A behind-the-scenes look at how I built a VR wave-based shooter for the PC + VR using Unity, and what I learned along the way.
🧠 Concept: Mixing Intensity with Immersion
For our university’s Project exhibition, I wanted to create something that wouldn't just be played—but experienced.
That's how Pew Pew Waves was born.
It’s a VR wave-based shooter developed in Unity, designed specifically for the Meta Quest 3, with a focus on fast-paced action, stylized low-poly visuals, and intense enemy combat. Think of it as a survival test—wave after wave of enemies with only your reflexes and precision to keep you alive.
The game features:
- Three uniquely designed maps + Practice Area map
- Advanced enemy AI
- Procedural wave progression
- VR Version (under Work ...)
- A non-VR PC version for fallback or demo booths
🛠️ Technical Challenges & Learnings
Building for VR brought its own set of challenges that were both frustrating and incredibly rewarding.
🧭 NavMeshAgent Glitches :
One of the biggest headaches was handling NavMeshAgent errors. Enemies would often spawn without navigation data or ignore terrain boundaries altogether. I had to implement custom fallback logic for off-mesh behaviors and dynamically rebake certain areas to accommodate runtime level design changes.
🎯 VR Interaction Optimization :
Getting Meta Quest 3's controller inputs to sync with Unity’s new Input System wasn’t a plug-and-play situation. It took serious debugging, input remapping, and tweaking interaction profiles to make gunplay feel natural.
🔁 Procedural Waves :
Rather than spawning static enemies per level, I built a modular wave system that scales difficulty dynamically. This system also supports future updates like boss fights or special enemy types.
🧪 Playtesting & Player Engagement :
During early test sessions, I noticed how much player movement and head tracking influenced gameplay in VR. Small tweaks to enemy spawn locations and timing made a huge difference in how “fair” or “overwhelming” the game felt.
Based on feedback:
- I balanced enemy speed
- Added visual cues before each wave starts
- Introduced minor health drops to keep longer sessions sustainable
Players responded really well. Most were instantly immersed. Some even ducked and rolled in real life to avoid enemy fire — a sure sign the immersion worked!
📸 Screenshots
🔗 Try the Game
You can download the PC version of Pew Pew Waves on Itch.io .
💡 Takeaways
This project taught me how to:
- Develop for standalone VR hardware (available soon)
- Tackle real-world AI and physics issues
- Use player feedback to drive design choices
Most importantly, it helped me bring a playable, immersive shooter experience to life in just a few weeks — and watching others enjoy it made every late night worth it.
Follow me for more dev logs, experiments, and Unity deep-dives!
And if you played Pew Pew Waves, I’d love to hear what you think.
