/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46300154/Screen_Shot_2015-05-08_at_12.53.47_PM.0.0.png)
Omega Agent is exactly what the Gear VR scene needs right now; a fully-featured, premium game that is made infinitely better due to being released on a virtual reality platform. What would have been a fun diversion on a standard screen becomes a thrilling, sometimes terrifying experience in virtual reality.
The premise is lighthearted: What if you were a new agent in a British spy agency that was given control of a jetpack? You're in training, and it's your job to learn how to control this piece of technology by exploring a stylized city, hunting UFOs and going on short, fun missions based on either flying ability, shooting skills, or both.
It's worth taking a few minutes to play with the controls, as the most comfortable method of control I found allows you to control yaw by actually turning your body. It's easy to get sick, but not due to technical reasons as the game runs at a rock-solid 60 frames-per-second. The issue is that you're flying around a city in a frickin' jetpack. There is no situation in which that wouldn't make your stomach turn a bit.
You'll learn how to control the jetpack in minutes, though you'll need to attach a Bluetooth controller to the Gear VR. Teaching yourself how to accurately turn and fire at targets while moving is significantly trickier. This isn't just a matter of feeling like you're controlling a fun vehicle; you feel like you're actually strapped into the damned thing as you fly around in virtual reality.
Put on good headphones and it's hard to keep yourself from flinching due to narrow misses and swooping turns around your targets. It's fun to look straight down and zoom straight up, watching the buildings grow small under your feet.
While the strong sense of movement can be challenging if you get seasick easily, and the controls take a bit of time to master, this is one of the best virtual reality experiences I've ever had, on any platform.
Fireproof Games is the studio behind the wonderful The Room and The Room 2 mobile games, where they showed a strong understanding how to create a great touch-based experience. That sort of ability to design around a platform while using its strengths and avoiding its weaknesses shines through in their first VR game.
It's a fun game that's easy to play in two-minute chunks if you're going to go through the missions, or you can jump into the freeflight mode and just have fun zipping around the virtual skies. If you've always wanted your own jetpack, with or without homing missiles, this is an amazing experience for $9.99.