Ride the Rails, Remix Reality: Synth Riders Received its Mixed Reality Update!

Welcome to a huge Synth Riders update, headlined by our all-new Mixed Reality Mode and jam-packed with updates to each corner of our game!

With mixed reality, your room becomes the stage as you catch notes, ride the rails, and avoid obstacles that pass from the game into your reality – this new free feature is available today on Meta Quest 2, Quest Pro, and the latest flagship headset from Meta, the Quest 3.

WHAT’S NEW?

Many months in the making, this major update includes:

• All-new Mixed Reality mode
• Major visual enhancements to UI, stages & experiences
• Performance improvements in all areas
• Gameplay improvements
• Accessibility improvements
• New cross-platform social features
• Multiplayer enhancements
• …and so much more!

There are also CUSTOM STAGE CHANGES with this version – please read on for details!

MIXED REALITY MODE

Watch your whole world transform as the portal opens, connecting your reality to one of Synth Riders’ retro future worlds. You’ll dance along to your favorite songs as your room responds to the music; the portal pulsing to the beat to match your gameplay and the whole room reacting to your performance in the gold and green special sections! Enable this from the prompt when you start the game. Please note that while Mixed Reality is supported on Quest 2, 3 & Pro, only black and white passthrough is available for Quest 2.

VISUAL ENHANCEMENTS

• Enjoy a brighter, shinier visual experience throughout our game; right down to the UI with sharper text, updated icons.
• All stages, environments, Experiences and user interface elements retouched for greater fidelity on Quest.
• Look out for the walls! Quest is no longer limited in walls displayed, so be ready to see old songs in a new way!
• Updated and improved particle effects and textures throughout the game, from teleport effects in the lobby to the rail flares.

PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS

• Spend less time in loading screens with the game’s improvements to load and scene changes times.
• Lots of notes? Long rails? No problem! We’ve refactored the game to improve performance under heavy map loads on Quest.
• Lots of dense walls? Our dynamic adjustment system will automatically enable the new wireframe-style walls when needed for performance.

GAMEPLAY IMPROVEMENTS

• Gotta go fast with the new-to-Quest 3x Note Jump Speed modifier!
• Don’t fall off the rails! Nuanced haptics give new feedback, letting you feel how close you are to the edge, and haptics settings are available to let you tune your experience.
• Blue bolts now awarded for those OUTSTANDING players who get 0 poor hits with their full combo!
• Better position of the HUD in Spin Mode helps you stay oriented to the line of play.
• Adjustment of mechanics for better cross-platform parity for all.

ACCESSIBILITY IMPROVEMENTS

• Whether you’re left or right handed, just use the trigger on the hand you wish to use for the UI!
• Playing one-handed is now more engaging with all special sections preserved as any-hand specials.
• Need larger notes for visibility or smaller notes for clarity? Note size is now a cosmetic option, free to choose in your APPEARANCE settings.

CROSS-PLATFORM SOCIAL FEATURES

• New cross-platform social panel gives you better control of your experience.
• Make friends to compare scores, or use the block and reporting functions in game.
• Access social features by selecting a player’s name tag or through the social button on your platform in Multiplayer.

MULTIPLAYER ENHANCEMENTS

• Greet players who join, always know who’s speaking – even when you’re playing a song with the new in-game player list and new controls.
• Access player-specific controls and social features (volume, mute, friend, mute, ban, block, report) quickly by selecting the player’s name tag.
• Never be left behind with the new “Auto Ready” option, which will automatically set you ready / not ready as you access menus and controls.
• Visuals for Power-Ups improved to make it clearer when sending and receiving the love – including in Spin Mode!

QUEST 1 SUNSET & DEPRECATED FEATURES

• Quest 1 will not receive this update, and unfortunately multiplayer is not backwards compatible between this version and the Quest 1 sunset version.
• YUR watch and bHaptics integrations are not supported at this point in time.

CUSTOM STAGE CHANGES

Due to necessary changes in the game engine needed for this update, ALL existing custom stages will no longer work with this version. This is the only content which is affected by this update.

We have been working closely with members of the stage making community in beta since April to support them in converting their stages ready for this new version and we know they’re excited for you to see what they can do with their new tools! Please check your usual custom content sources for updates to stages as they become available.

Follow @synthridersvr on socials for the latest updates and join our Official Facebook or Discord communities for everything Synth Riders!