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Monument Valley maker heads toward a beautiful VR adventure game

Ustwo, creator of the award-winning mobile game Monument Valley, will release a virtual-reality adventure game for Samsung's Gear virtual-reality headset.

Anthony Domanico
CNET freelancer Anthony Domanico is passionate about all kinds of gadgets and apps. When not making words for the Internet, he can be found watching Star Wars or "Doctor Who" for like the zillionth time. His other car is a Tardis.
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Anthony Domanico
2 min read

The M.C. Escher-inspired puzzle game Monument Valley is a beautiful yet minimalistic offering that's managed to draw in gamers and non-gamers alike.

It was installed roughly 2.5 million times (not including the millions of pirated copies out there) as of January 2015, and brought in over $4.5 million (about £2.9 million, AU$6.3 million) for the company, according to the development studio behind the game, Ustwo. That's a tough act to follow, but Ustwo is gearing up to try with Land's End, a virtual-reality game that the company will release for the Samsung Gear VR headset next month.

Land's End will take users into a virtual world that looks and feels a lot like Monument Valley, with the same flat-shaded graphical style and mysterious music. From the short promotional clip Ustwo released on YouTube Monday, the environment of Land's End looks stunning and feels a lot like the groundbreaking 1990s computer game Myst.

landsend3.jpg
The world of Ustwo's Land's End, an upcoming virtual-reality game for Samsung's GearVR headset. Video screenshot by Anthony Domanico/CNET

Based on a few early accounts of the game, the control scheme for Land's End is pretty distinctive for virtual-reality gameplay. Instead of using a gamepad like some other VR headsets out there, players will navigate around the world of Land's End using just their eyes.

If you want to move to a new location, just look at it for a brief period of time and you'll move there. This "look and click" functionality follows throughout the game, and players will move objects around or look at things in the right order to unlock a door and move through the world.

If the company's previous mobile games like Monument Valley and Whale Trail are any indication, Land's End will probably be a great immersive experience.

Ustwo plans to release Land's End for Samsung Gear VR on October 30, though the company hasn't yet announced the final price point for the game. You can watch a bit of Land's End in action in the promotional video above.