Adrift will launch on PlayStation 4 on July 15, creator Adam Orth announced on Twitter on Friday.
Initially launched on PC and Oculus Rift in March, the game is the first offering from developer Three One Zero, the studio created by Orth, Microsoft Studios’ former creative developer. You may remember Orth as the Xbox team member who was let go by Microsoft after posting a series of tweets dismissing fan concerns over the Xbox One’s proposed “always-on” functionality, which would have required the console to maintain a constant internet connection. Orth said he received many hateful messages through Twitter and email, including death threats.
The game, which Orth said was inspired by his firing and subsequent unemployment, follows astronaut Alex Oshima, who is jettisoned out into space after an accident on a space station. Oshima must use pieces of debris from the station to push herself forward, while maintaining her supply of oxygen.
Three One Zero has not officially confirmed that the game will not be compatible with PlayStation VR, but a PSVR port seems highly unlikely: The game was positioned as an Oculus Rift launch title and announced as an Oculus VR exclusive. Orth told Polygon when the game launched that it was meant to be experienced in VR, so if you have an Oculus Rift, you may want to check it out there.
“I hope people find some way to try it in VR, even if they’re not sold on VR, I hope they find some way to see it,” Orth said. “I hate using this word, but it is transformative.”
For the rest of us, though, the PC or console versions will have to do. Like the Steam version, Adr1ft will retail for $19.99 on the PlayStation Store. Adrift is also expected to launch on Xbox One by the end of 2016.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.
Imagine tapping a Zelda icon on your iPhone and jumping straight into Hyrule. A new open-source project called nxnative makes that possible by repackaging Switch games you’ve bought into apps for iPhone, iPad, and Mac, with no emulator in the middle.
Why does this run so well on Apple devices?