The PlayStation VR has launched, and suffice to say we’re incredibly impressed with Sony’s first foray into virtual reality technology. Despite not being as powerful as the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift, the PSVR still manages to do a great deal with its hardware, delivering a more accessible VR experience for those who want to embrace the new technology without the great level of expense they typically require.
As with every new hardware launch, the line-up of software currently available for the PSVR is currently a little hit-and-miss. While it’s a lot better than I thought it would be at this stage, with there being a few genuinely great games you can play right out of the gate, there are still some that are definitely not worth your time. Although the very nature of VR will mean that everyone has a unique experience with each of these games – for instance, some players may feel nauseous in certain games where other players don’t – we’ve compiled a gallery outlining the releases we believe you should buy and avoid after picking up your new headset.
With that being said, here are the best and worst PlayStation VR games so far:
The Best and Worst PlayStation VR Games So Far
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BUY: RIGS: Mechanized Combat League
RIGS: Mechanized Combat League is my strongest recommendation for the PlayStation VR, with it offering a great look at how the headset can be used for online multiplayer shooters in the future.
RIGS is a FPS in which you're placed in control of a giant mech, with you taking part in the titular futuristic sport either online or offline. I was surprised by just how well the game controls, with you aiming your dual guns and changing the direction of the mech using your head, while the PS4 controller is reserved for maneuvering left/right, dodging, firing and jumping. Although conceptually it's pretty basic stuff, with you being tasked with shooting down your enemies and scoring points by way of collecting orbs scattered throughout the arena and then launching yourself into a hoop as though you were a basketball, it's the little things that make RIGS stand out.
Jumping from ramps launches you into the air, with this accelerated motion proving to be genuinely exhilarating, while the mechs themselves feel satisfyingly powerful. A variety of unlockables and the ability to play alongside your friends and other players online ensures replayability, making this the best full retail release in the PSVR's library thus far.
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AVOID: PlayStation VR Worlds
PlayStation VR Worlds would have been great if it was bundled with the headset, but as a retail release it just doesn't cut the mustard. A compilation of 5 different mini-games, Worlds suffers because only two of these games are really worth your time.
The London Heist is the star of the show, with it boasting satisfying on-rails shooting and an exhilarating car chase, but it's too short to justify the entry fee. The Ocean Descent is a great way to show off the PSVR hardware, with it placing players in a shark cage as they experience a legitimately horrifying encounter with a Great White, though the complete lack of interactivity means that you won't feel compelled to revisit this mini-game after you've experienced it.
Danger Ball is a pretty fun if throwaway game in which you essentially play 3D pong with the computer, using your head as a paddle in order to bat a ball back and forth, while Scavengers Odyssey is a dull trek through space in which you mindlessly shoot down a few alien creature and hop between space rocks. Lastly, Luge VR is a pitiful experience that sees you hurtling down a road through bustling traffic, though the game fails to register any collisions you have with these vehicles, thus eradicating the player's sense of immersion.
PlayStation VR Worlds is a good game to help acclimatize you to virtual reality, but it's not something you'll find yourself returning to after a few days with the headset.
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BUY: Batman: Arkham VR
Batman: Arkham VR is a brief experience, with it clocking in at just under an hour. However, developer Rocksteady Studios has injected this short game with a great deal of character, making the 50 minutes you'll spend in Batman's shoes one of the most impressive examples of the PlayStation VR's capabilities.
Arkham VR is the best-looking PSVR game currently available, with it retaining the gothic aesthetic of Rocksteady's popular franchise, now viewed in a first-person perspective. The player's job is to assume the role of Batman and solve a crime that hits a little too close to home, with the Caped Crusader armed with his typical array of bat-gadgets in order to do so.
Although Batman: Arkham VR is light on gameplay, being able to take a virtual, interactive tour through Gotham is an experience that shouldn't be passed up by fans of the Dark Knight. There's only one game in the PSVR's launch line-up in which you can stand toe-to-toe with The Joker, and that's a major selling point in and of itself.
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AVOID: DriveClub VR
DriveClub suffered from an awful launch and a variety of missing features, with the game failing to get off the starting line despite devs Evolution Studios eventually turning it into a pretty solid racer with its post-launch DLC. Now an incarnation of the game has made it to the PlayStation VR, and it's underwhelming to say the least.
If there was one thing DriveClub had going for it even during its broken launch, it was its visuals. Unfortunately, the transition to the PSVR has ensured that the quality of these visuals have been tuned down considerably, with your surroundings appearing blurry and everything looking a little too bleak and gray for a game that revolves around staring at shiny sports cars.
Although DriveClub VR does offer some new tracks to race around, and checking out the unique interior of each car is pretty cool, it's difficult to get past just how ugly it looks and it really fails to show off the PSVR hardware as a result.
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BUY: Rez Infinite
Rez may have initially popped up way back in the days of the Nintendo 64, but its transition to virtual reality is a match made in heaven.
An on-rails shooter with a rhythm-action twist, Rez Infinite has you hurtling through each stage at breakneck pace, with it and Thumper being the two games that highlight how developers can best grant their games a tremendous sense of speed using the PSVR headset. Rez has always been one of my favorite games of its era, but this new VR-ready version makes it feel brand new once again. A must buy.
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AVOID: Harmonix Music VR
Harmonix Music VR is a decent enough concept, with it aiming to provide a more chilled out VR experience in which to enjoy the selection of carefully curated music provided by its developer, along with your own library of tracks. However, beyond providing a VR space with which to listen to this music, there's very little in the way of an actual game here.
Harmonix Music VR features very minimal interaction, with its 4 mini-games not boasting much in the way of replayability as a result. You can animate a selection of monsters to dance along with the music, use your Move controllers as paintbrushes to create reactive 3D drawings, embark upon a kaleidoscopic "trip" that takes you on a "journey through your soundtrack," or relax on a virtual beach. While these are fun little oddities that will keep you amused for a few fleeting moments, they're not worth the cost of entry and make Harmonix Music VR a very tough sell to those looking to make the most out of their new hardware.
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BUY: Until Dawn: Rush of Blood
Until Dawn: Rush of Blood doesn't have much in common with the Heavy Rain-esque horror movie simulator that shares its name.
An on-rails shooter that takes place on a particularly terrifying ghost train, Rush of Blood is a literal rollercoaster of jump scares that is essentially the VR equivalent of a 3D horror movie - there's nothing clever about the way it scares its players, but it's a lot of fun nonetheless. Although the likes of Resident Evil 7 will be packed with more psychological thrills for the ardent horror game fan, Until Dawn: Rush of Blood is a great choice if you're looking for some scary fun ahead of this Halloween.
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AVOID: Here They Lie
Here They Lie is a psychological horror game that could be interesting, if not for its unfortunate control method that leads to more nausea than it does terror.
Here They Lie is controlled using the standard PS4 controller, while the direction your player-character walks in is controlled using your head. However, while this method is employed satisfactorily by the likes of RIGS, the jerky movement of Here They Lie means that traversing its monochromatic setting is incredibly uncomfortable. I could barely spend 10 minutes with the game without feeling sick to my stomach, and considering that no other PlayStation VR has made me feel nauseous as of yet, Here They Lie is therefore the worst PSVR experience I've had thus far.
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BUY: Thumper
Thumper would be a great little game with or without virtual reality, but the PlayStation VR does an excellent job of enhancing what is one of the best launch titles for the headset.
Thumper is a rhythm game created by former Harmonix employees, with players guiding a metallic beetle along a track and pressing buttons in accordance with the beat of its ominous orchestral soundtrack. The end result is a fast-paced and visceral experience that is among the PSVR's very best.
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AVOID: 100ft Robot Golf
100ft Robot Golf isn't a bad game, but if you want something that can show off the PSVR headset then this isn't it.
An indie oddity that provides a very surreal take on the otherwise pretty conservative sport, 100ft Robot Golf's VR version doesn't even make use of the Move controllers, rendering it a passable but ineffectual use of the new hardware.
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BUY: Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is one of the most unique and engrossing virtual reality games released thus far, with it already proving popular on the Oculus Rift and now making its way to the PlayStation VR.
Tasking players with successfully disarming a bomb, one individual will be placed in control of pressing the buttons/cutting the wires on the explosive contraption, while all other players will have to read out instructions from a manual describing how to successfully defuse the bomb before it explodes. It's one of the most tense VR experiences you can have, and makes for an excellent co-operative multiplayer game that is sure to get your heart racing.
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BUY: Tumble VR
Tumble VR is a relaxing distraction that, while not as thrilling as the rest of the PlayStation VR's line-up, is great for those times when you want to just sit on your couch and while away a couple of hours in a different world.
Tumble VR is essentially the opposite of Jenga, with it tasking players with building a tall tower using a series of diversely shaped blocks. Initially a PS Move game, the transition to virtual reality is a smooth and simple one, with it allowing you to take a closer look at your tower from all angles in order to strategically plan out your next move. With most of the PSVR's library focused upon delivering adrenaline-pumping experiences, this is a nice, relaxing puzzle game that offers something different from everything else currently available for the platform.
