Arguably, one of the most important things for a hero shooter game to do is to have compelling characters that feel unique in their own way, rather than having more of the same. That's why games like Apex Legends, Valorant, and Overwatch do extremely well compared to other titles within the same genre, precisely thanks to a very diverse set of heroes to choose from when starting a game. Game Rant spoke with Seth Luisi and Greg Koreman from Impulse Gear, the studio behind the acclaimed first-person shooter by the name of Farpoint, about the new 6v6 hero-shooter game that is Larcenauts.

Larcenauts is not exactly like any other hero shooter on the market because of its being exclusive to VR systems like Oculus and Steam VR, and it is actually the first game of its kind. As such, Impulse Gear decided to take the best elements from Farpoint that could actually be used as a springboard for Larcenauts, while also improving the way characters were depicted in the studio's first game in this new project. Of course, characters are not just supposed to be compelling in terms of how they look or how relatable they are, and games like Larcenauts tend to have heroes who come with their own set of skills, weapons, and more.

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With Larcenauts not being a game that takes itself too seriously, Impulse Gear decided to have each character being a bit of a goofball. That doesn't take away the allure from each specialist, rather it makes them more original in a way. There are eight specialists for the time being in Larcenauts, and they all play differently because of their skillset and general role, ranging from sniper to medic, from brawler to grenadier, and more. New players just starting the game will have to learn the ropes of each character's kit, which on one hand makes the game quite complex to master for beginners and veterans of the genre as well, but this also gives room for competitive play.

As a matter of fact, Koreman and Luisi spoke about how they both love how the community is rapidly evolving and becoming extremely skilled at the game, which bodes well for the future of Larcenauts. The game was indeed conceived as an environment that could make for an ever-evolving competitive scene, with new specialists and maps being on the roadmap for the future, possibly expanding competitive play and introducing new interesting combinations. Combinations and team compositions are another big thing in Larcenauts, with all the different characters interacting with one another to shape and shift the meta as the game goes.

"You get a completely different feeling playing Salters, who is a grenadier than you do playing as Bosun, who has armor and a turret. It's nice to play the game and switch it up very fast and just choosing a different character that uses a whole different playstyle. For consumers, it's also a whole new set of abilities to learn to master. Just having all these different characters and abilities is, to me, my favorite feature in the game."

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The team made sure that no character felt overpowered right at the beginning when Larcenauts launched, and this was achieved through lots of playtesting, which Impulse Gear did for over a year now almost on a daily basis. This is to ensure that even the characters that might feel weak or too strong to some players will make up for a great asset or an easy kill for others, and this keeps the game healthy. There are always new strategies to try, new things to experiment with.

This also involves movement because VR is a very different environment than that of console or PC games, meaning that there is something to learn in those regards as well, and there's a certain dexterity involved in the process. For example, the Sprint Mode and the manual reload for every gun (which is not yet in the game but is planned shortly) further emphasize the differences between each character. Overall, the heroes in Larcenauts might just be one of its greatest features, and that is also due to taking advantage of VR to its fullest.

Larcenauts is available on Oculus and Steam VR.

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