The Solus Project (2016) is a sci-fi adventure-survival game from Grip Game and Hourences. Once only available for traditional monitors and PC VR headsets like Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, the game is now available starting today on the PlayStation Store for PlayStation VR and PS4 at $20.

The Solus Project started its tenure as a PC-only title on Steam Early Access, and while the blend of cinematic storytelling and survival initially met a mixed critical response, the developers Hourences and Grip Games went on to push an update that fixed bugs and critically implemented what they described at the time as “work in progress” VR support, including support for Rift and Vive.

Road to VR‘s Matthew Magee got a chance to review the game this time last year, saying at times he was “completely immersed in the illusion.”

Magee especially like the survival elements, which require you to find food, water and medical supplies as you burn through calories, H2O, and get injured from the alien terrain’s many perils. Featuring rain storms and meteor showers to keep you on your toes as you traverse the planet, your trusty AI balances out the danger with a chipper voice of reassurance.

The story, Magee says, can be a bit lacking however.

“As good as the setting is, the game does indulge itself with some clunky storytelling at times. At one early point your character delivers a monologue to impart some sudden realisation… except it’s not sudden, and you will have had this realisation yourself a good half an hour earlier. You are left to construct much of the backstory yourself, by observing your surroundings and reading crew logs conveniently strewn about the place. It’s good to know that even in the distant future humankind still write their logs on paper. Fireproof, crash proof, waterproof paper.”

Check out our full review here. Since it was reviewed while the game still featured experimental VR support, we weren’t able to give it a proper point-based ranking, but Magee contends The Solus Project is memorable, atmospheric, beautiful, and occasionally terrifying too. Although we didn’t clock gameplay, the developers say you should expect 15+ hours in VR to complete.

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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.
  • Jean-Sebastien Perron

    Played it yesterday on my Oculus : This is the “No Man’s Sky” you are looking for but much better. You can turn down the difficulty to 0% if you don’t want to be bothered with the survival part and just explore. Sean Murray you are an unambitious man, you could have taken it all, put the world to your knees by making NMS VR from day one and you did not. You will die of old age knowing that you are the biggest failure of the history of videogame and the biggest missed opportunity to define VR forever. The Solus Project will be remembered as the true defining moment in VR not your NMS.

    • Andrew Jakobs

      oh, thanx, I thought it was PSVR only for now.. Will check it out.
      I guess we’ll be seeing a lot of ‘stranded’ vr-games/experiences.. hehe..

    • Spam Box

      Wow, pretty harsh there mate…and no one is a bigger failure than derek smart, everyone knows that.

      • Suitch

        In this case, No Man’s Sky is being referenced in a positive light. No Man’s Sky might have disappointed a lot of people, but there is no denying how beautiful it would be in VR if implemented right.

  • ITALI-LORI-MONTI

    veramente soddisfatto di questo gioco!
    si,grafica ripetitiva e in certi aspetti poco curata ma ,grazie la VR,tutto diventa oro!
    voto 7.5

  • Hacker4748

    As stated in the original review ( https://www.roadtovr.com/the-solus-project-vr-review-htc-vive-oculus-rift-steamvr/ ), since the game relies a lot on jumping, crouching, crawling through caves, etc., it’s not always a pleasant experience in VR. OTOH, standing on an alien planet and watching two moons in the distance, man…