An engaging mixed reality game that turns your living room into a battlefield.

It seems like mixed reality (MR) games are becoming much more common.

Whether it’s turning your space into a wildlife sanctuary (Living Room), having a pool table appear in your den (MiRacle Pool), or creating creating giant towers out of random items (Does it Stack?), the possibilities for this technology are only limited by the creativity of developers.

Just released Nov. 14, virtual reality (VR) and MR enthusiasts on the Quest series of headsets – the game is available on PICO as well – can watch as the real world blends beautifully with the digital one as they become agents in Spatial Ops.

Developed by Resolution Games (Racket Club, Demeo), Spatial Ops offers you the chance to become an action hero as you fend off the evil Hatchet Corp., in a solo campaign, or turn your space into an arena where you can play multiplayer modes such as free for all, team deathmatch, and more against bot or against friends with the game in co-located play.

Spatial Ops is a fun and heart pounding shooter that has you as a player engage in a way you can’t in most VR games. Forget using the thumbstick to move as you have to physically move your body to face your opponents and duck behind barriers that pop up in the campaign, or use furniture within your space and run around as your fight your way to victory in arena mode.

The game looks great, while sometimes your digital hands don’t always blend perfectly with your real ones, this isn’t much of an issue as you’ll be too busy fighting to survive.

Looking first at the campaign, this mode clocks in at about two hours. While this is short, as it’s only made up of a handful of levels – currently seven – there is a lot of replayability here as you work to upgrade your character and unlock equipment.

In campaign mode you’re an agent of Spatial Ops whose job it is to fight back against the now corrupt Hatchet Corp. Years ago the discovery was made that there are other worlds, and it’s your job as a member of Spatial Ops to keep our world safe. You’ll infiltrate Hatchet using a fancy contraption that can create portals around you from all angles – including the ceiling.

The graphics look great. Even the generator which surrounds you on the floor blends with your space to make it feel real. Once you kick off a level, portals appear in multiple directions and you need to physically move yourself around to take cover while firing. The guns do feel a little off sometimes – not to mention it really is tough to fire two weapons at once with accuracy – but overall the gunplay here does work pretty well.

There does not seem to be a manual reload option, instead it’s more arcade style where your flick your guns to reload. While manual reload would add to the immersion, considering the pace of the game it does make sense why it’s done this way.

As mentioned earlier, the campaign is short. But this is a great way to get use to the mechanics of the game and it does offer a lot of reason to return as weapons and equipment can be unlocked and upgraded.

Now let’s talk about arena mode.

This “multiplayer” mode – in quotation marks because you need to play with people in your own space and if you don’t know anyone with a headset you’re stuck with bots. Now don’t fret because the bots are actually very well done here as they have the good sense to use cover and can sneak up when you least expect it. But they aren’t going to be as tactically well-versed as a real person.

Arena mode really is best played when you have a big space. It does work in smaller confined spaces, but obviously the best experience will be done if you have an abundance of room.

You can quickplay if you want to jump right in and start shooting, but setting up a custom map is the best way to go.

Having played other MR games where you need to use room scanning and setup/define items in your space and objects, this by far is the easiest. Even playing Drop Dead: The Cabin which just requires a door and windows to play, the process here in Spatial Ops was even easier – and less annoying than the former and other similar games.

Once you’re creating your space, you define where your walls are – with the options to create a space as big or small as you want – before adding things like barriers, gun spawn locations, and even furniture that becomes part of the game. The process can take a while, but doing it right is so very worth it as you can turn an entire floor into your MR warzone.

Once your map is done and the space is set, you can choose from numerous game types including team games like capture the flag, or try and be the best in a free for all, among other modes like domination and deathmatch.

Everything here also looks great and it’s playing this mode that will garner the most attention – especially if they can add more intuitive AI to their bots – as there’s every reason to come back for more. Fans of games like Call of Duty or Battlefield for multiplayer will really enjoy being able to actually be part of the virtual action, feeling immersed in the world.

Spatial Ops may seem a little light on the content, but for the price – currently $26.99 – it’s full of content to keep you entertained.

The game is definitely best played if you have friends who are able to play in the space with you – or if the game were to become multi-location multiplayer – but there’s no reason to turn up your nose just because of the bots. The campaign has a wealth of content, even if it’s just a few levels, and the amount of exertion you’ll need to do to survive – regardless of the mode you play – means this is definitely a game to play in short bursts.

If you’re looking for a new MR game that really gets your blood pumping and allows you to flex your shooting muscles, Spatial Ops is definitely a game you should pick up.

Spatial Ops, was reviewed on the Quest 3 after receiving a key from the developers.