In CookieRun: The Darkest Night Chapter 1, you take control of an adorable cookie hero named GingerBrave. The freshly-baked protagonist begins a journey to fulfill a prophecy to take down the Darkest Lord Cookie, who is trying to enslave cookiekind. Although it's a simple concept on the surface, the charming fairy tale is a fun action-adventure VR title with a surprising amount of depth to its gameplay and progression system.
As I prepared to dive into CookieRun, I was initially apprehensive due to having a sensitive stomach regarding virtual reality. However, to my delight, I found CookieRun an overall smooth experience. The game has pretty standard controls, where you move with the Meta Quest's left joystick while panning the camera with your right hand. If there was ever a moment where I felt disoriented, the game allowed me to re-center myself by teleporting to the location where I wanted to go with a click of a button. For those who struggle with heavy motion in VR titles, I would recommend using the teleport feature if you don't want to move around too quickly. The mechanic also works if you are afraid of heights, as you can warp down a ladder or mountain when descending them without having to look down.
One thing I really appreciate about this game is the clever design decisions they implemented to ensure the game's motion doesn't become too much for players. For instance, during certain platform sections, CookieRun transitions from its first-person view to a side camera angle, where players can control GingerBrave through a quick-time event to jump. Think of it as a child looking down while moving his toys around the room. These gameplay sections are still fun and charming for adults while also perfect for younger audiences. But it's also just a clever solution to avoid motion sickness, as the game could have quickly turned into Mirror's Edge for the worst.
CookieRun: The Darkest Night Chapter 1 takes advantage of the Meta Quest 3's controllers in a few different ways. For instance, there are many sections in the game where you have to climb platforms, and squeezing the controller will result in your character gripping and holding on to things in the game's world. This actually went a long way to make the game feel immersive in spots, as even simple tasks, such as climbing a ladder, were a physical experience you wouldn't usually get in most console FPS games. Actions like this aren't automated either, as you have to physically grab onto each step or stone with your hand to ascend.
Most of the game's combat centers around your trusty candy cane weapon, which acts as a sword. The Meta Quest's excellent tracking makes fights seamless, as you feel each blade swing with little to no lag. Your Candy Cane and swords aren't just for whacking enemies on the head, though, as you can actually deflect enemies' attacks back at them. If combat ever feels overwhelming, the game also lets you take a defensive stance by holding your weapons in the air as a shield to block all incoming damage.
Although the combat is pretty simplified at first, I was actually surprised when the game introduced mechanics such as enemy weakness. After breaking a foe down enough, for example, you are given a visual cue to show you where to hit an enemy with your swords to land maximum damage. Instead of just flailing around to reduce each encounter to a hack n' slash fest, the game requires some strategy if you want to defeat enemies quickly. As you progress, you also get access to a slingshot for long-ranged combat, and you can even acquire different ammo with unique attack properties. So, despite the game's cartoony world on the surface, it does actually have some depth!
Speaking of depth, the CookieRun: The Darkest Night Chapter 1 also has crafting. After collecting enough materials from the overworld or defeating enemies, you can upgrade your weapons by crafting new swords. There are even five tiers to this system. So the higher your weapon power is, the more damage you will be dishing out. While this is an overall pretty simplistic system, I, again, really appreciate that Studio FreshDoh! added these features to flesh this out into a full action adventure experience. It could have easily been an on-the-rails hack and slash, but there is a decent-sized progression system here.
The only major complaint I have about CookieRun: The Darkest Night is that it's a pretty short experience. My save file was around three hours by the time I reached the end. And I usually play slower than most players! However, its length is pretty typical for most VR titles in this category, and the game is only priced at $24. So, given its low cost, I actually think it's a pretty great experience, especially if you have younger kids that you want to introduce to the FPS genre. It also should be pointed out that this is Chapter 1 of the story, with the second part scheduled to release in Summer 2024. So there is more to come.
I do wish that combat had a bit more variety. While you get magical properties such as higher-powered swords, I kept thinking that the game would really benefit from having a handful of spells as well. For example, it would have been awesome if gripping your Meta Quest controller built up a ball of fire in your hand that you could throw at enemies. Although the story is just at its beginning in Chapter 1, so perhaps the game can add more features as the plot progresses in its second part.
