Futuristic running game Sportvida CyberDash gets a free Steam Next Fest demo before next month's full launch on Quest and PC VR.
Designed to deliver stress relief through intense physical challenges, Sportvida CyberDash takes place in a futuristic world where you'll need to smash obstacles, sprint, and dodge to advance across 30 different maps. Previously released in early access on Quest, the game aims to test your reflexes, focusing on continuous forward movement and acceleration as you race towards the finish line.
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While each course offers varying difficulties from “novice to expert,” Sportvida CyberDash features a 'Lenient Mode' that reduces the necessary motions while playing for a lighter cardio workout. On the other end, 'Strict Mode' is a more intense experience that demands greater arm swinging. Other features include 'Global Challenges' where you can aim to set a personal record, and online worldwide leaderboards are also included.
Sportvida CyberDash enters full release on the Meta Quest platform alongside the Steam launch on March 20, retailing for $20.
Steam Next Fest kicks off its latest edition today with two dozen PC VR demos, ranging from space shooters to puzzle games.
Now live until next week, Steam Next Fest is back with its February 2025 edition to celebrate upcoming games. On PC VR, these include puzzle sandbox strategy game Wet VR from SUPER HYPER MEGA (Noun Town, Project Aeroes), which is currently free on Quest. Retro-style arcade shoot-em-up Stratogun has optional PC VR support in the demo, while other notable games include futuristic fitness game Sportvida Cyberdash and VR vet simulator Pets & Stuff.
You can also find Golden Kingdom VR, a tech demo from Tunermaxx (Rainbow Reactor, Snow Scout) that the studio states is designed to push the graphical capabilities of high-end PCs. Using Unreal Engine 5 with both Lumen and Nanite implemented, this upcoming open world action RPG also utilizes world partition while promising photorealistic graphics.
A brand-new demo is available for Lushfoil Photography Sim but while the main game promises optional PC VR support, we're currently unsure if that extends to the Steam demo. It promises “true-to-life recreations” across various worldwide locations, and that's now confirmed to be launching on April 15 on PC and flatscreen consoles.
The full list can be found here with two dozen PC VR games mentioned, and our recommended highlights are based on preview access provided before today's event kicked off. As such, some demos may not be available yet, while others may have delays in getting the demo build ready.
With that all said, here are some PC VR highlights we've spotted so far.
Steam Next Fest kicks off its latest edition today with two dozen PC VR demos, ranging from space shooters to puzzle games.
Now live until next week, Steam Next Fest is back with its February 2025 edition to celebrate upcoming games. On PC VR, these include puzzle sandbox strategy game Wet VR from SUPER HYPER MEGA (Noun Town, Project Aeroes), which is currently free on Quest. Retro-style arcade shoot-em-up Stratogun has optional PC VR support in the demo, while other notable games include futuristic fitness game Sportvida Cyberdash and VR vet simulator Pets & Stuff.
You can also find Golden Kingdom VR, a tech demo from Tunermaxx (Rainbow Reactor, Snow Scout) that the studio states is designed to push the graphical capabilities of high-end PCs. Using Unreal Engine 5 with both Lumen and Nanite implemented, this upcoming open world action RPG also utilizes world partition while promising photorealistic graphics.
A brand-new demo is available for Lushfoil Photography Sim but while the main game promises optional PC VR support, we're currently unsure if that extends to the Steam demo. It promises “true-to-life recreations” across various worldwide locations, and that's now confirmed to be launching on April 15 on PC and flatscreen consoles.
The full list can be found here with two dozen PC VR games mentioned, and our recommended highlights are based on preview access provided before today's event kicked off. As such, some demos may not be available yet, while others may have delays in getting the demo build ready.
With that all said, here are some PC VR highlights we've spotted so far.
Numskull Games is partnering with developers Horsefly for Stratogun, a nostalgic flatscreen shoot 'em up launching with VR support later this year.
Inspired by the neon-soaked arcade shoot 'em ups of the 80s, Stratogun challenges players to fight through waves of wireframe enemies while competing for top spots on the game's leaderboard. The longer you survive rounds of aerial assault, the more points you rack up, which translates directly into experience points that can be used to upgrade your gear and earn new perks to bolster your fighting offensive on future runs.
In an accompanying trailer, we can see a ship navigating hazardous globes full of bullet hell projectiles and racking up multipliers to the tune of a pounding synth-heavy soundtrack.
Stratogun is set to launch on Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 5, and PC, with VR support available on Steam. On the Steam Page, Horsefly describes Stratogun as 'an ultra-fast space shooter with tight controls' and explains the fast-paced gameplay as 'easy to pick up, but very difficult to master.'
You can test that later this year when Stratogun launches on PC and consoles. Alternatively, you can check it out ahead of its release via the official Steam Next Fest demo, which includes VR support and is available now.
More PS5 owners deserve to own a VR headset powered by their console.
From No Man's Sky and Gran Turismo 7 to Resident Evil Village, PlayStation V2 offers experiences that no standalone headset to date could handle, and renders many multi-platform VR titles with noticeably higher graphical fidelity. But too few of the 75 million PS5 owners can justify the headset's price.
Over the weekend, PlayStation VR2's two year anniversary came and passed, with no announcements from Sony then, on Friday, or today.
I had hoped to see the $550 headset permanently reduced to the $350 price it was offered at for a week in summer and six weeks over the holidays. On the first day of that summer sale a retailer sold more in one day than the entire year, and over the holidays multiple developers told me they saw a significantly greater sales boost on PS VR2 than the previous year.
This strongly suggests that the limiting factor for PlayStation VR2 has been its price, something I've been saying since it was announced. An accessory simply cannot be more expensive than the console it connects to. For many regular people the PS5 console is already a significant expense. As interested as these 75 million people might be by the prospect of high-fidelity VR gaming, $550 just isn't a price most are willing to pay.
Don't get me wrong. PlayStation VR2 is a great headset in many ways, with some flaws, but at $550, it just doesn't matter to most PS5 owners.
The fact that Sony did not permanently reduce the price two years into the headset's life suggests to me that at $350, Sony wasn't making a profit, and that executives may be unwilling to do this perpetually. That's why, I'd argue, it's time for a fundamentally cheaper option for VR on PS5.
The Case For PlayStation VR2S
Meta Quest 3 is a great headset, and it's still the standalone headset we recommend buying. But at $500 its appeal is relatively limited, and that's why Meta introduced the $300 Quest 3S, which in just three months became the top selling console on Amazon US for all of 2024.
If Sony took a similar strategy, it could open up VR on PS5 to millions more people, and these new owners would provide a much-needed lifeline to the professional VR game development studios finding Quest to no longer be the ideal market for their content and the PS VR2 owner base simply not big enough to act as a replacement.
Further, an influx of millions of PS VR2S owners would even inspire some gaming giants to add VR support to their existing AAA PS5 games.
To get specific, this hypothetical PlayStation VR2S would use a single LCD panel instead of dual HDR OLEDs, and perhaps drop the headset rumble. This could allow Sony to sell the headset at the regular PS VR2's sale price, $350, or perhaps even less. Yet by keeping eye tracking, it would support all the same games.
Now, I know some PS VR2 enthusiasts reading this will be revolted at the thought of losing the true blacks, deep contrast, and rich colors of HDR OLED. But to be clear, you wouldn't! This new headset would not replace PS VR2. Just like Meta still sells Quest 3 after launching Quest 3S, Sony would still sell PS VR2.
What About Wireless?
Price is undeniably PlayStation VR2's biggest constraint. But a close second is the cable.
Almost everyone who bought into VR before 2019 was by definition someone who didn't particularly mind, or at least accepted, the cable. But tens of millions of people stood by and waited for the cable to get cut, and followed through by purchasing a wireless Quest headset. Yes, the primary appeal of Quest is its standalone nature. But would you really argue it would be just as successful if it needed to be plugged into a socket at all times, for example?
I've given hundreds of VR demos in my time, and before Quest even gaming PC and PlayStation owners cited the cable as the main reason they wouldn't buy a headset just yet. Step out of our VR bubble and you'll find that most people are completely turned off by the idea of having a head-mounted umbilical cord sprawling across their living room while effectively blindfolded.
All of this is to say, there's also an argument to be made for a PlayStation VR2 Pro. Rather than upgrading the lenses or displays, this headset would simply take the regular PS VR2 and add the chips and battery necessary for wireless VR, driven by a direct point-to-point link with the PS5 console.
Though the narrative around AI often portrays it as magical and all-encompassing, the reality is more complex. This was one of many takeaways in a video interview with SuperDNA 3D Lab Chief AI Officer Chetan Jakkoju. We have the footage and top takeaways.
Bethesda's Spacefaring RPG Starfield Now Has A 6DOF PC VR Mod
Starfield, Bethesda's 2023 spacefaring RPG, now has a VR mod available to download. Created by a modder called Mutar, this adds full 6DOF head tracking and stereoscopic rendering, though motion controls aren't yet implemented and movement needs a gamepad. You can watch early footage of that above, and mod access requires subscribing to Mutar's Patreon.
VR Space Dogfighter Rogue Stargun Is Now Available On Pico
Previously launched on Quest and Steam, VR space combat sim Rogue Stargun is now available on Pico headsets. Created by DuGames, this features a story-driven solo campaign across 24 missions where you can pilot five starfighters with an interactive VR cockpit, using virtual hands to interact with your controls.
New UNDERDOGS Update Added A VR Camera Toolbox
VR mech roguelike UNDERDOGS introduced a new VR camera toolbox for setting up cameras to capture footage in game using LIV's creator kit. Available on Quest 3/3S and PC VR, you can now record landscape or portrait from several angles and pause the game to adjust. However, One Hamsa says this toolbox “has some performance costs” that may emerge during heavier fights or on weaker hardware.
Downtown Club 1.1.0 Core Update Is Now Live On Quest
Launched in early access last year on Quest, VR racing game Downtown Club has just released its '1.1.0 Core Update.' While this update resets the game's local and online records due to the new car physics, promised changes include better car handling, improved AI for your opponents, and more.
COLD VR Plans To Address Launch Criticism With Major Update
Having released to mixed reception following this month's launch, COLD VR developer Allware confirmed it's planning a big update to address key criticisms. This includes replacing the Backrooms with new levels in the main campaign, the ability to grab enemy weapons, and improvements to the art.
Other Updates
Here's everything else we've spotted across this week.
Assetto Corsa EVO introduced the Fuji Speedway track and two new cars in update 0.16: the Lancia Delta HF Integrale “Evoluzione 2” and Lamborghini Huracán STO.
The latest Breachers update introduces custom reticles, a favoriting system for skins, and a brand-new roadmap.
Upcoming action-adventure game Of Lies and Rain provided a new developer update about the game on Steam.
The latest VRChat patch brings updates to the main menu, age verification and more.
Intergalactic action game Space Drop will reach PlayStation VR2 this July.
If you'd like to inform us about a VR game we should know about for this article or future updates, you can use our contact page or email tips@uploadvr.com with details.
Andrew Eiche didn't exactly have to interview for his job at Owlchemy Labs back when they were finishing Job Simulator.
The question was whether he wanted to move to Austin, Texas.
Speaking with us roughly a decade after making that move with a series of credits to his name including some of the most used VR games of all time, Eiche said he called into our stream this week from a guest room in his home equipped with a bed that can fold up in case he needs space for VR.
"I got accused of never being offline," Eiche says. "Work is one thumb tap away."
Eiche's hour and a half conversation with us amounted to a kind of "career retrospective" looking back at a decade in VR development, following our first such broadcast with Darknet and Ironstrike creator E McNeill.
Playgrounds For Roleplay
The stream started with Don Hopper in the background playing single-player games Job Simulator, Vacation Simulator, and Cosmonious High, as I talked with Eiche from the UploadVR Studios. By the end of the show the three of us were gathered around the campfire in Dimensional Double Shift as Eiche shared with us a clever strategy when you're low on time and have too much work to do in VR.
Lighting your own simulated digits on fire quickly cooks held items.
Humor that players make for themselves is the most potent kind of joke in their VR games, Eiche suggested over our play session. As Don played the games and Eiche shared anecdotes, like the rat exterminator who came to Owlchemy's office and suggested they should have been making League of Legends, we started to understand what changed about game mechanics and roleplay across each of the titles.
Eiche's conversation with UploadVR comes during a turbulenttime for the VR and gaming markets. He spoke on the record with UploadVR recently for our article covering Meta's evolution "From Quest To Horizon", so during this time with Eiche we focused on the games at hand instead of that broader conversation.
Still, you can see us begin to touch on the subject at various points. We talk about Horizon Worlds' reliance on controllers and mobile input, for instance.
Overall, the stream shows us how Google's key investment in hand interactions from 2017 delivers us in 2025 a path forward for VR that relies only on your hands for a safe social playground online.
I ended the conversation asking Eiche to speak with us about the future of VR as a medium. While we encourage you to check out the whole stream for a look at a path through 10 years of VR development, I thought it worth clipping that out for us to reflect on.
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"What you're really going to see happen is, when you can combine the experiences that keep you engaged in the immersive, that's when the magic's going to happen because the converse of immersive is every time I have to look at my phone or my watch, we've also failed, right? So how can I have these fully immersive spaces and continue to engage with my two dimensional workflows without missing a beat in these spaces? That's the entryway to mass market. That's where this whole thing goes. As people go, wow, I'm experiencing one of the really cool immersive films that are out there, or I'm doing Puzzling Places, right? And I get a message in Puzzling Places or Walkabout. I get a message, right? Those games are kind of in the zone games. And you go, oh, I have to answer this Slack message. Right now, I have to take off my headset and look at my phone...but if I could just pop up Slack, answer it, close it, the game doesn't even exit, and I'm off and running. That's incredible."
"And then you know what's gonna happen? I'm going to exit Walkabout later on and go, well, I'm already in my headset. And I already know how to use Slack in my headset. Why not just keep using it? That's how the iPad worked. That's how the watch stuff worked. That's how the phone worked. That's the playbook. That's where the future is. And I think we're close to it. And the real question looking forward is, can we create a space for the 2D content to exist within the immersive without becoming so obsessed with the 2D content that we forget what made this platform so special?"
Silent North brings the VR zombie survival game from the Ghosts of Tabor studio to Quest and Steam this March, starting with an early access alpha.
Developed by Combat Waffle Studios (Ghosts of Tabor, GRIM) and published by Beyond Frames Entertainment, Silent North is a new PvPvE VR shooter set in the Alps. Tasked with fending off the harsh winter environment and zombies alike, you'll need to survive against the infected hordes and other survivors as you fight for the scarce supply of resources.
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Survival in this harsh environment involves managing basic needs like sustenance and warmth, all while looting different villages for supplies. You can form alliances with other players if you wish, and the developer states the day and night cycle provides strategic opportunities like offering the cover of darkness for stealth or spotting enemies from afar in daylight.
Next month's launch follows the recent early access alpha for GRIM, a Rust-inspired VR survival multiplayer sandbox game. Co-developed by Spoonfed Interactive and Combat Waffle Studios, this PvPvE game sees you trying to survive while fighting for resources after efforts to colonize Mars failed.
Silent North arrives in early access on March 20 on Quest and Steam, and pre-orders are live now on the Horizon Store with a 15% discount. The Steam version will also receive a 15% discount at launch.
visionOS 2.4 will bring Apple Intelligence to Vision Pro, a Spatial Gallery app, an iPhone app for remote installs, and a new iPhone/iPad-driven guest flow.
The last significant visionOS update was 2.2 in December, which brought the Wide and Ultrawide Mac Virtual Display modes. visionOS 2.3 instead focused on bug fixes and security updates.
The first visionOS 2.4 developer beta is available to install now, and Apple says the stable release will arrive in April.
How To Install visionOS Developer Betas
To enable downloading beta Apple operating systems you just need to sign in with your Apple ID on the Apple Developer Center website at least once. You don't need to join the paid Apple Developer Program, but you will need to accept the terms of the Apple Developer Agreement.
Then, in the headset, navigate to Settings -> General -> Software Update -> Beta Updates and select "visionOS 2 Developer Beta".
Note that installing a beta version of an operating system is only recommended if you're willing to accept bugs, instability, and the small chance it could put your device in a state requiring a factory reset. Some apps may even stop working. In exchange, you'll get to try out the new features and improvements in advance.
Apple Intelligence
Apple Intelligence is the company's name for its generative AI features. Some features run on-device, while others are offloaded to the company's Private Cloud Compute (PCC) servers, and certain requests reach out to OpenAI's ChatGPT, if you give permission for that.
Apple Intelligence arrived on iPhones (15 Pro and later), iPads (M1 or A17 Pro and later), and Macs (M-series chips only) late last year, and Apple didn't say at the time whether Vision Pro would get it too.
With visionOS 2.4 Apple is bringing the following Apple Intelligence features to Vision Pro: Priority Notifications, Notification Summaries, Smart Reply, Memory Movie creation and Natural Language Search in Photos, Priority Messages & Mail Summaries In Mail, Writing Tools, Image Wand in Notes, Genmoji, and Image Playground.
At launch, Apple Intelligence on Vision Pro will only support US English, with support for "additional languages" coming later this year.
Priority Notifications & Notification Summaries
Apple Intelligence will automatically decide which notifications are most important, such as messages from loved ones about imminent events, and surface them at the top of the notification stack.
Further, longer notifications and groups of notifications from the same apps will show an AI-generated summary in place of its content. We should note that this feature has been widely criticized for sometimes misconstruing the content of notifications, however.
Tapping the notification summary will bring up the original notification.
Smart Reply In Messages & Mail
Smart Reply "identifies questions and suggests relevant replies" to messages and emails, which Apple says will let you "easily respond to texts and emails with just a few taps" on Vision Pro.
Smart Reply on iPhone, as an example.
This feature should be particularly useful for XR, for when you don't have a Bluetooth keyboard connected at least, since floating virtual keyboards are slower to type on than touchscreen keyboards.
Memory Movies & Natural Language Search In Photos
In the Photos visionOS app, Apple Intelligence will bring the ability to generate a Memory Movie, as well as more advanced search.
"Simply type a description, and Apple Intelligence will pick out the best photos and videos, craft a storyline with chapters based on themes identified from the photos, and arrange them into a movie with its own narrative arc and a soundtrack," Apple explains.
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Meanwhile, the Natural Language Search feature promises to let you find photos and videos in your library by just describing them.
Priority Messages & Mail Summaries In Mail
Just like with notifications, in the visionOS Mail app Apple Intelligence should surface the most salient messages at the top of the stack.
Each email in the list will have an AI-generated short summary of its content, instead of just the first line as in traditional email clients.
Further, upon opening an email you can choose to AI generate a medium-length summary of its content.
Writing Tools
The Writing Tools feature will offer four kinds of tools for "rewriting, proofreading, and summarizing" long-form text that you type or dictate "nearly everywhere" in visionOS, including Mail, Notes, and many third-party apps.
These tools are:
Proofread: "checks grammar, word choice, and sentence structure with suggested edits".
Rewrite: "adjust the tone of text to make it more friendly, professional, or concise", or use Describe Your Change to specify the exact kind of change you want.
Summarize: recap the text, break it out into Key Points, or turn it into a bullet point list or table.
Compose: leverages OpenAI's ChatGPT to generate any kind of textual content.
Image Wand In Notes
Image Wand in the visionOS Notes app will let you "create images based on rough sketches you create", or AI generate an entirely new image "based on words and images from the surrounding area".
Genmoji In iMessage
Genmoji is Apple's feature to generate your own custom emoji in iMessage by typing or speaking a description of it.
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Within iMessage, these Genmoji can "be added inline to messages, shared as a sticker, or sent as a Tapback".
Image Playground
Image Playground lets you AI generate "fun and unique images from themes, costumes, accessories, and places".
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According to Apple, "users can add their own text descriptions, and can even create images in the likeness of a family member or friend using photos from their photo library."
Image Playground is integrated into apps like Messages, Freeform, and Keynote, and is also available as a new standalone visionOS app.
Spatial Gallery
Spatial Gallery is a new visionOS app from Apple that "features a curated collection of spatial photos, spatial videos, and panoramas from artists, filmmakers, photographers, and more."
At launch, Apple says it will offer "remarkable perspectives from photographers like Jonpaul Douglass and Samba Diop; new stories and experiences from iconic brands including Cirque du Soleil, Red Bull, and Porsche; behind-the-scenes moments from Apple Originals like Disclaimer, Severance, and Shrinking; and special moments from top artists."
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Rather than being an open platform like YouTube or Vimeo, which added spatial video support in October, Apple's Spatial Gallery sounds like a highly curated closed platform, offering quality over quantity.
Spatial Gallery will be available in all Apple Vision Pro countries except for mainland China.
Apple Vision Pro iPhone App
Apple says the new Apple Vision Pro app for iPhone will let you remotely queue apps to download & install to your headset, see device information, and browse curated recommendations of the best visionOS content.
The My Vision Pro interface will show device tips, the current visionOS version, and the serial number, and will let you set up Personalized Spatial Audio by scanning your face shape with your iPhone's TrueDepth sensor.
Meanwhile, Apple says the Discovery interface will show "popular apps and games on the App Store; nearly 300 3D movies, Apple Immersive titles, and more video content on the Apple TV app; and the latest spatial photos, spatial videos, and panoramas featured in the Spatial Gallery".
The Apple Vision Pro app will be part of iOS 18.4, and can also be downloaded from the iOS App Store.
iPhone/iPad-Driven Guest User Mode
Currently, initializing Guest User mode on Vision Pro requires putting on the headset and unlocking it first, and if there are any issues you need to adjust for after the guest puts the headset on, you need to do that all over again. From experience, this can lead to frustration.
With visionOS 2.4, Apple is adding the ability to approve Guest User mode from a nearby iPhone or iPad signed into the same Apple Account.
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As with the in-headset Guest User mode interface, this iPhone/iPad interface will let you choose which apps the guest has access to, as well as initiate View Mirroring with AirPlay.
Though the narrative around AI often portrays it as magical and all-encompassing, the reality is more complex. This was one of many takeaways in a video interview with SuperDNA 3D Lab Chief AI Officer Chetan Jakkoju. We have the footage and top takeaways. 
