A Time in Space is an Android game for virtual reality users that takes players on a virtual tour throughout a little bit of space, and gives them the sort of experience that they wouldn’t otherwise be able to have just using their smartphones in a normal way. The game has been available for some time now, and to celebrate the fact that it’s been available for a year, Creanet3D have this to offer, the Anniversary Edition. This is the final edition of the VR adventure in space, and if you like what you see and hear here, you can also check out A Time in Space 2, as well. Those that have some sort of virtual reality headset will be able to join in the fun, so they can go ahead and keep on reading.
It’s important to stress that this free game is something that will only work with a virtual reality headset, there is no standard content available here. Cardboard-compatible headsets, such as the Homido or anything that is certified to work with Cardboard will work just fine here. With that said, users can download A Time in Space from the Play Store, and then launch it to get started on their little trip in space.
Users are well-advised to use a decent headset as well as a pair of headphones, and I will say that the headphones do make the experience that much better. As the name suggests, this is a game that’s all about taking people on an adventure in space, which puts you in the body of an astronaut inside of a small little shuttle that’s just about to leave the main ship.
Once he does leave the hangar, the outside world of Space is revealed in its full glory, and right away players will get a sense of immersion from the surrounding darkness and colorful nebulae that Creanet3D have painstakingly put together for this free version of the game.
From here on, things start to get exciting, and there becomes quite a lot to see on this admittedly fairly short adventure in Space. There aren’t any cliche Aliens here or anything, but it’s abundantly clear that this is a game that has been inspired by Science-Fiction. There’s warp speed, wormhole tunnels and a lot more along those lines. These are all a really great spectacle and they work well to give players the feeling that they’re inside of their favorite Sci-Fi movie or something.
For me, what I liked about these warp speed jumps and the wormhole tunnels was just how much faster the game felt, the frame rate jumps up here and you do get a genuine feeling of being moved at a much faster rate. Once you’ve gone through some speedy warp jumps and wormholes, A Time in Space gives players a close-up look at some of the space stations and such that occupy your little sector of space.
This includes some more interesting space station designs as well as some detailed asteroids and other Space furniture. There’s a lot going on when you go exploring in Space, and looking around in 360 will certainly help you get the most out of things here.
After just a little while however, your journey in Space will come to unceremonious end. A Time in Space is not that long of an experience, and I would say it only lasts for a couple of minutes at most.
While this game is fairly short, it is 100% free to download and play without any ads, and serves as a great taster for the other tiles that Creanet3D has on offer, such as the excellent Darkness Rollercoaster VR game. There’s enough on offer here to make you look around and go wow and while I wish that there were two different routes and styles to take, just as there is in the Darkness Rollercoaster game linked above, we have to remember that this is a free game. It is quite short however, and this might be something that will put some people off, but for a game, we can’t really expect too much, especially given how long it can take to make a virtual reality game like this with a very, very small of just a couple of people. Regardless of its length, A Time in Space delivers some eye-popping visuals, it runs well and has some great atmospheric music and sounds to go along with it all. It’s a fun, rollercoaster sort of ride through space, with lots of detailed space stations, asteroids and a quality feeling of heading deeper into space at speed.
Ratings
- Speed (4/5) – A Time in Space runs just fine, and the framerate gets even quicker through the high-speed warp sections and wormholes.
- Theme (4/5) – The graphics here are really pretty good, especially considering that this is a free title and Virtual Reality games are hard for big publishing houses to make, let alone small teams of one or two people as this is.
- Features (3/5) – This is certainly a spectacle all right, and it all looks great and has been put together to a high standard, but it is very, very short. Even so, the second game – which is paid – has a lot more on offer, so this is a good demo at least.
- Overall (4/5) – While it might be a little short, there’s a lot of good content available here, and it’s a good taster of what VR games and content can be capable of in the future. It’s an eye-popping adventure that can lead to something better in the future as well.
Pros
- Gives players a taste of other Creanet3D titles as well as what the future of VR content could very well be.
- Great feeling of extra speed when going to warp speed or going through a wormhole.
- Lots of Space stuff to look around at, like great space stations, asteroids, nebulae and a lot more.
- Nice bit of fun that doesn’t make players work for it, just sit back and enjoy the ride.
Cons
- Will be considered a little short for some players that were expecting a little more out of it.
- Some extra content would be nice to see, something that could be unlocked with an in-app purchase or something.
A Time in Space is a VR game that’s worth downloading and giving a try, if nothing else just to give it a go and see what it’s like. It is completely free after all! It’s got lots of detailed Space items, a real sense of immersion as well as speed, and it’s something that could introduce players to a whole new type of gameplay and entertainment. If players like this, Creanet3D has a lot more other VR games and experiences on offer as well.