Pixel Gear

This shooter could've been something really special, but it ends way too quickly to be more than a glorified demo. On the surface, it's got the makings of a great, fun VR experience. The game is visually impressive, with a distinct retro flavor and pixelated style that sets it apart from other games in the genre. The controls feel surprisingly natural and intuitive for a shooter. Outside of the occasional calibration issue, it's easy and comfortable to accurately aim and shoot at targets. It's hard to deny that Pixel Gear has all the makings of a great shooter -- for about 20 to 30 minutes. After that, everything just falls apart.

For starters, Pixel Gear is repetitive to a fault. Eventually, you stop feeling surprised by anything the game throws at you, and you just feel like you're going through the motions. Point, shoot. Point, shoot. Admittedly, the repetition would be more frustrating if you had to deal with it for any real length of time. There's no real time for that, though, as there are only six stages total in the game. These aren't particularly long stages either. You just fend off a few waves of enemies, fight a boss, wash, rinse, and repeat. If the game were any shorter, it would feel like a demo. In fact, as it stands, it almost feels like it's an episodic game. Unfortunately, that's not the case. Pixel Gear is a basic score-rush game given a VR coat of paint. With no real plot and no depth, it ends up feeling like an anemic version of something that had the potential to be amazing.