The Lost Mile

Drive a truck with freinds across a strange liminal space known as The Lost Mile in order to find a way out. Avoid anomalies and scavenge for parts to keep the truck running.

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Inspiration

The Lost Mile is inspired by chaotic, physics-driven co-op experiences like Peak, Lethal Company, Content Warning, and RV There Yet, blended with the eerie atmospheric tone of Pacific Drive and SCP-style anomalies. We wanted to capture that unique mix of emergent comedy, high-stakes survival, and mysterious world-building—then amplify it through VR’s immediacy and shared presence.

What it does

This submission is for the Social Games track. The Lost Mile is a cooperative multiplayer adventure where players must work together to drive a physics-based vehicle across hostile terrain while scavenging, repairing, and upgrading it in real time.

Teams explore dangerous environments, collect vehicle parts, and manage resources—while reacting to dynamic hazards and unpredictable entities that disrupt (or sometimes help) the journey. If the team wipes or the vehicle is destroyed, you’re sent back to the last safe checkpoint, creating high-stakes, laugh-filled moments that only multiplayer VR can deliver.

Read the in-game manual for instructions (It's on the floor in the gas station, grab it with grip button and flip the pages with trigger button)

How we built it

We developed The Lost Mile using: Unity, Normcore, GitHub, Audacity, Blender, Krita. Our workflow centered around rapid prototyping: we brainstormed mechanics that would spark fun, cooperative moments, then built small playable tests within hours. This allowed us to quickly evaluate what felt best in VR, focusing especially on group interactions, physical comedy, and shared problem-solving.

By continuously iterating, we shaped a gameplay loop that feels natural in VR and thrives on player collaboration.

Challenges we ran into

Designing levels that balance tension, humor, and exploration was complex—especially while keeping the terrain readable in VR. The biggest technical challenge was synchronizing the physics-heavy vehicle and player interactions across the network. Ensuring the car behaved consistently for all players required custom systems and careful tuning of joint-based physics over Normcore networking.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Robust, network-synced physics systems that allow players to interact naturally with vehicle components and the environment.

An advanced, joint-based car physics model that feels weighty, responsive, and unpredictable in fun ways.

A genuinely social gameplay loop where cooperation isn’t optional—players must communicate, coordinate roles, and react together or the run collapses.

What we learned

We deepened our understanding of multiplayer networking, physics replication, and optimization for VR. We also learned how to intentionally design social friction, teamwork, and shared discovery—resulting in an experience that thrives on communication and collective problem-solving.

What's next for The Lost Mile

Probably rework the game and try different vehicles.

Known Issues

If the car gets destroyed while you're in it your avatar will get destroyed as well. You will have to restart the app to fix this. The online session should still be running if you restart quickly. This is fixed in the next build.

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