Half-Life: Alyx is one of the most richly detailed and immersive VR games to date, and a stunning take on the iconic franchise for virtual reality; City 17 and the sci-fi conflict at its core are incredibly well-realized throughout. Though it's slower than the run-and-gun pace of the originals, Alyx feels like a Half-Life game through and through as it successfully shifts between combat, exploration, puzzles, and even some notable horror. While the game doesn't offer much in the way of mechanical innovation, and the roster of weapons and enemies left something to be desired, Valve has polished the game to a bright sheen, the result of which is an absolute must-play experience.

While not as photorealistic or high budget as Valve's Half-Life: Alyx, this VR-native shooter does its best impression of a 'AAA' game. Vertigo 2 isn't just bigger and weirder than the original at around 10 hours of campaign gameplay, but it's also full of so much heart and good humor that you'd swear the core dev team was much more substantial than just a single dude. The wild and lovably convoluted story may not add up, but you probably won't care since it's such a great and undeniably smart game.

Budget Cuts is one of the smartest VR games to come out in recent memory, using a unique teleportation-portal system to let you stealthily zip around the sprawling, robot-filled office space like a knife-wielding Nightcrawler. There's so much to like about Budget Cuts, from it's humorous take on workplace automation to its adrenaline-filled action. It's safe to say Budget Cuts has lived up to its name in this full-length VR stealth game.

Superhot VR is built upon a one-of-a-kind bullet-time mechanic that translates phenomenally well to VR. After a slow start, you'll find that the game is part action and part puzzle, as you dodge incoming firing in slow motion while finding the most effective way to shatter your enemies. The core gameplay is challenging and enjoyable, though it comes up just short of hitting a masterful climax of game mechanics. The story elements are mostly distractions, and, like many of the best VR experiences, we're left wishing there was more than the 2 or so hours of gameplay available. [Tested with Oculus Touch]

Offering a suspenseful story, characters that feel human, and sci-fi backdrop that hits all the right beats, 'Lone Echo' is an impressive entry into the VR adventure genre that begging for multiple series. If the concept of "VR legs" ever existed, you won't need them in this zero-g space adventure that lets you fly with ease for hours at a time.

Star Trek: Bridge Crew may offer a steep learning curve to overcome, but if you've got a trusty crew by your side, there's serious fun to be had here for both fans and non-Trekkies alike. Interiors are well-rendered, control panels are easy to use, and action is intense, making it easy to lose yourself in the one of the first truly cooperative space sims in VR that offers a deeply engaging social component, hopefully lasting well into the 23rd century. [Tested with Oculus Touch; HTC Vive]

Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality perfectly matches the show's hilarity and absurdity, and truly feels like an extended episode of the show. As a clone of Morty, and consequently the lowliest creature in the Smith household, you don't get to go on all of the adventures with Rick, but somehow the tedium inherent to the studio's predecessor 'Job Simulator' all pays off in the most Rick-way possible. [Tested with HTC Vive, Oculus Touch]

Electronauts' greatest achievement is perhaps its ability to translate untrained musical creativity into something that sounds good while maintaining the feeling of really crafting something of your own. The experience overcomes a familiar musical barrier—the fear of playing something that sounds bad—which all too often keeps people from connecting with music from the creator's perspective. Fans of EDM will find Electronauts to be a totally unique way to experience and interact with music while expressing their inner groove, and those with more musical talent will find a surprisingly capable set of tools for mixing and performing.

The Gallery -Episode 2: Heart of the Emberstone is a longer, stonger and more immersive experience than the first in the series, and shows that Cloudhead has put in the hours producing a visually and emotionally adept story that feels like it hasn't outworn its welcome. Puzzles are innovative, and while they aren't particularly difficult, they always reward you with something worth pursuing.

Starship Home brings a fun and quirky mishmash of casual ship management and sci-fi plant gardening, and does it so well in mixed reality that it stands on even playing field with generations of VR games. With modular ship components, Starship Home admirably breaks away from the usual MR gimmick and gives you plenty of reasons to stick around and trek through the universe, happily gardening all the way.

Stormland has delivered on its ambitious vision of making VR open-world adventuring a reality, thanks to smart design on both macro and micro scales. While there's some rough edges, the game brings enjoyable combat, innovative world traversal, and satisfying interactions to the table in a way rarely executed as well on their own, let alone together in a single experience. With fully-featured two-player co-op and the potential for long term replayability in the Cycling World, Stormland sets a new bar while at the same time laying out a well-formulated framework that will benefit VR games of the future.

Ultrawings 2 is a sight for sore eyes, giving fans of the original more of everything in a new and improved package. Outside of fun flight challenges, Ultrawings 2 introduces a smattering of military-style combat missions that take the franchise in a new and interesting direction that we'd like to see more of. The formula of grinding for cash doesn't feel very magical after a while, and object interaction is lackluster, making for a more frustrating flying experience, although it's hard to knock such a plucky little flight game that sits neatly somewhere between simulator and arcade flier.

Sprint Vector may have borrowed some well-established kart racing tropes from the Mario Kart franchise, but that's where the comparison with other games stops. Using a unique locomotion system, Survios shows a masterful understanding of what it takes to make a fast-paced, but comfortable racing experience, one that will have you flying higher and running faster than you've ever gone before.

COMPOUND clearly has a love for the classics, as it provides its own take on the single-player shooter genre with some stylish and well-crafted pixel art. The game cleverly focuses on slowing down the pace by making default gun handling a very deliberate experience, so only those who can master its slightly unorthodox reloading scheme (or use the optional auto-loading mode) can go full bore. Plenty of progressive weapon unlocks and three selectable gameplay difficulties give ample reason for players to come back for more pixel-busting carnage well past beating the end boss for the first time.

Star Wars: Squadrons puts you in the lovingly reimaged cockpits from the storied franchise, making you feel like you've truly stepped into the Star Wars universe. All of the hallmarks of a AAA title are here, and the VR mode doesn't disappoint despite not being a true built-for-VR title. Although we were expecting a bloated tutorial-focused campaign, the story mode turns out to be a true highlight of the game, and introduced. Multiplayer still feels like its evolving, although there's at least the peace of mind that you'll always find a match thanks to cross-platform support across console and PC.

The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners is a slightly tuned-down RPG that's just begging to be bigger in size, although it didn't bite off too much in its quest to deliver an engrossing story, excellent physics-based zombie killing action, and an immersive atmosphere that feels as gritty and deadly serious as The Walking Dead comic books.

Beat Saber's signature VR rhythm gameplay feels solid on PSVR, even at the highest levels of difficulty. This is a highly active game that not only creates a great sense of embodiment, but can also be a decent workout. The new Campaign mode adds surprising life to the game, and modifiers combined with objectives can bring new meaning and challenge to songs you thought you knew forwards and backwards. A roster of 16 quality songs is a good start, and the company plans to add more over time, but how much additional songs will cost and whether or not they come quickly enough to keep players satiated in the long term is still up in the air.

Asgard's Wrath may not offer the richest melee combat experience out there, but this epic Norse saga serves up a truly competent RPG that's not only strong in the visual department but is also packed with a full set of VR-native controls, something that's been so far missing in ported RPGs. There may be some wonkiness when it comes to object interaction, but the charming set pieces and excellent character design lend a level of immersion to this truly feature-length game that's hard to beat.

On the surface level. Vacation Simulator is a seemingly familiar dive back into the whimsical world of Job Simulator, although this time around the studio has added a fair bit of structure and story to the game that really gives the vacation-focused sequel some much needed legs. Since you're given a wide swath of activities and only a few requirements to complete them, you're basically left to your own devices to have the most fun you want to have. In the end, it wasn't as relaxing as a vacation, but I certainly came out the other end with a smile on my face and enough reason to go back in after finishing the main story line.

Sacralith: The Archer's Tale marries expert-level visual polish with a clever and engaging bow shooting extravaganza to make what is clearly approaching AAA territory. The narrative, and characters within it, are also high on visual polish, and thanks to motion capture, are decidedly 'human enough' to be convincing. The level of difficulty is extremely high, making for multiple hours of bow shooting throughout the game's singular campaign.

I Expect You to Die 2 may be more of the same, but it's a good slice of fun, espionage-flavored action that again tasks you with disarming cleverly-designed and deadly puzzles provided by the evil Bond-style Zoraxis corporation. While object interaction isn't the game's strong suit, the sequel offers up a good number of varied levels packed with truly intriguing puzzles, oftentimes containing multiple ways to die that always feel like the joke's on you.

Moss: Book II is a direct continuation of the first game in both story and core mechanics. Generally speaking, it's a longer and better experience than the original Moss thanks to the introduction of new weapons, mechanics, and more intriguing puzzles. The game is polished to the brim with stellar art direction, with each segment of the game being its own detailed diorama with top notch composition. Sound is strong and animations are superb throughout, with one of the game's enjoyable boss fights showcasing Polyarc's animation prowess in particular. Though the 'narrated book' story structure may have hindered the impact of the story and characters, Moss: Book II is a well rounded adventure you won't want to miss.

The sequel to the beloved Fisherman's Tale puzzle adventure is here, offering up more of everything, including new mechanics that make the basis for a wider selection of iterative puzzles. Set to a backdrop of an emotionally complex story, Another Fisherman's Tale feels like it's struck a better balance between its bigger themes and characteristic storybook narrative style, making it feel like a full-featured film instead of the charming, yet simplistic short we had with the original.

FORM offers a visually stunning mix of epic, dream-like architecture and ever-morphing geometric shapes. Puzzles are intuitive, and while difficulty is on the low to medium side, they always make you feel like you've accomplished something great. In the end, it demonstrates a clear understanding of what makes VR different, and delivers a truly VR-native experience that you'll have a hard time forgetting. [Tested with HTC Vive]

There's no denying the underlying game is fantastic, as Not For Broadcast confronts you with moral quandaries as you slowly become a well-oiled cog in a dystopian propaganda machine. While the game's binary button pushing wasn't as VR-native as we would have liked, the base game translates extremely well to VR, feeling decidedly more at home on VR headsets than on flatscreen monitors.

Obduction revives the overall feeling of its predecessors 'Myst' and 'Riven' by recreating the familiar brand of visually stunning environments mixed with cerebral puzzles. [Tested with Oculus Touch, HTC Vive]

Robo Recall is one of the most frantic, kinetic, satisfying, and challenging games of bullet ballet available in VR today. It harkens back to headier days of blue skies, tight gameplay loops, and arcade purity. You could argue that it’s a little content light, but you can’t argue with the price, so we turn to the modding community to see where they can take us next. [Tested with Oculus Rift]

Werewolves Within is a clever and well-balanced VR adaptation of the popular party game 'Mafia'. While fundamentally based on deception, even the best liar can get caught if he/she is unlucky enough. The cartoony atmosphere is both approachable and extremely well polished, although the game makes poor use of natural input controllers. [Tested with HTC Vive]