The best VR games of 2023 don’t just coast along with immersion and motion controls as their big selling points, though some of them do innovative things in those areas. The medium is finally moving on from using VR as a video game gimmick, and 2023’s top picks use it to create unique experiences – in Resident Evil Village, for example – or even to augment storytelling in some respects, as Vampire Justice does. The competition was fierce this year, but we’ve narrowed it down to our 10 favorite VR games of 2023 and rattled them off below.
Assassin’s Creed Nexus
If you wanted a sign that VR games are finally maturing, here it is. Assassin’s Creed Nexus is a proper Assassin’s Creed game, and one that uses VR in clever ways that revitalize the aging formula. Parkour feels more exciting than it has in years, and Nexus makes smart use of the environment in its stealth puzzles. Then there’s the combat, which is an excellent example of using VR and motion controls to create a unique experience that you can’t get anywhere else.
Samba de Amigo
VR is the best way to play Sega’s Samba de Amigo reboot. The Quest’s feedback and motion controls just feel more natural than the Switch version, and moving in time to the music makes it feel more like a real party. Samba de Amigo draws from an impressive variety of music, including new songs, pop classics, and some video game favorites, and you can easily join with friends to make a proper party of it.
Horizon: Call of the Mountain
Guerrilla’s adaptation of the hit Horizon series translated exceptionally well to VR. It’s a chance to experience Guerrilla’s unique, post-apocalyptic world from a different perspective – literally. Aloy’s world is even grander and more spectacular in virtual reality than it is in the likes if Forbidden West, and Aloy isn’t even in it. The combat is brilliant, the mechanical creatures are terrifying, and despite a few slow, on-rails segments, the entire experience is one of the medium’s best.
Racket Club VR
Racket Club VR is a brilliant sports game on its own, one that packs in tennis, pickleball – basically any sport with a racket. The movement and tracking feel so natural and smooth, and better still is how well multiplayer works. You can team up with several other players for a tournament or just a few rounds with little hassle, all without having to actually deal with the hassle of finding a decent court and, y’know, being outside.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Justice
Vampire adaptations vary wildly in quality, but Justice is one of the good ones and another welcome shift away from games that feel experimental. Justice is a full-fledged stealth adventure. It drops you in Venice and lets you hunt miscreants and other unsavory elements in the city to try and make the world a better place. You also get a respectable suite of vampire powers that are just plain fun to use, and better still, Justice is suitable for almost all comfort levels, which is quite the achievement.
Resident Evil Village
Resident Evil Village’s theme park of horror motif works wonderfully in VR, as you struggle through a continuous stream of nightmares, monsters, and towering enemies with blood on their minds. The dungeons of Castle Dimitrescu, Heisenberg’s factory, and that scene in House Beneviento are already excellent in the original game, but VR’s additional sense of immersion adds a welcome array of new spine-chilling moments in what was already one of the best horror games. It helps that the interface is so smooth and intuitive as well.
Resident Evil 4 Remake
Okay, so maybe we don’t really need Resident Evil 4 in VR again, but I sure am glad we have it. While the port is a little less technically impressive than Resident Evil Village’s jump to VR, at least from a user interface perspective, the sense of immersion and the level of quality for the audio and visual effects really sell it.
Not for Broadcast
Adventure games and VR are an ideal match, and Not for Broadcast is quite the adventure game. You play as a TV producer with unfettered power over what airs and how bad it is. Shameful secrets, lying politicians, shocking language – it’s all in your hands, and on the nation’s TV sets, if you decide they need to see it. Sure, VR doesn’t add an extensive amount to Not for Broadcast, but the tactile interface makes you feel even more like you’re embodying the producer’s role.
Arizona Sunshine 2
VR has no shortage of zombie shooters, but Arizona Sunshine 2 claws its way above the horde. Intense fights with an impressive array of weapons, tactile battles, and some excellent visuals. It’s a brilliant single-player shooter, and you can join up to three other people for co-op play. Arizona Sunshine 2 even gives you a dog companion who fights by your side always, and it doesn’t get much better than that.
Asgard’s Wrath 2
You don’t usually think “meaty RPGs” when VR comes to mind, which makes Asgard’s Wrath 2 feel even more special. It’s a proper RPG, with a rich fantasy world, well-designed combat, and a solid narrative. It’s not for VR beginners, as there’s more movement and the potential for motion sickness, but once you find your virtual legs, this one should definitely be on your list.
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF
