Stuff I've played with the Oculus Rift VR headset.

[Lurkily]

I posted awhile ago about getting this thing; it's still too expensive for a PC accessory, but it can do amazing things for immersion, even if resolution isn't there yet.

However, Pixmax has an 8K visor with a 200 degree field of vision out; too expensive, still, but the tech's advancing.  Odin is supposed to have a consumer headset out at 4K this summer, Valve is getting into the game (Vive got into the game almost entirely using Valve patents and tech) and Samsung and Lenovo are said to be stepping up their efforts.  Eye tracking is becoming a common spec for future headset plans, (Vive Pro Eye, Odin, a couple others) as well.  We're about to see the second generation of VR tech.

So I thought I'd sum up my experiences with a variety of games.

Beat Saber

Beat Saber is two parts heroin, one part cocaine, and seven parts black magic.  It's simple; music plays.  Blocks fly toward you to the beat.  Cut with the right color saber, in the right direction, and suddenly you're a dual-wielding rhythm Jedi.  It's got amazing mod support, auto-syncing custom songs, custom sabers, custom scoring, custom environs.  

This is possibly the single best introduction to VR.  Gameplay keeps pulling you to the center of the play area, making it very intuitive to stay safely positioned.  It keeps you engaged and active, and makes you think, plan, and struggle, without running afoul of most of VR's limitations.

Apex Construct

A bow-and-arrow game with a technical bent, this is one of a number of games that lets you manipulate both the bow and the arrow to fine-tune aim, and requires the development of a little skill; you can't aim as you would with a gun.  The bow also has a shield you can activate on command.  Since to avoid motion sickness, many games rely on a teleport-style movement, and the optional 'free movement' relies on thumbsticks, the shield lets you stand and fight, picking your moments to teleport or moving freely with more precision.  The lore is incredibly rich, with a detailed story about a struggle between AI's in a broken world, with scattered clues strewn about to confuse you about who you can trust.

Arizona Sunshine

This one is a zombie shooter that focuses on trying to replicate real handling as much as possible.  You can pick a clip up, and slide it into a gun.  In order to reload, you have to eject the magazine.  The process is somewhat streamlined (You only have to get the gun near your ammo belt to reload, and don't need to operate a slide, for instance) but holstering guns at your hip instead of in an inventory menu and storing clips on your belt and grenades at your chest, it is a distinctly different experience; and quite a lot of fun, too.  The relatively slow movement of some of the zombies also lends itself to mitigating some of the issues of movement in VR.

Blade & Sorcery

It's early access, and content is thin, but hands-down the best melee combat simulation in VR.  Weapons collide with EVERYTHING, meaning you can't just swing them around with your hands while you walk.  Enemy weapons, of course, also deflect from yours.  They'll hit something and knock out of your hands.  Weapons have a maximum speed; even in bursts of slow-mo, you can't move super-fast.  Piercing weapons can pierce wood and bodies, and weapons can be lodged in an enemy, something you can use to throw them around.  You can zap enemies with magic, or electrify weapons to attack with.  Enemies will target blocks at your weapons, requiring speed, dual wielding, clever movement, or good timing to get a hit through a cautious enemy.  Weapons also have multiple grip points, letting you slide your grip up a spear haft if enemies get too close.  With great physics, very diverse and dynamic options for weapon handling and throwing; it's a very promising foundation.

Skyrim: VR.

A lot of mods don't work in VR, but many do, and there are modlists out there to help you compile a good VR set.  It's great for the immersion, but melee combat isn't very engaging.  Magery, however, is; being able to cast different spells at once with each hand grants a real sense of dynamic power.  And Skyrim has some gorgeous settings to be immersed in; this might be one to watch when higher-resolution headsets come out, capable of doing it justice.

In Death

This game is basic, but well-made.  It's another bow-shooter like Apex Construct, though more basic, with little story.  Though it has the option for free movement, the teleport mechanics are worked into the environment.  You can spawn a shard that you can throw, and you'll teleport to where it lands.  This leads to interesting tactics, like blind throws as a dodge mechanic, and arching a toss so you can fire an arrow before the teleport takes effect.  

You can find special arrows that have interesting behaviors, too; it gets quite challenging, and I've only scraped the surface of it. 

Space Pirate Trainer

This one is another entertaining one.  You stand on a platform and have an array of weapons to play with, and you shoot up drones.  It's simple, it keeps you inside your safe play area very handily, and gets pretty intense.  time slows down when bullets are on-target to hit you, giving you the chance to counter.  You also have a cutter that can tether an enemy and pull them in, and a shield that can project a field that repels projectiles.  Power-ups are pretty common, with varied effects, and weaponry is quite varied. Some have a scope, some use laser targeting, others require a good aim, others have some scatter or can spray-and-pray; it's a lot of toys to keep things fun.

Scraper: First Strike

This puts you in the seat of a mech pilot.  You have hands, and you point them like guns to aim weapons.  Laser targeting from your hands in game helps your aim, but the interesting detail is that the weapons mounted on the sides of the pod mimic your movements to target the point of aim.  A lot of the setting is in-game.  Instead of fine-tuning movement mechanics, you have options like max speed and max rotation as settings on the interior of the cockpit.  Functions like recharging your shield and special weapons are physical controls you have to manipulate, making this an interesting and unique take on working the unique limitations and capabilities of VR into gameplay and story.

 Serious Sam - all of them.

All these games have been updated to VR.  Unfortunately, like Skyrim, there are aspects to VR that are not well-addressed in ports like this.  The solutions that this and Skyrim present are fairly standard and normal, and balance is affected somewhat. (VR weapons don't need to reload, for instance.)  However, they are fully-featured games made by a capable studio, in an environment were purpose-built VR games are often still finding their way and learning how to do things.  The depth and care that went into design isn't always adapted as ideally as it could be, but it still shows.  Also, these games have an extremely comprehensive range of options to support and customize your control over the experience.