Left-Hand Path
I’ve been using VR for over two years, and this is my favorite VR game so far. I love the gestural magic system, where you have to learn specific hand movements to cast particular spells–this gives me much more of a sense of immersion and embodiment. I appreciate that the game has a “Low-Terror” mode, as horror games are often too scary for me in VR, and this tones it down just enough. The “Arachnophobe” mode is particularly awesome, as the game would otherwise be unplayable for me in a certain very spidery section. With Arachnophobe mode on the spiders are replaced with a different type of creepy monster that (mostly) does not activate my arachnophobia.
– Real player with 24.8 hrs in game
Read More: Best Magic Indie Games.
If you like tense, thrilling escapism in a Lovecraftian horror-esque atmosphere, this is your bread and butter.
The Experience:
Rather than focusing on jumpscares, LHP utilizes ambiance, sound and creepy locales to build tension, with the story slowly unraveling as you find notes, books and characters in-game.
With only a dim arcane light to illuminate your surroundings, you find yourself peering around corners and keeping something solid at your back as you strain to spot shuffling movement or glowing eyes in the darkness beyond the comfort of your small pool of light. Later in the game, you upgrade your arcane light spell and much of the tension is relieved with knowing where your enemies lie. The Dev cleverly circumvents this and brings the tension roaring back in a crescendo with truly terrifying creatures visible only out of the corner of your eye.
– Real player with 14.2 hrs in game
Witherholme
Witherholme is a co-op (1-4 player) survival horror game where players take on the role of a young goblin magi. Scavenge for clues, discover new spells, and use your trusty staff to light the way through a cursed village.
BRAVE THE CURSED VILLAGE OF WITHERHOLME
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1-4 player online co-op
Band together in this classic survival horror experience where you’ll be searching for clues and delving deep into the heart of darkness.
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Atmospheric gameplay
Featuring old-school graphics, painted textures, and detailed audio, experience Witherholme with a uniquely immersive 3rd-person gameplay system.
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Character customization
Show off your style and customize your character with exclusive unlockable cosmetics.
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Multiplayer features
Use the in-game voice and text chat to communicate with your party.
Read More: Best Magic Atmospheric Games.
All Haze Eve
Interesting, short, puzzle-solving type game. Great for casual players.
– Real player with 1.7 hrs in game
Read More: Best Magic Indie Games.
I wanted to like this game but I feel neutral about it. Worth maybe 50 cents and only play it on Halloween. It says that there are no alternative endings but I bet there are depending on what you choose to be in the beginning and I would say that your choices matter, because there was a lot to intereact with that did NOTHING, but I tried everything with everything and you are forced down the path so there is only one correct path (because it’s forced) so it just leaves you feeling confused and incomplete once you “beat” it. Maybe those other interactions are for replay with different character choices but I wasn’t entertained enough to waste my time with it again yet alone 2 more times. :/
– Real player with 1.6 hrs in game
Waltz of the Wizard: Natural Magic
This is, by far, my favorite VR game- and I have a LOT of VR games- so this review is going to be long, but I feel like, even though this game is popular, it still isn’t getting the praise it deserves.
The VR market is, in my opinion, oversaturated with zombie shooters and fighting games. There are a few RPGs, but they don’t really let you do anything off the path they set out for you. They’re like rail shooters in an RPG format. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed games like Mage’s Tale and Asgard’s Wrath, but they lacked the thing I look forward to most in VR, free will. It blows my mind how lacking the VR market is in games where you can just do whatever the hell you want, it’s the perfect platform for experiencing life in fantastic ways. For this reason, I see Waltz of the Wizard as VR’s golden child. It may be “short” as far as having a to-do list, but no other game I’ve played has been so immersive. I get to be me, but me as a wizard, doing whatever I want to do, exploring and discovering without worrying about anyone trying to keep me tied to a story line where I’m only allowed to discover things when they say I can.
– Real player with 19.4 hrs in game
This game is mostly just a tech demo, and there is a free version out there you can play with instead. This one is very cheap, and it is the tech demo that sold my family on VR. My dad said “Its fun, 400$ Well spent son.”
We named the skull Bob, I don’t know his real name nor do I care, my first thought was of the Dresden Files talking skull, so that’s what we called him.
The games concept is pretty simple, you are a wizard, likely one that has lived for a long time, with a fully stocked pile of ingredients and a cauldron bubbling away on the desk, if you show Bob an item he will explain what it is, in a dark and spooky reverb voice.
– Real player with 10.7 hrs in game
Catacombs Of The Yokai
After finishing a late shift at work you find a mysterious amulet that was dropped on the ground.
As you go to return it to the woman that dropped it, you encounter a strange doorway that you haven’t seen before. Entering the door leads you into an unnerving nightmare realm.
On your way through the depths you will encounter various enemies (many inspired from Japanese/Taiwanese urban legends and myths) that must be tricked, conversed with or eluded in sometimes unconventional ways.
Can you survive and return the amulet banishing this portal forever?
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Randomly Generated Levels: Each new play-through will generate a random set of floors. However, these change with each new game file started, allowing for extended re-playability.
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No combat. Survive by hiding, using your wits and clever use of the items at your disposal.
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Use magical items at the cost of health to help navigate the catacombs and help locate enemies.
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Urban legends and myths from Japan and Taiwan were used as reference for many enemy designs and behaviors including: Kuchisake-onna (Slit Mouth Woman), Kunekune (Wriggling body) and Spirit Houses.
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Unique Enemy AI: Survive by leaving offerings, making smart conversational choices, causing a distraction or even closing your eyes to avoid death.
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Creepy and foreboding atmosphere.
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Created by 2 people, allowing for more direct communication with players on the content and direction of future updates.
Death Rattle - Hell Unleashed
A fun game, running around killing all sorts of things. Quite like the campaign. All sorts of different ways to interact with the world. Things popping up all around you. Keeps you on the move and on your feet.
Definitely worth a couple of bucks
– Real player with 8.4 hrs in game
I am really enjoying this game!
At first glance I thought that this game seems really cool. The graphics are stunning, the crossbow looks cool, and the voice overs of the guards are done really well (especially the Captain). The tutorial/ training bit in the start is short enough to not be annoying, but it still teaches you the game fairly well. Once you finish the tutorial, you are surprised by a group of monsters, and when they spawn the music changes which is really cool and captivating. I also like that you can destroy some of the structures and even trees!
– Real player with 6.5 hrs in game
Jiangshi x Daoshi
I absolutely love this game! It uses a refreshing mix of static avatars & backgrounds, with frequent animation and motion comic action panels reminiscent of Dead Leaves. This gives the game an extremely dynamic feel, which makes up for the lack of choices. Like many Visual Novels, heavy emphasis is on the word Novel, as such, interaction in this game is mostly limited to hunting for words that the in-game hover-dictionary may explain for you.
Jiangshi X Daoshi boasts a rich story packed with fantastic Chinese mythology/historical information, with a wholesome dynamic between the main characters.
– Real player with 9.9 hrs in game
Please be mindful that this is the censored version uploaded to steam.
I wish to bring awareness to this. Apparently this VN was banned upon submission because of certain scenes and they’ve fought tooth and nail the bring it back for us to enjoy. Bans usually mean end of the line for most games from what I have heard. I’ve went back in to check most of these scenes and they aren’t even close to becoming questionable. For more on that story for those interested: Fruitbat Blog Post
– Real player with 7.7 hrs in game
Lost Circus VR - The Prologue
I picked this up for a couple of dollars. For that price you cannot beat it. Played on the Rift S.
This is a simple “on rails experience” ride with 3 small mini games built in. You sit in a barrel on a trolley as a man in a clown mask pushes you through a dilapidated circus. The whole experience is very short (maybe 5-7 minutes max?) but takes an interesting turn from awe and amazement to a horror-terror feel.
Visually it is gorgeous although on my end I caught a lot of visual stuttering while being moved. As of this writing I am unsure if the issues were on my end or the game’s.
– Real player with 0.8 hrs in game
Experienced on the Oculus Rift and Windows Mixed Reality. WARNING: SPOILERS!
Please note: I received a free Steam key through the Steam Curator Connect program
You can view my full playthrough & review here: https://youtu.be/lVOc7G5lJPs
Anybody who follows my reviews, knows that I am a big VR roller coaster fan. I own like 99% of them. So I was happy to get a free Steam key to review this game. This is a VR coaster experience that is about 7 minutes long with some interactive mini-game type interactions. It’s a very slow roller coaster so it relies on the cinematic on-rails experience. It’s a little on the spooky side, but nothing too scary happens.
– Real player with 0.8 hrs in game
nightmAR Protocol
Challenging, spooky, intense, & tons of fun is what comes to mind whilst playing through nightmAR Protocol. Job well done by all the creators - artwork, game play & music were all a knockout. DOPE.
– Real player with 2.6 hrs in game
My review of nightmAR Protocol
❤ Audience ❤
☐ Beginners
☐ Casual player
☑ Normal player
☐ Expert
🏆 Achievements 🏆
☑ Just a few (7)
☐ A dozen
☐ Many many
☼ Graphics ☼
☐ Bad
☐ All right
☐ Good
☐ Nice
☑ Fantastic
☑ Handmade
♬ Music ♬
☐ Bad
☐ All right
☐ Good
☐ Nice
☑ Fantastic
☠ Difficulty ☠
☐ Simple
☐ Average
☑ Easy to learn / difficult to master
☐ Difficult
☐ Injustice
§ Bugs §
☐ Bugs destroy the game
☐ Lots of bugs
☐ Some bugs
☐ You can use it for Speedrun
☑ Nothing has occurred
☯ History ☯
– Real player with 2.1 hrs in game
Waltz of the Wizard (Legacy demo)
One of the absolute best introductions into Virtual Reality and my top recommendation for the first game to play (aside form the steamvr tutorial). Waltz of the Wizard offers a LOT of experimental mechanics for exploring the VR realm to really showcase just how much you can do. If I was to list off every single detail of what you can do in this game, I’d run out of space in the review box. So I’ll keep it simple.
The graphics of the game are excellent. Everything has a great texture, design, and coloration. Despite the really great quality, it runs at a very optimal level on a less than optimal graphics card. Very little issue with framerate.
– Real player with 7.5 hrs in game
First and most importantly my mother is displeased, she managed to drag a barrel to her and was unable write on it with the chalk, i must agree i am kinda sad about that too.
now on the serious review part
This is a great game. The game places you in an alchemy lab where you can make spells. Generally you toss 2 ingredients and pour one solvent in the pot and boom you got a spell. there are 8 spells in total which is a tad few but all of them are quiet fun.
There is a small instrument where you can play 3 melodies and use it as a gateway to 3 different places.
– Real player with 1.8 hrs in game