to arrive on Steam and the Oculus Store sometime in May 2019.
Like Subnautica (2018), Freediver makes heavy use of the much beloved (and equally maligned) limited breathing mechanic, something that will no doubt place pressure on players as they try to solve the world’s interactive puzzles. These, Archiact says, require players to stay calm, think fast, and use your ever-evolving environment to escape the guts of the ship.
Here’s Archiact’s description of Freediver:
A submersive adventure with a mysterious edge, FREEDIVER: Triton Down plunges players into a capsizing research ship, the R.S.V Triton, where survival means outmaneuvering the water’s lethal surge. As freediver Ren Tanaka, players must navigate a sinking ship, overcome underwater chaos, and unlock their path to the surface, all while protecting their most precious resource: the breath in their lungs.
The studio is couching it as a fully-interactive single-player experience, which could mean it’ll be on the shorter end of the spectrum versus a full-length game.
It’s going to be priced at $9 when its released in May on Steam and the Oculus Store. The exact release day isn’t certain yet, but we’ll update as soon as we know more.
In the meantime, you check out the 360 trailer below:
