Motion controls and first-person shooters seems like a perfect fit in theory, but they’ve always felt a bit off when I’ve played them. I’ve never really been able to put my finger on it until now, but using a Wii remote or a PlayStation Move controller to point at the screen has never replicated using a gun very well unless I bought a ridiculous plastic accessory that made it look like a knockoff light gun. Brilliantly, Pixel Gear, a new arcade shooter for PlayStation VR, finally gets it right.
Pixel Gear still uses a PlayStation Move controller to aim a gun, but the major difference is in how the player holds it. Instead of pointing the end of the Move controller at the PlayStation Camera in order to aim, players instead hold the controller vertically. Think about it, when holding a gun your hand is on the pistol grip, which is vertical. Not on the barrel that shoots horizontally. This small change makes shooting feel so much more natural. I discovered all of this while still in Pixel Gear‘s menu, before I had even shot a single enemy. Suddenly I was excited about what awaited me, as it seemingly had all of the potential in the world. I then awkwardly selected the single-player option from the main menu (which is super weird since it’s the game’s only mode, so why do players have to select it"), and went on a super disappointing journey where the reality of Pixel Gear set in.

Despite the exciting gunplay, Pixel Gear is a by-...