How to Make A VR Game (The Last Guide You'll Ever Need) (2024)

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How to Make A VR Game

With the impressive rise of things like Oculus Rift and other headsets from VR companies, virtual reality gaming may well be a large cornerstone of gaming in the near future. You may be interested in trying your hand at becoming a VR developer.

Go through our guide to get some tips about VR, what it’s like to be an actual VR developer, and how to get started in the business.

With VR development, Keep it Simple!

You may want to dive right in and start making an immersive, breathtaking work of virtual reality gaming art. However, you need to start small. Building a foundation will help you out a ton in the future.

What Is A Virtual Reality Game?

A virtual reality, or VR game, is an immersive game where the player is put into a fully realized 3D environment where they can interact with the world’s elements. This is usually done by putting on a pair of VR goggles or a headset.

It’s not easy to make a VR game. You will need an extensive background in computer programming and VR development. While it may be more difficult to create high-end PC virtual reality games than VR games for iPhone, you will still need some impressive knowledge.

If you were looking to break through into professional virtual reality gaming, the cost would probably be anywhere from $10,000 to $300,000.

In order to play VR games, you will need a VR headset, a phone, a PC, or a game console that supports virtual reality gaming.

How much does a virtual reality game cost? They vary in price, but games are relatively cheap compared to console games. They cost anywhere from $5-$15.

VR Basic Concepts

Set the Scene

The scene is where all of the action will take place. It’s also where all of the game objects and assets are.

Game Assets

These are the assets, or things that will populate the scene of your game. These are things ranging from characters, lights, props, and more.

VR Game Behavior

This is where you define the game’s behavior, or how aspects react and interact with one another. This is where some math knowledge comes in handy.

Remember x, y, and z-axes? This is the foundation of the orientation of your VR game. Your game should be set at 0, 0, 0, for all three, and will determine where the main point of origin is for actions.

Details, Details, Details

These are the more specific details of the game assets within the game. Things like textures, bump mapping, and meshes will be involved in this aspect.

Virtual Reality Games

For virtual reality gaming, you are going to need a few things. You will need a VR headset of some sort. These can range from $500-$800 depending on the quality and brand.

Physical space: you will need a dedicated space to play a VR game, especially if it demands extensive physical activity.

Some virtual reality games you can play are:

Batman: Arkham VR
Beat Saber
Tetris Effect
Half-Life: Alyx
Superhot
Pistol Whip
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes

What is the best virtual reality game?
Beat Saber has won awards on Steam and more for its fast-paced action.

VR Apps

What are the best free VR apps?
Some of the best VR apps for android and VR for iPhone are:

How to Become A VR Developer

What is a VR developer?
A virtual reality developer is a person who creates VR experiences for game consoles, mobile platforms, and PC.

If you want to become a VR AR developer, you will need a strong knowledge of computers, coding, and a degree in computer science or related field. You need skills like video editing, 3D modeling, and rendering, experience with game engines like Unity.

Virtual reality games are coded using C-like languages: C++ and C#.

Use the Building Blocks of VR to Guide You

Returning to the basics and foundations of virtual reality gaming is always a valuable exercise, especially if you have come upon some difficulty in your project.

Some valuable aspects of virtual reality to call upon specifically are:

Knowing how to make games. You can do this through any number of engines like Unity or Unreal.
Understanding coding languages: languages like C++ and C# help you to program the game. Knowing these helps tremendously in the game creation process.
Assets: how to build, import, and utilize different graphical assets to populate your game world.

Mastering VR Developer Skills

This is where that second building block comes in. It is highly recommended that you know, or at least are familiar with at least one coding language.

Some other valuable tools and skills to draw upon are your familiarity with different game engines and the best VR apps. Possibly overlooked in this whole process is collaborating or speaking with other VR developers.

You can glean a lot of knowledge from fellow developers on how to make a VR game.

Other Things to Consider

What’s the best engine for VR development?

This can be a subjective opinion, but many VR developers seem to like Unity as a game engine.

After you have chosen a game engine that fits with you and your team, you need to ensure that your hardware is up to the task of VR development. Every aspect of your project prior to development can change key parts of the process.

If you are targeting more casual audiences, then hardware might not need to be so powerful. However, if you are planning on making a graphically impressive game, you are going to need to buckle down and prepare with powerful graphics cards and high-end PCs.

VR Job Opportunities

The job outlook for VR developers is quite good. Since virtual reality gaming is considered the future of the video game industry by many, jobs will likely increase.

Even in the event that the entire virtual reality gaming industry crashes, your knowledge will still be extremely useful if you were to choose to become a game designer or developer down the line. It’s a win-win.

The salary ranges for a VR developer can be from $60,000 to $134,000. Your salary will depend on your skill, education, and more, so you won’t be making six figures right away.

Develop VR and AR Applications

Developing virtual reality and augmented reality games are like any other creative and intensive project. You need to take your time, avoid burnout, and feel free to experiment.

Avoid Burnout

This can be difficult, especially if you are a workaholic. It’s easy to get caught up in the rigorous development process of a game, but you need to draw some boundaries, create a realistic work schedule, and stick to it. Burnout can happen in the blink of an eye and set you back in your schedule.

Experiment with VR Development

This is all about pushing creative boundaries, so don’t be scared to try new and exciting ideas! Who knows, maybe your unique idea is just what your potential game needs to set it apart from others.

VR Headsets

Oculus Rift S PC-Powered VR Gaming Headset
Oculus Quest All-in-one VR Gaming Headset – 64GB
HTC Vive Cosmos Elite Virtual Reality System
Sony PlayStation VR

VR Tutorials

Check out these invaluable tutorials in VR development.