Virtual reality (VR) isn't a new concept, but the price of admission was fairly steep when the genre took off, and the entertainment offerings were limited to glorified tech demos. Fortunately, affordable and powerful VR headsets entered the market, so developers are now creating first-party games and enhanced ports that take full advantage of the unique medium. Nowadays, fans of nearly every game genre have excellent VR titles to peruse, and they should find at least a few titles of interest in our roundup.
VR Hardware for Gaming
Our recommendations cover the top titles for the HTC Vive, Oculus Quest 2, PlayStation VR, PlayStation VR2, Valve Index, and Windows Mixed Reality headsets (some titles work with discontinued or soon-to-be-discontinued hardware like the Oculus Rift S). Many of these devices and games have gotten cheaper in the past few years, which makes them a more easily justifiable purchase.
If you choose the HTC Vive, Valve Index, or a Windows Mixed Reality headset, keep in mind that you also need a powerful gaming desktop or VR-ready laptop to push pixels to the headset displays. For the best possible experience, make sure to find systems equipped with speedy CPUs, top-of-the-line GPUs, and a sufficient number of USB ports for connecting all these peripherals. The Oculus Quest 2 and a few other VR headsets are mostly self-contained units, though you can connect the Quest 2 to a PC to power more graphically intense titles.
PlayStation owners have two options to consider: PlayStation VR, and the newer PlayStation VR2. PS VR2 is exclusive to the PS5, and cannot be used with the PS4 console or peripherals. However, you can hook up the older PS VR to a PS5 and have a jolly old time in virtual reality. Note that if you commit to the newer PS VR2, it's a one way street: there is no cross-compatibility between PS VR and PS VR2 games, so you need to purchase games that are exclusively compatible with PS VR2.
The Best VR Headsets 2022What's Not Here?
Other VR and augmented reality (AR) platforms, such as Microsoft’s HoloLens and Samsung Gear VR are not included in this list, as those headsets are intended for a different audience altogether. HoloLens, for example, has more professional and commercial applications. Nintendo Switch has also made a push for virtual reality with its Labo VR Kit, but that platform is also beyond the scope of this roundup. Google Daydream is sadly discontinued.
Do you have favorite VR titles that didn’t make the list? Do you disagree with our choices? Shout 'em out in the comment section!
Why You Should Game on a PCMore PCMag Gaming Coverage
VR games remain a relatively small segment of the larger gaming world. Check out our other gaming roundups, and be sure to follow PCMag's Steam Curator page.