One of our favorite VR titles, SUPERHOT VR, won’t be getting that additional DLC we reported on in a previous version of this article announcing the supposed update. Despite this, if the game has been on your list, now might be a good time to snag it thanks to a 25% discount via Steam through November 1st.
Update (10/27/17): The SUPERHOT team recently brought it to our attention that the DLC they hinted at in the SUPERHOT VR Steam forum is not coming to the VR version of the game, but rather the original flat screen version. The misreporting comes down to a slip-up on the part of the community manager who manages forums for both SUPERHOT VR and the original SUPERHOT. The team has since edited the statement originally confirming DLC for the VR version to reflect this. The team assures us they haven’t abandoned the VR version, just that it isn’t getting DLC this time around.
We’ve updated the headline to make this clear. The original article continues below.
Original Article (10/26/17): In our review of the game, we praised Superhot VR’s “one-of-a-kind bullet-time mechanic that translates phenomenally well to VR.” At the time we were disappointed by the game’s short length despite its enjoyable gameplay. Since that time the creators have launched the ‘FOREVER’ update, which aims to stretch the game’s replayability with new modes, challenges, difficulty levels, and secrets.
Further updates to add additional content are in the works, the game’s developers teased recently via the game’s Steam forum. Responding to a player’s query about adding more stages to the game’s ‘Endless’ mode, the devs offered, “We are working on it ;) But it will be even better.” The scope of that work is unclear for now, but we’ll take all the Superhot VR we can get.
In addition to more content being in the works for the title, Superhot VR is on sale on Steam at a 25% discount through November 1st, as part of the platform’s Halloween sale. The SteamVR version of the game supports both Vive and Rift (the game is still priced regularly on the Oculus store).
The other day I turned on Superhot VR for the first time since it launched back in December and played through the entire campaign in one sitting. It took about 40 minutes, and I laughed to myself about how quickly I’d managed to run through it the second time when I was familiar with enemy placements. Imagine my humiliation when, a few days later, I watched in astonishment as Ben Massey shot, sliced and punched his way through the game in eight minutes and 21 seconds.
Speedrunning is an art I’ve always respected if never attempted. As a fan of games like Super Metroid, I’ve always been fascinated by eye-opening methods that mad gamers concoct to tear through games you’d have thought were water tight in their design and impossible to conquer in less than five hours or more. I’d assumed the concept wouldn’t really translate well to VR but, clearly, I was wrong.
Massey has been playing Superhot since launch, and we’ve already talked to him about how VR changes the game for speedrunning. But this new world record is something of note, shaving a total of 12 seconds off of the previous best held by Gibe_Shrugs (below), a runner that Masey speaks of as a friend. Since Superhot’s launch on the Vive a few months ago, the two have shared a budding rivalry along with another runner by the name of Fhajad_036.
Speedrunning Superhot essentially means ignoring the game’s primary mechanic in which time moves only when the player does. At a normal pace, you’ll be able to slow down to negotiate your way around a bullet, or duck a punch. A single successful attack will kill you, so caution is of the essence. If you’re trying to get through the game as fast as possible, though, caution goes out the window a little.
“You have to actually point with your hand at each of the enemies, not just press a correct button combo,” Massey explains. “It is a lot harder to optimize the way that you physically move your body than it is to optimize the order and timing of buttons. It becomes even more of a sport that real speedrunning, which already has heavy execution and a difficult mental game. This is generally canceled out right now as there are harder tricks in most popular flat games, but this physical nature makes the simple things a lot less auto piloted in VR.”
Massey lists a long history of the three runners shaving times off of each other’s records. What started off at an astonishing 9:04 record was eventually whittled down to 8:36 by Massey.
“After that 8:36 standing for a long time, Gibe pulled out that 8:33,” he says. “It had plenty of mistakes, but the run is so inconsistent that it is still an amazing time. We joked I would take the record back in a day because that’s what I had generally done with Gibe’s records, but it took 14 days until I got the 8:21.”
Whereas in traditional games a good speedrun might require tying your fingers in a knot, mastering Superhot VR, Massey says, largely depends on three other areas: memorization, understanding, and luck.
“You have steps that you do for each level,” he explains. “First pick up Uzi from left, then shoot each guy, then gun show [we’ll explain that in a minute], shoot first guy, throw Uzi at another guy, etc. If you nail that optimal route, then you get the best time that you can.”
In traditional gaming, you can rely upon the definitive mechanical input of a button press, but VR gaming is far more open to human error. Just memorizing a level might not be good enough; you may well need a backup plan for all your near misses and quick dodges. “For more difficult levels, there might be specific “backup” strategies that you are used to doing. ‘Oh, I missed that Uzi shot again? Well, I’ve been in this situation before, so I know that it’s pretty quick to just throw the Uzi now and pick up that pistol to my right.’ These situations are great where you know what to do, but often times something unique will happen, so it comes down to game sense.”
There are likely going to be hiccups with your run; the game’s AI isn’t always predictable and sometimes even the sturdiest of hands can’t help the erratic inaccuracy of an Uzi. There is one trick to help you get by, though. The ‘Gun Show Loophole’ allows you to bring weapons into the next area by regrabbing them as you teleport, for example. In parts of the game in which you’re meant to be defenseless, this can wipe a lot of time off of the board. Massey even made a tutorial showing how to do it.
Massey says the hardest part of the run is probably the start of Desperado’s Bar, in which you start the level without a gun. You’re meant to dance around bullets before charging your superpower, but play it how Massey does in the run and you can grab an Uzi early. Overall, he estimates that he must have attempted to set records for the game around 850 times now, though many of those will have been quick resets lasting no longer than a minute.
“I hear a lot of people joke about SUPERHOT VR being a sweat simulator while playing it casually, but just imagine it while trying to go as fast as possible,” Massey says. “For this reason, you really can’t grind for hours upon hours. Out of the community, I grind with the biggest sessions as far as I know, but I learned quickly to take it easy and take many breaks.”
There may be more Superhot speedruns to come, though Massey hasn’t really seen many other VR games he’d love to tackle in this way. “In order to want to speedrun a game, you need to have a game that you love so much that you’re willing to play it hundreds or thousands of times. There haven’t really been any other VR games like that for me, so I haven’t been seriously considering many VR games,” he says, though he adds he might look into blasting through Crytek’s The Climb. He also gives a shout out to the To The Top community which is currently blazing through that game.
Personally, I find Superhot VR punishing enough without trying to perfect a speedrun, but Massey and co are proving that one of gaming’s most respected art forms will live on in this exciting new medium.
Die Windows-Mixed-Reality-Brillen von Acer, Asus, Dell, HP und Lenovo rücken immer mehr in den Fokus. Dank Inside-Out-Tracking benötigen die MR-Headsets keine externen Sensoren oder Kameras, sondern erledigen dies autark. Erst vor Kurzem veröffentlichte Microsoft die Zusammenarbeit mit Valve, wodurch die Windows-Brillen mit Steam VR kompatibel sind. Nun gab es eine weitere Ankündigung über den Content, den Microsoft zur Verfügung stellen wird: Der AAA-Titel Halo soll eine Mixed-Reality-Adaption erhalten und erfolgreiche VR-Titel wie SuperHot VR und Arizona Sunshine will Microsoft direkt in seinem Store anbieten.
Microsoft kündigt Halo und weitere Titel für Windows-VR-Brillen an
Zum offiziellen Verkaufsstart der Windows-Brillen von Acer, Asus, Dell, HP und Lenovo hofft man auf interessante VR-Titel, die den Kauf rechtfertigen. Bisher waren nur wenige Informationen diesbezüglich vorhanden, doch nun kündigten die Verantwortlichen in einem Blogpost an, was die zukünftigen Käufer der Mixed-Reality-Brillen erwartet: Microsoft veröffentlichte die ersten Content-Partner, die ihre VR-Erfahrungen innerhalb des Microsoft Stores anbieten:
Dazu zählen spannende VR-Titel wie Arizona Sunshine, SuperHot VRsowie Spiele von diversen chinesischen Entwicklerstudios. Weitere VR-Erfahrungen sind zum Beispiel ARK: Survival Evolved, Skyworld, Jaunt, Rec Room, vTime und viele andere mehr. Insgesamt 67 VR-Spiele und Apps listet Microsoft aktuell auf.
Doch um das Ganze noch zu toppen, kündigten die Entwickler eine Kooperation mit 343 verschiedenen Branchen an, um das Halo-Franchise in die Mixed Reality zu bringen. Demnach dürfen wir uns zukünftig über VR- und Mixed-Reality-Adaptionen des AAA-Titels freuen. Weiterführende Information sind derzeit jedoch noch nicht bekannt.
Die Mixed-Reality-Brillen können also nicht nur mit Inside-Out-Tracking und einer leicht verbesserter Auflösung, sondern auch mit interessanten Inhalten punkten. Gerade Halo könnte für einige Spieler als Kaufgrund für ein VR-System genügen. Damit könnte sich das System von Microsoft zu einer ernsten Konkurrenz für die VR-Brillen von Sony, Oculus und HTC werden. Wir dürfen gespannt sein, welche weiteren Neuigkeiten uns zu diesem Thema erwarten.
If you’ve been living under a rock you’ve probably missed this summers deals that Oculus has rolled out. Those that have been paying attention will have seen the Oculus Rift get $200 USD/ £200 GBP knocked off for a limited time (it’s still going), as well as plenty of content discounts. As August draws to a close the virtual reality (VR) company has veiled two new bundles, each with four games apiece.
First up is the Rift Summer Hits Pack. As you may expect these are four of the most popular videogames – so it’s great for new Oculus Rift owners – covering first-person shooters (FPS), role-playing games (RPGs) and some comedy gameplay. Included are: The Mage’s Taleby inXile Entertainment, Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality and Job Simulator from Owlchemy Labs and Arizona Sunshine by Vertigo Games and Jaywalkers Interactive.
The Rift Summer Hits Pack retails for £69.99/$89.99, offering approximately 35 percent off the regular price of all four.
The second bundle is the Rift Essentials Pack, made as an introduction to VR for newbies. Here there’s The Climbby Crytek, Survios’ Raw Data, SUPERHOT VR and Apollo 11 VR. This bundle retails for £44.99/$59.99, offering the bigger discount of around 50 percent.
Both of these deals are only available for the next week, ending on 4th September 2017.
VRFocus will continue its coverage of Oculus Rift, reporting back with the latest offers.
For any new videogame hardware to have any impact at launch it needs some killer titles for consumers to get enthusiastic about. Due to arrive later this year will be Microsoft’s Mixed Reality (MR) head-mounted displays (HMDs), coming from manufacturers like Acer, Dell, Lenovo and HP. There hasn’t been a great deal of info released on what sort of content Microsoft has planned for the actual launch, but it has confirmed some of the experiences that’ll feature on the Windows Store, as well as working alongside 343 Industries on some Halo projects.
In regards to Halo, via the Windows Blog, Microsoft’s Alex Kipman, Technical Fellow and HoloLens creator said: ‘it’s my pleasure to let you know that we are working with 343 Industries to bring future Halo experiences into mixed reality. We are not providing specifics right now, but it is going to be a lot of fun to work with them.’ So while the possibility of attacking the Covenant in a brand new virtual reality (VR) experience maybe just what the headsets need to succeed, that may not happen at launch.
While Microsoft may not be too forthcoming with Halo details it has at least announced some of the content consumers can expect to see this coming holiday. Some maybe more Chinese orientated apps but there are plenty regular VRFocus readers should recognise.
Title’s such as zombie shooter Arizona Sunshine, ARK: Survival Evolved spin off ARK Park, Esper, Floorplan, Bullet Sorrow VR, Dreadhalls, Jaunt, Hulu, SUPERHOT VR, vTime, Rec Room, Obduction and many more. Presently there are 67 apps or videogames listed.
“Op-Eds?” I found myself echoing back at the speaker of the statement tiredly.
My sleep is notoriously bad as I’ve mentioned previously. Indeed, it is 3:30am as I write this and whilst very tired indeed I am unable to find rest. Which over time really does not help how you feel. I was ‘fresh’ off the back of a very rough night in a hotel I was staying in with a friend with whom I had travelled down south to Portsmouth the day prior for an annual gathering of pals. Unfortunately, I was feeling every one of the 48 hours I had been awake for prior to that. The 48 hour thing has become quite the regular companion. So much so I had begun joking with friends that I was now following the day revealed as the galactic standard in the film Men In Black. On checking just now I find that it was a 37 hour day in the film, thus meaning I’m even out of sync in that fiction. Damn.
I blinked forcibly trying to bring my friend into focus. “Op-Eds…” I repeated, trying to get the cogs to turn. Or at least the teeth on them to mesh. That’d be a good start.
An artist’s impression of the writer’s state at the time.
After what felt like forever but was probably only half a second it suddenly dawned on me that he meant this. These. He meant VR vs. I immediately felt slightly embarrassed as he works in the games industry. I’m always very flattered when professionals in ‘the biz’ tell me they read my work. That now a couple of friends in the industry had been following my writings – something I wasn’t aware of – I was, frankly, a bit touched.
“They’re….quite something.”
“Quite something?” Ah. I laughed. “Well they’re certainly unlike our usual output yes. But that’s deliberate. I don’t claim to be an expert, I just give the low-down on things as I see them as a Regular-ish Joe. I just claim to be me, silly pop culture references and all.”
“They are a bit silly.” He smiled.
“Good!” I leaned a bit back in my chair. “If you’re gonna ask me to write a weekly column you shouldn’t be too surprised that it’s me who writes it.” I winked…. and then I changed the subject as quickly as I could. You see I have been notably absent from here for the last couple of weeks as I took a small holiday to burn up some extra time that I had accrued. By the time Gamescom is over I will no doubt have a bunch of accrued time again. Such is the way of things. Usually I get dragged back in for one reason or another, mostly my own desire to help out in a pinch. However, for my own good I decided this time I wanted, no, needed to just get away from everything. I wanted to go virtual reality (VR) cold turkey. The industry could just get along and do what it needed to do for a bit. I on the other hand was going to do some me things. I was going to play games, edit videos I’d been meaning to. Read a book. I’d even bought a bunch of painting equipment and was going to give oil painting a go. I’ve somewhat failed on that one, having only managed to sort the easel out yesterday afternoon. Still at least I have everything I need now. The point is that at the time I was very happy in having nothing to do with VR.
How hard could it be to avoid, right?
Breakfast followed, as per tradition, at a local cafe where the 50% of the group up in the morning took it upon ourselves to lay waste to an unfeasible amount of sausages, eggs, hash browns, beans and bacon. When a conversation about VR kicked off. I wasn’t quite sure why but two of my friends began discussing the pros and cons of the tech – for gaming, naturally. Strangely I played no part in the conversation occurring. It just… happened. I remember thinking that was probably notable for some reason, before doing my best ostrich impersonation and stuck my head in the sand (or breakfast in this case) and pretending it wasn’t going on.
No. I vowed. I am not going to be drawn into things.
The talk came to its conclusion soon enough and before I knew it we were off into town, dodging a surprise rainstorm and making our way through part of the city centre to chill out at the park. That was the idea but then I saw the gang gravitating to some sort of tented area in the middle of the pedestrianised area where people were playing video games. I was rather surprised to rapidly discover that they weren’t just any games either. There were four PlayStation 4 units setup with the PlayStation VR courtesy of GAME. Gaggh.
Two of the more curious members of the group quickly had an HMD on their heads, experiencing Battlezone and another title I didn’t quite catch. Was VR just following me around? I took a couple of snaps for the VRFocus Twitter account (I could hardly ignore it could I?) and then sat down on a bench, my head still feeling kind of fuzzy as I offered some suggestions for systems and games for those who had expressed an interest. Quick as a flash though we were on our way again, and this time into GAME itself where my friend (and host) worked, specifically in its Belong gaming section. Something that for some reason I keep thinking is Beyond and not Belong. Of course, along with an eSports gaming setup it also has an HTC Vive people can try out for various sessions. I should have known, of course. It was discovered the Vive now possessed Superhot VR and before you could say Jack Robinson my friends were queuing up to take out virtual bad guys.
I’ll be honest – most of them were bloody terrible. But the point was that not only was everyone in the group enthralled it was getting an audience in terms of people in the store. People were entertained and intrigued. I passed on joining in the bottle throwing and gun shooting and by the end several of my friends were mulling over the best systems again. I chuckled ruefully. It seems I had failed in my bid to escape VR because the shadow of the damn thing was following me all around town. Which made me wonder; as much as the press talk about VR ‘becoming mainstream’ what does that mean? Because you could, theoretically anyway, argue that a judgement as to when something is mainstream is when it is everywhere and you just can get away from it. On that basis VR was certainly mainstream that day.
Talk about the tech kept popping up throughout the day but soon the day was at an end. Laying back on the bed I stared up at the ceiling and contemplated things. I had been defeated by VR. But at the very least I had seen that it was because it was resonating with people so much. That people of all ages were still learning what VR can do and were fascinated to see the magic in action. Still. At least now I could put thoughts of it to rest and, finally, get some rest myself. I let my mind slowly drift away.
“Hey.” The friend I was staying with said from the bed next to me, looking up from his tablet. “There’s a VR Ready PC here that’s designed like a Borg Cube and-”
Jeden Monat erscheint ein Ranking über die bestverkauften Spiele im PlayStation Store. Im Juli gibt es einen klaren Gewinner an der Spitze der PSVR-Spiele: Superhot VR dominiert die Verkaufsränge mit klarem Vorteil. Sowohl in Europa als auch in den USA.
Die zehn meist verkauften PSVR-Spiele im Juli, Superhot an der Spitze
Superhot VR ist der klare Gewinner der PSVR-Verkaufsliste im Juli. Der innovative Shooter motivierte sowohl in Europa als auch in den Staaten genug PSVR-Besitzer zum Download, um sich den ersten Platz zu sichern. Die genauen Verkaufszahlen sind leider nicht einsehbar, dennoch kann man von vielen erworbenen Exemplaren ausgehen.
Innerhalb von Superhot VR schießt ihr euch durch riesige Gegnerwellen, doch im Vergleich zu anderen Shootern besitzt dieser eine ausgeklügelte Spielmechanik: Die Zeit läuft nur vorwärts, wenn ihr euch bewegt. Der VR-Titel war bereits seit einiger Zeit für Oculus Rift und HTC Vive erhältlich, am 19. Juli 2017 erschien die PSVR-Adaption.
Ansonsten unterschieden sich die Rankings in Europa und USA stark: So befindet sich Until Dawn: Rush of Blood in Europa auf dem zweiten Platz und Batman: Arkham VR auf Platz drei, während sich auf den amerikanischen Verkaufscharts Arizona Sunhine auf Platz zwei und PlayStation VR Worlds auf dem dritten Platz befinden.
Die genauen Top 10 für Europa und Amerika sehen wie folgt aus:
Interessant ist die Tatsache, dass der kürzlich veröffentlichte Titel Archangel in den Staaten lediglich auf Platz neun landete, während er in Europa gar nicht aufgeführt wird. Dies könnte ein Grund für den kürzlichen Preissturz des VR-Titels sein.
Wir dürfen gespannt sein, wie sich die Bestenlisten zukünftig verändern, sobald sich neue PSVR-Titel dazu gesellen.
So, you’ve either got your hands on an Oculus Rift or an Oculus Quest with the help of Link, and now you want to know what to download first (besides the free stuff). Here’s our breakdown of the top 10 Rift platform games that you should definitely play. Like right now.
Before we start, don’t forget that your Rift (and Quest with Link) also works with compatible games purchased through Steam. Thanks to Valve’s open SteamVR platform and OpenVR APIs, Steam supports HTC Vive, Windows VR, Valve Index, and Oculus Rift equally, so you can shop around for even more titles that aren’t published on the Oculus Store provided the developer enabled support.
HTC Vive owners can play all of these too with the help of Revive, a software hack that hooks Vive into Oculus Store exclusives. Without further ado, these are our top 10 Rift games in no particular order.
The 10 Best Oculus Rift Games
Stormland
From Insomniac Games comes the open-world adventure Stormland, a real study in good shooting mechanics, excellent locomotion schemes, and not to mention a two-player co-op mode so you and a Rift/Quest-owning buddy can battle all the evil robots the cloud-filled world has to offer. Half of the fun is picking your combat tactics; are you a silent killer, ripping out an unsuspecting enemy’s heath pack and skitter away to safety, or are you the ‘jump from a 200-foot tower like Deadpool’ kind of person with reckless abandon? It’s up to you!
Check out why we gave Stormlanda [9/10] in our review.
Asgard’s Wrath
I don’t know about you, but being a Viking god was always on my list of things to do before leaving this world for Valhalla. It just so happens that Sanzaru Games has produced one of the best VR games to date, as this melee combat adventure has so much story, combat, dungeon crawling, and looting that you’ll easily invest 20 hours on the low side, but come back for at least 40 to get everything out of what has turned out to be one of the funnest and most well-realized VR titles to date
Here we have two halves of the same zero-G coin: first-person action-adventure game Lone Echo (2017) and it’s multiplayer counterpart Echo Arena (2017). As impressive feats of engineering in their own rights, both games feature an undoubtedly comfortable zero-G locomotion system that lets you fly through the air without the slightest hint of motion sickness.
Lone Echo is the sort of cinematic sci-fi narrative that engages the player with its excellent voice acting, impressive visuals, and a deep and memorable story. Combined with its innovative locomotion system, it’s truly a gem of a game worth playing—if only to say you’ve been to the edge of the Universe and back. Check out why we gave Lone Echoa solid [9/10] in our review.
Where Lone Echo isplodding and tactful in its storytelling, Echo VR amps up the speed, throwing you in an online team sport that’s a fun mix of soccer and ultimate Frisbee… in space. The best part? It’s free to own permanently. Echo Combat, the first-person shooter expansion to Echo VR, isn’t here yet, but it’s also shown that the high-flying, zero-G locomotion mechanic is definitely suited to other game genres.
Vader Immortal: A Star Wars Series
This three-part Star Wars cinematic experience arrives from ILMxLabs, Lucas Films’ skunkworks which is known for having churned out some of the highest-quality immersive content to date.
Vader Immortal is more of a VR ‘experience’ than it is a outright game, presenting the user with a 45-minute adventure for each episode, however each comes with its own game area that lets you practice all of your Jedi skills in what’s called the ‘Lightsaber Dojo’. In other, less capable hands, this would be a hokey add-on, but here it actually works and makes sense. All in all, it definitely deserves to be on the list however you slice it.
Beat Saber
Created by Prague-based indie team Beat Studio, Beat Saber(2018) is a funky and incredibly stylish rhythm game that will have you slicing blocks to the beat of high-BPM dance music. While the idea is simple, the execution is magnificent. Beat Saber gives you a mess of songs to play, each with four difficulty levels to master, the highest being expert which will have you feeling like a 21st century techno-Jedi.
If you haven’t played the PC or console version of SUPERHOT (2016) before, get ready for a new take on the FPS genre with its strategy-based shooting missions. Designed from the ground-up for VR headsets, SUPERHOT VR (2016) is an entirely separate game in the same vein as its flatscreen counterpart. The iconic red baddies (and their bullets) move only when you do, so you can line up your shot, punch a guy in the face, dodge a bullet, and toss a bottle across the room, shattering their red-glass heads in what feels intensely immersive and satisfying—because you’re doing it all with your own two hands. That and you’ll feel like a badass no matter whose basement you live in.
People used to think that fast-paced, high-action games would be too disorienting for new virtual reality users, but in Epic Games’ Robo Recall (2017), you can teleport around at full speed as you blast away at the game’s evil (and hilarious) robot army. If being able to tear your enemies literally limb from limb and beat a robot over the head with their own dismembered arm isn’t astounding enough, the level of detail and polish put into this game will make you reassess what’s possible in VR.
Find out why we gave Robo Recall [8.5/10] in our review.
Trover Saves the Universe
From the co-creator of Rick and Morty comes the 3D platformer Trover Saves the Universe. Your dogs have been dognapped by a beaked lunatic who stuffed them into his eye holes and is using their life essence to destroy the universe. You’re partnered with Trover, a little purple eye-hole monster who isn’t a huge fan of working or being put in the position of having to save the universe.
We haven’t had a chance to review Trover Saves the Universe, although it’s currently sitting at a very respectable [4.76/5] on the Oculus Store.
I Expect You to Die
Schell Games has only just pushed out the last DLC installment of the hit spy-themed puzzler I Expect You to Die (2016). It’s on basically every platform now, and for good reason: it’s incredibly clever, well-built, and easy enough to pick up while being hard enough not to want to put down.
I Expect You to Die is currently sitting at a good [4.66/5] on the Oculus Store.
Moss
Once a PSVR exclusive, Moss (2017) has now made its way to PC VR headsets, letting you control your cute little mouse buddy, Quill, on your adventures through a large and dangerous world. Stylistically, Moss hits a home run with its impressive diorama-style visuals and interactive elements that lets you, the player (aka ‘The Reader’) move puzzle pieces around and also take over the minds of enemies as Quill slashes through the world to recover her lost uncle. Puzzles may not be the most difficult, but Moss has effectively set up a universe begging for more sequels to further flesh out the enticing world Polyarc Games has created.
See why we gave it a [7.9/10] in our review on PSVR.
Honorable Mentions
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR: While not an Oculus Store game, Bethesda’s Steam version of Skyrim VR fully supports Oculus Rift, letting you engage in multiple tens of hours of exploring the beautifully realized open world environment. What else is there to say? It’s Skyrim in VR.
No Man’s Sky: Unlike Skyrim VR, this is a free update to the game, which you can grab on Steam. It’s a bit flawed, but it’s an infinite galaxy of opportunities, so it always has that going for it.
Job Simulator: Tongue in cheek madness as you enter a far off future where robots rule the world, and consequently also have no idea how the past actually was. Smash stuff. Silly Robots. Hilarity ensues.
Vacation Simulator: Owlchemy Labs’s followup to Job Simulator. More story, a more open environment to traverse (albeit node teleportation) and a ton of vacation-style activities to explore and play. Arguably better than the first.
Arizona Sunshine: Offering you a chance to explore, collect real-world guns and indiscriminately shoot them at every moving thing (in this case zombies), Arizona Sunshine fills a very special place in many people’s hearts. The story mode does offer some thrills, but isn’t really groundbreaking as such.
Onward – A fan favorite with a hardcore playerbase, the OD green of mil-sim shooters Onward gives you that VR battle you’ve always wanted, including tactical team-based gameplay and plenty of guns.
The Mage’s Tale: Touch – Crafting elemental magic, exploring foreboding dungeons, battling giants and stealing their treasure. There’s all of this and more in The Mage’s Tale. Althoughstory-wise the game comes too close to campy and played out for its own good, it’s still a solid investment for the enterprising young wizard among you.
DiRT Rally: Gamepad/steering wheel – Driving through the forest with a beer in your hand isn’t ok…in reality. But in DiRT Rally you’ll need all the soothing ethanol you can get as you stomach the twists and turns of an exciting car simulator, that while rated ‘intense’ on the Oculus Store, is ultimately a fun and exciting way to burn some time perfecting your Initial D drifting skills. Ok. Better leave out the alcohol anyway.
Edge of Nowhere (2016) Gamepad – A third-person VR survival horror game created by Insomniac Games that strands you in the icy wasteland of Antarctica, Edge of Nowhere leaves you with only a pick-axe, a shotgun, and some rocks to defend yourself against a bloodthirsty ancient species that lurk inside the snowy caverns.
Chronos (2016): Gamepad – A third-person adventure by Gunfire Games, Chronos will have you slashing at enemies with the long-trained penchant for beat-em-ups will get you exactly nowhere in this Zelda-inspired, Dark Souls-ish-level of difficulty game where dying in the game physically ages your character.
If the list doesn’t have the game you’ve been eyeing for months, definitely check out our reviews for some more gaming greats on Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PSVR.
Update (November 19th, 2019): We’ve done a long-due overhaul of the list, expanding it from five to 10 games. We’ve also done away with the ranking system. If you’re looking for a more quantified list by user review rankings, check out The Top 20 Best & Most Rated Rift Games & Apps.
Popular time-distorting first-person shooter SUPERHOT VR has been eagerly anticipated by PlayStation VR owners. The wait is now almost over as Sony have revealed the release date for SUPERHOT VR.
The developers revealed that SUPERHOT VR would be coming to the PlayStation VR during E3, exciting many PlayStation VR owners who has been disappointed that the critically acclaimed shooter was not available on their chosen platform.
SUPERHOT VR has been available to PC VR users for quite some time, along with multiple content patches and tweaks to refine gameplay and give players more to do. The developers have tweaked SUPERHOT VR extensively for compatibility with the PlayStation VR. Players use the PlayStation Move controllers to move and shoot.
SUPERHOT VR uses a unique mechanic where time only moves when you do. Bullets can hang motionless in the air, enemies will freeze in their tracks as long as you don’t move. This gives an element of strategy as players attempt to navigate increasingly complex levels.
Once players have perfected their skills in regular gameplay, they can then move on to ‘Challenge’ or ‘Endless’ modes to test their skills to the maximum. The title has received a PEGI rating of 12+.
PlayStation VR owners will have the opportunity to get their hands on SUPERHOT VR from 19th July, 2017.
VRFocus will bring you further information on SUPERHOT VR and PlayStation VR titles as it becomes available.
The hugely popular SUPERHOT was announced for PlayStation VR, under the guise of SUPERHOT VR earlier this month. A new listing on the Pan European Gaming Information (PEGI) website – the official videogame classification organisation for Europe – suggests that the launch of the videogame may not be too far off.
SUPERHOT VR is an iteration of the Xbox One and PC videogame designed for virtual reality (VR). Having already launched for PC VR formats, well received on both Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, the announcement of a PlayStation VR version of the videogame was received with eagerness.
For the uninitiated, the developers description of SUPERHOT VR reads: “Blurring the lines between cautious strategy and unbridled mayhem, SUPERHOT VR is the definitive VR FPS in which time moves only when you move. No regenerating health bars. No conveniently placed ammo drops. It’s just you, outnumbered and outgunned, grabbing the weapons of fallen enemies to shoot, slice, and maneuver through a hurricane of slow-motion bullets. [sic]”
SUPERHOT VR has received a PEGI 12+ rating, the same as the standard edition of the videogame, with the description: ‘Realistic looking violence towards non human looking characters’.
At the original announcement of a PlayStation VR edition of SUPERHOT VR it was stated that the videogame would launch in ‘a couple of weeks’, suggesting that the release is now certainly very close. VRFocus will keep you updated with any further news on SUPERHOT VR’s PlayStation 4 debut.
Two of the more curious members of the group quickly had an HMD on their heads, experiencing 
Talk about the tech kept popping up throughout the day but soon the day was at an end. Laying back on the bed I stared up at the ceiling and contemplated things. I had been defeated by VR. But at the very least I had seen that it was because it was resonating with people so much. That people of all ages were still learning what VR can do and were fascinated to see the magic in action. Still. At least now I could put thoughts of it to rest and, finally, get some rest myself. I let my mind slowly drift away.
SUPERHOT VR