Gabriel Moss
A competent sequel to the multiplayer VR shooter original in most ways, Firewall Ultra's awkward use of eye tracking and lack of content are a shot in the foot rather than the arm.
Sea of Stars is an excellent tribute RPG that channels the best parts of its ‘90s-era forebears. It's not wholly original, but there are enough twists in its story to keep it interesting after the combat loses its luster.
Atlas Fallen is a solid open-world action RPG with plenty of platforming and large monsters to fight with a co-op buddy, so long as neither of you cares about story or is a stickler for high-quality textures.
BattleBit Remastered's early access version is a strong start to a nostalgic multiplayer shooter that values big battles over cutting-edge graphics.
Trepang 2 is a short but sweet tribute to classic slow-motion shooters like F.E.A.R. with great action and a throwaway story.
Harmony: The Fall of Reverie is a powerful visual novel that mixes a world-bending story with deeply personal stakes.
Diablo 4's wealth of loot and meaningful customization systems make up for most of its frustrating MMO concessions.
After Us has a wordless story that doesn't effectively communicate its environmentalist themes and platforming that frustrates with unreliable controls, but it does look fantastic.
Humanity is a beautiful, modern reimagining of Lemmings that blends many different genres into its clever puzzles, and its powerful level editor has dizzying potential.
Dredge's slow dive into Lovecraftian horror intermingles with its simple fishing and sailing mechanics to create an approachable boat management sim that's as unsettling as it is relaxing.
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners – Chapter 2: Retribution is still unacceptably janky on PlayStation VR2, but major improvements make it worth the hassle this time out.
Gran Turismo 7 is the same amazing simulation-focused racer elevated by VR in ways I wasn’t expecting.
Demeo is a delightfully-distilled tabletop RPG experience for up to four players that fits just as well in VR as it does on PC or PlayStation.
Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge Enhanced Edition is an excellent way to showcase the best features of a fancy new PlayStation VR2. The first few hours of the story are its Episodes I and II (bad) but then things turn around and immerse us in Star Wars greatness.
The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners – Chapter 2: Retribution shifts the series' balance from survival horror to action with skill, but its story is weaker and its technical demands are beyond what the Meta Quest 2 can handle.
As Dusk Falls' interactive crime drama is a masterwork of branching storytelling where decisions matter and repeated playthroughs are rewarded with even more revelations.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Swansong falls short of its ambitions as a story-focused detective RPG due to a dense but uninteresting plot, bland characters, and unintuitive puzzles.
With an outstanding variety of places to visit and a strong combat system, Lost Ark is an extremely generous free-to-play action-RPG-MMO that draws a lot from Diablo – including its well-worn story about humans and Heaven teaming up against demons.
Now free to play, PUBG: Battlegrounds' unique focus on massive zones and realistic simulation remain a lot of fun, even if its novelty wore off years ago.
New World is a very pretty survival-MMORPG hybrid that saves its best moments for the endgame – but you have to be willing to grind like hell to get to them.