If you're the proud owner of an Oculus Quest 2 (or Meta Quest 2, whatever you want to call it), PlayStation VR, or are just looking forward to the PSVR 2, developers just unveiled a ton of new games on the Upload VR Winter Showcase for you to celebrate.
The bi-annual Upload VR Showcase is now on its fifth show and has previously revealed tons of new titles with every show. It's a bit like the PC Gamer's PC Gaming Show in that it's designed to be an industy-wide showcase of upcoming titles for all of VR, although the industry primarily supports the Quest and PlayStation VR platforms due to their popularity. Without further ado, here's everything announced at the 2021 Upload VR Winter Showcase!
Cities: VR
Quest 2, Spring 2022
Cities: Skylines is coming to VR for the first time ever as the appropriately-titled Cities: VR. Just as you'd expect from the series, Cities: VR brings the city-bulding sim into a more personally interactive medium exclusively on the Quest 2 this coming spring. The gameplay reveal trailer above shows players plotting out buildings and roads, altering landscapes, and getting right up close with their denizens as mayor of the town.
As you might expect from the series if you've ever spent time playing it, you'll be designing neighborhoods, constructing buildings, directing the flow of traffic, handling the economy, managing emergency services, providing healthcare, education, entertainment, and basically anything else your citizenry might demand of you as an elected official.
Cities: VR comes from Fast Travel Games, developers of an incredibly wide variety of games ranging from the horrifying Wraith: The Oblivion - Afterlife to the family-friendly Curious Tale of the Stolen Pets.
NERF: Ultimate Championship
Quest 2, 2022
Ready to jump into 4v4 competitive NERF battles in VR? Developer Secret Location certainly hopes so, as NERF: Ultimate Championship aims to deliver that satisfying thwumpft you get from a real NERF gun, only with a lot fewer lost darts. This multiplayer shooter was first unveiled this past Summer but we finally got a look at the gameplay at today's Showcase, which looks to focus on player movement, double jumping, and epic parkour skills.
Impressively, developer Secret Location modeled each NERF gun not just visually to its real-world counterpart but also outfitted each blaster with a unique blasting pattern, different dart fallout, and variability to the dart flight trajectory. Guns also feature manual reloading, priming, and revving triggers, as well as some dual-wielding options for the extra brave.
NERF: Ultimate Championship debuts on the Meta Quest 2 sometime in 2022.
Lucky's Tale
PSVR, release date
The original VR platformer, Lucky's Tale, just saw a release on the Quest 2 in November and is now coming to PSVR for the first time ever. This one used to be an Oculus Rift exclusive back in the day, and Lucky saw plenty of adventures on platforms like the Xbox, PlayStation 4, and Switch with the release of Super Lucky's Tale.
But here's the deal; this game is built for VR and really makes the most sense in that format. Peer around environments, find hidden secrets within, and delve into a platformer in a way you never have with this brilliant recreation of the original release.
The Chewllers
Quest 2, PSVR, 2022
The Chewllers is a co-op multiplayer tower defense shooter where you'll be protecting your tower against the hungry Chewllers. These little beasts are out to get into your tower and will use every means possible to gain access.
Create your own weapons by combining resources you find throughout your adventures, repairing walls between waves, and fighting off giant bosses alongside your friends. Whether you're tossing explosives or looking down the sights of a gun, there's plenty of variety to keep you coming back and screaming alongside your friends in your attempt to hold the fort.
RUINSMAGUS
Quest 2, 2022
In this VR-exclusive JRPG, you'll be seeing the world from a perspective not often seen in these types of games: right from the eyes of the hero. As a first-person action JRPG, you'll be fighting it out on battlefields and arenas throughout a 26-chapter story. The game currently only features Japanese audio but the team at CharacterBank is working on an English dub via support from a Kickstarter campaign.
In the game, you'll play the role of a novice wizard who teams up with a researcher to unlock the mysteries within the ruins of Gran Amnis. Classic JRPG combat looks to get a refreshing new take with this release.
Smash Drums
Quest and Quest 2, Out now
There are rhythm games aplenty in VR, but few deliver the visceral experience of Smash Drums. Making an official appearance on the Oculus Store today, December 2, Smash Drums is also introducing co-op and versus modes for up to 8 players. You'll be pounding the drums along with your friends through 30 songs in 8 different environments. But beware: not all drums can be smashed equally.
You'll need to watch your strength on those crystal drums so they don't break, but be sure to smash the heck out of the drums that are on fire. It's a test of your ability not only to rock out but also to show finesse and quick thinking.
Ultrawings 2
Quest and Quest 2, February 2022
Ultrawings 2 was previously announced for Quest and Quest 2 back in September, but today we got more footage of the port. The original Ultrawings was a PC VR flight sim that broke ranks with other flight sims by enabling players to interact with their cockpit using only their motion-tracked controllers.
Ultrawings 2 ups the ante with four new aircraft and dog-fighting fun, whereas the original was a single-plane flying-only type of sim.
Ziggy's Cosmic Adventures
Quest 2, Fall 2022
Ziggy's Cosmic Adventures is making its adorable Quest 2 debut in Fall 2022, alongside plenty of space dogfights and planetary exploration. The unique ships in Ziggy's Cosmic Adventures are fully roomscale environments, letting players actually walk around their cabin, explore, and interact with just about anything they see.
Among the instruments and containers is an adorable little stolen research project that you can pet and interact with in many different ways. Everything points to this being part virtual pet, part dogfighting sim, and all fun when it launches next fall.
Garden of the Sea
Quest and Quest 2, 2022
Garden of the Sea has been in beta on Steam for quite some time, but Budget Cuts developer Neat Corp is now ready to release the title fully on the Oculus Store for the Quest and Quest 2. Explore a happy little island filled with wonderful creatures, take pictures of beautiful surroundings, take a boat out and explore the seas, or just cast a line and catch whatever fish might come along.
You'll also be solving puzzles, interacting with townsfolk, completing quests, and trading with merchants along the way. Oh, and don't forget gardening. There will be plenty of that in the aptly named Garden of the Sea, which is launching the Quest platform in the near future.
Little Cities
Quest 2, Spring 2022
Create your own little island city with only your hands. This one adds a more personal touch, as you'll be constructing each individual building, adding cell phone towers, putting our fires and solving other emergency needs, and managing your tiny island city to your heart's content.
Little Cities changes things up by giving you different types of islands to build on. From green and lush paradises to dry desert landscapes, each island holds its own challenges for the player to solve.
Propagation: Paradise Hotel
Quest 2, PSVR, late 2022
The sequel to the short 2020 zombie shooter of the same namesake, Propagation: Paradise Hotel is anything but a paradise as an epidemic has turned seemingly everyone into zombies. It's hard to get enough of shooting the undead, and that's precisely what you'll be doing alongside friends in this full-fledged sequel. Today's unveiling was just a tease, so we expect to see more throughout the next year.
Lost Recipes
Quest and Quest 2, 2022
Schell Games latest explores recipes lost to time, tasking you with cooking all sorts of delicious-sounding concoctions from all manner of ancient civilizations. From medieval China to ancient Greece, the temples of the Mayans, and many others, you'll be learning how cultures of old were able to create such delicious masterpieces without modern technology.
Schell Games has been making VR games for years and has made brilliant titles like I Expect You To Die 2 and Until You Fall, among many others. This one's quite a different affair and looks to break ranks with the hoards of other VR cooking games that tend to focus mostly on speed to keep things interesting.
Zenith
Quest and Quest 2, PSVR, release date
MMOs and VR are a rare pair, and Zenith aims to fill that gap in a big way with its release sometime next year. For now, though, you can enroll in the beta, which starts on December 18. Development has been ongoing for several years now, beginning with a Kickstarter campaign back in 2019.
As an MMO, Zenith is a large open-world players can traverse at their whims. This trailer unveiled several locomotion options including gliding mechanics and real-time combat with either weapons or magic attacks. You'll also be able to cook in the game, likely to keep you from falling prey to an early death.
Moss Book II
PSVR, Spring 2022
Moss is a masterful experience that tells the tale of an unwitting hero, told entirely in a unique book-like format. Quill's next adventure takes her to frozen wastelands, lush garden scapes, steampunk paradises, and ancient ruins in this PlayStation VR exclusive title. As with the original, you'll be viewing Quill from afar as you guide her movements and combat along throughout the adventure.
This one is a direct sequel to Moss, which is among the very best Quest games you can get. It was also originally a PSVR-exclusive release that eventually made its way to PC and Quest platforms.
