A multi-generational, laughter-evoking and joy-centric take on what virtual reality experiences to try this holiday season.
Did you give (or receive! yay!) your first virtual reality headset this holiday? Or maybe you are considering buying virtual reality for a friend or loved one? Or maybe you’re looking for some new, fun, joy-filled content? The 2019 Virtual Reality Holiday Gift Guide is here to help! Virtual reality is for everyone and this guide is a multi-generational, laughter encouraging and cheerful take on what virtual reality experiences to try this holiday season.
With the launch of Oculus Quest and PlayStation VR in 2019, virtual reality (VR) has shifted from being inaccessibly expensive and complicated, to a much more approachable price point (comparable to traditional game consoles) and easy to get started on. Over 6 million virtual reality units have shipped in 2019 so far and virtual reality buyers are expanding beyond traditional gamers.
Virtual Reality experiences go beyond gaming, allowing you to bring curiosity, empathy, and intuition into fun and joy-filled challenges, puzzles, and stories. Magical worlds come alive and the impossible becomes possible. You don’t need to be a young, tech-savvy gamer to enjoy these alternate realities. Grab your family and friends, trust your instincts, and allow your inner-child to have some fun!
Family holiday fun:
- Beat Saber
- If you’ve grown up in the era of Star Wars, you are familiar with the main element of this game — Lightsabers! Now take those lightsabers totally out of context, drop in some rhythmic music and you have the #1 virtual reality game in the world. Powerful beats make Beat Saber super easy to learn but hard to master. After every song, you get a score with a familiar grade A – F. Needless to say, the overachievers out there are going to have a hard time after their first C- not trying again… “Just one more song!”
- Rating: PG
- Available on HTC Vive & Vive Pro, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Windows Mixed Reality, PlayStation VR
- Website: https://beatsaber.com/
- Vacation Simulator
- Welcome to the Future of VACATIONS! You are transported through time to 2060 and robots are here to teach you how to go on vacation. Whether you want to relax by the beach, hit the slopes, or roast a marshmallow, this whimsical world will fill you and your family with joy as you practice and perfect your vacation-skills.
- Rating: PG
- Available on HTC Vive & Vive Pro, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Windows Mixed Reality, PlayStation VR
- Website: https://vacationsimulatorgame.com/
- Richie’s Plank Experience
- Mind over matter! This fun, silly, science experiment challenges you to step out onto a plank of wood 80 stories high. An after-dinner challenge with your family to see who can walk out further on the plank will bring you belly-aching laughter. Everyone will quickly feel the strong emotional and physical effects of the immersive power of VR. It’s so simple and so fun.
- Rating: PG-13
- Available on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Windows Mixed Reality, PlayStation VR
- Website: https://toast.gg/
- Beast Pets
- Puppies might be the cutest things in our world, but wait until you get the chance to play with Baby Dragons! These sweet, nuzzling, purring dragons just want your love and affection! All generations will enjoy this magical experience, playing, feeding and cuddling with baby dragons at your local beast park.
- Rating: PG
- Available on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift S, Windows Mixed Reality
- Website: https://www.beastpets.com/
- Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
- How well do you actually communicate with your family members? The clock is ticking as this fun puzzle game requires effort from everyone at your dinner table to help diffuse a bomb. The catch: only the player in VR can see it! You and your family will have to work together, communicate and strategize… can your relationships survive this challenge?!
- Available on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Oculus Go, PlayStation VR
- Rating: PG-13
- Website: https://keeptalkinggame.com/
For the Artists, Musician, and Dreamers:
- Tilt Brush
- Welcome to the future of painting! From your niece who loves doodling to your cousin who thinks she’s Picasso, the entire living room is now your canvas! Step inside your painting to view and paint from any angle. Whether you paint under the night sky or in outer space – this no-mess art room gives you unlimited textures like crayon and pencil shavings, plus whimsical brush strokes made of sparkles, fire, neon, rainbows, snow and smoke. It’s easy to let your imagination run wild in this magical 3D art tool!
- Rating: PG
- Available on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Windows Mixed Reality, Valve Index
- Website: https://www.tiltbrush.com/
- TribeXR
- Did your sister just announce her dream of becoming a DJ over the holiday dinner table? Well now she can learn, practice and show her commitment to the DJ craft before spending the big bucks. TribeXR provides the latest professional DJ controller, step-by-step lessons (and hire a tutor!) and livestream for friends. You bring your favorite 90s tracks and let your Dad drop in his favorite tunes from the 70s and everyone in the room can groove and share the joy of music together.
- Rating: PG
- Available on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Windows Mixed Reality.
- Half + Half
- Humans are social, we talk, play games, meet up with friends — and now we can do this all in virtual reality too. Half + Half is a very serene and relaxing way to first experience the often-intimidating “Social VR.” Make new friends, play hide-and-seek or human Tetris, or gracefully race through the clouds in this soft, relaxing geometrical world. This peaceful experience feels like a dream and when you wake up, you aren’t sure if you were just meditating or playing the cutest game!
- Rating: PG
- Available on Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest
- Website: https://www.oculus.com/experiences/quest/2035353573194060/?locale=en_US
- Where Thoughts Go
- Ready for some introspection after the craziness of the holidays? Take a moment to get grounded and reconnect to yourself through the vulnerability of others in Where Thoughts Go. A beautiful journey through five simple but thoughtful questions will soften the armor we all wear to protect ourselves. Listen to the responses left by others in a garden of illuminated glowing orbs, then leave behind your own experience (anonymously), releasing and renewing as we head into the new year.
- Rating: PG
- Available on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Windows Mixed Reality, Valve Index.
- Website: https://wherethoughtsgo.me/
For the Quest Seekers:
- Moss
- The whole family will enjoy this magical journey through the serene forest alongside the sweet, lovable mouse, Quill. Together, you will solve puzzles, travel to forgotten realms, and overcome challenges. It’s easy to form strong bonds with the little Quill as you strategically, guide and support her along with your adventures together.
- Rating: PG
- Available on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Playstation VR, Windows Mixed Reality.
- Website: https://www.polyarcgames.com/
- Red Matter
- Even though this game takes place in a sci-fi, Cold War-dystopian world, all generations will enjoy the challenging journey as an astronaut exploring on one of Saturn’s moons. You’ll have to find clues, solve puzzles, open doors and decipher hidden messages as you journey deeper and deeper into this abandoned research facility. This game is intense but solving these puzzles is uniquely satisfying.
- Rating: R (for intensity)
- Available on Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest.
- Website: https://www.oculus.com/experiences/quest/1853479764707533
- A Fisherman’s Tale
- Welcome to the Fisherman’s lighthouse escape room! It’s a fun, storybook game with silly characters and unique challenges that require you to leverage the mirrored dollhouse version of yourself in the middle of the room. Unlike a traditional escape room, your team is the smaller and larger versions of yourself — scaling and resizing objects to solve puzzles and advance the storyline. This is a game the whole family will enjoy.
- Rating: PG
- Available on HTC Vive, Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest, Playstation VR, Windows Mixed Reality.
- Website: http://afishermanstale-game.com/
- Journey of the Gods
- In Journey of the Gods, you’ll have to sharpen your sword, shield and crossbow skills to battle dangerous beasts, like any other mortal. But unlike other games, you have special powers to zoom out and play “God,” altering the environment around you to help solve puzzles and defeat your enemies on this charming and challenging adventure. Being powerful in this game is both masculine (medieval brute strength) and feminine (Mother Earth “God-Mode”) and feels very welcoming for new role-playing game (RPG) players.
- Rating: PG-13
- Available on Oculus Rift S, Oculus Quest.
- Website: https://www.oculus.com/experiences/quest/1853479764707533
Investment Disclosure: Maddie Callander is VP at Boost VC (www.boost.vc) which is an investor in Where Thoughts Go, Tribe XR and Beast Pets.
Rating Disclosure: Ratings are unaccredited and based on her personal opinion. Please review follow all guidelines and ratings set by the headset manufacturer, platforms, and game developers.
The post The 2019 Holiday VR Gift Guide: Expanding Reality With Family And Friends appeared first on VRScout.
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