Best VR Games 2021 for Meta Quest 2 and PC-VR
The year is up. Here's our platform-agnostic pick of the best VR games of 2021.
The VR games below are in alphabetical order. For all upcoming VR titles, check out our VR game releases 2021 & 2022.
Content
After The Fall
Platform: Meta Quest (2), PC-VR-Headsets, Playstation VR
After The Fall is the spiritual successor to VR classic Arizona Sunshine, only bigger, better, more brutal - and with up to three friends. Left 4 Dead VR? No other VR game comes so close to the great PC role model in terms of gameplay.
The setting is a historically alternative Los Angeles of the year 2005. Humanity is badly shaken: A designer drug has turned a large part of the earth's population into monsters, and at the same time a new ice age has begun.
There is no real campaign. Instead, you go on "harvest runs" over and over again. These are 20-minute shooter missions with an end boss. As a reward, you get a resource with which you can upgrade your weapons. This is essential if you want to survive in the higher difficulty levels.
"The short missions turn out to be a delightfully uncomplicated, action-packed snack in the first few hours," Jan writes in his After the Fall review. "Although After the Fall still feels a bit unfinished here and there and offers noticeably too little meat, I'm already craving the next run. Even with strangers, I had a pleasing amount of fun with the simple but successful arcade concept."
At launch still a bit meager in content, Vertigo Games would like to add properly in the future and develop the VR game permanently.
Against
Platform: PC-VR-Headsets
Harder, faster, more brutal, Against combines the rhythm game genre with hard-hitting action.
Launching in Early Access at the end of 2021, the game takes you into a gritty comic book version of 1930s America. You take on the role of a powerful detective who sets out to put a stop to the malicious scientist Dr. Vice.
In the seven campaign levels, action-packed combat scenes alternate with comic-style cutscenes that drive the story forward, much like in Pistol Whip.
Our Against reviewer Jan attests to the game's pleasantly balanced gameplay. "In Against is already a pleasantly versatile rhythm carnage in comic book style. Only with the content the game weakens," writes Jan. The full version is to follow in a few months. Until then Joy Way wants to add fresh levels, mechanics and weapons.
A plus point is the already unlocked "Beatmap Editor". This allows users to create and play levels to their own music.
Cosmodread
Platform: Meta Quest (2), PC-VR-Headsets
Cosmodread was developed by VR veteran Sergio Hidalgo, who created one of the first VR horror games with Dreadhalls back in circa 2013.
In Cosmodread, you're stranded on an abandoned spaceship whose crew has disappeared without a trace. Event Horizon and Dead Space send their regards. Your task is to explore the steel colossus and find a way back to Earth. Through messages left behind by the crew, you reconstruct piece by piece what happened to the crew.
It becomes apparent after only a few minutes that something sinister is afoot: Some rooms are infested with a strange, alien tissue that seems to be spreading throughout the spaceship. And that's just the beginning.
Cosmodread belongs to the genre of roguelites: After each demise, the inventory, the layout of the rooms, and the distribution of items and antagonists are rolled anew. As a result, each new playthrough generates a new, unpredictable storyline. This in turn motivates many hours beyond the first successful escape.
Demeo
Platform: Meta Quest (2), PC-VR-Headsets
Demeo skillfully simulates a tabletop game night with friends. Here, up to four players simultaneously explore a dark dungeon by strategically moving their character across a playing field packed full of fire-dangerous goblins, wizards, and trolls. Choose from a handful of character classes with unique abilities.
Clever hand controls allow you to rotate, zoom in and out of the board at will, or get up close and personal with battles. The game can therefore be played comfortably while sitting or lying down.
Demeo combines co-op fun, fantasy role-playing and gameplay to an addictive mixture. However, those who wish can also play the title alone and control up to four characters.
The studio responsible added two free adventures after the launch and a PC version and a PVP mode are planned for 2022, among other things. You can learn more about it in our demo test.
Doom 3 VR Edition
Platform: Playstation VR
In the VR port of the 2004 first-person shooter of the same name, you'll slip into the boots of a marine facing a demon invasion at a Mars research facility. Doom 3 VR Edition also includes the two expansions Resurrection of Evil and The Lost Mission.
The original, which offers 15 hours of gameplay on its own, has been reworked for the VR port and features new textures, shaders, and sound effects. HUD elements such as health, armor, and ammo are displayed in VR via a wrist-mounted display.
The VR game only really gets going with Sony's Aim Controller. The plastic gun feels like a real gun in the hands and provides haptic feedback. This takes the old shooter to the next level of immersion.
Eye of the Temple
Platform: PC-VR-Headsets
Eye of the Temple is a unique VR game that focuses on physical movement in room-scale virtual reality.
You take on the role of a nameless adventurer reminiscent of Indiana Jones: wearing a Fedora hat and a whip, you find yourself in front of a temple and must recover a mysterious artifact.
What's special about the VR game is that you perform every move in the game in real life. Eye of the Temple is a 3D platformer that you play with your body.
The game world, which consists of many platforms, is constructed in such a way that you never go outside the game area. This creates the illusion that you are overcoming a huge course of danger and great distances through your own efforts. And that's incredibly immersive.
The following mixed reality trailer illustrates how locomotion works in the VR game. Please note that you need a playing area of two by two meters or more. Not convinced yet? Then try out the free demo on Steam.
Fracked
Platform: Playstation VR
Fracked is a first-person shooter that emphasizes fast, straightforward arcade action. The game throws you into battle against a corrupt fracking corporation and its monstrous spawn without a long introduction.
What makes the VR game special is the fluid locomotion and gameplay experience that combines such diverse actions as skiing, climbing, shooting, and taking cover. This is not something that can be taken for granted and is due to the polish of the VR game.
It's just a shame that most of the enemies are cannon fodder and that the VR game is already over after about three hours. Those who want to feel like an action hero for an afternoon will still have a lot of fun with Fracked.
I Expect You To Die 2
Platform: Meta Quest (2), PC-VR-Headsets, Playstation VR
The original was one of the first VR games and went on to become a VR classic thanks to its excellent design, which eschewed artificial locomotion and thrived on interactions with the environment.
In the sequel, you once again take on the role of a secret agent who must use telekinesis and brains to save himself from all kinds of dicey situations and thwart the plans of the adversary Zoraxis for world domination.
The second part takes it up a notch in almost all respects and offers sophisticated puzzle fare in six missions. If you liked the original, you'll love I Expect You To Die 2.
Lone Echo 2
Platform: Oculus Rift (S)
Lone Echo 2 makes astronaut dreams come true and science fiction come alive! In the beautifully designed space adventure, you push off intuitively with your hands, correct with thrusters, and solve extensive technology puzzles. Such naturally staged dialogues and lovable characters can only be found in the predecessor - or in Half-Life: Alyx.
The bottom line is that the Rift-exclusive title is a unique, lavishly produced departure from Meta's PC platform. Even small bugs and texture errors can't dampen the fun of it.
Mare
Platform: Meta Quest (2)
Fans of Fumito Ueda should definitely not miss the insider tip Mare! The VR adventure game from Visiontrick Media takes its cue from the PS2 classic Ico.
Here, too, the player guides a mysterious girl through other-worldly ruins. Simply point your gaze at one of the scattered perches - and an electric bird flutters to mechanical puzzles, rail vehicles, or crackling substations.
A minimalist control concept and the relaxed mood make the adventure something special - despite only about three hours of gameplay.
Maskmaker
Platform: PC-VR-Headsets, Playstation VR
If you've been playing VR games for years, you get used to their impact. But every once in a while, a title comes along that manages to rekindle that old fascination, demands a renewed sense of awe, and elicits rows and rows of "Ahs!" and "Ohs!". Maskmaker is one such game.
In this title, you'll explore a fairytale world, become a virtuoso mask craftsman bit by bit, and solve cleverly crafted puzzles. All of these elements come together in the game to create an atmospheric whole that at times makes you forget you are playing a game instead of living a fairy tale.
Maskmaker is an excellent example of the strengths of virtual reality, its ability to transport us to other, strange places and tell stories as if they were happening to you.
Puzzling Places
Platform: Meta Quest (2), Playstation VR
In Puzzling Places, you assemble fragments of real objects, buildings, rooms, and landscapes into a whole. These were previously scanned and digitized true to the original in 3D using a process called photogrammetry.
In the game, you sit, stand or move within an abstract room and see 3D puzzles floating in front of you on an invisible wall. Using the controller, you target individual puzzle pieces, pull them towards you, and assemble them with your hands. If they fit, they click together and can no longer be separated.
Over time, you'll gradually see fascinating locations emerge before you, such as the coastline of the French town of Biarritz, Mont Saint-Michel, or an ancient Armenian monastery. It's entertaining and relaxing.
Resident Evil 4 VR
Platform: Meta Quest 2
You take on the role of special agent Leon S. Kennedy, who is sent to Europe to rescue the kidnapped daughter of the US president from the clutches of a cult. In a remote village, you have to deal with a horde of mutated residents and all kinds of nasty monsters.
Resident Evil 4 is considered one of the best parts of the survival horror saga and has been ported to a variety of systems. The VR port is excellent and lets you experience Leon's adventures from a first-person perspective for the first time - a new experience for veterans. If you haven't played Resident Evil 4 yet, you're even luckier: The VR version is possibly the best, but certainly the most immersive version of the classic and was rightfully named the best VR game of 2021. Excellent VR ports of classics: this should become a trend.
Song in the Smoke
Platform: Meta Quest (2), PC-VR-Headsets, Playstation VR
For virtual reality, there are only a few genuine survival games. Song in the Smoke fills that gap and more: hunting, gathering, crafting just works great in VR because the hand interactions bring a tactile quality to the gaming experience. Smashing flints together, guiding bows and arrows, and crafting weapons from simple components: It feels great and immersive when you're doing the movements yourself!
The VR game takes you back to a prehistoric time when there was no language and the world was full of magic and animal spirits. A story is only hinted at. Song of the Smoke is about learning to understand the gears of the world and developing survival strategies.
When it comes to scope, Song in the Smoke offers more than most VR games. Especially if you take your time and explore the sometimes sprawling areas in detail.
The Climb 2
Platform: Meta Quest (2)
Just unwind and enjoy the view: The Climb 2 from tech specialist Crytek offers the most impressive game panoramas on the Meta Quest! Use the motion controllers to intuitively shimmy along rocks, frosty ledges, and skyscraper roofs. In the beginning, the scope was limited. Later, the rhythmic "freestyle" extensions brought more variety into the game.
Winds & Leaves
Platform: PC-VR-Headsets, Playstation VR
You embody a mystical being who finds himself in a barren steppe and must breathe new life into it by planting trees. As the flora spreads, you can open up new areas.
But planting trees isn't enough: you'll have to cut paths through the desert, find and grow new seeds, discover monuments and activate wind machines. That's all we're going to say here because it's a lot of fun to discover the game and its mechanics for yourself.
Beyond the meditative gameplay mechanics, Winds & Leaves offers a number of technical features that you won't see in many VR games: I'm thinking sweeping landscapes with miles of distant views, a flowing day-night cycle, and a dynamic nature simulation that combine to create amazing moments.
Yuki
Platform: Meta Quest (2), PC-VR-Headsets, Playstation VR
Roguelite Yuki proves just how much classic arcade games benefit from VR. In Far East-inspired sci-fi settings, you hold the always-firing heroine directly in your hand like an action figure. This allows her to dodge the sea of blazing gunfire much more quickly and accurately, with far more room to maneuver than on a screen!
Thanks to unlockable abilities, power-ups, and upgradable characters, you'll become increasingly powerful.
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