The Best Multiplayer VR Games
Virtual reality may allow you to explore fantastic worlds or real places on Earth but it's not always enjoyable if you're on your own. Thankfully, there are a growing number of multiplayer experiences, either with fellow Quest 2 owners or with your friends and loved ones in the room with you. Here are some of the best multiplayer games for the Oculus Quest 2 to start your social VR experience.
Among Us VR
A fantastic (if limited) port of the viral social multiplayer game
Among Us is elegant in its simplicity: you complete simple tasks to save your crewmates, while imposters sneak around murdering and sabotaging the ship, and then everyone joins together to figure out who did the killing. Among Us VR took that formula and added 3D graphics, motion-control tasks, and proximity chat that transport you into space and make the murder sprees feel much more personal and anxiety-inducing.
At the moment, the game only has one map ported to VR: The Skeld II. More maps are coming in 2023 but, in the meantime, we still consider this a fantastic multiplayer experience that people of any skill level or age can enjoy. Whether you're looking for your first beginner experience to VR or something new and affordable to shake things up, Among Us VR would be our first recommendation. —Michael Hicks
Demeo
Far over the Misty Mountains cold, to dungeons deep and caverns old
Take to the dungeons and complete thrilling campaigns alongside three other friends (or random folks) in this Dungeons & Dragons-like experience. Players choose a character — each of which has a unique class and set of skills — that will be used to traverse through each campaign. Those campaigns are made up of multi-level dungeons filled with treasures and trials alike. Aside from the standard move-by-grid gameplay, players can look to their hands for special moves played with cards.
Demeo belongs in the multiplayer category just as much as it belongs to the strategy one, and that's because it's really meant to be played with other gamers. Sure, you could delve into the dungeons on your own, but you'll quickly find that Demeo is a bit too challenging for just one player. Thankfully, if you don't have any friends with the game, matchmaking will pair you up with the strategy experts and avid D&D fans that make up the Demeo community. There's even a hangout area the developer calls the Tinyverse where folks can meet up and plan games together.
Demeo launched with a single campaign and received a second just a few months after release. Since then, it's added several new campaigns and playable characters, complete with new spell cards, bosses, and exciting new modes to come. You can even use the Quest's mixed reality features to play the virtual game on a real table. A new Demeo Battles mode is also coming in 2023, letting players play against each other for the first time ever. Time to finally become the Dungeon Master you've always wanted to be!
Developer Resolution Games has committed to keeping the game feeling fresh with new updates and has teased several new classes and environments that the devs will add to the game for free. Plus, it's now available on Steam with cross-play, so you can go dungeon diving with friends who don't own a VR headset! —Nick Sutrich
Gorilla Tag
Join the biggest party on the Quest
Recapture the magic of chasing friends around on the playground, except as a low-resolution gorilla swinging from branches or leaping from buildings. The straightforward gameplay and free download have turned Gorilla Tag into one of the most popular games on the platform, especially among younger gamers.
New game modes like Infection, Hunt, and Paintbrawl, the addition of six levels for variety, and monthly updates keep things fun on the regular. Plus, you can always find players looking to try custom minigames and make friends.
You'll also collect "shiny rocks" to buy customizations and give your monkey a unique look. Don't be surprised if you end up sinking a ton of time into this free game, so long as you aren't scared off by voice chat.
As the game's tagline says, it's time to "become monke." —Michael Hicks
Dungeons of Eternity
Dungeon crawling excellence
If you're a gamer who loves fantasy, chances are high that you've imagined what it would be like to actually live out a Dungeons & Dragons adventure. To say Dungeons of Eternity offers that experience would be selling it short. Dungeons of Eternity is all that and so much more.
It's a co-op dungeon crawler for up to three players (though solo play is fully supported) with a robust combat system that combines ranged, magic, and physical attacks. You can alternate between heavy axe swings, parrying with your sword, and then unloading your crossbow mid-battle with a wide variety of vicious monsters, all with other players fighting alongside you. Android Central's Nick Sutritch said it best in his hands-on impressions: "I'm not sure I can think of another VR game that made me feel as badass as Dungeons of Eternity."
The combat alone is enough to be excited about, but when you factor in that this is a roguelike with randomization between runs and a near-endless amount of randomly generated loot, it's clear that Dungeons of Eternity is offering a truly next-level VR experience. - Nick Ransbottom
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes
A bomb in the living room? Defuse it, now!
You're alone in a room with an elaborately armed bomb. Your colleagues off-site have acquired the codes used by the bomb-maker, but there's a ticking clock and no time for them to reach you and disarm it themselves. You have no choice: you must relay the complex mechanics of the bomb to them exactly, so they can tell you how to dismantle it in time. Make too many mistakes, or take too long to find the solution, and it's game over!
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is a local couch co-op game. It's been around since the original Oculus Rift and since then has ported to Android, iOS, PC, Switch, Playstation, Xbox, PSVR, and Quest. The core gameplay hasn't changed, and you don't need to play this in VR; all you need is the free bomb manual, and to make sure that the one disarming the bomb can't see it from where they play. But this is a case where VR's natural isolation works in your favor: it makes you feel trapped with no escape, making the bomb's countdown that much more stressful.
Gameplay is fairly straightforward. Each bomb has different modules with traps that can't be solved without the manual. One example: you see a module with five wires and tell your friends. They check the manual and ask you questions. Depending on the color and number of the wires, you'll need to cut a specific wire. Get it wrong, and you get a strike (three strikes equals BOOM).
The Quest 2 version has enhanced graphics that make this dated game feel slightly less old. We really hope the developers add hand tracking support, but we haven't heard of any plans to add it. Despite that, it's still a really fun experience that'll help get your reluctant family members or roommates to try VR. —Michael Hicks
Rec Room
Play with your friends, no matter what system they use.
Rec Room is one of the original multiplayer VR games that has expanded by leaps and bounds since its initial release. It's available on all VR systems as well as mobile, gaming consoles, and PC! As the name suggests, Rec Room is the place to go when you want to hang out with friends and play together, no matter what your interests are.
The game's developers have created dozens of fun games to jump into together, from defeating killer robots, finding pirate booty, vanquishing Dracula, playing a full battle royale shooter, paintball, basketball, and plenty of other sports and games.
But the player-built modes are where you'll find knock-offs of popular games like Among Us and Fall Guys, unofficial maps from popular properties like Star Wars, or just little clubhouses where you can hang out with friends or meet new people.
If you're tight on cash and want content that will last for hours, Rec Room is the game for you. Just keep in mind that some people's experiences with Rec Room can be poisoned by rude trolls, so you may have more fun if you play in private sessions with people you trust.
Zenith: The Last City
The VR MMO you've been waiting for
With the visual style of Phantasy Star Online, Zenith combines fantasy and sci-fi elements into a compelling blend that has taken the VR world by storm. The top-selling Steam game at launch, Zenith supports cross-play with Rift, PC VR, and PSVR; with at least 100 hours of gameplay — not counting post-launch updates — Zenith will give you and your friends plenty of time to bond. You may even be able to make new VR buds in this MMO world.
After hours playing Zenith, we were generally quite impressed with the quality and depth of the game. You'll find six different gameplay classes to try, and you can swap playstyles every minute to try out spells, swords, and other weapons and play styles. You can climb and glide off of anything you find in the world. You'll duel enemies in epic showdowns, then go off to cook something. We did encounter some bugs and confusing controls, but nothing game-breaking.
Generally, the quests are standard MMO fare. But depending on how active a gamer you are, Zenith should occupy you for weeks, even months before you run out of things to do.
These days, Zenith is free to try thanks to a change in the game's business model. The Last City is considered a "paid DLC" while the Zenith Nexus is a brand new free-to-play area that encourages players to party up for quick quests.
