Hidden IO’s Zix is the latest in a long line of first-person logrek adventures to adorn the VR ecosystem. Zix arrives on clear missions with Quest 3 and Steam early access. It’s about carving out space for genres that are already exploding with seams.
If you are suffering from the scary “Roguelike fatigue,” you should show the heading up front before you have the chance to roll your eyes and disappear. This is worth looking closely. Despite some minor issues, Zix is built on top of movement and combat system, making it attractive to click.
What is it?: Cross-play and support Action Loglique, solo play and three-player cooperatives with an emphasis on movement and fluid combat.
Platform: Quest 3/3s, Steam (reviewed in Quest 3)
release date:now
Developer/Publisher:Hide io
price: $19.99
here we go again
Start with open entrance. My first impression of Zix wasn’t shining. Art instructions did not click with me, the soundscape felt muted and I was not sold with enemy designs. But an hour later, I began to find my rhythm. By the end of the second hour, I was totally hooked.
Like most roguelikes, Zix wastes not too much time trying to talk to you. The tutorial has a thin premise of a wafer that provides enough context to ground the action, but here the story is not the point. This is to drop you into a series of surreal areas, test your reflexes, and chase flow states that easily mix combat, traversal, and quick thinking.
Each run consists of a series of short missions, after which the player returns to the lobby and spends upgrade points or chooses from the next set of available issues. All “campaigns” are divided into these small sequences, usually culminating in either a wave-based arena or a mini-boss encounter. However, if you progress enough, you can unlock tougher missions than you’ll see them facing bigger enemies and more challenging bosses.
Structureally, it is a familiar basis for Roguelike veterans, operating in the same vein as contemporaries like Hellsweeper and The Light Brigade. Personally, this staccato rhythm for this action is not my preferred way of enjoying this. That’s because it stops you from getting into the real flow and really enjoying the mechanics the game has to offer. Don’t get me wrong, the current format still works, but an approach similar to the long stretches of uninterrupted action found in things like Death: Unchained will take advantage of these fluid mechanics better.
Become a thing shot
The cornerstone of Zix’s design is fast movement and dynamic combat. Jumping, dashing, climbing, and vaulting are not optional extras. They are the heart of experience. All levels are built with verticality in mind, bound to the platform, scale wall, and the entire chain, encouraging you to maneuver with almost unnatural bounty. There is standard artificial stick-based movement for basic movements, but gesture-based movements are also present. These mechanisms are more unique, I’d admit, they took what they’re used to. Let me explain…
Imagine your movement is based on throwing a resilient band at you. For example, if you want to propel yourself forward, press the grip button to pull back. Imagine stretching out a resilient band here. Then, let go and move forward at an incredible pace. Do the same, but pulling to the left will avoid it on the right. Do the same with both hands and double the speed.
Jump, dashing, and performance ground slams – it all uses this technique. Carrying it with you at first is a heavy cognitive load, but internalizing the system adds a sense of kinetic energy, but VR games can barely be maintained.
Free-form fisticuffs
The battle is built on its base with five core weapon groups that can be bowed, side arms, shields, melee, and thrown, each weapon type is summoned via simple hand gestures. Like the athletic system, when you get a hang of a gesture, switching weapons on the spot is intuitive and creates room for fluid improvisation.
Jump off the shelf, summon a bow to light it in the air, land it with a smash on the ground, then trade it for a dual pistol before dropping the bomb and eloping to the next enemy. that’s great. The more you “juggle” your enemies with consecutive blows, the higher points you will earn and encourage them to connect with outrageous combos.
That’s not to say the system is perfect. Gestures can be muddy and there are many moments when you realize you accidentally summon the wrong weapon. Also, the throw feels a bit unstable, which reduces the reliability of the explosives more than I would like. Still, practice and a little discipline can alleviate most of these issues. We hope that these areas will receive more work as the game progresses through early access.
Level up!
Progress follows a proven roguelike formula. Within each run, there are perks and temporary weapon upgrades that enhance your current loadout. Outside of the run, Acolite Points provide a permanent stat boost, ensuring you have a sense of forward momentum at all times, even after a failure. New enemy types, perk combinations, and modifiers are added over time, increasing difficulty as you progress, helping you feel that each run is different from the end. Modifiers such as low gravity, enhanced knockback, and other twists can stack throughout the game and completely change the run-center approach.
If there are weaknesses in this system, it is the internal economy. Chaos – the currency used to unlock weapons while running – feels relatively stingy. The cost of weapons is high, the drop rate is conservative, and without the saverun option, losing progress is a fact that it is exacerbated by battery limitations on standalone devices. I lost two excellent runs that were completely unlocked with a powerful unlock, merely because real life was called and had to remove the headset. It’s an annoying omission and can be smoother with improved quality of life during early access.
Players who are sensitive to motion sickness in VR are warned – despite some comfort settings around the vignette, Zix is a game built on the principle of fast-paced, free-flowing movement. Don’t expect teleporting and other more intrusive and comfortable options to be available.
If your appearance can kill you
Visually, ZIX may split players. Technically, it’s supple and easy to analyze. The enemies are easy to distinguish, the environment is clear, and the direction of the art creates a sense of concrete scale that complements the game’s vertical elements. Due to the way space is framed, there are moments where moments bounding the environment feel fantastic.
The biome is clear – a red hellish landscape of lava and ghosts, a green zone of insects and fungi, and a watery blue biome with its emerging and surreal atmosphere. But, for a stylist, it’s not for everyone. Personally, I feel that the direction of the art (particularly the enemy design) gives the game a bit of a childish touch.
It is worth noting that Zix’s visual styling works very well on standalone headsets. This review will be conducted primarily on Quest 3. However, I also played the Steam version for comparison. As you can imagine, the Steam version is visually superior, but the Quest version never loses against a slight drop in visual fidelity.
The sound of silence
If there is one area where Zix trips violently, it’s sound design. From the first moment, the audio feels sparse and overwhelming, almost repressive in its presence.
The soundtrack is oddly calm, with no punches you want in an action-centric game and never fails to match the pace of combat. Sometimes, the soundscape makes the headset feel uncomfortable quiet rather than immersive, expelling momentum rather than refueling.
It doesn’t ruin the experience, but the gap between gameplay energy and audio flatness is tough. The more powerful and dynamic sound design allowed Zix to easily improve from good to great. Hopefully early access will give you hidden IO time to deal with this.
ZIX – Current Verdict
Zix may not win everyone in the presentation, but it offers one of the most fascinating combat systems I’ve played in a long time. The combination of vertical movement and gesture-based weapon switching creates fluid combat encounters with unique motor rhythms in crowded genres.
It’s not perfect, but even early access, the core experience is strong enough to recommend. If you’re a fan of free-flowing combat and don’t mind some rough edges, Zix is definitely worth your time.
UploadVR uses a 5-star rating system for game reviews. Check the guidelines. As an ongoing review, this has not been solved at this point, so I will be revisiting this review in full release.
