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If you follow the news, you know that it hasn\u2019t been a great year for VR gaming. That\u2019s a bit of an understatement: it has been dire. Meta shut down four of its internal VR studios, including Twisted Pixel (Marvel\u2019s Deadpool VR<\/em>) and Sanzaru Games (Asgard\u2019s Wrath 2<\/em>). Ubisoft shut down game development at Red Storm Entertainment, the team behind Assassin\u2019s Creed Nexus VR<\/em>. Moss <\/em>developer Polyarc laid off two-thirds of its staff. At a glance, all signs point to the impending death of VR as a gaming platform.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n And yet, VR is having an unlikely moment right now. In the last month, we\u2019ve seen the launch of three major game releases: Little Nightmares VR Altered Echoes<\/em>, The Boys: Trigger Warning<\/em>, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Empire City<\/em>. All three IP-driven projects are high-profile efforts from studios that remain committed to taking VR seriously. That\u2019s on top of a stream of regular releases that are pushing the tech forward, from Star Trek: Infection<\/em> to the Apple Vision Pro showpiece Retrocade<\/em>.<\/p>\n That\u2019s a bit of good news for VR\u2019s loyal player base, and it\u2019s also a small relief for Valve. The company still plans to release the Steam Frame, its next headset, this year. (It has been delayed due to the current RAM crisis along with the Steam Machine.) That\u2019s a bold gamble, at a time when so many major studios that helped build the space are either closing or downsizing. The Steam Frame\u2019s success is entirely dependent on great games, and this month has proven that there\u2019s still life left in the space.<\/p>\n If you plan to pick up a Steam Frame eventually, you\u2019ll have quite the backlog to work through, at the very least. Here\u2019s what I\u2019ve been playing on my headset over the past couple of weeks. If any of them sound interesting, make a mental note to check them out whenever Valve can get its headset out the door. (At least you can finally get a Steam Controller to use with it.)<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Little Nightmares is one of those series that\u2019s such a perfect fit for VR that I\u2019m surprised Bandai Namco didn\u2019t try it sooner. The creepy-cute horror games always excel at toying with scale, making you feel like a tiny character in a towering world. That\u2019s what VR experiences like Astro Bot: Rescue Mission<\/em> can do better than any flat-screen game. Little Nightmares VR Altered Echoes<\/em> is another great reminder of that.<\/p>\n Developer Iconik, the team behind King Pong<\/em>, does a commendable job of adapting Tarsier Studios\u2019 horror franchise to VR. The adventure takes players through a series of surreal levels filled with twisting architecture and creepy monsters that stalk you along the way. Its finest sequence happens right at the beginning, where players are tossed into Little Nightmares\u2019 version of The Backrooms<\/em> with a hallway that folds in on itself. Later levels turn train cars and dusty libraries into certified creepshows that perfectly capture the spirit of the series. Its only weak point is some finicky controls that make it difficult to mantle over objects during tense chase sequences. Other than that, Altered Echoes<\/em> is a strong example of how VR can find a new way to build on what a series does well.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Superhero games have become something of a go-to option for VR developers over the years, and I can understand why. There\u2019s a real appeal to letting players don a supersuit; even blockbuster movies can\u2019t capture that experience. Batman: Arkham Shadow<\/em>, Iron Man VR<\/em>, and Marvel\u2019s Deadpool VR<\/em> all pull it off quite well. The Boys: Trigger Warning<\/em>, on the other hand, struggles to land the same trick. That\u2019s not for lack of talent, considering that it\u2019s developed by Pixel Ripped studio Arvore, one of the best VR studios around. It\u2019s just that The Boys is a tricky IP to do right.<\/p>\n Trigger Warning<\/em> tells an original story in the comic book universe, as an average guy gets roped into The Boys\u2019 war on supes. His target is The Armstrongs, who he must take down with superpowers gained through Temp V injections. It\u2019s a great idea, but it mostly translates to a run-of-the-mill stealth-action game where you need to fling your arms around wildly to melee guards with your blade hands. The real problem, though, is that the writing lacks the same bite as its source material. The humor isn\u2019t as outrageous, the violence is tame, and there\u2019s little social commentary to pull out of it. Without that all-important satirical edge, Trigger Warning<\/em>\u2019s only real appeal is the bits of fan service it works in as it recreates characters and locations from the show.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Undoubtedly the most fun I\u2019ve had with my Meta Quest 3 so far this year, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Empire City <\/em>is exactly what I want from a VR game and more. It\u2019s a remarkably polished co-op action game that brings TMNT to life with high-quality voice acting, stylish art, and a surprising amount of depth. You can play as any of the four brothers, using their signature weapons to block and parry attacks. Combat can be a little floppy (no surprise considering it comes from Gorn 2 <\/em>co-developer Coroptia), but it still fulfills the fantasy of getting to smack around a ninja with Donatello\u2019s staff. Jumping kicks, special abilities, and collectible mods all give me plenty to tinker with as I pummel bad guys in the streets of New York City.<\/p>\n The city itself is what I\u2019m really loving so far, though. You can parkour your way up any building by scaling drain pipes and windows. Free-climbing my way to the top of high-rises in search of Foot Clan outposts to wipe out is a tactile delight so far. The same goes for chucking smoke bombs at my enemies, rotating mirrors to solve light beam puzzles, and sailing across rooftops on ziplines. I\u2019ve only scratched the surface, but it\u2019s the kind of true TMNT experience I\u2019ve been craving since the beat-\u2019em-up days.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n Little Nightmares VR Altered Echoes
\n <\/h2>\n\n The Boys: Trigger Warning
\n <\/h2>\n\n Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Empire City
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