Iron Man VR "all started with a challenge", director says in behind the scenes look

(Image credit: Camouflaj / Sony / Marvel)

A behind the scenes look at the creation of Marvel's Iron Man VR has been posted on PlayStation official YouTube channel, offering some insight into the creation of the upcoming VR experience that puts you in the famous suit of Tony Stark. 

Director Ryan Payton opens by explaining how Seattle-based studio Camouflaj came to develop Iron Man VR: "The inception of Marvel's Iron Man VR all started with a challenge… Jay Ong who runs Marvel Games came back and told me that project [Iron Man VR] was probably going to go to a bigger studio, and I said, 'Hypothetically, what would it take to get that project?' And he said, 'Well, you'd have to have the best pitch I've ever seen and a prototype that beats every other prototype we've ever seen.'" 

Engineer Troy Johnsen then talks about the creation of the prototype called "flight", which began by putting physics thrusters on the palms "to see how it felt". Payton recalls an employee spent over 30-40 minutes playing around in the prototype just being Iron Man and flying around, and it was at that point they thought "we've nailed it." 

The behind the scenes look also explores the development's teams goals for the game, from accurately re-creating Iron Man's suit and all of its functions and features, to delivering an immersive experience through action and storytelling. 

"Tony Stark as a character is such a fun sandbox to play in as storytellers," Payton says. "At Camouflaj, we really wanted to make sure that we paired the action with really fun and meaningful story moments." 

Iron Man VR is set to release on PS4 on July 3. In the suit of Iron Man, you're attacked by a mysterious hacker who "repurposes old Stark industries weapons". Using the PSVR headset and Move motion controllers, you can fly around and use Stark's repulsor jets and all of the suit's iconic arsenal of weapons. Along the way, you'll also meet some other iconic Marvel characters. 

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Heather Wald
Senior staff writer

I started out writing for the games section of a student-run website as an undergrad, and continued to write about games in my free time during retail and temp jobs for a number of years. Eventually, I earned an MA in magazine journalism at Cardiff University, and soon after got my first official role in the industry as a content editor for Stuff magazine. After writing about all things tech and games-related, I then did a brief stint as a freelancer before I landed my role as a staff writer here at GamesRadar+. Now I get to write features, previews, and reviews, and when I'm not doing that, you can usually find me lost in any one of the Dragon Age or Mass Effect games, tucking into another delightful indie, or drinking far too much tea for my own good.