Augmented Reality on the PS Vita didn’t really get off to a good start with the first three games that have become available for it, which is a shame as it is a great prospect. Both Table Top Tanks and PulzAR have gone about to change this though. Priced each at £1.59 they are the first priced AR games to hit the Vita system. However, the question is; do they really show the promise of AR?
PulzAR
Well first up is PulzAR. The main objective of the game is to guide laser beams around a surface to light up different launch pods. Once all lasers are matched into these pods, a missile launches and blows up a meteorite in space. Simply put it is a small puzzle based game which is wonderfully addictive. To guide the laser beams you have to use mirrors. The AR cards act as these mirrors once played in the field of view. You have to race against the clock too before there is a meteorite shower.
Sounds quite easy you would think. However, as you progress through the different stages of the game things become a little trickier. You have to utilize mirrors, two way mirrors, and colour coded spectrums to match the lasers into the appropriate launch pods. It can become quite a handful and you will find yourself accurately trying to place the AR cards down, even piling them on top of each other at points.
You are probably wondering how well the Vita tracks these cards. Sadly the answer is disappointing; not well at all. In the later levels of the game it all becomes a bit nightmarish. Trying to accurately place AR cards on the surface in front of me was made a harder task than it should have been. The Vita would not track the cards coming into the field of view or even track when I moved them. Instead the game would pause to tell me I have lost tracking. To combat this I would have to press the home button and resume the game, and do this multiple times, for which I cannot stress the word multiple enough. It was very frustrating.
The idea of the game is great, but sadly the poor tracking of the Vita cards lets it down. This is prominent in the later levels where accuracy is required. It’s not all doom and gloom though as when the game works properly it’s really enjoyable to play.
The game features online leaderboards, and also there are three stars to collect in each level. These you gain if a laser passes though them. With added trophy support as well there is enough of an incentive to go back through the levels to get the highest score as possible and to collect all those stars. Try not to throw your Vita out the window in frustration though.
Overall PulzAR is a great puzzle game which does make good use of the AR and Vita cards. Sadly though, it doesn’t work well at all.
7/10
Table Top Tanks
Next up is Table Top Tanks. This suffers from the same fate as PulzAR. Table Top Tanks is a small based action game for which on any playing surface you can have battles with up to three other tanks. This can be simply a deathmatch or team deathmatch between the four tanks, or a capture the flag type mode.
The tank is controlled very easily with the analogue sticks and there is one button for fire. You also can control the amount of AI tanks on the game but reducing the amount of the Vita cards you place down.
Considering you don’t have to move the Vita cards around once you have started playing I don’t understand why the game has tracking problems. Again similar to PulzAR the game is on the verge of being ruined by the poor tracking. This will either stop the game and alert you of the problem or basically send the playing field into a flickering mess. It’s so frustrating.
From what you will play it is enjoyable, everyone loves a few battles between tanks. You can pick up additional weapons in the game which allows for double missiles or even airstrike attacks. There are quite a lot of single player missions to progress through; they also combine all game modes into one round. For example, you may have to collect three flags and defeat four other tanks to complete the level, whilst at the same time racing against the clock to finish it in time.
Other than that there is a multiplayer option using ad-hoc. I’ve been unable to get a game out of the multiplayer though. Create mode is the last game mode. This allows you to create your own small battlefield. You can place objects, set the game mode and choose the AI difficulty. This is ideal for when you have completed all of the single player missions and want to play some more of the game but in your own way.
Another issue with this game is the fact that it is so dark. In a well lit environment the playing surface through the Vita will always look very dark. This doesn’t make it the best game to look at.
For the cheap price tag Table Top Tanks is worth a punt. Poor tracking and dark visuals let the game down but it can be enjoyed when it all fits together.
6/10
Amidst all the other Vita AR games there is gameplay footage of Table Top Tanks in the video above.
