Within every medium, there are always creations that leave you at a loss for words. Not always because they defy explanation, but often because of the sheer absurdity that they represent. It's no secret that PC gamers have seen a surge of faux simulator titles cropping up over the last year, but one of the weirdest and most wonderful of these examples just so happens to be an Oculus Rift exclusive and goes by the name A Night at the Roculus.
As is probably evident from the name alone, A Night at the Roculus drops players into the world of A Night at the Roxbury. Bound to the confines of a car in an homage to one of the movie's most famous scenes, players will have to literally engage in the film's patented head bobbing through the use of their Oculus Rift DK2 headset. Unsurprisingly, this whole process will be conducted to the beat of Haddaway's 1993 classic, "What Is Love."
Given the recent release of parody title Interactive Cave Shooting Simulator, this is hardly the most absurd game to make an appearance on the PC this week but it is certainly one of the most entertaining. Taking a cue from rhythm games like Rock Band and upcoming title Fantasia, players will find themselves alternating between head nods, shrugs and pecks to the tuns of the music in order to score points.
It's a markedly absurd idea and developers Holden Link and Nic Vasconcellos are well aware of this as evidenced by the game's neon aesthetic and gif-heavy website. It's easy to argue that titles like Rock Simulator 2014 are acting as a detriment to the current gaming environment, but with A Night at the Roculus wearing its inspiration so visibly on its sleeve, it's difficult to do anything other than give in and join in the nodding frenzy.
With the Oculus Rift slowly making its way into more and more homes, it's great to see developers experimenting with the capabilities and implementation of the Oculus Rift technology. It's no surprise that it's still in its infancy. With so much hidden potential, it will likely be up to smaller developers such as these to guide the way for more mainstream games and provide a proof-of-concept for this exciting movement in gaming.
As the Oculus Rift becomes more and more common in gamers' homes, would you like to see more micro-games like this that make clever use of the technology? What other songs would you like to see supported?
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A Night at the Roculus is available now for free on PC with exclusive support for the Oculus Rift DK2.
Follow Ryan on Twitter @ThatRyanB.
Sources: Holden Link