The 24 best Samsung Gear VR games, apps and experiences

The 24 best Samsung Gear VR games, apps and experiences

There are more than 1000 apps and games to check out for Samsung’s Gear VR headset – and considering it’s a fraction of the cost of an HTC Vive or Oculus Rift, that makes its a pretty appealing proposition. While the Gear VR’s virtual reality powers aren’t quite as impressive as its PC-powered brethren’s, there are plenty of reasons to strap one on, from games to 360 videos. Here are some of our favourites.

Star Wars: Droid Repair Bay (£free)

In Droid Repair Bay, you take a role in the titular fix-up centre, tending to BB-8 and other roly-poly droids as they come in with defects. You’ll pull open each robot, fiddle with their innards, and send them on their way. It’s not the most consequential part of the neverending Star Wars media barrage, but it’s free and certainly worth checking out if you have a Gear VR.

Augmented Empire (£7.99)

This Gear VR exclusive doesn’t really need to exist in virtual reality, but when you’re looking down at Augmented Empire’s grid board, moving characters around and waging turn-based battles, that’ll be the last thing on your mind. This cyberpunk-meets-steampunk tactics game offers up great graphics, voice acting from the likes of Kate Mulgrew and Nick Frost, and about 10 hours of gameplay to savour. One for fans of Hitman Go.

Melita: A Human Journey (£1.49)

If you think this world seems pretty dire sometimes, be thankful you don’t live with Anaaya in 2026. With her planet rapidly falling apart thanks to climate change, she’s on the hunt for a new one to send all of humanity to, with help from her AI companion Melita. This 360-degree sci-fi short story isn’t interactive aside from the ability to freely look around, but it looks so good you’ll have trouble taking your eyes off it.

Face Your Fears (£free)

An ever-growing compendium of horror experiences, Face Your Fears makes you stick your head inside all manner of unpleasant situations, including a crashing plane, a snake-infested tomb and a Stranger Things themed experience in which you explore a couple of locations from the Netflix mega hit. If you like horror films but have never experienced one with a phone strapped to your face, this is for you.

Minecraft: Gear VR Edition (£4.99)

The VR version of Minecraft is effectively the same as the mobile Pocket Edition, offering survival and creative modes and a large chunk of the core PC experience, only now you’re immersed in the blocky worlds. Playing in first-person is a real trip, but it can also be overwhelming – which is why a tap of the touchpad can switch to you a windowed view, wherein the game is played on a TV inside a pixelated lodge.

Smash Hit (£2.29)

As Smash Hit propels you through rooms filled with minimal geometry, you must toss balls to shatter the glass panes and sculptures you pass along the way. Smashing every last piece rewards you with extra ammo to toss, which is just as well because the whole destructive process is just as satisfying as it sounds. This adaptation of an already decent mobile game is exactly what VR is designed for.

Hitman Go: VR Edition (£7.99)

Hitman Go scaled down the stealth assassination series for mobile but, surprisingly, it proves a perfect fit for VR, with the tiny figurines making it feel like you’re really playing on a physical surface. The core concept hasn’t changed here: each hit takes the form of a puzzle on a game board, challenging you to find the best way through threats and around hazards to complete the stage.

Land’s End (£4.49)

From the same people that made Monument Valley, Land’s End has you looking freely around its sparse, beautiful environment and using your gaze to progress through breezy puzzles. While not especially challenging, Land’s End is a delight to take in, as it creates a real sense of atmosphere in the calming, natural terrain – and has just enough mystery to keep you pushing ahead to each new landmark.

Netflix (£free, subscription required)

No, this app doesn’t magically transform the service’s myriad films and TV shows into 360-degree wonders. In fact, aside from a Stranger Things experience mastered for VR, Netflix has very little VR-optimised content. So what’s the point? It turns out that watching films on a fake flat screen in a virtual viewing room is kind of great, and here you’ll browse your queue and soak in Netflix’s best amidst a cozy pad with ace décor.

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes (£5.99)

VR might shut you off from the outside world, but it doesn’t have to be a completely solitary experience. With the headset on, your job is to describe the randomly generated bomb covered with wires and buttons that you see in front of you, while your nearby friends (without headsets) use a manual to talk you through the disarming process. Who knew one VR headset could power an awesomely social party game?

Within (£free)

In these early days of VR filmmaking, Within is setting the standard, delivering experimental short films such as Evolution of Verse, music videos from Muse and U2, and captivating mini-documentaries that both benefit from and drive the 360-degree format. Grab the Within app and you’ll find plenty of free, intriguing video content to savour.

End Space (£5.99)

The Gear VR may lack the impressive EVE Valkyrie from other headsets, but End Space is the next best thing. It’s a deep-space dogfighter that finds you commanding your spaceship in head-to-head shootouts against the stars. The action is intense – and potentially dizzying, be careful out there! – and the backdrops are beautiful, making this one of the true showcase titles for Samsung’s headset. You might be surprised that your smartphone can even contain an experience like this.

Rush (£5.99)

This first-person experience promises a rush, and sure enough, it delivers. Rush is all about intense wingsuit gliding, as you hop out of a plane and soar through the skies while avoiding trees, cliffs, and other unfortunate outcomes. You can choose between controlling your movements with a glance or a turn of your head – the former is better if your stomach starts churning – and with over 60 race stages and online multiplayer, there’s plenty to keep you airbourne.

Paint VR (£1.49)

Paint VR opens up the 360-degree environment around you for your virtual brush, but you won’t be limited to walls or canvasses: you can paint right onto the air, before moving around and turning your initial brush strokes into the 3D masterpiece of your dreams. It’s best with the Gear VR Controller, which doubles as your brush, and while Paint VR isn’t as expansive as Tilt Brush on the Vive and Rift, it’s a lot cheaper.

Rangi (£3.99)

Rangi is a first-person puzzler that finds you exploring environments filled with switches and movable objects, which you’ll need to shift and manipulate to guide streams of light around and open up a portal to the next area. Inspired by African culture, it has a deeply intriguing mystical feel to it, along with surreal moments like riding in the hand of a giant. It’s best with the Gear VR Controller but is worth soaking up even without one.

EVE Gunjack (£7.99)

Gunjack is basically the kid brother of EVE Valkyrie, the outer-space shoot ‘em up for higher-end headsets. It’s a pretty straightforward arcade shooter: you’ll look around to aim the cursor and blast the waves of zippy foes that zoom into view. Gunjack’s levels get progressively tougher, though, tossing in a bit more strategy and challenge along the way, and it looks great for mobile VR.

Star Chart (£3.99)

Don’t have a good view of the night sky from your city? Star Chart provides all of the major constellations for you to see and explore as you glance upwards. Even better, you can hop right up into space and examine every planet, as well as wield 3D stars in your hand and eye the little details. It even has Apollo 11 moon landing and Mars Curiosity rover experiences to take in, making this the perfect pick for outer space junkies.

Oculus Arcade (£free)

Go ahead, make the joke about buying a VR headset to play decades-old arcade and console games. Point taken, but the ability to dig into a nice little stack of old-school games is pretty sweet indeed. Oculus Arcade offers up more than 20 classics, including Sonic the Hedgehog, Pac-Man, and Galaga, and you can play 20 minutes of each for free – or buy any game outright for a couple of quid.

The Well (£3.99)

Damn, that’s a pretty game. The Well hails from Left 4 Dead developer Turtle Rock Studios, although it shares little in common with that multiplayer masterpiece. Instead, The Well is a gorgeous dungeon crawling role-player that works surprisingly well in VR. You’ll need a controller for this one, as you move in first-person through the terrain in search of treasure and turn-based battles, with the fabulous fantasy aesthetic surrounding you all the while.

Dark Days (£5.99)

Set in a distinctly creepy motel, Dark Days sees you searching for the answers behind some rather unfortunate events. While the gameplay itself isn’t challenging to master, it’s the story that will give you the creeps. With an expertly crafted atmosphere, and a cold-sweat blend of in-story events, narration and background music, Dark Days is definitely one that you’ll want to play with the lights on.

Drop Dead (£7.99)

If you haven’t played a zombie shooter in VR, have you even played VR at all? Thankfully, Drop Dead makes it addictively easy to get shooting, with its look-to-aim immersion and action-packed gameplay. The green undead coming at your face might be thoroughly cartoonish, but that doesn’t stop Drop Dead serving up its fair share of scares, not to mention a combat system that makes accuracy fun. Who doesn’t love lopping off zombie body parts?

Skylight (£7.99)

Set on the deck of a spaceship, Skylight’s turn-based strategy battles play out in neon 3D, with ships and squadrons hovering, moving and blasting before your eyes. With 36 campaign missions to play through, 15 ship types and a brilliant hologram-like interface to control everything, Skylight is so engaging you might find it hard to return to its 2D equivalents.

Affected: The Manor (£2.29)

As you creep around the archetypal haunted house setting of Affected: The Manor, you might find yourself thinking that it doesn’t really do much that hasn’t already been done by the likes of Resident Evil, but that’s exactly when it’ll catch you out with one of its jump scares. So while it might not be the most original game ever made, its blend of terrifying torchlit exploration and randomised ‘boo’ moments make it a suitably nerve-wracking experience.

Ocean Rift (£7.99)

£8 might seem a little steep for a game that just involves looking at fish, but Ocean Rift is seriously immersive stuff. Shoals will swim around your head, turtles will paddle beside you and, if you’re lucky, dolphins might even turn up for a frolic. With 12 habitats to swim through, a whole variety of underwater creatures to meet, and plenty of little easter eggs to discover, there’s no better demo for the power of VR.