You can play the game in one of three positions: sitting, standing or using the headset in roomscale mode.

It’s also very easy to become discombobulated in terms of your position in the real world, which means a constant danger of tripping over the cable that connects the headset to the console – which we managed to completely yank out on one occasion. Their design is similar to most other modern VR controllers but while we never had any problem with their precision their battery life is perilously short and we frequently ended up pressing the screenshot or dashboard button by mistake. We imagine most, if not all, future games are only going to use the PlayStation VR2 Sense controllers, rather than the DualSense, and here they are the only control system on offer. Your physical presence in the game is indicated only by a pair of floating hands (which is extra disconcerting given your shadow is also just the two hands) and with these you must look out for ledges that have been sprinkled with a line of cocaine – or whatever the white substance is supposed to be – and which indicate they can be climbed on. Playing the story campaign, your boat trip naturally ends in disaster and you’re introduced to the main gameplay mechanic: climbing. We’ve gone into more detail on the headset in our separate review of the hardware but while there is still a little softness to the image – exacerbated by some strange lighting choices in the game, especially the sections set around dusk – this is a real ‘the future is now’ moment. It only lasts a few minutes, but in those moments you’re shown exactly what the PlayStation VR2 is capable of and the vast difference in resolution and clarity compared to the original headset that and the vastly better graphics possible on the PlayStation 5, compared to the Meta Quest 2. It’s all orchestrated exactly like a theme park ride and, naturally, involves them stepping over you and get into fights with each other at dangerously close range. The best way to show them is via a separate ‘safari’ option, which is a slightly extended version of the opening scene, which sees you being transported as a prisoner on a canoe, watching as various robots go about their daily lives on the riverbank.

Horizon call of the mountain aloy