Jump: Gear VR Review

The future of 3d platforming is bright and absolutely terrifying.


I had a list of games that I was going to talk about next.  Anshar 2, Esper 2, the ridiculously fun Smash Hit, the extraordinarily polished fishing game Bait, the horrendously scary Dreadhalls - but Jump elbowed all those games aside.  This is, for me, THE gaming reason to own a Gear VR.  In fact, it re-convinced me that VR is most-decidedly not a gimmick, but is the direction that video gaming will go.  Has gone.  It's here.

Let's be completely transparent - Jump is not a deep game, by any means.  There are a literal handful of levels, with essentially one-button controls.  The graphics are fine, but they are by no means stunning.  It's a simple, serviceable look. But the feeling you/I get when playing this game is the most visceral, stomach-dropping...it's just...it's just exciting.

So here's what it is.  It's a 3d platformer in the absolute truest sense of the term.  It is 3d, real 3d, and you jump on platforms.  You, from a first-person perspective, have one goal - to jump to the highest point in a city, which is helpfully a bright orange color.  You have the ability to jump multiple stories high in the air, and...that's it.  You jump.  You jump and you don't touch the ground, or you have to start over. The direction you go is based on which direction you are looking, and I mean "looking" by physically turning your entire body to look in that direction.  Push forward on the controller to walk that way, and press the jump button to jump.  You jump onto buildings of different heights, snaking and weaving your way through the city in the way you deem the most efficient or fun, making your way higher and higher until you shit yourself.

I'll explain that too.

It's the most terrifying experience I've had inside a VR headset yet.  Jumping high above a city is all fine and good, but towards the ends of the levels, they have these (and I'm guessing here) maybe 20 by 20 foot platforms that you have to stick the landing on to make it up to the flag which designates the end goal.  I am not kidding when I say that I really had a heart to heart with myself on some of those jumps, which went a little something like this.

Me; C'mon, it's just a game.
Me too: Yeah, but we're really super high up and I DON'T WANT TO DIE.
Me; You're not gonna die, pansy.  Just jump.
Me too: FINE.
Me: ...
Me too: ...
Me: You haven't jumped yet.
Me too: I KNOW.
Me; So...are you gonna jump?
Me too: DON'T PUSH ME OMG WHY ARE YOU SUCH A JERK
Me; I'm just saying, your phone is gonna overheat and you'll have to do this all over again.
Me too:  Just give me a second.
Me: You've been standing here shaking for five minutes.  Look dude, you're in your room.  You're not going to actually fall anywhere.  And even if you do, you float down semi-disappointingly and can just start over.
Me too: Okay.  Fine.  Here we go! (audibly scream-jumps)
Me;  You missed.  Hit restart.
Me too:  Um, I need new shorts and I need a towel.

That's it.  It's seriously awesome.  It's Jumping Flash and it's Mirror's Edge and it's Mario and it's fucking real.  The music is fantastic, the visual design works (even if it's not flashy), and it's another one of these amazing Gear VR games that, while maybe not the most fully fledged game ever made, it's a glimpse into the future of what this technology can do.

It's also really short.  There is a "score" that keeps track of how fast you go through the level, and how many jumps you make (or take) to get to the end goal, presumably to add replay value - but I don't even care a little about that.  It exists for the feelings it evokes, and it is God damn art.  One of the best $4.99 (plus tax) I've ever spent.