Visual novels are the perfect combination of a book and manga (or comics). It was only natural that the next evolution of the genre would appear on the Oculus system.
The Dream Clinic is the story of Miki, a young girl who has been plagued by horrible nightmares. One day she receives a mysterious flier which guides her to a dreamland filled with clinics ran by tapirs (yes, the animal). There, Miki meets with one of the tapir healers who takes her nightmare away from her and he himself steps into it.
Intrigued? You should be? This is, to my knowledge, the first time such an interactive drama is made available on the Oculus.
The Dream Clinic is a part of a new emerging genre called ‘VRxManga’. It is considered to be the ultimate reading experience as it lets the player (or in this case reader) become fully immersed into the virtual world. One of the things that make it so immersive is the fact that the reader becomes the main character. That’s right, as you experience the manga the world shifts around you. Imagine stepping into your favorited anime. This is very similar to that.
All characters are fully voiced so you can essentially enjoy the manga as an audiobook. Voice acting is available both in English and in Japanese.
The panels of the manga flow one after the other. There are added background effects to immerse the reader into the world.
Overall this is a good step into the right direction. This formula opens the possibility of interactive books or perhaps interactive movies. Albeit a bit short, about 30 minutes, The Dream Clinic is an interesting experience. Whether you let yourself be immersed is up to you, but if you do decide to try it you wont be disappointed. The ambiance is worth the price of submission itself.
