The Gallery (formerly The Gallery: Six Elements) is an episodic virtual reality video game developed and published by Cloudhead Games for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift with Oculus Touch. The game uses the Unity game engine, and was inspired by 80s fantasy adventures like The Goonies and The Dark Crystal.[1]
| The Gallery (video game) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Cloudhead Games |
| Publisher(s) | Cloudhead Games |
| Composer(s) | Jeremy Soule |
| Engine | Unity 5 |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 |
| Release | Episode 1
|
| Genre(s) | Adventure, Puzzle |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Development
editThe game had a successful Kickstarter campaign and raised about $85,000.[2] In August 2015, the game dropped the "Six Elements" subtitle in favor of subtitles for each episode.[3] At least three episodes are planned.[4]
Ports to the Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR are currently in development.[5]
Call of the Starseed
editAn early iteration of Call of the Starseed (then "The Six Elements") was shown alongside the public reveal of SteamVR at GDC 2015.[6] After launching alongside the HTC Vive in April 2016, Call of the Starseed was bundled with the headset from August 2016 until April 2017.[7] Call of the Starseed was again shown at the reveal of the SteamVR "Knuckles" controllers at Steam Dev Days 2016.[8]
Heart of the Emberstone
editThe second episode, Heart of the Emberstone, released on October 18, 2017 for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift with Oculus Touch. The release came after multiple delays.[9][10] A PSVR port is also announced as planned.[11]
Episode 3
editWhile a third episode was originally planned, there was nothing under development as of December, 2020. A third episode is contingent on substantial growth in the virtual reality market as stated by the developer in a Reddit AMA: "I know there's a bunch of us in the studio that would love to close out the trilogy, but we really want it to be grand. If VR tips over and mainstream adoption becomes sustainable for big games like The Gallery, I think an EP3 could be on the table for the future."[12]
Release and reception
edit| Game | Metacritic |
|---|---|
| Call of the Starseed | 79/100[13] |
| Heart of the Emberstone | 86/100[14] |
Call of the Starseed received critical acclaim, with TIME including it in its "best 5 HTC Vive launch games." As of December 2016, the game remains the third highest rated HTC Vive game across VR game reviewers.[15]
Heart of the Emberstone also received player and critical acclaim, with VR news outlet Road to VR calling it "longer, stronger, and more immersive" than the first episode.[16]
References
edit- ^ "The Gallery – EP1: Call Of The Starseed review – virtual reality adventure". metro.co.uk. 18 April 2016. Retrieved 2016-07-08.
- ^ "The Gallery: Six Elements by CloudHead Games — Kickstarter". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
- ^ "New Name, Same Game, Blink & Pax". Kickstarter.com. Retrieved 2016-07-08.
- ^ "Heart of the Emberstone FAQ: Have a Question? Start Here!". Steam. Retrieved 2017-10-24.
- ^ "The Gallery and More Confirmed for Oculus Touch in New Look". vrfocus.com. Retrieved 2016-07-08.
- ^ "The Gallery to be Demo'd on Steam VR at GDC "You will not believe this tech"". roadtovr.com. March 2015. Retrieved 2017-10-24.
- ^ "Introducing the New Vive Content Bundle!". HTC Vive. 12 August 2016. Retrieved 2017-10-24.
- ^ "Valve Reveals New Steam VR Controller Prototypes At Steam Dev Days". uploadvr.com. 12 October 2016. Retrieved 2017-10-24.
- ^ "'Official Release Date Announced For The Gallery – Episode 2: Heart Of The Emberstone". vrfocus.com. Retrieved 2017-10-24.
- ^ "Cloudhead Games Delays 'Heart Of The Emberstone' To September". Toms Hardware. Retrieved 2017-10-24.
- ^ "'The Gallery: Heart of the Emberstone' Coming to PSVR, Ep. 1 Under Consideration". roadtovr.com. 28 September 2017. Retrieved 2017-10-24.
- ^ "We're Cloudhead Games, the VR studio behind Pistol Whip, ask us anything!". Reddit. 2020-12-10. Retrieved 2021-06-27.
- ^ "The Gallery - Episode 1: Call of the Starseed for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved December 3, 2017.
- ^ "The Gallery - Episode 2: Heart of the Emberstone for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved December 3, 2017.
- ^ "HTC VIVE - TOP GAMES". vrgamecritic. Retrieved 2016-07-26.
- ^ "'The Gallery – Ep. 2 : Heart of the Emberstone' Review". roadtovr.com. 19 October 2017. Retrieved 2017-10-24.