Biathlon Battle VR
Ski down a virtual snowy slope, and attempt to beat your competition in both single-player and multiplayer races. As you travel along the course, you’ll have to stop and fire at the targets to increase your score before racing toward the finish line. The snow downhill areas are surrounded by giant mountains and pine trees, and the narrow sections force you to quickly turn as you barrel past your competitors.
Fitness Potential
As you’re a virtual biathlete in Biathlon Battle VR, you’ll be swinging both of your arms back behind your hips in order to push off from the snow and increase your speed. For downhill segments, you’ll need to carefully place your ski poles, while flatter segments will force you to quickly swing your arms back and forth like you’re cross-country skiing. For shooting segments, you’ll need to keep your arms steady so you can hit your target.
Developer/Publisher: Animar Media/Academtech LLC
Release Date: January 27, 2019.
Compatible With: HTC Vive
Price: $8.49 to $9.99
Link: Biathlon Battle VR
AIRA VR
After a long war between mankind and machines has left humanity on the verge of total collapse, AIRA VR puts you in command of the human spaceship Blue Science Union. You must defend the last remaining human resources from falling into the hands of the dastardly Skilith, a machine race that has already taken over Earth. You’re joined by the AI companion ARIA, who discovers something on an unknown planet that could save the planet.
Fitness Potential
AIRA VR consists of multiple different gameplay styles, including first-person shooting with guns that you must move from side to side as you fire at enemies. There is also an archery option, during which you pull your hand behind your head, and it appears there will also be a hand-cranking item as well. It has been built with room-scale VR in mind and is optimized to avoid motion sickness.
Developer/Publisher: racoonbytes
Release Date: January 31, 2019
Compatible With: HTC Vive, Oculus Rift
Price: $24.99
Link: AIRA VR
Coffee VendoR
Coffee VendoR is a peculiar VR game, because it involves using another set of VR goggles within the game itself. As the employee at an auto-dispensing coffee shop, you’re responsible for serving customers their beverages. During the night however, you can put on your own VR headset and play a series of mini-games, including a first-person shooter, as well as more traditional games on your virtual television set.
Fitness Potential
The shooter mini-game is a sort of 3D take on Space Invaders, and you can block incoming projectiles by raising your hands up. There is also a carnival-style VR game that lets you chuck balls or at stacked glass bottles, pop balloons with darts, or black whack-a-mole, all of which make use of the Vive’s tracked motion controllers. Coffee VendoR is standing-only and supports a room-scale setup.
Developer/Publisher: Leland Wilson
Release Date: January 29, 2019
Compatible With: HTC Vive
Price: Free
Link: Coffee VendoR
Holopoint: Chronicle
If you’re used to archery game where you carefully aim your shot before letting the arrow fly with the lightest of touches, then you’re in for a surprise with Holopoint: Chronicle. The science-fiction-themed archery game has you quickly switching between holographic targets, blasting them into small crystals that explode in every direction. The environments themselves are gorgeous Asian-inspired areas, including a cliff overlooking a giant mountain and a dojo. The game itself is the follow-up to Holopoint, which we’ve covered with guides in the past.
Fitness Potential
You are always on the move in Holopoint: Chronicle, as you have to whip your body around and fire off another arrow with your bow nearly every second. Targets are located all around your avatar, requiring repositioning and quick reflexes to take them all out quickly. The fast pace is sure to get your heart beating almost immediately, and you can improve your coordination by acquiring new targets.
Developer/Publisher: Azlan Studios LLC
Release Date: February 1, 2019
Compatible With: HTC Vive, Oculus Rift
Price: $16.14 to $18.99
Link: Holopoint: Chronicle
WellTown
Willington, New Zealand is more than just the birthplace of acclaimed comedy music duo Flight of the Conchords. It’s also a hotbed of activity and beautiful nature just waiting to be explored. In WellTown, you’re free to explore the city, participating in musical performances or completing silly mini-games. Not only will you have a good time, but you’ll also learn about the underappreciated city’s culture.
Fitness Potential
One of the mini-games featured in WellTown allows you to get behind a virtual drumkit and participate in a live band performance, smacking the sticks down with the motion-tracked controllers. Another makes use of the motion controllers to pull back a slingshot and firing it at zombie-like citizens walking toward you.
Developer/Publisher: Wrestler/WREDA
Release Date: January 29, 2019
Compatible With: HTC Vive, Oculus Rift
Price: Free
Link: WellTown