Mothergunship: Forge is a classic wave shooter just like Blasters of the Universe, taking the ability to swap out weapon components to a whole new level. The variance in parts is almost like stepping into a Lego store to build your ideal model. Get far enough and the guns can get ridiculous, filling the screen with components. Then again, that’s kind of the point. It would’ve been nice to have a sandbox gallery to experiment in, even so, the variety of gameplay modes keeps the gameplay entertaining. Just don’t go in expecting a slick, tactical shooter, Mothergunship: Forge is 100% an absurdly frantic FPS.

It feels as if any painting app is going to suffer a markdown in a review because it will never compare to creating in reality, however, Painting VR gets the closest, despite a lack of customisation options. Why? Because the paint acts like paint, rather than a disjointed liquid which creates a disconnect between you, the tool and the canvas. If you’re looking for perfection, it’s still in the distance, but for something that feels genuine, and honestly, great fun to experiment with, give Painting VR a try.

Moss: Book II builds upon its forebear in so many ways making a hugely worthwhile sequel. Taking around 5-6 hours to complete without collecting everything Moss: Book II isn’t a huge VR game yet it’s a satisfying experience. Whilst not particularly difficult, stepping into Moss and teaming up with Quill is a delight once again, with polished gameplay, more interactivity and visuals you can’t help but soak in. The main problem really is that Moss: Book II ends a bit too soon, as you won’t want it to be over.

Cosmonious High is Willy Wonka’s Chocolate factory in VR, with a myriad assortment of sounds, colours and stuff to stick your finger in. It’s technically solid as I’d expect from a developer so well versed in VR with diverse characters and a deep, organic sandbox world to be entertained by. But it sticks to a very well-oiled system of simple task completion with the complexity never raising high enough to satisfy mature VR players. Cosmonious High provides just the right flavour of gameplay for younger players or those new to the VR scene looking to learn how interactive these titles can be. If you played Job Simulator at the original launch then you may want to look elsewhere.

Even with the minor annoyances of forced intricacy, Tentacular should find itself as a must-play game. The detailed world-building makes for a wonderfully immersive experience, the tasks vary enough to never become tiring and the game has bags of charm and charisma from character relationships. The life of a kaiju might not be easy, but it’s a hell of a lot of fun.

Wanderer is an ambitious project and for the most part, M-Theory and OddBoy have succeeded. The single-player adventure will keep you busy for 10+ hours and you’ll want to see it through to the end. Pushing the settings to max on PC will give you a glorious game to look at, and the audio is rock solid. Yes, there are one or two unwieldy issues along the way yet they didn’t hamper the overall entertainment Wanderer provides. If you’re looking for a puzzle game to really get stuck into then definitely take a look at Wanderer.

Captain Toonhead vs The Punks from Outer Space is a ludicrous tower defence experience and all the better for it. The gameplay is pure entertainment from start to finish, with plenty of character and bravado that you really shouldn’t take it too seriously. There are a couple of wobbles along the way and there is certainly room for some finesse in the mechanics. If you’re looking for the ultimate VR tower defence title then this isn’t it. If you want humour, strategy and guns, then you’ve come to the right place.

What Spacefolk City truly excels at is the use of spatial gameplay. Played either seated or standing, the ability to inspect your city from any angle, the asteroids that fly in and the giant looming sun that hovers directly overhead; Moon Mode has created a wonderfully inviting experience that could only be appreciated in VR. There are still glitches such as the menu system becoming illegible due to showing multiple pages on top of each other or items getting caught on invisible walls (mostly the scrap) but that wasn’t enough to hamper the overall experience. What it desperately needs is a random multiple cloud generator option in the Sandbox. Other than that, Spacefolk City is certainly worth a look if you like god-like city creation in VR.

Eye of the Temple feels like it goes back to VR’s roots in a way, the gameplay is simple but very effective, always keeping you thinking and on your toes. The whole experience achieves that one sort after quality in VR, immersion, where you become so focused on what you’re doing it’s easy to forget that the temple is actually your living room. Just be careful not to topple over, that can happen!

There’s a lot to love and get engrossed in as it’s so immersive, the real criticism comes from the fact that Lone Echo II plays everything a little too safe. The experience doesn’t break any new ground and it really could’ve done with some greater challenges thrown in. On the other hand, it was engrossing until the very end, easily the standout AAA VR experience of 2021.

The level design is magnificent and becomes a real challenge the deeper in you get. Every day feels fresh and new, a mixture of joy when a new area is discovered and dread when a menacing growl suddenly appears from behind you. It’s a huge experience that you can get lost in, spending hour upon hour taking it all in. Song in the Smoke looked like it was something special and it is, one of the best VR games of 2021.

Clash of Chefs VR has everything you could want from a VR cooking game, plenty of food, loads of modes and a nice wedge of lemon. The gameplay is fluid and once you get into a rhythm very satisfying to pump out order after order. Whilst it lacks the insane multiplayer madness of Cook-Out: A Sandwich Tale, there’s enough succulent gameplay to keep you entertained for hours. An entertaining VR cooking experience through and through.

I Expect You To Die 2: The Spy and the Liar hasn’t come to reinvent the wheel and it didn’t need to, what was required was achieved; an entertaining puzzler that you can’t put down. An extra couple of levels would’ve been nice with the possibility of a handy nudge in the right direction yet they’re only minor quibbles. If you’re looking for a VR puzzler that really pushes the technology then this isn’t it, I Expect You To Die 2 is all about playing to the masses and that’s no bad thing either.

Ragnarock impressed before and now that the official PC VR launch has taken place Ragnarock has got even better, finessing what was already an enjoyable experience. The same essence is still there but now there are more tracks, a few extras like new hammers to unlock, and some cool new levels to look at. Ragnarock is a joy to play, reigniting that passion for rhythm action videogames. Currently, Ragnarock is the best rhythm game to launch in 2021.

So is YUKI a fitting portrayal of bullet hell nostalgia that’ll keep you coming back for more? Even with the lacklustre procedurally generated levels, YUKI is still a blast to play, easy to pick up and great to look at. You get so involved with the levels that a couple of hours go by in an instant and it’s only when you die and take a breather that you realise how much the gameplay makes you move. If you’re looking for a highly polished bullet hell shooter, give YUKI a try.

So was Sniper Elite VR worth the anticipation and wait? Most definitely. It’s not without issues trying to find that balance between being a fun experience for all whilst giving VR veterans a videogame they can really get stuck into. When you do get into it though, Sniper Elite VR becomes a thoroughly engrossing VR shooter as you read the environment, study enemy movements and take that vital long-range shot. Doing that continually over the 7+ hour campaign seems very repetitive but lining up that perfect shot never is.

There’s plenty of content on offer if you love RTS gaming with options galore to keep you coming back for more. Even though it isn’t a perfect experience and larger, more insane battles would be great, Eternal Starlight is still wonderfully fun to play.

Demeo continues Resolution Games’ run of well-crafted VR titles, moving away from the frantic gameplay of Cook-Out: A Sandwich Tale and Blaston into a far more laidback experience. As Demeo is entirely tabletop-based there are no comfort issues to worry about (best played seated), plus as you complete runs you level up and unlock new customisation options, encouraging repeat gameplay. Its slower style isn’t for everyone yet as an example of D&D in VR, Demeo excels.

Even with those grumbles, Star Wars Pinball VR is an excellent addition to the franchise, another superb showcase of pinball in VR. There’s so much content to discover you’ll be playing for hour after hour trying to finesse those shots to unlock new secrets. Sure, it really helps if you’re a Star Wars fan as all the cave customization options will be lost on anyone else. VR headsets already have a decent selection of Star Wars titles with Star Wars Pinball VR being one of the best.

For those that love slow and tense survival horror Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife certainly delivers. While it’s not completely plain sailing as the Oculus Quest 2 did at points look to struggle a little with objects occasionally popping up out of nowhere, the atmosphere and tension the whole experience creates make this a worthy horror title. Coming in at around eight hours of nail-biting content, Wraith: The Oblivion – Afterlife does the World of Darkness proud.

Maskmaker is very much a slow burner which you need to give time to develop past the first three levels, after which you’ll be rewarded with a rich puzzle experience. It took just over four hours to complete, feeling a lot less because the narrative is so engrossing. Much like A Fisherman’s Tale, Maskmaker is mostly a one and done title, there are hidden memory pieces to find if you didn’t manage to the first time around but that’s about it. Some sort of unlockable sandbox mode after the campaign ends to fill the mask makers store with your own designs would’ve been the icing on the cake. Even so, in Maskmaker InnerspaceVR has created a fine puzzle experience.

With its colourful aesthetic, muppet-like characters and off-the-wall sense of humour Floor Plan 2 is a delight, perfectly suited to the Oculus Quest platform. The pacing and complexity of the gameplay is very well crafted, ensuring players of all ages should enjoy exploring all the various floors. It could do with being a little more difficult especially for puzzle fans but the experience is still satisfying to complete. As Floor Plan 2 does a lot right and little wrong, this is an easy win when it comes to purchasing.

There may have been a little longer to wait as the 2020 launch window went by but in all fairness, it was still worth it. The Climb 2 continues that simple, addictive gameplay that just draws you in, easy for newcomers to get to grips with whilst veterans should find enough new content to keep them happy. Crytek’s return to VR has been long overdue.

The fast and furious gameplay is instantaneous, grab a gun and shoot it, with the real enjoyment coming from dodging all over the place. It’s like you’re in a sci-fi dodgeball tournament without the worry of a ball smacking you in the face. Plus the studio has managed to give it that wow factor with some really eye-popping aesthetics. If you’re looking for a deeply engrossing experience this isn’t it, Blaston is more suited to quick-fire gaming sessions.

What’s most impressive about Until You Fall is the level of polish and smoothness of each encounter. From little details like your weapons clinking together – rather than glitching through – to the way combat is methodical and completely engaging, it’s one of the best examples in VR. So much so that you need to make sure you’ve got ample space, Until You Fall is one of those titles where you’ll quite easily hit a real-life object – even with Guardian on – because you’re so heavily engrossed.

Here you have a good example of why indie developers are such a vital part of the VR industry. Cubism would never have been made by a big studio yet it deserves your attention nonetheless. Easy to pick up yet difficult to complete, it may take some an hour whilst others will take five. It’s the kind of VR game you can give to anyone and they’ll instantly know what to do, because who doesn’t know how to place a few blocks together.

Cook-Out: A Sandwich Tale is very much that Sunday game of Monopoly with the family, where everyone happily shouts at each other when it gets hectic and then laugh about it afterwards. A nicely paced difficulty curve keeps the experience challenging and when all is said and done you can just throw food at each other. This is the kind of social videogame Oculus Quest was made for.

Moose Life is quite clearly one of those indie titles which has been made for the love of videogames. Cheap and cheerful, it’s like a playful puppy which just wants to have some fun because life doesn’t always need to be serious. There might not be a lot of depth to the experience or options but for those looking for a quick injection of easy retro gaming, Llamasoft has got your back.