
Release Date: August 28, 2018
A tactical shooter developed for PlayStation VR headset and online battles. Firewall: Zero Hour features skirmished between two teams of four players, who must cooperate in order to defend or capture laptops with a classified data.
Firewall Zero Hour is a tactical shooter developed for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation VR virtual reality headsets. It has been designed by Sony company and First Contact studio, the latter specializing in VR titles.
Like many VR games, Firewall Zero Hour uses the first-person perspective. Players act as members of the prestigious mercenary unit tasked with capturing or defending laptops with confidential data, hidden in nine different locations. Those include Russia, Great Britain, and the Middle East.
The game focuses solely on multiplayer mode, in which participate two teams made of four players each. On squad must protect a laptop from theft, while the other one tries to breach defenses and steal a data. Coordinating actions with teammates is crucial, thus participants must communicate through voice chat and make use of traps and tactical tricks.
There are many weapons to choose from, including shotguns, automatic assault rifles, grenades and C4 explosives. Before starting a battle, players choose their characters from 12 available mercenaries. Each game ends with participants earning experience points which let them reach higher levels, as well as virtual currency spent on a new equipment.
Aside from standard multiplayer matches described above, players can train against bots alone or face AI together with friends. However, all modes require an online connection.
Visuals of Firewall Zero Hour uses a realistic style, no different from graphics of countless tactical shooters and FPS games, although the usage of virtual reality comes with simplified characters’ and locations design to ensure smooth gameplay. Also, unlike many titles for PlayStation VR, the game gives us a complete freedom of movement. Lastly, Firewall Zero Hour uses both standard gamepad and PlayStation Aim controller.
Platforms:
PlayStation 4
Developer: First Contact Entertainment
Publisher: Sony Interactive Entertainment
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Game Ratings for Firewall: Zero Hour Video Game.
Attack of the Fanboy: 3 / 5
Firewall: Zero Hour borrows from some of the greatest shooters around and tacks on some great VR support. However, the sum is not quite equal to its parts and the feeling one gets from playing the final game is that it's somewhat incomplete and not worth investing much time in.
PlayStation LifeStyle: 8.5 / 10 by Paulmichael Contreras
Firewall Zero Hour shows the potential for the world of VR games. It makes a solid case for the Aim Controller, which will hopefully see continued support from not only Sony, but other publishers as well. While there is a steep grind to unlock all of the tactically useful items, those who manage to tough it out will be rewarded with a more satisfying experience. Firewall Zero Hour is an intense, immersive experience which will put the Aim Controller through its paces, and may be the best VR shooter released thus far.
Push Square: 6 / 10 by Sammy Barker
There's no doubt that Firewall Zero Hour's tactical combat works well in virtual reality – in fact, the fledgling medium adds a lot to this FPS, allowing you to naturally gesture to teammates and intuitively check your corners in a way you couldn't on a standard display. But while there are some structural and technical issues that we have confidence First Contact Entertainment will be able to fix, it's the question marks over its community that make it a tough sell. It's a chicken-and-egg situation that's unfortunate for everyone involved, but it's something that the developer would have been aware of when it embarked on creating an online-only multiplayer shooter for an install base of a few million headsets. Good as the game may be, it's something you need to keep in mind as well.
Average score from votes.