I suppose it was only a matter of time before Taskmaster got its own VR game. The game show, in case you’re unfamiliar with it, is about giving celebrities and comedians increasingly absurd tasks to fulfil—with very few clues on how to get those tasks done.
Similarly, a lot of great VR games offer an experience that’s basically just that: a vague task, a physical space to muck about in, and absolutely zero training. Most of the physical comedy in VR Games is decidedly Taskmaster, they’re just based around figuring out how to reload a gun, rather than throwing something over a fence.
I’ll be honest: I don’t think Taskmaster VR is going to set the world on fire. It’s a licensed TV show game. It does, however, look like a bit of clean fun, fumbling about in 3D space while Greg Davies (a British comedian and actor known for being dry, witty, and very goddamn tall) critiques your performance.
Uh, speaking of—the art style really is something. Like, actually pretty good for a low-stakes licensed game. It’s trying to veer away from the uncanny valley of other TV show adaptations, which is good. But it’s also a little too good. Seeing Davies with Justice League-style proportions is weirding me out for some reason.
Maybe it’s the painterly shading, or the shape language, or the cartoonish movements, but I feel like Davies should be on the overwatch roster or something. Like, this guy should have a charge, a stun, a self-heal, and an ultimate which creates a domed shield that lasts for 12 seconds.
I’m also contemplating standing next to Big Greg—which is what I’m calling this rendition of Davies—in VR. If his height’s accurate (it might even be exaggerated, looking at some of these screenshots) then standing next to him in the digital world feels like it’d be distractingly intimidating.
Even more so if the game pulls some kind of Nier-level twist and turns him into a final boss fight. I don’t want to have to parry Big Greg. I don’t want to read Big Greg’s telegraphed swings while he sarcastically chides me for taking too long figuring out his mechanics. Anyway, Taskmaster VR—which is fledgling studio Scallywag‘s first project—will be coming to Meta and Steam in 2024.