Hatsune Miku: VR Future Live Review (https://youtu.be/fGzlateEjbE)

I have always been enamored with the idea of vocaloids. The idea to produce a pop sensation without needing the person is an interesting prospect. So when I heard Miku was going VR I had to check it out. Then everything went downhill…

Hatsune Miku: VR Future Live
Publisher: Sega
Developer: SegaSoft, Sega
Platform: Playstation 4 PSVR
Release Date: October 13, 2016
Players: 1
Price: $14.99 per 2 song Stage. $39.99 season pass for all 3 Stages. (Review Copy recived)

This is a review coupled with a supplemental video review. You can watch the video review above, or read the full review of the game below.

Let’s get this out of the way first: THIS IS NOT A GAME. It is a VR “experience” and I use that word loosely. There are some rhythm segments they have thrown in but they are totally inconsequential.

Hatsune Miku: VR Future Live is an interesting but completely dull visual experience. The stage stays practically the same, the characters look a bit blurry compared to the background and while there is a focus on Miku, she is not exactly producing a stellar performance.

There are some minor character effects when the vocaloids are singing and emoting but they sure as hell don’t make up for the general lack of everything. This is especially relevant when you consider that a season pass for only 21 total songs is $40, or $15 per seven songs.

While the music selected is good, it’s disappointing that they could not do more than seven songs per stage. Miku fans will not be disappointed with the selection, just the shortness of the list. This is especially jarring when you look at what you can get for $40 on PSVR.

Lets say you really are enjoying the music. The sound effects coming from your “glowstick,” which transforms into different things throughout the concert when you do the motions of the crowd with your move controller, are just irritating.

Combine this with the song and it becomes annoying. It was cute at first but rapidly became a strong negative.

Hatsune Miku: VR Future Live is super disappointing. At its $40 price point there should be some real meat to experience, but it falls far short. In good conscience, I can not tell you to buy this even though it is not broken in any way.

From a pure content standpoint, it does not warrant the price at all. This is a shame, because there is huge potential here, and if this fails the likelihood of a complete Miku VR experience showing up later on is likely zero.

Hatsune Miku: VR Future Live was reviewed on Playstation 4 VR using a digital copy provided by SEGA. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here.