Review: The Exit 8 VR Hits Different

When I first played The Exit 8, it was on the Nintendo Switch. I loved it. The idea of going through, picking out what is obviously or not-so-blatantly wrong was a lot of fun, and sometimes fascinating. After playing The Exit 8 VR on the Meta Quest 3, it felt like a natural, comfortable fit and really made me feel even more pulled into the experience. 

You are in a subway tunnel. To get out, you must reach Exit 8. However, this isn’t as simple as walking down a hallway and making the right turns as you follow a map. The only way to get to the exit you need is to successfully pass through a repeating space enough times leading up to it, starting and 0. If the hallway, its layout, and its occurrences are all identical to your first walk through it, you are safe to go through and continue, and the next time you pass the Exit sign it will say 1, 2, 3, and so on. If you go through and something seems awry, you need to turn back.

Those anomalies are what makes The Exit 8 fascinating in all of its incarnations. This is essentially an observation game. You need to pay attention to your surroundings. Are the posters the same? The lights? The tiles? Is the other person who keeps walking down the hall behaving normally? Do you not hear any unusual sounds? If even one thing is awry, you need to turn around. When you do, you’ll find yourself passing another Exit sign, only with the number increasing to show you’re on the right path.

It’s simplistic, but that’s the what makes The Exit 8 VR, and the game in all its forms, work. You can’t actually interact with anything. You can walk or run forward, but that’s it. Since the space is focusing on a single hallway, it can feel fairly realistic. Though admittedly, I did encounter anomaly that seemed a bit sillier in VR than it did on the Switch. 

It’s because of that simplicity and execution here that worked favor of The Exit 8 VR. The nature of the Meta Quest 3 headset and playing it in a quiet room really made the sound design stand out. Every audio cue was easier to hear and made me felt even more like I was walking down the hallway. This also helped with anomaly spotting. It also made certain visual anomalies a little more fun to experience. Being able to see them so closely in front of me made them feel more real or even unsettling. It’s immersive in a way that was impossible on the Switch, and I enjoyed it so much more as a result.

There are a few elements that might make it a little more difficult to get into The Exit 8 VR on the Meta Quest headsets like the 3. At least, perhaps initially. It’s very easy to get accustomed to moving forward down the hall and sprinting. However, if you use the left joystick to move the camera to look, it’s a bit halting and might keep you from actually seeing something when the position snaps into place. It’s helpful at reducing VR motion-sickness, but takes getting used to. Also, when I encountered an anomaly like ones that involved an incredibly speeding retreat, I noticed it took me about an hour of playing and getting adjusted to the controls and atmosphere to recognize and extricate myself from the situation.

MyDearest and Kotake Create really did a fantastic job of pulling off The Exit 8 VR on the Meta Quest 2, 3, and Pro. I mean, I’m sure it helps that the base game isn’t the most complex title. Even so, I felt no VR sickness or discomfort. It’s so easy find yourself immersed in it. It’s even easier to spot and experience the anomalies, thanks to the sound design and execution. Going through The Exit 8 in VR is now my favorite way to play.

The Exit 8 VR will be playable in VR on the Meta Quest 2, 3, and Pro on July 11, 2024.