Virtual Reality lets us explore a range of new possibilities and achieve experiences that can further help us with our mental health. Via immersing ourselves in unique virtual reality worlds and scenarios, we are able to tackle some of our biggest phobias, achieve better mental clarity and reduce stress. Even though there currently aren’t as many VR apps and experiences as we would hope, developers all around the world are doing their best to tap into the new and exciting possibilities of VR. This also includes VR Mental Fitness experiences, application and games, which can greatly help you out in different ways. With that in mind, we’ve gathered some of the best VR Mental Fitness games and apps for all current VR platforms that can help you better your mental health.
theBlu (HTC Vive)
There are a huge number of different games and experiences currently available for the HTC Vive via SteamVR. However, one of the best ones that also has some great Mental VR Fitness properties is theBlu. An extremely immersive experience, theBlu lets you experience three unique marine life phenomena, including Whale encounters, reef migration and a luminous abyss.
In whale encounter, as the name suggests, you will find yourself on an underwater shipwreck, with a whale swimming up to you, giving you the sense of the calm beauty of the enormous mammal. In reef migration, theBlue places you on the edge of a coral reef, letting you enjoy a variety of fish, which swim around you.
Because all of these revolve around a sense of serenity, the scenarios offered by theBlu are perfect for mental clarity and stress relief. What’s more, the HTC Vive further gives you interaction with the marine life via its controllers, giving you an increased sense of immersion.
Price: $8.99 via Steam
Windlands (Oculus Rift and HTC Vive)
If you ever wanted to feel like Spider-Man performing crazy aerial maneuvers, you can now do so with the help of Windlands and the Oculus Rift. A first-person platformer, Windlands lets you navigate through a shattered world with the help of two grappling hooks and the ability to jump quite fast and high.
An extremely joy-filled game, Windlands is also an amazing experience that will help you out with your mental health. The game is perfect for overcoming a fear of heights and is a definite recommendation for everyone who wants to get some adrenaline in their blood, without putting their lives at risk. The game is also available for the HTC Vive, but it’s the best in this category for Oculus.
Price: $19.99 via Oculus Store (Oculus Rift)
$19.99 via Steam (HTC Vive)
Sketchfab (PC Web App for VR)
Unleashing your creativity in virtual reality is now possibile with the help of Sketchfab. Available for almost every HMD for the PC with new support constantly added to the application, Sketchfab is a web virtual reality aplication that lets you explore remote places, amazing game worlds, cultural heritage sites, fantastic creatures and scietific phenomena.
The VR-Ready application is perfect for VR Mind health for a number of reasons, as the exploration of the scenic 3D worlds and items can help you out not only with stress-relief and mind clarity, but also increase your creativity.
Price: Free (Oculus Store, Steam, Web)
Lanterns (Android Mobile)
Mobile virtual reality is often overlooked by VR enthusiasts and developers. However, there are a huge number of applications that can greatly increase your mental health. One of the most infamous and best ones is Lanterns.
Putting you in an extremely serene scene, experiencing Lanterns with the help of a mobile VR headset for Android devices is perfect for mental clarity and stress relief. A true VR meditation experience, Lanterns also features amazing sound effects and music, thus by putting on headphones and an Android HMD, you would be able to truly achieve a meditation state in virtual reality.
Price: Free (Google Play Store)
Virtual Reality Moon (iOS Mobile)
Have you ever looked at the moon and wondered what it would be like to be on its surface? With the help of Virtual Reality Moon for iOS devices, you can experience just that. While not truly an interactive experience, the visual and audio VR experience provided by Virtual Reality Moon can truly boost your mental clarity and help you with stress relief. Furthermore, the app can engage your thinking, because by placing you on the moon, you will achieve a whole new level of gratitude, especially by looking at the pale blue dot that is Earth.
Price: Free (iTunes Store)
InCell VR (iOS and Android Mobile
InCell VR is an amazing VR game available on both for Android and iOS devices. A puzzle-like game, InCell VR is one of the most popular virtual reality games for mobile devices. Developed as an action/racing game, it puts you in the micro cell world of the human body, mixing bio science and strategy into its gameplay.
InCell VR provides you with a mix of a calm and relaxing experience and action-packed racing style gameplay. This makes the game perfect for after a long work day. By spending just a few minutes a day playing InCell VR, you would be able to truly achieve further stress relief. Furthermore, the action-packed sequences can further increase your mental health state, by providing you with a needed dose of dopamine and serotonin via the game’s exciting gameplay.
Price: Free on mobile
Honorable Mentions
Time Machine VR (HTC Vive)
If you are looking for an immersive serene game for virtual reality, you should look no further than Time Machine. Available for the HTC Vive HMD, Time Machine puts you in the boots of a time traveller, who has to travel back to the prehistoric era and collect data from the different creatures living in that time period.
The game incorporates two modes: story and exploration. In the first mode, you will be playing the campaign of the game. With the ability to look around previously visited destinations, the exploration mode of Time Machine VR can help your sense of wonder and let you experience multiple emotions and help you reach new levels of mind clarity, just be careful of dinosaur attacks.
Price: $29.99 via Steam
Within VR (formerly VRSE) – both iOS and Android, PC
Available for free on mobile, both iOS and Android, and the PC, Within (formerly VRSE) is an amazing application that lets you view a number of amazing virtual reality movies. By giving you the best pieces of Virtual Reality storytelling content currently available, Within VR can also help you boost your mental health, including helping you out with any phobias you might have, mental clarity, stress relief and more.
Price: Free (iTunes Store, Google Play Store, PC)
Improving your mental health with the help of virtual reality is not only a possibility, but also extremely rewarding. By visiting new and exciting worlds, enjoying scenic views and achieving a meditation-like state via different experiences, these applications can also help you out by tackling your phobias and fears. Furthermore, giving you adrenaline-filled experiences can improve the output of serotonin and dopamine released in your brain, removing any worries of dysimthia or depression.
