Review – GRID Legends (Meta Quest 2)

Quest 2 does a good job of bringing VR gaming to a broader demographic, or at least it was, before Meta decided to raise its price for whatever reason. Its library is constantly getting new games, not just “VR experiences,” of all kinds. With this said, the only thing the system fails to offer is a library of racing titles. PSVR, its now-defunct enemy, had titles as good as Wipe out And Driveclub VR. PSVR2 will have a VR update for Gran Turismo 7. PCVR had titles such as Assetto Corsa And some of the more demanding hardware expertise for owners of industrial-sized rigs. Meanwhile, Quest 2 had none. This is why I was so excited to release a full port GRID Legends for the system.

Definitely, GRID Legends It wasn’t a masterpiece of a racing game, nor even the best title in the franchise. But seeing EA and Codemasters bother creating a beefy (content-wise) racing game for mobile VR was enough to pique my curiosity. My last experience with a VR game published by EA was Star Wars: The Squadrons, is still one of my favorite VR games ever, so I was already expecting something good from this port, especially when you consider that Codemasters themselves were behind this release. The end result ended up feeling like a monkey’s paw. Check it out GRID Legends entirely on the VR system, but the sheer amount of setbacks and compromises seen in this particular port left a bitter taste in my mouth.

This is the best thing about this port in particular: it’s not a hacked version of GRID Legends In terms of content. Everything is included, from the interesting but disappointing story mode, to all the extra professions and racing challenges. Online play is also included. Everything is displayed in this port, to the point where its file size is a no-go for a VR headset with such a small amount of storage space (it’s a whopping 31GB). That means there’s plenty to do and enjoy with a headset glued to your face, if you’re desperate for a racing game in Quest 2. The highlight of the console versions, the audio department, is also largely untouched. The voice acting is decent, and the music is still great. The problems lie elsewhere.

I really like Quest 2, but I know its hardware is very limited. It features a system on a chip, not unlike the hardware seen in some smartphones. This is probably why some of its major killer apps, both already released and previously announced, are VR versions of games from a few generations ago, such as Resident Evil 4 And Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas – You should know what you can actually run on a system like this, because frame rate drops are a death sentence for a machine that can easily make you vomit if things aren’t done as smoothly as they can be. to her account, GRID Legends It works incredibly well on the system, but the amount of setbacks it took in order to achieve said performance was staggering.

Simply put, Quest 2’s version of GRID Legends It looks as if I imagined the default Switch port of the same game would look like. Between the massive drop in texture quality, almost non-existent post-processing effects, and immersion-destroying resolution (again, switching lower resolutions), it’s hard to feel the thrill of driving one of the machines available in the game. It looks like a mobile port of the game, which was then ported to VR. Sure, the overall level of geometry is still fairly solid, as is the frame rate. But at what cost? This is hardly like GRID LegendsOr any racing game from the PS4 era for that matter.

Yes, it works well, and the control schemes are fine, but here’s the weird thing: this VR version of GRID Legends Don’t use motion controls at all. It does not take advantage of any of the features found in Quest 2 and its consoles. Even though you are sitting inside a car, and your virtual arms move whenever you steer, you do so by moving the left stick. You don’t even have the option to pretend you’re driving an invisible wheel, Mario Kart-pattern. You can barely reach the motion controls when exploring the menus, and they’re rendered in a flat manner, as if you were playing a non-VR version of the game while using the visor.

Now, I know I’ve mentioned in the past that not every VR game really needs to have a lot of immersion features in order to be fun. I vividly remember mentioning it on my own Enders District reconsidering. But I feel that is different in this particular case. GRID Legends It does a terrible job of even making your brain and guts feel accustomed to their surroundings, as you hardly feel like you’re inside a VR game at all. The general lack of immersive features makes the game feel like you’re simply playing an unreleased Switch port on TV, with your face glued to the screen in a very unhealthy way.

I like to see myself as someone who can put up with comfort issues when playing VR games, I rarely get sick when playing a fast-paced shooter, and I often turn off settings like fixed camera controls in favor of a more realistic experience. However, I felt sick while playing GRID Legends On Quest 2 sometimes. It all boils down to the fact that the game will not be able to fool your eyes, your brain, and your stomach. It never feels like you’re inside a car, so it’s really easy to get sick after a few races.

To Codemasters’ credit, it’s the full version of GRID Legends, but is now available in VR. It’s no simple “VR experience” either: there’s a truckload of content in this game, making it one of the best Quest 2 available. However, the terrible visuals, disappointing controls, and lack of immersion make this a hard sell to all but The most die-hard VR fans, those who have been eagerly awaiting a full racing segment on the system. It’s still the best racing game available in Quest 2, but only because of the utter lack of competition.

Quest 2 version of GRID Legends It looks as if I imagined the default Switch port of the same game would look like. It’s really ugly. Fortunately, it works well at the expense of my stomach.	It doesn’t take advantage of any kind of motion controls at all. There is little immersion in this VR port, though it controls well. With that being said, it’s incredibly nauseating, even for experienced VR users.
Good music and voice acting. No complaints in this regard.	To Codemasters’ credit, it’s the full version of GRID Legends, but is now available in VR. Alas, it’s ugly, it barely benefits from the inundation of the medium, and it makes you sick in a matter of minutes. It’s still the best racing game available in Quest 2, but only by default.
Final verdict: 6.0

GRID Legends is Available now On PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, and PC. A VR version is available on Quest 2.

Reviewed in Quest 2.

Check out these!