5 App-Based VR Games On The Way
With a whole new year of virtual reality innovation ahead of us, people are looking forward to a lot of different games and experiences. Mostly, the focus is on big, expensive games that will test the boundaries of even the most sophisticated VR headsets. However, the more accessible VR experiences will be those available as apps for phone-based VR (and AR). Sticking to this category then, let’s look at some of the promising titles that are on the way.
Sociable Soccer
This is a game heading to Samsung Gear VR (as well as other platforms) in 2018, and it ought to be pretty significant. If there’s one major gaming category that’s lagging behind in the VR category it’s sports, so if this is as good as some people seem to expect it to be, it could be a trendsetter. As one preview puts it, the game is designed to deliver what big franchises like FIFA can’t quite pull off: an experience born less of automated flash and more of player skill. That’s an ambitious goal, but it could be doable in VR, or it could at least be a nice start.
Ingress
Many don’t realize that there was a successful mobile-based augmented reality game years ago, even before Niantic released Pokémon GO. It was also designed by Niantic, and was called Ingress, and it was sort of a location-based team-on-team competition built around the idea of controlling different “portals” in real space. You might make the connection to taking over different “gyms” in Pokémon GO. Well, now that AR is the new big thing in mobile gaming, Niantic is bringing this title back in revamped form.
Gonzo’s Quest
Like Ingress, this is an existing game already, though it’s not one that’s been in VR or AR form just yet. It’s actually a highly successful 3D slot arcade designed by NetEnt and featured at several gaming sites online. Recently, NetEnt announced Gonzo’s Quest release for VR in the near future, which means this is another title to look forward to. We don’t know much about what specific platforms it will be available on but it’s a small enough game that availability in app stores seems a safe bet.
Narrows
Narrows is a swashbuckling pirate adventure by Resolution Games said to be setting sale for Daydream VR in 2018. The company already had one successful VR title in the form of Bait! (a fishing game), but naturally the idea of an animated pirate game is even more exciting. Inspired by Sid Meier’s Pirates!, it will give players the chance to form their own adventures on the high seas.
The Walking Dead: Our World
The Walking Dead, an AMC drama, has already inspired some successful mobile gaming release. But this one could be the biggest of the bunch. It’s an AR game heading to iOS and Google Play app stores in the near future, and it’s designed essentially to make you feel like you’re fighting alongside favorite characters in the zombie apocalypse.
