Black Hat Oculus takes asymmetrical co-op to virtual reality

Between Nosgoth , Evolve , and the recently announced " Be the Zombie " mode for Dying Light , it seems like we're about to play quite a few asymmetrical multiplayer games. Instead of seeking perfect balance, they give each team a completely different experience. But what about asymmetrical cooperative? Black Hat Oculus wants to explore that idea, and it wants to do it in virtual reality.

It's a simple concept that emerged out of an MIT Game Jam. One player, Hammer, puts on the Oculus Rift and tries to reach his objective, sneaking by guards and traps from the first person perspective. The other player, Spice, is a hacker with a bird's eye perspective of the level, and can set off alarms, disable enemies, and warn Hammer about dangers he can't see yet.

It actually looks a lot like one of the IGF 2014 Student Showcase winners, Cyber Heist , only the first-person player in that game wasn't using VR. Black Hat Oculus also has a lot in common with Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes , another game that uses the Oculus Rift, and hinges on communication and giving players different pieces of information.

The developers of Black Hat Oculus are running a very modest Kickstarter campaign, with a funding goal of $4,200. You can see some gameplay footage and read more about the project here .