The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR Reviews

The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR is ranked in the 34th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
TheSixthAxis
Top Critic
7 / 10
Mar 15, 2023

The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR is a really solid PSVR 2 shooter with some fun uses of the headset's eye tracking and haptics, though it is sadly let down by some annoying technical hitches.

Read full review

9 / 10.0
Mar 15, 2023

Supermassive Games has nailed the thrill of funfair rides and amplified it with a healthy dose of horror. The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR utilizes the PSVR 2 toolset to great and grisly effect. It can be counted among the most consistently entertaining PSVR 2 experiences you can have.

Read full review

5 / 10
Mar 15, 2023

A moderately entertaining on-rails action game that fails to learn anything from its predecessor Until Dawn: Rush Of Blood or indeed other, much older, lightgun games.

Read full review

8.5 / 10.0
Mar 15, 2023

Switchback VR surprises and delights with its jump scare rollercoaster ride through its greatest hits, offering a great reason to don a headset.

Read full review

7.5 / 10.0
Mar 15, 2023

Solid and definitely has an audience. There could be some hard-to-ignore faults, but the experience is fun.

Read full review

77%
Mar 15, 2023

As a more or less classical rail shooter, Dark Pictures Switchback VR is no complexity monster – and it's short concerning a single playthrough. But the simple and good working gameplay mechanics are nothing less than a perfect match for VR. The shooting trip also benefits from its scary atmosphere while particular connoisseurs of the core series will enjoy the similarities.

Review in German | Read full review

79 / 100
Mar 15, 2023

Switchback VR is one of the best demonstrations of what terror can do on PS VR2 taking advantage of its technical innovations. Uncomfortable, intense and with moments that you will remember, you can only reproach the limitations that it brings as standard: it is not far from what was seen in Rush of Blood and it is somewhat expensive for what lasts.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

Mar 15, 2023

Switchback VR is a steady rail shooter that offers decent variety and an interesting tour through some old levels, but never tries to earn The Dark Pictures name. The choices don’t matter, the Curator is just a creepy Where’s Wally?, and the stakes or even setup for rescuing characters was lost on me. However, it’s reliably spooky, action-packed, and has the best designed villain in the series. It’s a rail shooter obsessed with its own past, so it makes sense that it’s two steps forward and one step back.

Read full review

6 / 10.0
Mar 15, 2023

While this review may sound very negative, you can have some fun with The Dark Pictures Anthology: Switchback VR. The problem is, we just expected it to be better. While we didn’t find it scary at all, some might. We at least appreciated that a number of its scenarios put us under pressure. It’s perhaps apt that it puts you on a rollercoaster, as like a real rollercoaster ride it’s full of highs and lows, both technically and mechanically. At the end of the day, there are better on-rails shooters available on PSVR 2 already. And the unique elements on offer here just aren’t accomplished enough to draw us away from them.

Read full review

84 / 100
Mar 15, 2023

The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR improves on every aspect of Rush of Blood to create an essential horror title for the PSVR 2. The innovative use of the headset adds to the immersion to create memorable moments of terror. While the story takes a back seat, the heart-racing ride through the grotesque is not to be missed.

Read full review

Mar 15, 2023

Switchback VR is a fantastically frightening ride that will have you jumping in your seat and reeling from its horrific sights and sounds, all while shooting your way through an excellent homage to The Dark Pictures Anthology.

Read full review

4 / 10
Mar 16, 2023

Until Dawn continues to elude Supermassive, and now even Rush of Blood appears out of reach. Switchback VR is a scruffy game that fails to match up to its well-liked PSVR predecessor, delivering low-budget visuals, lousy combat encounters, and some pretty low-energy level design. There are a handful of memorable moments, and some may find fun in the jump scares – but this should and could have been so much more.

Read full review

IGN
Top Critic
6 / 10.0
Mar 16, 2023

The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR is a fun arcade shooter, but its short length, a weak story, and lack of scares hold it back.

Read full review

8.5 / 10.0
Mar 17, 2023

The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR is a terrifying VR romp that’ll keep players entertained with its non-stop scares and frantic shooting action. It captures the frightening vibe of The Dark Pictures series perfectly, whether that’s when simply navigating through the eerie locales or facing off against one of their familiar nasties. That Sailor Girl from Man of Medan will NEVER stop giving me the heebie-jeebies, though re-visiting the deadly tunnels from House of Ashes felt ominous too… Add to that the fun and varied gameplay, the immersive haptic feedback, and the brilliant eye tracking implementation, and it’ll be clear that The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR delivers another entertaining experience for PlayStation VR 2 owners to get stuck into. There are a few technical issues that hold it back a little, but other than that it’s another stellar release from the team at Supermassive Games.

Read full review

8.5 / 10.0
Mar 17, 2023

A sequel in everything but name to PS VR's delightful Rush of Blood, The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR takes everything that made that title successful and refines it further. The shooting is great, the thrills are some of the best on the platform, and the overall vibe can be downright terrifying. Ride a coaster, shoot some demons, scream, laugh, and cuss. What's not to love?

Read full review

8.5 / 10.0
Mar 18, 2023

Switchback VR begins as everything I wanted from a follow-up to Rush of Blood. By the end of the first track, I was sold and ready to sign off on it for anyone interested. Then it slowly took one step back for every two steps forward. Atmosphere is creepy and tense, but it isn’t all that scary. Environment is so fantastic and awe inspiring, but that screen door effect. Graphics and character modeling are outstanding, but those fire effects. Switchback VR is a fantastic game, and you should grab it in case you own a PSVR2, but there is always small “but” hindering it from becoming perfect.

Read full review

7.5 / 10.0
Mar 20, 2023

An extremely fun and satisfying shooter gameplay, but with a very strong and indivisible arcade component of the proposal, something that is transferred to its short duration.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

Jake Su
Top Critic
3.5 / 5.0
Mar 21, 2023

At the end of the day, The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR delivers what it sets out to do with an on-rails shooter that is low on the story but high on the shooting action. While the fun may not last for a long time and the genuine scares are few and far between, it is still a good demonstration of what the PS VR2 brings to the table. Just like Until Dawn: Rush of Blood set the stage back in 2016, hopefully, this will only be the beginning when it comes to exploiting the full potential of PS VR2.

Read full review

70 / 100
Mar 21, 2023

Switchback VR is a fun, albeit flawed, arcade shooter. While the game lacks enemy variety, has disappointing bosses, and has some graphical issues, the core gunplay remains fun and the variety of locations you'll visit keep the game entertaining throughout the rather short campaign. While I wish the rollercoaster theme was utilized for more thrills, it is still a blast to take down a horde of enemies as you ride through a burning house or a creepy backwoods road.

Read full review

TJ Denzer
Top Critic
6 / 10
Mar 21, 2023

It’s a decent enough arcade shooter, and if you look at it that way, the length and mood of the game make sense. However, it doesn’t make as much sense as a game with the Dark Pictures moniker. As widely varied as the quality of those games have been, they take the time to tell a story. Switchback doesn’t. It focuses on the gunplay, action, and thrills. While it does a decent enough job of that, the performance issues bring even that end down a bit. If you’re a fan of Supermassive’s brand of horror, it would be hard for me to recommend this over their other games. If you want to play something more like a modern light gun horror that makes decent use of the PS VR2’s technology, then you could do worse than Switchback, but you could also do better.

Read full review