WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Maze Theory's Doctor Who: The Edge of Reality, available now.
Throughout Doctor Who's 58-year history, the titular Time Lord has gone up against some terrifying villains, each more dangerous than the last: the Cybermen, the Daleks, the Eternals, the Doctor's ultimate foe, the Master and many, many more. Therefore, it makes sense that in the VR-inspired video game Doctor Who: The Edge of Reality, players would go up against some of these villains.
However, the video game, developed by Maze Theory, also introduces some original villains. There is, of course, the frightening new Cyberman, the CyberReaper. And, on top of that, the game also introduces the franchise's biggest ever cosmic villain: a creature known as The First.
As The Edge of Reality begins, users find themselves as a human destined to become the Doctor's newest friend and companion. After finding themselves in a laundromat, players rapidly receive a long-distance message from the Thirteenth Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) who reveals that she is trapped at the edge of time and space as the devastating Reality Virus affects all of creation. The Doctor needs players to locate three Time Crystals that, when collected, will free her and, hopefully, contain the Reality Virus and defeat the one who has unleashed it.
It's only after players start collecting these Time Crystals that the villain of the game, the one behind the Reality Virus, is revealed. The new villain is revealed as a creature the Doctor calls The First. She is a cosmic being nearly as old as the universe itself. She is the very first sentient being in history, and she is essentially described as the mother of all sentient life in the universe.
While she was dormant for a long time, she eventually awakened to find how life had spread throughout the universe. After witnessing the horrors of her children's hatred, their wars and suffering, she grew disappointed and resentful towards them. She created the Reality Virus, to eradicate her children and destroy the universe. Only then could she start anew, and birth new life that would follow in her image.
Once the Time Crystals are collected, players eventually come face to face with The First, a gigantic, statuesque creature whose regalia and size truly evoke an ancient cosmic being. While a villain such as this appears to be something that can't be defeated, the Doctor thankfully reveals her real plan: the three locations the crystals came from actually held three hidden pieces of a Time Lord weapon designed to take on The First. After giving the mother of sentient life a chance to surrender, the Doctor uses the weapon to trap The First in an eternal time loop, a prison where she will remain for all time. Unless she, somehow, is able to escape.
Doctor Who: The Edge of Reality is available now on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S and Steam and coming to Nintendo Switch Oct. 21.