Start your Meta Quest 3 journey off right with my favorite VR games and apps of 2024
December 26, 2024
Whether you’ve just got a new Meta Quest 3 or Meta Quest 3S for Christmas, or already own a Quest headset and are looking to take advantage of the various VR software sales that take place over the winter period, this guide is for you.
I’ve picked out my absolute favorite VR titles that everyone with a Meta Quest 3 should pick up – mostly consisting of 2024 releases, but a few older options have elbowed their way on here too.
Though there’s honestly a lot of great stuff on the Quest Store – way too much to recommend in this short guide – so if you see a different title you like the look of and it has strong reviews then it will almost certainly be worth picking up. But for now, let’s dive into the games and apps I think you should be playing on your VR headset this Christmas.
I feel like a broken record here, but Walkabout Mini Golf has been one of my favorite VR games for years and continues to sit at the top of my list of recommendations for everyone with a headset. Its courses are a delight to explore, it’s an accessible VR title that newcomers and veterans alike will adore, and while the premise is super simple it delivers a superbly polished mini golf sim that’s perfect for solo players, in-person multiplayer, or virtual online gatherings.
Imagine a themed mini golf course on steroids; you aren’t just staring at basic pirate theming with the odd flag and ship model dotted about, you’re instead immersed in a pirate cove that has had a mini golf course carved into it – with similarly high levels of detail exhibited throughout the game’s courses, both included and DLC add-on.
Speaking of the latter, these DLC add-ons are well worth getting. I personally adore the Upside Town and Meow Wolf courses – I’m very excited to see Meow Wolf’s Omega Mart exhibit when I visit Las Vegas for CES 2025 – but if you want to get into the Christmas spirit you could nab the Holiday Hideaway DLC (which made me audibly gasp “wow” when I first loaded it up), or celebrate the Christmas Day release of Vengeance Most Fowl and pick up the Wallace and Gromit-themed level, which is brimming with chaotic gadgets and gizmos set to put your golfing skills to the test.
Just like the main game’s courses, every DLC pack comes with 18 holes that have a normal and hard mode setting, plus 18 hidden golf balls to find (which you can use in any course) and a foxhunt puzzle that rewards you with a custom club – which is more than enough content to label them as superb value for money.
So what are you waiting for? Download this game right away.
Batman: Arkham Shadow
Another must-play game for everyone with a Meta Quest 3 or Quest 3S – not least of which because it’s free with new headset purchases – Batman: Arkham Shadow is easily one of the best VR games of 2024, maybe even ever.
Set in the iconic Arkhamverse – between Origins and Asylum – Shadow sees Batman on a mission to save Gotham from the mysterious Rat King. Armed with his trusty toolbelt of gadgets, plus his combat and stealth prowess, the Dark Knight is on a race against time to unmask the Rat King before they can accomplish their goal and bring about the Day of Wrath.
Ahead of its launch, Camoflaj studio head Ryan Payton set expectations high for this title by promising a VR experience on par with Batman: Arkham Asylum, and boy did the team deliver. Every minute of this game was a delight, making it as much a must-play for Batman fans as every other Arkham title.
While it did have a few frustrating bugs at launch, post release updates have greatly improved the title’s overall stability, and regardless the gameplay and exploration in this Batman adventure is superb – with its compelling mystery serving as an excellent driving force throughout.
Just take note that the smooth movement controls will mean complete newbies may want to get used to VR first (and ensure comfort settings are switched on). That caveat aside, it is nevertheless a must-play game.
Vendetta Forever
Another contender in the race for the best VR game of 2024, Vendetta Forever is a superb arcade shooter which expertly blends gameplay elements of Superhot and Pistol Whip into a decidedly unique package that I can’t get enough of.
The core gameplay loop is supremely simple – you eliminate enemies (typically with a firearm, but also occasionally throwable hatchets or something stranger), then reach out and grab their weapon to not only catch it but also teleport to their position. Using this mechanic you must make your way through various distinct maps – more than 60 in total – while completing an objective such as saving a hostage, taking out all of your foes, or rushing to the level’s exit.
Using these basic elements, Vendetta Forever concocts an incredible experience, bursting with replayability to keep you engaged for hours. Each level grades you on how well you completed it (based on your time, how many enemies you defeated, and how many times you took damage) and also contains a hidden video tape you need to find; these factors give you plenty of reason to play each level over and over as you search for the collectible, and attempt to maximize your score, or hone your speedrunning skills.
If not for Arkham Shadow then Vendetta Forever would easily have been my favorite new VR game release in 2024, and I wholeheartedly recommend you pick it up as one of your first Meta Quest 3 titles.
Netflix / Xbox Cloud Gaming / YouTube
This three-in-one combo entry represents some of my favorite ‘big screen’ apps. You load them up and your Meta Quest 3 displays the video or game you’re streaming on a giant virtual display like you have your own private projector screening.
Xbox Cloud Gaming and YouTube are free apps you can download (though you’ll need a Game Pass subscription and Xbox controller to use the Xbox one), while Netflix is accessed via its website in the Meta Quest browser (and again, you’ll need a relevant subscription).
I’ve found these apps are ideal when you and your partner can’t decide who gets the TV, as one of you can simply game or watch a show using the headset.
If you want a more custom experience you can use the HDMI Link app and a capture card with your Quest 3 headset to watch any HDMI-compatible device in VR. I used this feature to play Black Ops 6 in VR and the experience was superb, so it’s definitely worth considering as an upgrade to your headset.
Maestro
If you aren’t keen on the lightsaber slashing of Beat Saber – though that is an excellent game too – Maestro is a different kind of VR rhythm game, and one which has you conducting an orchestra.
Just like a real conductor you must wave your hands with the music to keep tempo – this game uses hand tracking for some added immersion – bring sections in at the correct time, and summon rousing crescendos when appropriate. At easier difficulties this isn’t too much of a challenge, but on Hard some parts are devilishly tricky to conduct perfectly, offering a good range of challenge and room to progress as you improve your skills.
As much as Arkham Shadow makes you feel like Batman, Maestro does a fantastic job of making you feel like a bonafide conductor, right down to the warmth that rushes through you as you get a virtual standing ovation – or the dread of hearing the crowd boo you off stage after a job not well done.
With its fantastic range of orchestral music you’ll surely find tracks you love, and thanks to the recently added Secret Sorcery music pack the tracklist was just extended with a few magical-themed tracks including the excellent The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, In The Hall Of The Mountain King, and the iconic Hedwig’s Theme from Harry Potter,among others.
Taskmaster VR
One of the best things you can do in VR is share your headset with friends and family and watch together as they make a fool of themselves – or wow you with their VR gaming prowess – and that spirit is no better captured than in Taskmaster VR.
The whole game feels as if it has been ripped from an episode of the hit TV show starring Taskmaster Greg Davies and his assistant Little Alex Horne. You play a contestant hoping to earn as many points as possible by completing various wacky tasks to Davies’ exacting standards.
If you aren’t familiar with the show I feel this title’s idiosyncrasies might not be for you, but for fans of Taskmaster there are few better VR experiences out there, as this game will seriously make you feel like you’re taking part in the show.
And as I said it’s the perfect game for in-person multiplayer as you each attempt a task and try to score your best. You could either cast your Quest to a phone to watch everyone as they play, or you could cut together your own episode by having everyone record their footage without anyone seeing it at first, then play each attempt back to back to see how well people did.
Plus, you can construct custom tasks when you’ve exhausted the game’s original collection.
Starship Home
Many of the year’s mixed reality experiences were relegated to optional add-on modes this year, but Starship Home was a wonderful example of a full-on MR experience which transforms a room in your home into a starship – complete with viewing ports to see the stars, garden pods to grow otherworldly plants, and various other sci-fi gizmos that you use to construct your own starship.
It’s admittedly a little simplistic – being a roughly three-hour well-guided experience with not a massive amount of space to venture beyond the track it lays out for you – but that is perhaps a blessing if you view it as one of the best ways to introduce a player to the Meta Quest 3.
Mixed reality – being that it’s set in a version of your own home – is super accessible, as it’s a familiar space you’re exploring with only a few virtual elements to interact with. Couple that with Starship Home’s more guided adventure and you have a game that’s perfect for younger players or those who are new to VR (and perhaps gaming as a whole) to digest.
This accessibility is true of other mixed reality experiences, so I’d definitely consider them – with some of my other favorites being Please Don’t Touch Anything: House Broken, Angry Birds VR, and Painting VR.
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