If you’re looking for something new to play, why not revisit a game you’ve already enjoyed? We check out new DLC and updates for Walkabout Mini Golf, Planet Zoo, Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters and Population: One.
Walkabout Mini Golf – Myst DLC review (Quest)
It’s been a good year for one of our VR favorites, Walkabout Mini Golf. After first releasing a few post-launch DLC packs themed around ancient wonders/lost cities, they ventured into licensed content with a nice Labyrinth-themed set of levels, and now they’re doing it again with the release of Myst-themed pack. With another 36 holes to play and an insanely low price point, it’s another easy purchase for fans of the game.
We looked into the Myst expansion earlier when we did a developer interview on the then-announced expansion., but hadn’t gone hands on with it until it released a few weeks ago. The end result was worth the wait, because every second where you take a moment to look around you you’ll consider yourself to be on the legendary island you got to know back in the 1990s, as the developers have made sure to mimic art style of the earlier renditions of Myst.
More recent versions of Myst have more realistic visuals and lighting effects, but revisiting in Walkabout Mini Golf feels more like a throwback to the early days of the franchise, complete with locations and puzzle scenes that look familiar even when they’re not quite the same. And if you like questing and exploring, then this new expansion has a new set of craftily hidden marbles for you to find as well – they even seem extra tricky this time, in line with the puzzle origins of Myst perhaps.
Planet Zoo – Grasslands DLC review (PC)
Frontier’s been making a habit of producing content-rich expansions lately. After the most recent Jurassic World Evolution 2 expansion, they’re now giving Planet Zoo the same treatment with the freshly released Grasslands pack, which like the earlier Wetlands pack focuses on a specific habitat type that animals can call home.
This particular expansion contains an impressive eight new animals, and although some feel like variations of animals we’ve seen before (which feels inevitable at this point, with over 150 animals) there are some interesting new ones as well – the nine-banded armadillo being our favorite, followed by the emu and the red-necked wallaby. Also featured are new hyena, wolf and wildebeest variations, as well as a new wild cat – the caracal.
One of the nicest new animal additions, however, comes in the shape of an animal/exhibit hybrid, as you can now add a walkthrough butterfly exhibit with five different butterfly types. It’s the only the multispecies exhibit in the game, and as such feels like something quite different – they’ll even interact with guests by landing on them.
And because Grasslands is more than an animal pack, it also features a new mini-campaign, in which you step in when socialite Tiffany Summers needs some serious help in caring for the animals living at her estate in Argentina. It’s a playful kind of experience in a way, but a good introduction to the new animals that are featured here.
Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters – Duty Eternal DLC review (PC)
When Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters launched back in May, we really enjoyed what it had to offer strategy fans. And those not busy playing Darktide this month have more content for the game to look forward to, as the Duty Eternal DLC brings new missions and a new class into the fray.
Half a year post-launch, Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters is still an extremely challenging game, making your Knights feel less powerful than you thought they were prior to playing Daemonhunters. Duty Eternal evens the odds a little, and does so by introducing the Venerable Dreadnought. Extremely powerful almost to the point of feeling overpowered, they almost instantly turn the tide of battle in your favor once you gain access to them.
The problem? That doesn’t happen all that often, as the Dreadnought units feel like they’re reserved for a few special instances only. Those are the highlights of Duty Eternal and they’re as awesome with a flamethrower as they are with their fists, but their absence elsewhere only makes your existing units feel less powerful than they already did – which is also true for the Techmarine, another new unit whose greatest asset is the ability to repair the Dreadnought mid-battle.
And if that makes it feel like you get limited use out of the unit, then that’s especially true for the Gladius, the last major new unit in Duty Eternal. Although useful (it’s a second ship you can send out on missions that will auto-resolve), it doesn’t unlock until you complete the included missions, making Duty Eternal feel like it supplies you with a toybox full of goodies, but without a playroom to use them in.
Population: One gets a Sandbox Update
In the world of VR, it’s rare for a multiplayer game to keep and maintain an active online player base. Population: One has done quite well in this regard, as one of the top multiplayer titles on the Quest. The recently released sandbox update looks to add even more lasting appeal to the game, with the addition of tools to create and share user generated content.
Although developer BigBoxVR launched the new update with an “early access” disclaimer, what’s there is already impressive, letting players craft their own experiences but also adding features to help you move towards and in between the creations of others. You can choose to create your own stuff, but there’s also the option to just dive into what’s currently popular with others. Creation is made easier thanks to (optional) snapping features that make sure that objects snap into place, and there’s a good range of building blocks and tools at your disposal as well. Some act as furnishings, while others have functional properties that tie into the gameplay, like jump pads. Because it’s been such a busy season we’ve so far mainly been playing with the creations of others, but we can’t wait to explore more of what this game-changing update has to offer.
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