Stress Level Zero’s ‘Boneworks’ to Launch in December, New Gameplay Video Here

By
Scott Hayden
-
39

Boneworks, Stress Level Zero’s upcoming physics-based shooter, now has an official release date, which was revealed in a brand new gameplay video that shows off more of its creepy, but oddly familiar atmosphere.

The game is slated to launch on December 10th, arriving via Steam with support for Vive, Rift, Index and Windows VR headsets.

In the new gameplay video, we get a good look at the sort of resourceful looting you’ll have to do in order to gather weapons and ammo, forcing you to not only keep your eyes open, but to experiment with gadgets such as industrial pallet lifters.

Almost as a love letter to the Half-Life franchise, the game’s last gameplay video in April revealed some very headcrab-like robots, and while agile and deadly, they didn’t really hit on the true creep-factor that the newly revealed zombie-esque creatures do in the new video.

Image courtesy Stress Level Zero

Are they experiments gone wrong? Whatever they are, their vector-style skin (armor?) and glowing red spots that appear when you damage them makes for an interesting diversion from standard zombie fare—especially because you can go full melee and break improvised weapons over their heads, eg. an old CRT monitor.

In the previous gameplay video, Stress Level Zero’s Brandon Laatsch mentioned that Boneworks is essentially based on a static set of physics-based rules which gives players the freedom to tackle both puzzles and combat in their own way—the polar opposite of scripted, and therefore pre-ordained actions.

Here’s how the studio describes it:

Boneworks is an experimental VR physics action adventure game coming to you on December 10th! Witness the events that unravel after Monogon’s MythOS locks down after an unexpected Void breach. Then, play for endless hours with a physics sandbox mode, battle arena, and story replays for additional powerful items.

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Scott Hayden
Well before the first modern XR products hit the market, Scott recognized the potential of the technology and set out to understand and document its growth. He has been professionally reporting on the space for nearly a decade as Editor at Road to VR, authoring more than 4,000 articles on the topic. Scott brings that seasoned insight to his reporting from major industry events across the globe.
  • bluesdomo

    rip my cpu

  • Trenix

    What is the hype about within this game? It offers nothing new.

    • Justos

      it makes you FEEL like an action movie star

      • namekuseijin

        Blood and Truth in a nutshell.

    • DanDei

      Name another VR game with a full physics interaction with the environment where you can grab and move and manipulate everything!

      • Skyrim, The Forest. Fallout.

        • Greyl

          Literally none of those games let you do the level of interaction Boneworks does, nor offer the same realistic level of gun combat.

          • Trenix

            Pavlov is pretty realistic and Onward goes a bit further. Boneworks looks basic compared to those two examples.

          • Greyl

            Neither of those games lets you break and manipulate objects strewn about the environment, and lets you use them for puzzle solving or as weapons like Boneworks does. Also, neither game has the same level of compelling single player mode. Great games in their own right, though; better shooters than the overrated ones on PSVR.

          • Trenix

            Not interested in puzzles. Also what does “break and manipulate objects” mean to you? Because honestly, it sounds like something you can even do in job simulator, which has been out for quite some time. Boneworks provides nothing new and I’m sure it appears like a demo, because the game was probably designed as one in the beginning. As they fleshed it out they probably just put together some puzzles, story, and then you guys act like it’s some sort of masterpiece.

            Now there is nothing wrong with any of that, but the hype is too heavy for something that doesn’t offer that much. The environment is also beyond unappealing. As people are saying, it’s more of a tech demo of what games are capable of doing in VR. It’s not going to be anywhere near the polish and depth of an actual game, not even remotely close to portal.

          • Greyl

            You can keep trying to name games which also do one of the things Boneworks does, but you can’t name a game which does them all in one package. That’s the flaw with your argument.

            You’re not some college aged budding game developer, by any chance? Your posts reek of the typical envious game developer whose salty that a dev did something first before he could. It’s a classic shitpost style, that’s nothing new.

          • Trenix

            So a Jack of all trades, but master of none. Also no, I used to make game mods and made a few games for myself. Unfortunately, it’s just not something I wanted to do, but that doesn’t mean I couldn’t do it. If I really wanted to go into game development, I could. I can do many things, everyone can. Yet as you get older, you begin to realize the actual cost of time. Time is more value than money.

            Anyway, this has just derailed into something else. The point I’m making is that the game offers nothing new and I just said, it doesn’t do anything better than other games currently available. Just another letdown.

          • Monkey

            Going with your arguments… Half Life 2 also offered nothing new.

          • Trenix

            You’d be right.

          • Greyl

            Ah, so you’re that archetype; the older guy, who regrets not pursuing game development in his youth, and now gets defensive/salty as a coping mechanism when he sees games which do similar ideas he thought about years ago.

          • Trenix

            You got me! No actually I focused on areas of my life that actually mattered outside of gaming. You know, something that pays the bills and actually pushes people together rather than separate families. I have some big goals up my sleeve and trust me, I mastered many skills to eventually have it all pay off. As I mentioned, time is a valuable resource, so I am doing what it takes to use it efficiently and effectively.

            Personally I don’t care what the gaming industry does. If I wanted to make something better, I would. For all you know, eventually I will. But again, we’re talking way beyond what we initially started with. The game offers nothing new, it’s just all marketing. Change my mind.

          • Greyl

            I at least got you to acknowledge that the game does multiple things in one package, regardless of whether you think it will be a ‘jack of all trades, master of none’. Neither of us can confirm of deny that at this point, since we haven’t played the game.

        • gothicvillas

          Skyrim VR has awful clipping. Not saying its a bad game, but oh boy the physics and clipping in Skyrim are god awful

        • 3872Orcs

          Uh… are you serious? Those games are the worst examples of physics interactions in VR. They are nothing like what we see in Boneworks. A much better example would be Blade and Sorcery.

      • Trenix

        Blade and Sorcery, which seems to do it better. If I wanted a shooter, I’d play Pavlov, which also does it better. The animations of boneworks look weird compared to the two games that I’ve just mentioned. I’m sure there are more games to mention, but I’m mentioning the games at the top. So what does this game offer? A story? Puzzles? Have that already too, besides this setting is boring and unappealing.

        • namekuseijin

          B&S is such crappy ragdoll shredding simulator without any actual challenge or semblance of a real game…

          • Trenix

            It’s an early access game made by a single developer with little to no investment in marketing. For what it was, to what it is now, and the fact that there is only a single developer, it’s a pretty amazing game. It’s also on the top charts for sales and users playing for a reason. I don’t even think that you know what you’re even talking about. I can only see this game moving forward.

          • namekuseijin

            single developer or not, other single developers have released actual games with actual gameplay and actual challenge. This is just shredding ragdolls for free

    • 3872Orcs

      As already said it offers physics interaction with the environment that adds a huge amount of replayability and ways to solve everything from puzzles to how you manipulate and navigate the environment, very few games does this, and no shooters I can think of in VR.

      It’s also a game with some similarities to Half Life and Portal, I think a huge number of players want that, myself included. There’s also the close link to Valve here where the developers of both companies play each others stuff and visit each other regularly.

      That said some of the gameplay videos has also been made in collaboration with the Node Youtube channel that has millions of followers. They are very crafty content developers. With marketing like that the hype is totally understandable.

      But first and foremost I think the developers are very talented with lots of expertise and a history of innovating in VR. They’ve made several VR games up until now. They know their stuff.

    • That’s what I’ve been saying! It’s sort of a watered down Half-Life game, but without any of the personality. They are simply riding a hype-train fueled by their YouTube channel, which is itself, nothing special. Nothing about any of this is bad, but it’s certainly not revolutionary.

  • Miganarchine Migandi

    No story? NPC’s Vertex look is an odd pick for enemies, looks very much like Superhot!

    • 3872Orcs

      There is a story here and the vertex type enemies are part of it. I think my favorite enemy so far is the VR HMD headcrabs trying to immerse you further in the VR environment your in as part of the story. That is such a perfect throwback to Half Life and it looks like a very fun enemy type to interact with.

  • More a gameplay video than a trailer… but it is overly cool!!!

  • Adrian Meredith

    So hyped for this but that was a pretty terrible trailer not much happens till the end.
    Waddup son!

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  • gothicvillas

    I thought there will be a story?

  • JesperL

    Is this more than just a POC?
    It looks more like an “engine to make VR games in” – than an actual game?
    Like a glorified demo for VR.

    I can see why it might appeal to some, to engage with everything.
    But it looks empty, half finished and just boring.
    On the content side? – Looks stripped, like there is only the most raw and nessesary objects.
    Even if there is a story, how can this naked game feel immersive?

    It looks “interesting” at most, and I dont get the hype.
    I think the hype is for what would be possible with this system.
    But that possibility needs to be packaged into an appealing story, environment and gameplay. It does not look like much to me – sorry.

  • paratay

    BORING! they did not re-write the Physics Engine, still using PhysX which has MAJOR issues in Collisions, specifically when used in VR. Objects still penetrate each other, show me what happens when you get a long stick and try walking through a door where the stick is larger then the door and is horizontal, will FAIL!

    • TJ Studio

      Are you saying you want this game to flop miserably for some reason?

    • Ellie 187

      I don’t understand the hate this title is getting… I still enjoy blade and sorcery (loading in lightsabers is pretty epic), so these type of physics games are fun in VR

      • namekuseijin

        I like good physics is VR. but some VR devs seem too much obsessed with physics in detriment of gameplay… that’s why most of such games are wonderful experiences, but very lame games

  • antonio mora

    Another VR day another VR shooter.