EXD - Extra Dimensional is one of the most unique, engaging, and captivating games I've played this year in VR or not. The atmosphere is strong, the world is memorable, the voice acting, though stilted at times, is incredibly charming. It's a visual and audible feast for the senses, even if the meal leaves you feeling shaky, scared, and hungry for more.

Little Nightmares VR: Altered Echoes is the best VR horror game in quite some time. Much like Batman Arkham Shadow, Half-Life: Alyx, and Metro Awakening before it, Altered Echoes stays faithful to its series while still shining in VR. The gameplay is nothing groundbreaking, but the same can be said for the series as a whole. Altered Echoes keeps it simple and executes at a high level, getting nearly everything right with the exception of limited VR options. These ultimately do not detract from a top notch VR horror experience.

The Amusement's affecting story about a broken family is some of the finest storytelling I've experienced in a VR game. The redirected roomscale movement, once properly understood and embraced, adds a sense of immersion and presence few other games can match. Unfortunately, even with a short runtime, its limited number of environmental puzzle mechanics hold it back from being truly exceptional. It still remains an excellent entry into any VR puzzle lover's library.

Despite a lighter touch on outright terror than some horror fans might wish for, Star Trek: Infection succeeds as both a survival horror game and a Star Trek experience. It captures the unsettling horror that has occasionally appeared within Trek and centers it to great effect in VR. It's a tonally perfect fit for fans of the franchise, and an atmospheric sci-fi scare for everyone else.

Legendary Tales was a solid dark fantasy akin to Dark Souls, but it failed in many aspects to be crowned a true classic RPG in VR. The hostile onboarding, the flimsy hitboxes, the lack of reliable multiplayer. Two years on, Dawn of History course corrects to offer one of the richest role-playing experiences on the medium. With new and revamped systems, it can now be recognized as a best-in-class dungeon crawler. The frankly baffling amount of builds alone makes for an equally cutthroat and entertaining sandbox to create your own legendary tale.

It’s a brief game (about four hours long), and a relatively simple one. It's a journey across floating islands, meandering through seasons of the year and seasons of life accompanied by soft music and a curious little bird. It’s a place of comfort, a place to unwind, where your hands are busy, your mind engaged, and where everything else disappears for a little while. In today’s world, that might be the best gift any game can give.

The full release of Bootstrap Island lives up to its early promise with a highly engaging, immersive, and at times disturbing adventure that stands as one of VR's best survival titles. Any issues I had will likely be ironed out with further patches, but this is already a great time in VR.

For VR players looking for an energetic blend of action and light strategic elements, Orcs Must Die! By the Blade will deliver plenty of hack and slash fun.

VR has always had a penchant for great puzzle games and Fixer Undercover is no exception. The heavy emphasis on VR interactions and encouragement to think outside the box on solutions makes for a highly entertaining spy caper. The game is only held back by a healthy dose of grab jank, average graphics, and a fairly predictable story. None of those should be dealbreakers though. Fixer Undercover is a worthy addition to any puzzle lover's library.

Put simply, despite lacking in approachability and customization features, Aces of Thunder offers one of the most thrilling venues for combat VR gaming has to offer and is a fitting callback to the classic flight sims of yesteryear.

Glassbreakers is smart, competitive, and highly addictive and stands as one of the best strategy experiences available in VR - and one of the most charming. Currently, it is a game let down only by the fact that the player base hasn't grown enough to support consistent, frictionless matchmaking. Nonetheless, since its launch I have spent more time in Glassbreakers than all my other games combined - testament to a beautifully balanced and brilliantly designed small-scale masterpiece. Five weeks on from launch I maintain that Glassbreakers truly deserves a large-scale following. Highly recommended.

Thief VR: Legacy of Shadow may be a bit modest and rough around the edges, but it's also impressive in the right ways. It melds modern sensibilities with a retro mindset, welcoming new players to the series. Magpie is a charmingly impish lead aided greatly by Garrett's ghostly reprisal. The foundations set here can deliver a proper fresh start for this classic series. I can see Magpie's story continuing, though time will tell if that's the case. Either way, Maze Theory pleasantly surprises with the next generation of Thief.

Overall, Men In Black: Most Wanted is an enjoyable, if somewhat lightweight, action game. Nothing in this game reinvents the wheel, but it's all executed very well, with smooth performance throughout and responsive controls. That's enough for me to easily recommend it for fans of the MiB franchise and anyone looking for a solid action game to hop into.

Deadly Delivery is not designed for solo sessions played alone, and those looking for a pure horror experience may be let down by the game's silliness. But for co-op gamers and those who enjoy their jump-scares served with a side of slapstick, Deadly Delivery delivers.

Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked is a fitting evolution that's both newcomer-friendly and expands upon the original Demeo well. This crossover packs more expansive campaigns, better difficulty balancing with enemy spawns, lovely visuals, and a greater story focus that better complements these gameplay systems. I do wish this offered a little more gameplay freedom to better fit D&D. Further narrative freedom would leave your decisions feeling more impactful, leveling up hirelings would help solo players, and I'd love a more expansive custom character creator. Still, Demeo x D&D gets a strong recommendation from me and if you enjoyed Resolution's older hit, you'll feel right at home here.

Roboquest VR takes what was already a great flatscreen roguelite experience and transforms it into a new VR classic. Moment-to-moment gameplay feels fantastic, and the game is right at home on the platform. Flat2VR Studios should take pride in the work they've accomplished, as it feels like an essential experience for hardcore VR players without being revolutionary. I just wish that co-op was available at launch; I'd like any reason to hop back in for another round.

Hotel Infinity is a standout example of true room-scale VR, and a must-own for anyone interested in understanding the potential of this medium. Notably, the potential is not merely to be a new way to experience familiar ideas, but to offer experiences only possible in VR. What a revelation of a game this is.

Lumines Arise is the best entry yet in this long-running puzzle series, building upon Enhance's work in Tetris Effect to create a mesmerizing audiovisual spectacle that shines even brighter in a VR headset. It's not as transformative as the older title and the core gameplay doesn't quite hit those same high notes, but that hasn't stopped Enhance from delivering a highly memorable journey. If you enjoy puzzle games, you won't want to miss this.

Reach is an outstanding effort from nDreams Elevation that wows with its cinematic thrills, compelling narrative, high production values, and deeply satisfying combat. This is an unapologetically high-intensity action game, using as few flatscreen-inspired elements as possible to create a highly immersive, refreshingly high-budget game that's learned from the best VR design practices of the last decade.

Titan Isles delivers a compelling action adventure that's equally enjoyable in co-op and single-player. While the bosses and stage design could use more variety and the racing area's adverts detract from the immersion, it's the most fun I've personally had with a VR co-op experience since Dungeons of Eternity. With its strong combat, versatile Exo Suit system, and great presentation, it's a strong return for Psytec Games that gets my recommendation.

Table Troopers is casual game catnip. It belongs in MR so you can play in your living room. It’s not as nuanced as Worms, its obvious inspiration, but that’s an advantage here: there’s no barrier to entry. This should enter the rotation of games you show friends — especially friends with 12-year-olds, or friends who are 12 years old at heart — to get them into a headset for the first time. It's a great time and Table Troopers is one of those games to keep handy when you just want to kick back and let a few cartoon characters fly.

An intriguing sci-fi journey that's improved by playing with friends, Into Black brings all it has to the table for one more round. While some bugs still need to be ironed out, and not the huge ones that attack you in-game, the experience itself is rather satisfying. Resource gathering is the bedrock of the gameplay that will keep players coming back, but its serviceable story, wondrous biomes, and ever-expanding missions seal the deal.

Grit and Valor 1949 is a polished blend of tight grid-based combat, roguelite progression, and tactile VR interactivity that makes for a fresh and exhilarating experience. The compact battlefields are tense, the combat is engaging and exciting, and the many upgrade systems continually compel us to play just one more run. While the game's complexity may be a bit overwhelming for some players, on the whole, Grit and Valor 1949 is a tactician's dream.

While it won’t take too long with intuition to clear through the stages, the ability to improve your times and find new solutions encourages replayability in a way that makes this a great choice. Besiege VR is a worthy addition to any headset - it’s always worth the wait when the transition to the new medium is handled with such care as this.

I sincerely hope that VertexBreakers takes the time to give V-Racer Hoverbike the Quest 3 overhaul it deserves. It's identical content-wise but you'll take a small hit with graphics fidelity or performance. If you have the ability and are ready to hit the track right now, the PC VR version delivers all the same great gameplay with more fidelity and fewer performance-killing potholes along the track. A PlayStation VR2 edition is also coming, so whichever way you decide to play, V-Racer Hoverbike provides a fun experience.

Clone Drone in the Hyperdome is a highly satisfying VR action game that excels in its versatile combat, and I only wish there was more to do here. Though the narrative falls somewhat flat and Skyscrapper's new endless mode can feel repetitive in longer stints, there's a refined voxel roguelike with some creative fights worth considering. It's an easy recommendation from me.

Right now, Cave Crave is an easy recommendation on Quest 3. While the game will continue to receive updates in the weeks and months ahead, this experience already nails it where it counts. If you've ever fancied yourself a cave explorer, you could do far worse than giving this a shot. Cave Crave straddles the line between being simple enough to get into, while offering enough depth to keep players going for even more spelunking.

The Midnight Walk offers a memorable adventure that's enchanting and bleak in equal measure, one that feels like wandering into a twisted fairytale. It's a gripping tale with beautifully crafted claymation visuals, held back only by some minor frustrations and not especially in-depth puzzles. MoonHood have delivered a great example of hybrid design between flatscreen games and VR, and it's a strong recommendation from me.