It's a shame this game isn't more known because it's truly unique and everything is executed really well. Having a lot of fun with it. If you have vr and want to play online with a non-vr partner, do like me and use moonlight chrome (nvidia gamestream but modded/better) and be free of the local coop restriction!

Carly and the Reaperman - Escape from the Underworld is an asymmetric co-op game where one person plays in VR and the other person on a regular screen.

This game is played by two people on one PC. One player controls “the Reaperman” in Virtual Reality with motion controllers and the second player controls Carly with keyboard & mouse or a standard controller.

Carly part is played as a fairly straightforward third-person puzzle-platformer. You have to navigate through the level, solve puzzles and interact with different mechanisms. I found controls to be responsive and intuitive for both players, but like in most 3D platformers precise jumping can be quite challenging and requires some practice. I recommend playing with a controller. Xbox 360 / Xbox One controllers seem to work very well.

You will also encounter enemies on some levels. You will want to avoid them at all costs as you cannot fight the enemies and they can kill Carly instantly. Some enemies will move in a predetermined pattern and others will chase you around. There are several checkpoints throughout each level so even if you die you never lose too much progress.

Now with a VR portion of the game: The Reaperman is seen as a giant skull in the sky with two hands. The player controlling the Reaperman can pick up different blocks to build bridges and structures to help Carly get through the level and reach places Carly would not be able to reach by herself. Enemies can push your blocks and some will go out of the way just to mess up your carefully built structures. It can be annoying, but I found it to be more hilarious than frustrating.

There is also an interesting mechanic that I liked: at times one player can see something the other person cannot. As Carly, you cannot always see the floor but the Reaperman can or the Reaperman cannot see markings on the blocks that need to be placed in a certain order and Carly has to help out. Carly and the Reaperman really embraces what cooperative gameplay should be all about. You are not just playing side by side but you actively help each other to navigate and solve puzzles.

Carly and the Reaperman takes place in a surreal underworld. It is a very interesting combination of dark fantasy and urban settings. Different levels seem to represent different continents and cultures. Both levels themselves and backgrounds are a visually attractive. All of it looks especially cool in VR.

This game can be quite taxing since your PC has to pretty much render two games at once: a VR version and a regular one from a different perspective. Levels are relatively small in size so even on a low spec machine everything should run smoothly. I had to play on mid to low settings to achieve constant framerate for both players (my PC specs are listed below). There are separate graphics settings for VR and a regular gameplay so you can experiment to see what works best depending on your PC specs.

Carly and the Reaperman requires motion controllers and fully supports room-scale. You can move around the level freely or you can grab and move the level itself if you prefer to play seated or standing.

There are 8 main levels in the game with 4-5 rooms each. Depending on how good you are, you are looking at 6-12 hours of gameplay for one playthrough. Since playing as Carly is completely different than playing as the Reaperman, I highly encourage you to switch roles and play through the game twice.

You can find optional collectibles (fireflies) on each level. Getting them in one go will be very challenging so you will likely have to replay some levels multiple times. Both players need to be smart and work fast in order to get to some hard to reach areas. If you do collect all the fireflies, you will unlock a bonus level.

Carly and the Reaperman is a very unique VR 2-player experience that is both fun and challenging. The amount of content and the fact that it is almost two games in one, make it worth the price. If you have a VR headset and a friend to play this game with, you should absolutely give it a try.

Here is my gameplay video: https://youtu.be/01N6uU-DqkU

This is a fantastic platformer puzzle game for two people on the same computer. There's all sorts of neat communication that has to happen (things visible to only one player). There are lots of neat touches, like the reaperman's mouth moving when the microphone detects you're talking (even though you're just communicating in the same room).

But most interesting of all, the game gives you freedom to solve the puzzles in more ways than one. You can place the blocks anywhere and the in-game physics engine deals with it. You're not completely shoehorned into finding "the" solution, and can sometimes do really weird and creative things. If you liked Portal 1 more than Portal 2 for this reason, you will love this game.

This game is so overlooked, and is one of the best asymmetrical VR games out there. Think we have over 600 games, and many of them are VR. We own Vive and Index, both since day one. Played this game when it was first released with my son aged 8, and now with daughter aged 6. We take it in turns, though she prefers to be "whiskers", the VR giant.
Its the most fun we've had in VR for a long while, and great to play together. The camera for the screen person is little frustrating, but you cannot fault the atmosphere, and well designed levels.
Wish this games had had the impact it deserves. Compared to all the dross out there, this game shines.

Now that the Steam Remote play is out I finally got a buddy to play it with me. He understandably didn't want to download 3rd party software to play together before but since it's built into steam we were all good now. Loved the hour or so we played. We've been looking for asymetrical games like this since he can't afford a VR headset.

I had a friend coming over, so we grabbed this and spin it up. It was AMAZING. The asymmetric game play was fantastic, the art and game was fluid and it was really enjoyable. The puzzles were difficult and not just reapplication of solutions we had already seen, every pile felt very unique and different.

I played on the VR side of things, and everything feels great. Minimal loading screens, no nausea, good controls, maintained good frame rate through out. Overall, one of my favorite VR games. Fantastic work

My wife asked to write the review for this one:

"Carly and the Reaperman is even more fun than the trailer suggests! I had the happiest of times playing with my husband. His platforming skills made him the best choice for Carly and I played as the Reaperman. With its beautiful art style, increasingly elaborate level design and a seemingly simple, yet very poignant narrative, Carly delivers one of the most creative VR experiences that I have ever played.

That being said, it does have some flaws. Several glitches in the game resulted in lost progress, forcing us to repeat some of the most difficult levels. In one instance, we found a way to cheat through some pixel perfect platforming just to avoid having to repeat the entire puzzle for a 2nd time.

Throughout the game, you have the option of collecting small, glowing orbs, but we could never figure out what they were used for if anything. In that same vein, we were never given more then a handful of choices for character costumes. Not that these two things are integral to the whole experience, it just left us wondering why have them in the game at all then?

Overall I would recommend the early levels of the game to anyone, but playing through to the end of the game will take patience, lots of communication and a great degree of skill. *Fist bump!*"

Video Review → https://youtu.be/VQGRd-rzVVw?t=12m57s

Carly and the Reaperman is an asymmetrical CO-OP multiplayer game with one person playing in VR, and the 2nd player on the PC.

Coordinate with each other so the VR player can move platforms and arrange objects for the smaller PC player to get to the end of the level.

The design is charming and fun to play in. Highly recommended game for 2 player CO-OP.

INSTANT BUY, A TRUE HIDDEN GEM

-Challenging puzzles that have several solutions
-Brooding tortured souls that say deep ♥♥♥♥
-Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy except no Billy and replace all the frowns and anger with smiles and uwu vibes
-Extremely fun co-op
-10/10 experience

9/10. Absolutely amazing game.

I honestly wish more games worked like this. It's definitely an experience you should try with your friends, siblings, parents, SO's. Me and my sister played for 4 hours or so now, and I can tell you, yelling at each others incompetence is the best part.

The game also has quite a nostalgic feel, It's been a while since I've played a good platformer. This brings a new mechanic to that, and the way the developers executed it was awesome.

Buy the game. You won't regret it.