Our VR Baby - Nine months from Conception to Birth

It is clear from the early reviews that there is something quite unique about SteamHammerVR - The Rogue Apprentice a steampunk VR adventure based in Victorian London 1892.

Available in Early Access, since 20th January 2017 the Steam community have seen this quirky VR experience evolve from a critically polished demo to a game that looks utterly beautiful with engaging and fun gameplay to rival anything in the World of VR.

There will of course be cries of this being just another 'wave shooter' but only from those who haven't actually stepped into the world of Dr Obadiah Springhorn and wielded all six of his beautifully crafted and powerful weapons.

Artist Director 'Magic' Martin Rowe said "It is of course a wave shooter at heart but of the six weapons, only the sniper Rail Gun actually shoots, you could of course argue that the Steam Cannon and the Tesla Ray with their streams of steam and electricity also count, but most certainly the close range Rotor Saw and titular weapon SteamHammer make this a very unique kind of gameplay."

Add in to the mix a rather powerful magnet that can be utilised to both push and pull anything made of metal and it's only a shame you haven't got a third hand to use.

It was very much by design that they game delivers a depth of narrative as it unfolds from the opening cinematic through the mission gameplay and with a shocking backstory that is episodically revealed via Dr Springhorn's, rather charming wax cylinders played on a genuine Edison phonograph in his fabulous airship the Hordenburg.

However, they say that truth is stranger than fiction and the story of how this game got made is testament to that.

The full, and evolving story of this game development team can be researched extensively on the 'Made with Unity' website where developers are encouraged to share their journey. 

GamestormVR's parent company Showstorm are no stranger to remote working, in fact the company has never operated from premises since commencing trading in 2008, as it enters its ninth year of business it has no intention of doing so anytime soon.

Mark Bellinger, Showstorm's Managing Director believes that the principal reason that game development companies historically fail to make profit is simply down to large overheads and development timescales.

He said "The days of developing a games for three years with massive overheads and hundreds of people working in offices are gone, all the tools are available to imagine, design, create and deliver quickly, without a single member of the team ever having to leave their own home."

Mark believes he is spot on in his prediction of the future, SteamHammerVR was developed by a team of nine people in nine months, rarely did any of them work in the same place at the same time and some have never physically met in person.

"I won't reveal the total cost of developing the game just yet, suffice to say that we will definitely turn a profit and when potential investors see what we did with the budget we had and what we produced at break neck speed then they will be blown away"

"People tell you the odds all the time, how your first game won't be any good, how you can't make money in game development, how VR and the future is uncertain, while they were talking, we just got on and made a game that proves all of that wrong"

As completion of the game continues over the expected sixty day Early Access period on Steam, the team are already preparing versions of SteamHammerVR for users of the Oculus Rift and PlaystationVR.

GamestormVR has five other titles already in various stages of development by the team, one announced title 'The Grand Cruise VR" will see VR users embarking on one of the most amazing live entertainment experiences ever imagined.