Titan Isles goals to make its mark with a brand new co-op VR motion journey, and we lately interviewed Psytec Video games to study extra.
Seven years on from Windlands 2, it has been over a month since Psytec lifted the curtain on Titan Isles, and you may see the parallels between them. Whether or not you are taking part in alone or in co-op with 4 individuals, each video games contain exploring a ruined world as you battle varied titans all through the marketing campaign. Just a few similarities, but there are key variations that distinguish these video games.
“Titan Isles is sort of a special recreation to the Windlands collection,” suggested Jon Hibbins, CEO of Psytec Video games, throughout an interview with UploadVR at Reboot Develop 2025.
Although he is actually pleased with what Psytec achieved with Windlands 2, Hibbins considers this the course he and the studio had been at all times heading in, describing the core gameplay as “not massively dissimilar” to Windlands. He is at all times wished to create a recreation that was “extra full on” with the motion that is “extra like a Returnal bullet hell sort recreation.”
Acknowledging there’s been a requirement for a Windlands 3 throughout the years, Psytec believes that would not have been the correct name.
“Windlands is rooted in calmness, even when it will get fairly intense. The music’s designed to be chill, the world is supposed to be lovely and serene. It felt fully unsuitable to take Windlands in a extra motion course and away from exploration, we didn’t need to smash the course of the Windlands IP. So, we made a brand new IP that gave us the liberty to suit the sport correctly round what our imaginative and prescient is, what video games we need to make as a studio.”
Hibbins famous his love of shooters and states there’s a variety of inspiration from this style in Titan Isles, which places it at odds with Windlands. He is additionally seeking to make video games that require fast second by second pondering with out this changing into a health exercise, an concept impressed by more difficult flatscreen titles like Elden Ring.
A core factor of Titan Isles’ gameplay are the 4 Exo Fits, every of which gives a novel traversal technique and its personal weapon that may’t be switched between fits. Storm is “principally Iron Man”, Blink has a triple bounce, Hunter makes use of grappling hooks, whereas Goliath comes with a cannon and protect. Psytec thought of a “combine and match” method to talents and weapons, however this concept was dropped.
“There was some extent within the growth cycle the place we wished to allow you to use any weapon, any locomotion type, combine and match various things to make a go well with that you would exit and discover with. However with recreation design, should you trim it down and make it play very well, you do not find yourself with a large number. So we ended up implementing 4 particular fits.”
Hibbins defined the staff discovered so much from Windlands 2 right here and that Titan Isles has a go well with that is similar to the older recreation’s character with enhancements. Every go well with additionally comes with 15 talent upgrades, providing talents like rising an arrow’s pace.
“You principally hook something in Titan Isles on that character, which makes it so much simpler, but additionally it is a a lot quicker motion recreation. Due to the bullet hell, you want to have the ability to hook all the things as a result of you have not received time to assume.”
Titan Isles is presently confirmed for Quest and PC VR, and Psytec beforehand prevented committing to different platforms as a result of “technical and logistical” hurdles. Even nonetheless, can we ultimately anticipate a PlayStation VR2 version?
“We love PlayStation VR2,” Hibbins instructed me, and it isn’t being dominated out. Nevertheless, the PS VR2 port for Windlands 2 that launched final July hasn’t been worthwhile but.
“Windlands 2 did not do very properly on PlayStation VR2. It was late within the cycle which did not assist, the sport’s been out elsewhere since 2018, and we have not but recouped the price of that port.”
Given the sport’s heavy deal with co-op, did Psytec have a look at going free-to-play given the mannequin’s rising prevalence on Quest? This was thought of and whereas the studio will not rule out doing free-to-play on future initiatives, making Titan Isles a paid recreation was in the end the higher method.
“[Free-to-play] can begin to smash the standard of the sport if it isn’t finished properly. We consider it is extra vital to have a very good high quality recreation that you just pay for as soon as and you may play eternally. For Titan Isles, free-to-play did not really feel proper.”
Titan Isles will launch later this 12 months on Steam and the Meta Quest platform.
