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Star Wars: Vader Immortal Episode 1 only just came out for the Oculus Rift and Oculus Quest in May, but the second episode appears to be not too far behind that release. Coinciding with the launch of Oculus’ two latest headsets, Vader Immortal Episode 1 had Star Wars fans excited for months since its original announcement last year at Oculus’ annual Connect conference. We’ll be finding out the details at the “Step Inside ILMxLAB’s Star Wars Stories” panel, which starts at 4:00 pm today at the 2019 San Diego Comic Con. The developers will also be giving away some sweet posters of game characters in the Vader Immortal story, so those that can attend will be in for a real treat.
Vader Immortal has received universal praise for being an excellent first entry into a new trilogy of interactive story-based VR experiences. While the first episode certainly was a video game and had plenty of sequences that were full-out battles, the focus on Vader and the story behind the Sith Lord took more of a priority in the first episode than we had expected from the teasers leading up to it.
The biggest criticism most seem to have for the first episode is that it’s quite short. We were able to complete it in just over 30 minutes in the first run, and while there are plenty of little details to catch the second time around, it’s a linear story with a specific ending. It’s a bit short for the $9.99 entry fee, but it’s a unique experience that will thrill any fan of Star Wars who wants to hold a lightsaber and be one with the Force.
What can we expect from the second episode? ILMxLAB has already hinted that there will be force powers of some kind showing up in this episode, and there’s sure to be plenty of lightsaber battles coming our way as well. The panel is going to be covering a gamut of interactive Star Wars stories which will include Trials on Tatooine, and incredible (and incredibly short) VR experience that was released in the Summer of 2016.
If there’s one thing projects from the studio have had in common, it’s that all of them have been woefully short on playtime, but laser-focused in execution. Lighting up the lightsaber for the first time in Trials on Tatooine was nothing short of sublime, and the deflection of laser bullets back at Stormtroopers felt positively real. Vader Immortal Episode 1 features similar gameplay mechanics but a very different story, atmosphere, and overall story trajectory.
As a smuggler who has been captured and taken captive in Vader’s Castle on the planet Mustafar, you’re somehow the one who can open a special type of Holocron that Vader has been holding onto. As the name of the game suggests, Vader is seeking immortality as his body begins to age and fail him and begins to face the same struggles he had back when visions of Padme’s death haunted him in his Jedi days.
As a more intimate way of telling Vader’s story than we’ve ever seen in any game, movie or TV show before, Vader Immortal has the distinct possibility of becoming one of the greatest ways to experience the struggles and thoughts of science fiction’s most revered villain. What will be particularly interesting is to see how ILMxLAB builds the story over the next two episodes and whether or not you’ll be joining the Sith Lord on his quest for immortality, or if you’ll eventually fight against him at some point in the mix.