Games Workshop and its Warhammer franchise is hugely popular around the world, whether its the game itself, the literature, the videogames, or anything else related to it. Last year developer Fatshark released Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide on PC, then last month brought the co-op adventure title to Xbox One and PlayStation 4. Today the studio has made a new announcement, that its been working on virtual reality (VR) support which will be out this year.

With such a rich history and dedicated fan base being able to jump into a Warhammer world will be quite a draw for many gamers. Fatshark made the reveal via a Twitch stream on Sevadus’ channel.

For the VR version a special task force was assembled within the studio to work on the project, bringing it to life for VR head-mounted displays (HMDs). Only a very small amount of the title has been shown so far as its currently in beta. Sevadus play tested Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide on HTC Vive, taking control of an apprentice being tested to see if they’re good enough to join the main heroes. This beta version of the title began in a tavern, serving as a basic hub to get acquainted with the controls before being able to choose between three levels, two main ones and a smaller bonus area. The larger ones were Forest and Drachenfels (a dingy underground level). Both served up a similar experience in which waves of enemies attack the player, but while Drachenfels was more survival orientated, Forest requires players to defend themselves and a hut being attacked in the distance.

There’s going to be several weapons available but only two were really shown in the stream, a bow and arrow and a magical skull on a stick. The bow and arrow is self explanatory while the magical weapon allowed fireballs to be pulled out of the skull. Fatshark did talk about a couple of other weapons, a repeater pistol and a rapier sword that wasn’t playable for those who like to hack and slash their enemies.

The final level demoed was called Cart. Putting players on a sort of mine cart, this then travelled through the level with enemies appearing either side to shoot, and levers to pull to move the cart along.

Fatshark began working on the project in Spring this year, with development intensifying over the last couple of months. As a bonus for gamers who already own the main PC title, the VR update will be completely free when it arrives before the end of the year. Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide will currently only support HTC Vive, but the studio might bring it to other VR platforms in the future.

VRFocus will continue its coverage of Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide, reporting back with any further announcements.