Space Pirate Trainer DX gets an update that improves Quest 3’s graphics

Image: i-Illusions

Space Pirate Trainer DX got a graphical boost in Quest 3, but don’t expect massive improvements.

FACTS

Developer Dirk Van Welden writes in X that a new version of Space Pirate Trainer DX has been released that improves the graphics of Quest 3. Quest 2 also benefits from “small changes”. Update 1.97 also includes some gameplay fixes.

Van Welden added a video to the post (see below) showing gameplay footage of the enhanced Quest 3 version of Space Pirate Trainer DX.

I tried out Space Pirate in Quest 3 a few months ago and was excited to see the improvements for myself. However, when I played it again, I couldn’t see any significant improvements and I couldn’t tell what had been improved.

Did we just release a new version of Space Pirate Trainer DX that improves the graphics in Quest 3? (With some minor changes in Q2 as well)
Here are some shots straight from the headphones!

Enjoy! pic.twitter.com/Kpqaxc7DcR

– Dirk Van Welden (@quarkcannon) May 8, 2024

Van Welden doesn’t go into detail about what exactly has been improved, so I asked him. I will update the article if I get a response.

Update: Van Welden has answered. “Well, the environment is much more detailed (ships flying by) and 3D instead of a skybox. Lots of objects, most drones are more detailed and metallic/smooth now. Higher resolution textures, bigger frame rate, better postfx”.

The game is available on the Horizon Store for $20.

CONTEXT

A distinctive VR game

Space Pirate Trainer is an arcade shooter that pits you against ever-larger waves of drones and bosses.

It was a launch title for the HTC Vive (2016) and one of the first VR games to demonstrate the magic of dedicated VR controllers and room-scale VR. Features that the competing Oculus Rift, released the same year, did not have at launch.

Three years later, Space Pirate Trainer was a launch title for the Oculus Quest (2019), allowing the game to be experienced wirelessly in a standalone VR headset for the first time.

In the summer of 2021, a major update was released and the Quest version was renamed Space Pirate Trainer DX. The update introduced several multiplayer modes: Arena mode lets you play in an area of ​​100 square meters (either online or via local multiplayer), while Versus mode adds a multiplayer component to the game known as the mode for a player

What I would like to see in the future is a mixed reality that allows you to fight drones in a physical environment, preferably outdoors. That would be really cool.

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