For a lot of people, virtual reality is all about escapism. Being able to put on the headset and immediately be transported to a totally new world. Perhaps in your dreams that world is full of magic, wondrous creatures, and breathtaking locations. If that’s the case for you — if that’s what you imagine the best that VR has to offer being like — then you’ve come to the right place. This is our list of the top 10 very best VR RPGs that you can play on Rift, Vive, PSVR, and Windows VR right now.
We’re still in the early days of consumer-focused VR so that means we haven’t quite reached the point where developers can spend years crafting the ultimate experience from top to bottom. Many of the games on this list are either ports of non-VR games or made by small teams with a passion for VR. Either way, these are our picks for the best.
And since we’re specifically collecting a list of RPGs (that means role-playing games) we’re leaving off stuff that is primarily a shooter, adventure game, or even just combat-focused action games like Blade & Sorcery if it doesn’t feature a heavy emphasis on RPG elements. We’re also leaving off mobile titles because there just aren’t many great VR RPGs on mobile (other than The Well, you should definitely play that on Go and Gear VR.)
Here is our alphabetical list!
Chronos (Read Our Review)
We’re kicking things off with Chronos, a game that’s nearly three (!) years old at this point. It was an Oculus Rift launch title and even though it’s just a gamepad game it delivers a very solid RPG experience, although some of the VR implementation felt a bit lacking with its stationary camera and third-person perspective.
The clever twist here is that each time you die, your character ages. As you get older your strength is lowered, naturally, but your wisdom increases slowly altering your character’s growth and abilities. Other than that it’s a very Dark Souls-like experience with solid combat focused on dodging and counter-attacking.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim VR (PSVR Review, PC VR Review)
When Skyrim VR was announced at E3, it was like a dream come true for me. The Elder Scrolls is one of my all-time favorite game franchises and the thought of being able to walk the streets of Whiterun and slay dragons in VR was just an incredible proposition. And luckily, it lives up to the hype.
The VR implementation could have used a bit more work since the flat menus and awkward NPC interaction leaves a bit to be desired, but the scale and amount of content is unmatched in VR. This is truly one of the best RPGs ever made, now in VR. If you’re on PC then you can play with mods too!
Fallout 4 VR (Read Our Review)
Compared to Skyrim VR, Fallout 4 VR did not have a very smooth launch. Despite that fact, the post-apocalyptic setting is great for a VR game. You’d be hard-pressed to find a franchise that meets the stylistic wish-fulfillment of sci-fi fans quite like Fallout does.
It trades the mystical lands and powers of Skyrim for a dark, decrepit wasteland full of possibilities. And building out settlements in VR with motion controllers is actually really fun to do.
Karnage Chronicles (Read Our Thoughts)
Romping through dungeons with friends is a ton of fun, especially when it’s VR and you’ve got defined class roles. Similar to VR Dungeon Knight, also on this list, Karnage Chronicles is heavily focused on co-op fun. There’s a surprising amount to this one with some solid progression systems and really inventive environment designs keeping you coming back.
It’s still in active development, but you can already experience a lot of great content even while it’s still in Early Access.
The Mage’s Tale (PSVR Review, PC VR Review)
From inXile Entertainment, the actual creators of The Bard’s Tale and Wasteland comes The Mage’s Tale, an excellent single-player RPG that pits you against dangerous goblins, deadly traps, and a surprisingly lengthy campaign featuring 10+ hours of content.
This one is out on Rift, Vive, and PSVR and it packs a lot of good RPG fun with some of the best production values in the genre. It’s not open world and is instead extremely linear, but the pacing is great with a fun adventure.
OrbusVR (Read Our Thoughts)
This one holds the crown of being the first-ever actually released and supported VR MMOs. Obviously it can’t hold a candle to Sword Art Online or Ready Player One just yet, but it has laid a great foundation for what’s to come.
With a huge overhaul planned for April of this year, OrbusVR is a game that keeps getting bigger and better so it should absolutely be on your radar if you aren’t already playing it.
Vanishing Realms: Rites of Steel (Read Our Review)
This is really the original roomscale VR RPG. It came out at the same time in Early Access back when the HTC Vive first launched almost three years ago and is still one of the best. Since it’s in Early Access still after all this time it only stands to get even better.
Vanishing Realms is the most traditional D&D-inspired game on this list and is all about exploring dungeons, fighting enemies, and bypassing some simple puzzles and traps. It’s a world rife with potential and is still a blast to play to this day.
Vengeful Rites (Watch Us Play)
This one is still very much a work-in-progress, but you can see a lot of potential. Rather than focus on detailed visuals or other shallow things that lose luster after a short while, this is a VR RPG all about its mechanics. Sword fighting feels really good with reactive and smart enemies and the magic system is intuitive and fun to use.
It’s not massive like Skyrim or anything, but is heavily inspired instead by Vanishing Realms. Definitely worth a look for fans of single-player RPGs.
VR Dungeon Knight (Check It Out)
Similar to Karnage Chronicles, VR Dungeon Knight’s biggest highlight is the cooperative multiplayer. What sets this one apart though is that it has a randomly generated dungeon system so you don’t run out of things to do. It’s not perfect, but it works well and the cartoon-style is a good fit.
And better yet is that it’s getting frequent updates, the latest of which just arrived last week as of the time of this writing.
The Witching Tower (Read Our Review)
The best point of comparison for Witching Tower would be The Mage’s Tale, but with a more gothic horror twist. Combat is pretty good and there are some fun puzzles to solve. All in all though this one doesn’t pack as much content or as many features as the others on this list, but it’s a solid adventure to round out your VR RPG collection!
Notable Upcoming VR RPGs
Asgard’s Wrath (Read The Announcement)
Nostos (Read Our Thoughts)
Shadow Legends (Read The Announcement)
SoulKeeper VR (Read Our Thoughts)
Tagged with: chronos, Fallout 4 VR, OrbusVR, rpg, Skyrim VR, the mage's tale, vanishing realms, Vengeful Rites, VR RPG
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via Mint VR