Manga meets VR when Sushi Ben comes to PS VR2 on May 28

blog.playstation.com:

Fancy a cozy adventure in a stunning locale? Inspired by real-life experiences, Sushi Ben drops you into an idyllic seaside town rich with addictive mini-games and curious characters across an anime-inspired slice-of-life sim.

I’m excited for the chance to give players insight into what to expect in Sushi Ben and announce that the game launches May 28 for PlayStation VR2. I’ll also include some additional insights on the creation of this game from Big Brane co-founder Kane Tyler, who first conceived the idea of Sushi Ben as part of his college thesis.

In Sushi Ben, players are tasked with saving a sushi bar from going out of business as a group of land developers try to buy up all the property in town. You will assist the townsfolk with various activities and tasks to cultivate business.

As one would expect, Sushi Ben has a wonderful fishing game at its core. As you develop relationships with the locals and complete quests, you’ll fish for the particular type each customer wants so that you can bring their business into the restaurant. That’s only the tip of the iceberg, though.

The townsfolk have unique motivations and desires and, thus, have a wide range of mini-games for players to engage with. There’s table tennis, stone carving, bug catching, dog walking, archery, and more. Each one takes advantage of the dynamic movements that make virtual reality gaming immersive and exciting, challenging players to get moving and use their hand-eye coordination in fun ways.

We at Big Brane hope players are captivated by how the story is told. The freedom of VR, where players have a perpetually unlocked ability to look anywhere at any time, creates some challenges when directing focus. To attract the player’s eye, you must make things stand out, and that’s where our dynamic manga panels come into play.

The thesis specifically focused on filmmaking techniques in virtual reality, which is a significant challenge given that the player is the camera. It’s our job then to provide