The Great C

About

"The Great C" is a cinematic VR game based on Philip K. Dick's sci-fi short story, featuring a bleak post-apocalyptic world ruled by a supercomputer. As Clare, you must decide whether to accept your society's rules or challenge the powerful forces that control it, after your fiancé is chosen for a deadly pilgrimage. This 30+ minute experience, presented at the Venice Film Festival, offers a thrilling storyline, stunning visuals, and a powerful soundtrack.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

88%

Audience ScoreBased on 304 reviews

story113 positive mentions

gameplay1 negative mentions

The Great C showcases stunning visuals, excellent voice acting, and immersive storytelling, setting a new standard for VR cinematic experiences.
The use of VR technology enhances the storytelling, allowing viewers to feel a part of the narrative and experience the scale of the environments.
Despite its short runtime, the film is engaging and well-produced, making it a worthwhile experience for VR enthusiasts.

The inconsistent scale of characters can be distracting, making them appear like toys at times, which detracts from emotional engagement.
The story adaptation from Philip K. Dick's original work is criticized for being simplistic and lacking depth, leaving viewers wanting more context and character development.
Some viewers found the pacing uneven and the transitions between scenes jarring, which can disrupt immersion in the VR experience.

story
316 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
59%
5%
The story of "The Great C," based on Philip K. Dick's short story, has received mixed reviews, with many praising its immersive VR presentation and visual quality while criticizing the plot for being simplistic or poorly adapted. Some reviewers found the narrative engaging and well-acted, but others felt it lacked depth and coherence, often straying too far from the original material. Overall, while the storytelling medium shows promise, the execution of the story itself left many wanting more.
- “The great c does an excellent job of showing the potential of using VR as a storytelling medium.”
- “A very beautifully told story that went in some directions I really didn't see coming, great camera work, lighting and overall atmosphere.”
- “Not only are the graphics, settings, and voice acting superb, but the story itself is very compelling.”
- “The story is the typical 'humans suck' post-apocalyptic dreck that has been done to death.”
- “The last third is just full of plot contrivances and it feels only tangentially related to the original short story.”
- “However, I found the story (or the execution of the story) to be disappointing unfortunately.”
graphics
58 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
76%
19%
5%
The graphics in the game are widely praised for their stunning quality, immersive environments, and detailed animations, contributing significantly to the overall experience. While many reviewers highlight the exceptional visuals and sound design, some note that the graphics can feel flashy at times, overshadowing a less compelling storyline. Overall, the combination of impressive graphics, sound, and voice acting creates a captivating atmosphere, despite some criticisms regarding the narrative depth.
- “The graphics are stunning and the voice acting is top quality.”
- “Visuals and sound are superb, giant environments are really breathtaking.”
- “The environments were stunning and the graphics and cinematography were really good.”
- “But it's almost like a showcase of flashy graphics while being dragged through the story.”
- “I am not impressed with the choice of graphics, but that might be due to hardware issues. The ground/floor is so flat, it constantly reminded me and threw me out of the storytelling.”
- “Graphically, it looks a lot like Telltale games.”
music
37 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
68%
24%
8%
The music in the game has received high praise for its quality and atmospheric contribution, with many reviewers highlighting the impressive soundtrack by Junkie XL, known for his work on notable projects like "Mad Max: Fury Road" and "Mirror's Edge." The score effectively sets the tone and enhances the overall experience, featuring standout tracks that resonate well with players. While the voice acting received mixed feedback, the music consistently stood out as a strong element of the game.
- “There's a lovely song featured in the middle of this that was a real standout.”
- “The music is also very well done and works great at providing atmosphere.”
- “Music certainly sets the tone.”
- “Great visuals and ambiance accompanied by a well-fitting soundtrack by Junkie XL.”
- “I'm a lover of movie and game soundtracks, and this one really stands out with nods to the Blade Runner synths.”
atmosphere
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of the experience is consistently praised for its beauty and immersive qualities, enhanced by excellent voice acting, effective camera work, and thoughtful lighting. Reviewers highlight the captivating visuals and sound design, including well-composed music that contributes to the overall ambiance. Many feel that the atmospheric elements create a compelling narrative experience, making it a standout feature of the production.
- “A very beautifully told story that went in some directions I really didn't see coming, great camera work, lighting, and overall atmosphere.”
- “The voice actors did a great job, the visuals are sweet and the sound atmosphere really is immersive.”
- “The music is also very well done and works great at providing atmosphere.”
optimization
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
42%
25%
Overall, the game's optimization is praised, with users reporting excellent performance across various hardware setups, including high-end configurations like the RTX 2080 Ti and GTX 1070. While most character animations are well-executed through motion capture, some movements appear stilted due to manual animation. The developers have effectively optimized Unreal Engine 4 for VR, enhancing the visual experience without significant performance issues.
- “Excellent performance, even on higher settings, though.”
- “Experienced on Pimax 5K+, normal FOV, running on RTX 2080 Ti, so no performance issues.”
- “The story was very good, and the devs know how to optimize UE4 to look great in VR (tough to do sometimes). Please, devs, make another.”
- “Most of the characters' animations are motion-captured performances, though there are plenty of character movements that are stilted and robotic, which were obviously manually-animated.”
- “The optimization feels lacking, as some areas of the game experience noticeable frame drops and stuttering, even on high-end hardware.”
- “Despite having a powerful setup, I encountered frequent performance issues that detracted from the overall experience.”
character development
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
17%
17%
The character development in the game is notable, featuring well-crafted arcs and interesting choices that enhance the narrative. Despite the appealing character designs, the story tackles mature themes, making it unsuitable for younger audiences. Overall, the characters contribute significantly to the engaging world and plot twists.
- “Little bit of action in the right places, great world and character designs, twists, and the characters have arcs and developments that lead to interesting choices.”
- “Great VR movie with a compelling story and impressive character design.”
- “The character designs may seem playful, but the story is deep and not intended for young children.”
- “And don't let the character designs fool you... this story is not for young children.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is mixed; while some narratives are described as beautiful and well-written, others lack impactful character development, such as the tentacle lady's implied change in perspective, which fails to resonate due to insufficient exploration. Comparatively, shorter stories in other games are noted to deliver stronger emotional experiences.
- “The story is beautiful, emotional, and well written.”
- “They're free, and while significantly shorter, they have better stories with more emotional resonance than this.”
gameplay
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
The gameplay in titles like "Tale of a Wedding Ring" and "The Invisible Hour" is minimal, with the former being more of a VR novel and the latter offering some interactive elements. Overall, many users feel that these experiences lean more towards 3D cinematic storytelling rather than traditional gameplay mechanics.
- “There is no gameplay, it's just a 3D movie with animated characters, but quite good.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Overall, the reviews indicate that the title has minimal replayability, with users expressing boredom and a lack of interest in revisiting the experience. Despite being well-crafted, it fails to provide sufficient entertainment value for repeated viewings.
- “It's so boring that I would never watch it again, so zero replayability.”
- “[i]The Great C[/i], being a movie, has very little replay value and a relatively poor 'time entertained vs. dollars spent', but it's quite well put together and a good example of the future of the medium.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and time-consuming, particularly when it involves creating high-quality animations for human characters. This process is often seen as a necessary but laborious part of achieving fluid and realistic movement in the game.
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Overall, the game demonstrates solid stability during gameplay, though users have noted issues with loading screens that can disrupt the experience.
- “Runs great except for the loading screens others have commented on.”