2020 was a year of surprise hit games, and Among Us may have reigned above them all. The social deduction game, originally released in 2018, soared to success once Twitch streamers and YouTubers discovered it. Today, Among Us hype is significantly less pronounced, but the game continues to entertain social deduction fans. Although the original game perseveres, Innersloth is nevertheless determined to deliver fans an exciting new experience in the form of Among Us VR. Innersloth announced this project in late 2021 with a brief trailer showing little more than a Crewmate getting ambushed by another player, but now fans have a clearer picture of the game.
Among Us VR, which is a collaboration between Innersloth and Schell Games, just got its first gameplay trailer. Unsurprisingly, the core gameplay of Among Us VR isn't far off from the original game; players wander around a sci-fi map and complete tasks while keeping an eye out for dead bodies and suspicious activity. More importantly, though, the trailer showcases a certain atmosphere that really sets Among Us VR apart. The combination of iconic Among Us charisma with a darker, more claustrophobic setting looks like it could result in a more immersive Among Us experience than ever before.
Among Us VR's Aesthetic Balance
There's no doubt that Among Us VR's take on the classic Skeld map is a little gloomier than the original. Whereas the original Skeld's network of large rooms and narrow hallways was brightly lit, Among Us VR has far darker lighting, which produces a more stressful atmosphere than the previous map. From a first-person perspective, the hallways also feel far more suffocating than usual, which is bound to make Crewmates feel even more trapped than before. The Among Us VR gameplay trailer also shows that Impostors using vents will watch other players directly through grates, which really adds to the fantasy of sneaking around the map in search of targets to ambush without warning.
At the same time, Among Us VR seems to preserve some of the charm and humor that the IP is largely known for. Thanks to VR equipment, Among Us VR allows players to make various hand gestures during play. The Crewmates' oversized floating hands will definitely make in-game encounters and emergency meetings funnier to watch. The VR adaptation is also highly faithful to various classic Among Us details, like the uneaten pizza scattered around the Skeld and new 3D renders of Crewmate corpses, complete with the iconic single bone.
Further Among Us VR Details
Admittedly, there are a lot of questions that the new gameplay trailer doesn't answer. For instance, the trailer doesn't show any Crewmates or Impostors wearing various Among Us cosmetics, meaning it's unclear if players can customize their character beyond choice of color. It doesn't spotlight which Among Us tasks will appear in the game either, nor does it highlight how Impostor skills like sabotages will work. Innersloth and Schell have plenty of time to answer these questions, though, since Among Us VR supposedly won't release until late 2022.
Even though there's still much left to learn about Among Us VR, the new trailer is an encouraging sign that the VR adaptation will capture the strengths of the original Among Us. The change in perspective will undoubtedly result in an entirely different experience, but nevertheless, it's encouraging to see Innersloth push the Among Us brand so hard after finding unexpected success. Among Us still has potential to flourish if Innersloth keeps investing in creative new angles on the original concept. So far, Among Us VR looks like a worthy addition to the library of Among Us products, but in the meantime, players will have to keep playing the original game and wait for more details to emerge.
Among Us for VR releases in holiday 2022 for PC and PSVR.
