Plugged Demo

Point & click adventure games haven’t changed much in the last couple of years, except of course for the graphics. Everything else is more or less the same as it always has been, which means that players have to explore environments, interact with various objects and solve puzzles in order to move on. It’s not a complex formula, but it can be designed in a multitude of ways, which is the beauty of the genre.

Plugged does not appear to be very different at first, and it can actually be enjoyed like any other adventure game. However, its greatest feat is the fact that it was designed primarily for virtual reality, which should allow you to get a lot more intimate with the game world. Not only that, but it should make immersion that much easier, especially if you also wear a pair of headphones.

The story is a bit blurry in the demo, although the full game promises a branching plot and the possibility to alter the narrative as you desire, by choosing to do one thing instead of the other. As an example, you are allowed to choose between going to a job interview or seeing an old high school friend, which means that there’s no turning back regardless of what you choose.

The point & click concept is quite simple, which is why it worked so well for over three decades. As such, you just need to point the cursor at the object you wish to observe or interact with and perform a click. In this case, on the other hand, you have to look at the object in question using your VR kit, which is still pretty intuitive. However, the mouse still needs to be used in order to access a few other functions, which is mighty disorienting.

As far as the graphics go, the developers really managed to push the boundaries in some regards, although not everything looks incredible. The textures and the lighting are impressive, on the other hand, and the environments are very photorealistic. Naturally, the whole thing is that much more impressive once you see it through an Oculus Rift kit.

In the end, although it’s unlikely that Plugged is ever going to be released as a full version, the demo is engaging enough to see what’s possible with Unreal Engine 4 and a dedicated team of designers.