For the artists who make Walkabout Mini Golf, the path to virtual reality often begins with a pencil and paper to sketch out their ideas before jumping into Gravity Sketch for spatial building.

Now fans with Quest headsets can trace some of that path from home.

A collaboration between Walkabout Mini Golf and Pencil sees Quest-owning fans of the game dropping their putter onto the table to trace the drawings of Don Carson, the lead designer of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and an art director at Mighty Coconut. The step-by-step lessons available in the app for pencil and paper will teach players how to draw Walkabout's version of the characters Alice meets in Wonderland.

Effectively, Walkabout and Pencil are starting to recreate the Animation Academy attraction from California Adventure at the Disneyland Resort, where visitors learn how to draw Disney's most iconic characters from skilled artists. To learn from Carson, you just have to switch between two apps on Quest to go from the Alice in Wonderland's Walkabout theme park to Pencil, where you can learn to draw in Carson's style. The characters Alice encounters, from the Cheshire Cat to the Queen, have been re-imagined for VR by Carson and his teammates, pulling inspiration from the original illustrations of John Tenniel.

The tracing lessons are available as a free pack inside Pencil on Quest. The app is also adding a collection of authentic set pieces from Walkabout to play with for inspiration as you draw.

UploadVR is celebrating our Winter Showcase with a new Humble Bundle, featuring nine SteamVR games for $17.

Available for the next three weeks, the UploadVR Winter 2025 Showcase Bundle is now live following today's showcase. This time around, it's split between two separate tiers, with the games individually costing a combined total of $219.

The $10 tier comes with four games: After The Fall: Deluxe Edition, Guardians: Frontline, The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners, and A Fisherman's Tale 2 (previously known as Another Fisherman's Tale). Choosing the $17 tier then adds the remaining five: Z.O.N.A: Origin, Metal: Hellsinger VR, I Expect You To Die 3: Cog in the Machine, Ghosts of Tabor, and Hellsweeper VR.

Charity proceeds will support the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and you can adjust the revenue split between publishers, Humble and its chosen charities. While the above prices are the minimum you can spend on each tier, you can select how much you pay if you're looking to donate more.

The UploadVR Winter 2025 Showcase Bundle ends on December 26 at 6pm PT.

Puzzles of the World is an immersive puzzle game launching in Early Access on Quest next month.

Reminiscent of the popular VR jigsaw game Puzzling Places, Puzzles of the World lets you piece together intricate 3D miniatures, aiming to immerse you in a variety of soothing, themed environments. Developed by Astral Shores Games, this meditative experience focuses on slowing down while you take in the sights, and you keep your hands busy with its clicky bricks. Revealing its release date during the UploadVR Winter Showcase, you can see gameplay in the trailer below:

The miniatures you snap together are based on locations from around the globe, like the Yasaka Pagoda (Hōkan-ji) in Kyoto, and the famous canals of Venice. As you carefully build, one piece at a time, you'll also learn key facts about the locations, like their history and architecture, through a handy in-world booklet. Those looking to tweak the ambiance can also take advantage of Puzzles of the World's sound controls, which resemble a portable CD player, and choose between a range of ambient soundscapes.

Puzzles of the World will launch in Early Access on Quest on January 8, 2026. If you're looking for more reveals from the UploadVR Winter Showcase, an 'Everything Announced' will be available after the show.

Underwater puzzler Echoes of Mora is launching on SteamVR next year.

Developed by Selkies Interactive, Echoes of Mora is an underwater puzzle game where you swim through dreamy sunken dioramas and unlock curious memories as you uncover its eerie story. Announced today during the UploadVR Winter Showcase, the aquatic mystery is launching on Steam in March next year. You can check out the gameplay in the trailer below:

Echoes of Mora can be played in both PC VR and flatscreen modes, with players able to switch between mediums as they see fit, and their save slot will carry over between them.

During our demo hands-on at Gamescom this year, we found that while it’s by no means a seamless swimming simulator, the worldbuilding underpinning the mystery was more than enough to keep us engaged. We went on to say, “its compelling narrative beats and dreamy world design provide more than enough intrigue to earn it a place on my wishlist.”

Echoes of Mora is launching on Steam in March 2026. All the announcements from today's showcase will be rounded up in a handy 'Everything Announced' format, so be sure to check back in after it's finished.

Echoes of Mora Hands On: Approachable Underwater Puzzler With An Emotional Heart

Echoes of Mora sees you solve a mythical missing persons case in a dreamy aquatic puzzler.

UploadVRSarah Thwaites

Sol Protocol is a co-op roguelike coming to Quest early next year, and you can sign up for the closed alpha tests today.

Developed by Singular Perception (Epyka), Sol Protocol sees you and up to two additional players tasked with manning a spaceship as you navigate the dangers of a procedurally generated outer space. There are multiple roles to choose from when organizing and optimizing your crew, including the pilot, the gunner, and the captain. You can check out the announcement trailer below:

On your journey across the stars, you'll run into abandoned space stations and lost tech that can be searched and used to earn resources that can upgrade your ship. Space isn't all loot though, and there are also enemies to contend with, which require careful strategies and a range of high-powered weapons to best.

Sol Protocol is launching on Quest and SteamVR in early 2026, with a flatscreen version also intended for release. Those who want to get stuck in early can sign up for the closed alpha by joining the Sol Protocol Discord. Everything announced during the UploadVR Winter Showcase will be compiled into a wider list, so check back after the show to catch up on all the announcements.

Guardians Planetfall looks like VR's answer to Helldivers 2, bringing a new squad-based shooter to Quest 3 and PC VR next year in early access.

Revealed during the UploadVR Winter Showcase, Guardians Planetfall is a follow-up to 2023's Guardians Frontline by VirtualAge. Set in an ongoing galaxy-wide war, this supports up to four players per squad as you defeat alien threats, soldiers, and war machines across different planets, battlefields, and more. You can see the reveal trailer below.

While Frontline actively mixes FPS and RTS mechanics, Guardians Planetfall takes a different approach while remaining in that same universe. The upcoming game involves team-based PvE and extraction missions as you fend off two different factions: the Void Empire, and an evolved Bugs race. You can customize your strike ship, suits and weapons, choosing where to deploy your squad for missions.

VirtualAge states mission locations will range across all extremes such as deserts, jungles, frozen outposts and “lava scarred” strongholds. Beacons can be deployed to call in orbital support for air strikes and various tools, while antigravity gloves let you climb most surfaces. Jetpacks can help reach higher ground, each mission has optional secondary objectives for earning greater rewards, while items placed into your backpack are only rescued if you successfully evacuate.

Completing these procedural missions then allows you to upgrade your ship, using blueprints and resources to upgrade its offensive, defensive, supply, and support systems. This unlocks new orbital abilities, and you'll travel between different star systems and planets across this campaign. Missions change who controls a specific planet and once you've cleared a campaign, the galaxy resets.

Much like Frontline, Guardians Planetfall also features an in-game map editor where you build missions in VR. This allows you to alter terrain, structures, enemy encounters, objectives and more, which can then be shared with the community and edited in co-op too.

We recommended Planetfall's predecessor in our 2023 review, calling Guardians Frontline an “ambitious attempt to combine the best elements of two disparate genres” and giving it our recommendation. Further post-launch updates later followed that included adding a large enemy known as 'The Queen', while 'Update 1.5' introduced a revised editor mode.

Guardians Planetfall will launch in early access on Quest 3/3S and Steam in 2026.

Birdseed VR targets a March 2026 launch for the free-to-play birdwatching sim on Quest and Steam.

Currently available in early access on Quest for solo play, Birdseed VR by Buffalo Buffalo (Fresh Tracks VR) sees you aim to get the best possible camera shots, giving your pictures a star rating. As seen in today's UploadVR Winter Showcase, the Vancouver-based studio confirmed Birdseed's full release is coming this March on both Quest and PC VR.

The game aims to mimic real-life avian behavior like movement, appearance, flight patterns and distinctive calls, equipping you with binoculars and different camera lenses to capture these moments. Daily challenges are available and online multiplayer will be supported at full release, letting you share photos with friends and hang out across the forests in online co-op.

Other changes in Version 1.0 include the launch of Scout’s Shop, which comes with premium cosmetics and tools. This will add vintage camera skins, charms for your viewfinder, and more. The developer states that premium items won't directly impact gameplay, calling this “completely optional” for players.

Following October's early access launch, Birdseed VR released a quality-of-life update two weeks ago. That introduced the Field Guide for tracking challenges, and completing these tasks awards bottle caps that “can be exchanged for future goods and tools.” More observable birds were also added, alongside a new scoring system and real-time feedback system to track your challenge progress.

Birdseed VR is out now in Early Access on Quest 3 and 3S, with the full release coming in March 2026 on Quest and Steam.

Pirates VR: Jolly Roger finds a new destination with next month's launch on Quest 3 and 3S.

Developed by Split Light Studio, Pirates VR: Jolly Roger initially reached Steam back in January before later heading to PlayStation VR2. An action adventure game set on a cursed Caribbean island where you search for Davy Jones' treasure, today's UploadVR Winter Showcase revealed that it's now getting a standalone release that's been “rebuilt and optimized for the Meta Quest platform.”

Pirates VR sees you explore strange ruins alongside your sarcastic parrot companion, solving puzzles while fending off threats ranging from wild animals to undead pirates. Armed with various weapons like a magic lantern and flintlock pistol, this campaign lasts roughly four hours.

It's worth noting that VRKiwi, Pirates VR: Jolly Roger's original publisher on other platforms, isn't publishing this upcoming Quest 3 port. That's instead being handled by Incuvo, who recently launched Tracked: Shoot to Survive and are arguably best known for Green Hell VR.

We had mixed impressions during our Pirates VR: Jolly Roger review back in January on PC VR. Though we criticized some design issues and its “shallow” combat, we still ultimately enjoyed this roughly four-hour adventure, believing these shortcomings were “balanced out by rewarding exploration and great visuals.”

Pirates VR: Jolly Roger is out now on PlayStation VR2 and Steam, while the Quest 3 edition will follow on January 29, 2026.

Skytail looks like an adorable adventure game, and it's coming to Quest soon.

Developed by Coatsink (Men in Black: Most Wanted), Skytail lets you soar across the horizon on a bird-like steed called a Skytail, using telekinesis to interact with the environment. This peaceful life doesn't last, however, when an invasion from corrupted fiends steals your Skytail's offspring. From here, your job is to use your powers and make a plan to get them back.

Across today's trailer from the UploadVR Winter Showcase, we can see the player use gestures to throw fruit into their flying companion's mouth and tear apart what appears to be an enemy creature's body. The trailer ends with the player being flung onto a floating island with a sprite house, before looking up at their winged friend.

While there isn't a great deal to go off so far, you can check out some additional screenshots not included in the trailer below:

“We are excited to reveal Skytail to the world today,” explained Coatsink CEO Richard Snowdon in a prepared statement. “This is just the first little tease of the charming world and fun powers that players will be able to experience in Skytail, and we look forward to being able to share more soon.”

Skytail is coming to Meta Quest 2 and 3. All the news from today's showcase will be rounded up in an 'Everything Announced' list, so check back in after the show.

A forthcoming title from the creators of The Brookhaven Experiment goes for Half-Life: Alyx vibes in standalone VR.

A trailer for the game revealed in the UploadVR Showcase today shows off some of the interactions I tried in Automa with standalone Quest 3.

Available to wishlist today, I've put some gameplay video from the opening area of the demo below. An early testing release runs at solid frame rate on my Quest 3 and, when it comes to first impressions, I really can't ask for too much more here – impressive views, layered sounds, solid interactions, and a sense of place that rivals something quite like Half-Life: Alyx's opening level.

Automa includes gravity gloves to pull a ton of interactive objects close as well as drawers, cabinets and doors all openable during my time in the game. One detail I enjoyed quite a bit was finding a cat litter box in my starting room and wondering if I'd meet the animal. I did, and even fed it. I found a monkey sitting on the ledge outside too and tossed something over, watching it react to my intrusion. Altogether, I interacted with four different animals during my brief time with the game alongside all the other environmental interactables, and Phosphor is aware of the desire for even deeper interactions as they continue building out this world.

Phosphor is the studio behind The Brookhaven Experiment, which recently re-released in standalone VR after being the first zombie wave shooter for the HTC Vive. With Automa, developers are looking to build a full "story-driven action-adventure" and are now looking for people to wishlist on PlayStation VR2, Quest 2 and 3, as well as on Steam. They're also looking for people to join their Discord and help shape next steps.

Here's how Phosphor officially describes Automa:

AUTOMA is a story-driven action-adventure built exclusively for VR, where exploration and immersion drive a world that feels alive and reactive. Players step into an atmospheric, highly detailed world teeming with beauty, mystery, and danger — one that invites curiosity at every turn.

Drawing from the best of immersive VR design, AUTOMA emphasizes believable physics and intuitive interactions that give rise to emergent, player-driven moments — making every encounter feel organic and personal.

Set in a near-future world where fears of AI misalignment are beginning to come true, autonomous forces have seized control of a Southeast Asian city. You’ve made a desperate deal to protect your family —but at what cost, and what will they ask of you next?

Automa's rich introductory environment creates that same sense of a bustling city outside as City 17's run-down apartment buildings, with people visible on the street below beyond a curtain fluttering in the wind barely visible through shutters in the window. Even the liquid of bottles bubbles internally as you shake them in your hand – not quite as dynamic as Alyx, but still a really nice touch that adds a sense of subtle and playful immersion.

Automa is scheduled to release in 2026, with a PS VR2 release also planned. With Steam Frame scheduled to join other new standalone headsets and Valve being noncommittal to a performant Half-Life: Alyx running on the headset without streaming, we're extremely curious to see if Automa can fill some unmet demand. We'll be on the lookout for more gameplay details from Phosphor and curious to see what else is in store for Automa.

Fresh Tracks, the fast-paced skiing rhythm roguelike, is getting a PC VR edition.

Developed by Buffalo Buffalo, Fresh Tracks is an action-rhythm game where players ride hectic slopes all while navigating obstacles, upgrading skills, and swiping away at aggressive enemies. Initially released in August as a flatscreen experience, Fresh Tracks is officially coming to VR as a separate release. Announced at the UploadVR Winter Showcase, here's the reveal trailer:

Fresh Tracks is set in the land of Norwyn, which is suffering under its cruel ruler, Mar, the Queen of Terror. Across its mythic landscapes, which include snowy forests, frosty towns, and desolate mountains, you pick from a range of genre-jumping tracks before hacking and slashing your way through levels in search of high scores. As you progress, you'll also get the chance to unlock special swords and skis that provide unique abilities that bolster your runs, such as increased invulnerability and bonus heart containers.

Fresh Tracks VR is “coming soon” to Steam, with “other platforms to be announced in the future.” All the announcements from the UploadVR Winter Showcase will be rounded up shortly, so be sure to check back in for all the details.

Alliance Tales: Battle for the Frontier is a standalone mission pack in the Alliance Peacefighter universe, and it's heading for PC VR in Q1 2026.

Announced during the UploadVR Winter Showcase, Alliance Tales: Battle for the Frontier is a story-centric combat sim inspired by Wing Commander and Star Wars: TIE Fighter. Players step behind the wheel of a spaceship, managing power and shields alongside a group of quirky alien comrades. You can see gameplay in the announcement trailer below:

Alliance Tales: Battle for the Frontier's campaign centers around a squad of pilots who, in searching for their lost friend, uncover a plot to overthrow the Alliance colonies. Here, avid cosmonauts will have to manage their ship's power and shield distribution to survive frantic battles.

Those who have played Alliance Peacefighter will also recognize some familiar characters, as well as a host of new faces. Notably, Urban Logic Games confirmed that playing the original game is not necessary to experience this spin-off. Support for VR motion controllers and HOTAS joysticks is also confirmed.

Alliance Tales: Battle for the Frontier is launching on Steam in Q1 2026 with optional PC VR support. A complete list of all the announcements made during the UploadVR Winter Showcase will be available after the show.

Alliance Peacefighter Aims For The Stars With Frantic Space Action And Great Controls

Alliance Peacefigher pays tribute to Wing Commander with a smooth, fast-paced space dogfighter, and it’s out today for PC VR.

UploadVRRichie Shoemaker

VR roguelite Street Gods will launch in two weeks on Quest 3 and 3S.

Street Gods puts players in the shoes of Val, a graffiti artist who the Norse hammer Mjölnir chooses to be its keeper. The caveat here is that Thor is trapped inside the hammer and the nine realms are now collapsing into the real world, summoning hordes of villains with it. To stop Ragnarök, you must master the powers of this mythical weapon and destroy these foes once and for all.

Street Gods' gameplay centers around frenetic combat, and you'll be able to perform a range of offensive and defensive moves including charged attacks, stun effects, and aerial control. These actions are all controlled by physical movement, with more unlocking as you progress.

In addition to Mjölnir, there are three additional weapons to wield. That includes Gleipnir for whip-based attacks, the defensive shield-like Svalinn, and the aggressive Duo Hammer. Prowess with these tools opens the door to Runic Blessings, which can be used to bolster your arsenal through permanent skill upgrades.

“Street Gods focuses on agency and progression through skill,” explained Soul Assembly Lead Game Designer Jim Norris in a prepared statement. “We wanted players to feel their growth in power through mastery of movement, combat, and decision-making, not just through passive upgrades.”

Street Gods arrives on December 18 for Quest 3 and 3S. All the news from today's showcase will be rounded up in a neat 'Everything Announced' list, so check back in after the show.

Stellar Cafe, a game built around voice-first input and unscripted AI conversations with NPCs, arrives next week on Quest.

First revealed in August, Stellar Cafe is the upcoming game from AstroBeam, a developer led by former Owlchemy Labs CEO Devin Reimer. It promises an experience built around voice-first input as you interact with robotic characters across a sci-fi café. AstroBeam states it's using human-crafted NPCs that interpret your voice, providing real-time responses via large language models.

As confirmed in today's UploadVR Winter Showcase, it's now heading to Meta Quest 2, 3, and 3S on December 11. While Reimer previously confirmed to UploadVR that Stellar Cafe won't be exclusive to Quest headsets, today's announcement didn't reveal anything further about additional platforms.

The upcoming game only supports hand tracking controls, and AstroBeam's using licensed technology from Owlchemy Labs. In our hands-on preview back in August, we considered it “a bold idea for a virtual reality game,” comparing it to Job Simulator but if the older hit's bots expected you to directly talk to them.

Stellar Cafe reaches the wider Meta Quest platform on December 11.

Stellar Cafe Is Like Job Simulator But The Bots Expect You To Talk

What if you could talk to Job Simulator’s bots naturally? That’s the promise of Stellar Cafe from AstroBeam.

UploadVRIan Hamilton

Mixed reality block breaker Cues gets a new Creator Mode in today's free update.

Developed by No Ragrets Games, Cues is a roomscale mixed reality game with hand tracking controls where you bounce light orbs into colorful cubes to gradually create a dynamic symphony. As seen during today's UploadVR Winter Showcase, it's now receiving a free Creator Mode on its first anniversary. Here's the announcement trailer.

As the name suggests, Creator Mode allows you to freely build your own layouts within the game across your living space, ranging from small models to larger fortresses. This joins the existing 'Free Play' and 'Puzzles' modes, the latter of which contains different puzzles with an increasing number of cubes as you progress.

We had considerable praise during our initial Cues hands-on in early access, calling it a “highly relaxing experience” with an approachable premise you can quickly understand. “The controls feel natural, these pleasingly colorful visuals are great, while the procedural symphonic music reacts to your movements well,” we said at the time.

Cues - Creator Mode is available today on the Meta Quest platform as a free update.

Mixed reality tactical roguelite Banners & Bastions confirmed its full release date on Quest.

Created by Not Suspicious (Airspace Defender, Tablecraft), Banners & Bastions is a tabletop roguelite with hand-tracking controls that's available in early access. Today's UploadVR Winter Showcase revealed that it's entering full release on December 15, with the 1.0 Update adding new hero units with unique special abilities, a new bestiary, an autumn battlefield biome, and more.

Version 1.0 follows a continuing series of updates across early access. Following October's addition of controller support, last month's content expansion added a new dragon boss battle and more foes. The latter update introduced a new playable Minefield card and two new enemy types - the Witch (ranged) and the Elite Swordsman (melee).

Battles occur across procedurally generated maps as you defend your kingdom, with tougher foes gradually emerging across fresh waves. You can continue investing in your local economy or fortifications, while your troops range from spearmen, knights, archers, and more.

Banners & Bastions is out now in early access on the Meta Quest platform, with the full release coming on December 15.

Norse-inspired soulslike Crossings will launch on Quest and Steam later this month.

Developed by Neat Corp, Crossings is an action-adventure soulslike that asks players to exact their vengeance in the afterlife. Playable solo or with a friend in co-op, you'll take on mythic evils and face off against mythic bosses as you expand your arsenal and repeat runs. Revealing its release date at the UploadVR Winter Showcase, you can check out the latest trailer below:

In Crossings, you manage a handful of combat inputs, including a dodge, strike, and block, while facing off against thematic enemies including trolls, ghosts, and Draugr. As you progress, you'll also earn spells and upgrades, as well as unlock new weapons like blades and bows that bolster your attempts. The world is open to exploration, with a range of biomes to investigate, from eerie caves to forests and ruins, each hiding stories that illuminate the lore underpinning Crossings' Norse-inspired story.

Crossings will be available on Quest and Steam on December 18. We'll be rounding up all the reveals from the UploadVR Winter Showcase in a complete list, so check back after the show for more details.

Upcoming VR horror game Dread Meridian is getting a multiplayer mode alongside its solo campaign with next month's launch.

Developed by KUKRGAME, Dread Meridian is an atmospheric VR survival horror game set across the island of Oglanbyen. Focused on a researcher called Daniella, we arrive at this remote arctic island searching for her lost twin sister, Isabella, solving puzzles and fending off strange creatures. As seen in today's UploadVR Winter Showcase, it's now confirmed multiplayer support, with a playtest coming before the end of the year.

While today's trailer didn't reveal much else about the upcoming multiplayer mode, the Dread Meridian development team revealed more to UploadVR in a written Q&A. The studio tells me it's considered multiplayer since the beginning, though focusing on Daniella's story was the priority before exploring how multiplayer could work across Oglanbyen.

“We wanted to make sure that we brought something new to the table with the elements that made Dread Meridian unique. Once we knew we were on the right path with our single player, then we started to experiment with how we could bring the exciting features of the world, the setting and especially the creepier elements to multiplayer.”

Dread Meridian has one multiplayer gameplay mode that supports four players per match, splitting your group into two teams. Cross-platform multiplayer support isn't available at launch, “but it's an important feature we plan to add in the future.”

You play as either the human survivors trying to escape Oglanbyen, or the monsters looking to hunt them down using special abilities. The developers confirmed that a full match takes place over multiple rounds, and you take turns playing between the humans and monsters.

“When playing as the humans, your goal is to destroy the monster's nests and escape through the extraction point. You must search for ammo and resources in order to survive the constant threat of the monster team. As a monster, you play as one of the unique twisted creatures with their own special abilities that are used to hunt, trap and defeat the human team.”

Asked about its long-term plans for supporting multiplayer, the studio states that it first plans to gauge the community's reaction and develop this mode further based on feedback. Calling this “such a different type of game mode from what's commonly seen in VR,” the studio says this means there aren't any best practices in place right now.

“We want our game to stand out, and not just build towards what is popular right now.”

Finally, I queried how the team plans to address feedback following mixed reception to Dread Meridian's previous playtests. Our own PC VR demo impressions praised the Lovecraftian adventure's body horror and unsettling mood, though we encountered numerous glitches that hampered our experience.

The developers highlighted positive responses to the game's immersion, art, and environments. However, they conceded that “we had several bugs that we had overlooked that caused negative experiences for our playtesters,” sometimes causing crashes. The studio advised it's since identified and resolved key issues behind these problems, stating it's now “dramatically improved” overall stability.

Dread Meridian will launch this January on PC VR and Quest, with pre-order skins available as a bonus.

Dread Meridian Demo Hands-On: Body Horror Thrills In Spades

Dread Meridian released a demo for Steam Next Fest, but is it a worthy VR survival horror to look out for?

UploadVRLuis Aviles

Exoshock released a new gameplay trailer, confirming the VR co-op shooter will get an optional flatscreen mode.

Developed by POLARITYONE, Exoshock is a cooperative sci-fi PvE shooter with a gritty dystopian setting that's inspired by Warhammer 40k. This upcoming FPS promises intense firefights as you enter active war zones, prioritizing squad tactics for up to four players as you adapt using customizable loadouts. As seen in today's UploadVR Winter Showcase, that's received a new gameplay trailer.

Notably, today's trailer also confirmed that Exoshock will receive an optional flatscreen mode on Steam, stating the game is “VR first with flat support.” It's unclear if this mode will be available straight away when the game launches, and we'll update this article if we learn more.

Though the full game isn't scheduled to launch until next year, Exoshock has recently been hosting alpha playtests through a free, limited-time Playtest App. The app provides immediate access to the Exoshock Staging Area, which allows you to try out every weapon straight away. Access can be requested through Steam, or the official Discord server for Quest.

Exoshock is heading to PC VR and Quest in Q1 2026.

Meta has officially confirmed "shifting some of our investment from Metaverse toward AI glasses and Wearables", following reports of an up to 30% budget cut for Reality Labs.

Reality Labs, if you're unaware, is the division of Meta behind its Quest headsets, Horizon software, smart glasses, and sEMG wristband, as well as researching future technologies such as Codec Avatars and true AR glasses.

Yesterday, Bloomberg first reported that the division is facing up to 30% budget cuts that would primarily target VR and Horizon Worlds.

Following Bloomberg's report, other mainstream news outlets including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Business Insider have published their own reports corroborating the general claim, with slightly differing details, and the NYT and BI even received an official prepared statement from Meta, which the company confirmed to UploadVR.

"Within our overall Reality Labs portfolio we are shifting some of our investment from Metaverse toward AI glasses and Wearables given the momentum there," the statement reads. "We aren't planning any broader changes than that."

Business Insider's report suggests that the cuts will primarily hit Horizon Worlds, and that employees are facing "uncertainty" about whether this will involve layoffs. One likely cut BI's report mentions is the funding for third-party studios to build Horizon Worlds content.

The New York Times report, on the other hand, seems more definitive in stating that these cuts will come via layoffs.

Meta CTO: 2025 Will Determine Whether AR/VR Bet Is Visionary Or “A Legendary Misadventure”

In a leaked memo, Meta’s CTO told staff that 2025 will determine whether its hardware & metaverse division is “the work of visionaries or a legendary misadventure”.

UploadVRDavid Heaney

Meta's funding shift from Horizon Worlds and VR to smart glasses comes just over a year after a leaked memo from Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth told Reality Labs staff that 2025 will determine whether their projects are "the work of visionaries or a legendary misadventure".

In the memo, Bosworth described 2025 as "the most critical year in my 8 years at Reality Labs", and told staff they "need to drive sales, retention, and engagement across the board but especially in MR". Note that at the time, Meta was using MR to refer to VR too, a nomenclature that it ended earlier this year.

"And Horizon Worlds on mobile absolutely has to break out for our long term plans to have a chance", Bosworth followed that sentence with.

Since then, Reality Labs saw its highest-ever quarterly revenue in Q4 2024 with the launch of Quest 3S, which was the top-selling console on Amazon US for Christmas. But this momentum did not carry through into 2025 at all.

The first two quarters of 2025 saw Quest sales decline year-over-year, revealing that while Quest 3S was a popular stocking stuffer, it simply is not a successful year-round product. While Q3 saw a rebound, Meta explained that this was due to retailers stocking up on Quest 3S for this year's holiday season.

Next year, our sources suggest that Meta has prioritized shipping an ultralight Horizon OS headset with a tethered compute puck instead of a traditional form factor Quest 4, and the company will be closely tracking how it performs in comparison to Quest 3 and Quest 3S through 2027.

Meanwhile, Meta has continued to push its Horizon Worlds "metaverse" platform with multi-million-dollar creator competitions, especially focused on smartphone-only worlds, as the company hopes to scale the platform from a social VR space to a cross-platform Roblox and Fortnite competitor. But this doesn't seem to have gained much traction.

Meta is set to roll out its Horizon Studio world creation toolset, powered by the Horizon Engine it built to replace Unity in Horizon Worlds, and the company will be closely tracking whether this meaningfully improves engagement.

Meta Prioritizing Ultra-Light Headset With Puck Over Traditional Quest 4

Meta is prioritizing shipping an ultralight Horizon OS headset with a tethered compute puck in 2026, and might not ship a new traditional form factor Quest until 2027.

UploadVRDavid Heaney

This relative stagnation in its Quest and Horizon Worlds efforts comes as the company is seeing skyrocketing sales and significant public and investor interest in its smart glasses.

Back in February, in its Q4 2024 earnings call, Meta's partner EssilorLuxottica said that the Ray-Ban Meta glasses had sold 2 million units, and in its Q2 2025 call in July said that sales had more than tripled since last year, performing "exceptionally well".

In its Q2 2025 call in July, the company said that the glasses were performing "exceptionally well" in the market, with sales having more than tripled compared to 2024.

During the February call, the company also announced that its annual production capacity for smart glasses would be increased to 10 million by the end of 2026. And in its Q3 2025 sales call in October, it said that it was accelerating this target to reach the 10 million annual production rate sooner, as smart glasses drove more than a third of its quarterly growth.

Ray-Ban Meta Sales Have More Than Tripled This Year So Far

Sales of Ray-Ban Meta glasses so far this year have more than tripled compared to the same time last year, more than 200% growth.

UploadVRDavid Heaney

This combination of significant success in the smart glasses space and relative failure in growing its VR headset and metaverse platform business is likely the driver of the company's decision to shift some funding to the former, hoping to further establish itself as the leader in the space before rival products from Apple and Google arrive.

Men In Black: Most Wanted, the latest pop culture IP to make its way to VR, mostly succeeds by remembering that a recognizable franchise means nothing without good gameplay to back it up. Read on for our full review.

In mid-November, Coatsink, best known for stealth thriller Jurassic World Aftermath, surprised VR players with the reveal of Men In Black: Most Wanted, a new title coming exclusively to Meta Quest today. This 1990s-based action-shooter has players donning the franchise's famous suit and sunglasses for a mission-based campaign set in the titular world of extraterrestrial law enforcement. One could be forgiven for approaching this title with trepidation, given the short time between announcement and release, coupled with previous entries like Stranger Things and Attack on Titan being divisive at best.

You play as Agent I, who has been part of the organization for some time when the game begins. A brief VR tutorial teaches you how to walk, turn, run, and climb using your controllers. You also learn how to use telekinetic grab using your magnet gloves. After this, it's right into the fire (literally) with a brief tutorial mission. Here, you wake up with no recollection of who you are and your partner, Agent L, quickly informs you that you have been neuralyzed, a franchise term for having your memories erased with a tool called a neuralyzer, and you're under attack from aliens.

What follows is an exhilarating, albeit brief, chase sequence through back alleys that reinforces the artificial stick-based movement and culminates with a Gatling gun shootout against a wave of aliens. This whole sequence lasts just a couple of minutes and effectively sets the tone of the rest of the game.

From here, the game settles into a familiar loop of briefing, mission, debrief, and repeat. Between each mission, you spend time at the MiB headquarters, interacting with transient aliens and fellow agents. Players familiar with the franchise will find several hallmarks here, most notably the infamous worms hanging out in the kitchen and the armory. Your supervisor is Agent O, transplanted from the 2019 film, Men In Black: International. You'll wield several items from the films as well. For anyone who is a fan of the franchise, the wish fulfillment factor is high, other than driving the car. You can also change the appearance and voice of your character via a terminal in your office.

Your partner, Agent L, has an injured shoulder and hangs back in the car, communicating with you via radio. Your loss of memory at the start of the game works as a serviceable B plot, while also allowing the character to unravel the game's mysteries alongside the player. I found myself longing for a way to replay conversations. It's quite easy to get distracted in early parts of missions when you're trying to find your way and there is no option to revisit prior conversations to see what you overlooked. I found myself reloading my save a few times because I forgot what my partner told me I needed to do next, and the single-line objective that is always accessible does not paint a clear enough picture.

The 'Most Wanted' moniker in the game title refers to the murderer's row of aliens each mission tasks you with tracking down. Several missions also end with a boss fight with the aforementioned Most Wanted, most of which require more than just a "shoot until they go down" tactic. This world isn't just chock-full of aliens looking to kill you though. The game is based out of New York and hosts a colorful assortment of characters, human and alien, to interact with. The story itself is rather perfunctory and it's really the voice performances, particularly all of the aliens, that keep the entertainment up when you're not in shootouts. It's not groundbreaking by any stretch, but the campaign stays entertaining throughout its six to eight hour runtime.

Several missions have you infiltrating various locations, talking to and sneaking around NPCs to gain access to hidden areas. If you are somewhere you should not be, a 'trespassing' warning flashes. Being caught doesn't result in a game over and reset, though. Instead, you're either attacked by aliens or you have to neuralyze the innocent humans that spotted you. Occasionally, you have to 'interrogate' an alien to get the information you need, which involves either destroying some of their possessions or slapping them around.

Once you make it past the opening location, stealth and investigation immediately give way to action, with shootouts against numerous aliens, most prominently a race called the Cylathians. There are about a half dozen different versions of these foes, all with different weapons and some requiring a specific takedown method. These aren't your only enemies, but they comprise the bulk of your opposition.

Each mission also has a slew of hidden collectibles, including artifacts and comic books to display in your office, aliens disguised as coffee mugs that bolt if you come up on them too quickly, and discs that can be used to upgrade your weapons. After finishing a mission (and getting a rating), it becomes immediately replayable from the assignment screen, so completionists will be inclined to dive back in to get top marks and find all of the hidden goodies.

You start with a basic set of tools, a pistol with infinite ammo, a radar for scanning alien remnants, a healing spray, and the neuralyzer. As the game progresses, you're summoned to the Armory between missions to acquire and learn to use new tools and weapons. As you acquire new tools, subsequent missions present obstacles and relatively mild puzzles those tools are required to solve.

There is some VR jank, particularly with opening and closing doors, and occasionally I would get stuck on an object and have to physically step aside to 'free' myself, but the overall experience is refreshingly bug free.

Visually, the game has the same cel-shaded art style as Jurassic World Aftermath. Aesthetically, it feels like being in a comic book which, given the original source material, is fitting. Anyone seeking a more realistic looking game is likely to be disappointed here. I should also point out that the settings offer sliders to change the brightness and contrast levels of the visuals. You will want to do this as missions alternate between night and day. There were points where I turned the brightness and contrast up during a nighttime mission, only to turn it back down when I got back to the notably bright MiB HQ. It's a very welcome comfort setting, particularly on the Quest, which can sometimes struggle with darker scenes. It would be great to see more games offer such settings.

Finally, there's the single and multiplayer Invasion mode that is essentially a wave based horde mode. I did not get a chance to try the Invasion mode with other players for purposes of this review while playing prior to release. You eliminate enemies in waves and earn points for each kill that can be cashed in during the 90-second break between waves for upgrades, perks, and heals. Occasionally, you have to stand within a specific zone to charge a device to clear a level. This is nothing revolutionary, but like the collectibles in the campaign, it gives anyone who enjoys the game a reason to keep firing it up.

Men In Black: Most Wanted Review - Final Verdict

Overall, Men In Black: Most Wanted is an enjoyable, if somewhat lightweight, action game. Nothing in this game reinvents the wheel, but it's all executed very well, with smooth performance throughout and responsive controls. That's enough for me to easily recommend it for fans of the MiB franchise and anyone looking for a solid action game to hop into.

UploadVR uses a 5-Star rating system for our game reviews – you can read a breakdown of each star rating in our review guidelines.

Deadly Delivery is great fun experienced with friends or online with others. Frantic, darkly funny, and bursting with exquisitely timed scares, it has many of the best elements that make VR so compelling.

You are a lowly goblin. But don’t worry. As the game’s eponymous Deadly Delivery Corp office morale poster loudly proclaims from its place on the wall of the virtual breakroom/multiplayer lobby, you can still be useful!

In your new role as “Delivery Goblin” you’ll spend your life (and many, many deaths) delivering parcels to ominous doorsteps buried in labyrinthine caves and dungeons. In return, you’ll earn gold for the company, fill your three-day quota, and survive to deliver again. It’s a dirty job, but you know the rest.

Gameplay Loop and Mechanics

We begin each session of Deadly Delivery in a sort of prep area where we can hang with our teammates, change outfits, gamble with the team’s communal pool of cash, buy items and cosmetics and tools, and choose a biome/dungeon to explore. From here we grab packages of various shapes, sizes and weights, and head out to make our deliveries.

The challenges and laughs come from the silly tools, physics-based mechanics, and absolute horrors that dwell in the dungeons. These range from environmental obstacles, perils, and traps, to the bloodthirsty living terrors that patrol the maze-like corridors. There are monstrous worms, haunted totems, spike pits, exploding skulls, a terrifying Krampus… It’s all quite scary, but retains a special comic softness that horror games are often lacking.

You'll carry your chosen parcel to a doorstep, drop it on the mat, and ring the doorbell to complete the delivery. Sometimes this goes smoothly, and sometimes it doesn't, but each successful delivery awards gold. Earn enough gold to fill the quota within three days, and you'll proceed to the next biome/dungeon. But fail, and the corporation has no use for you. You know what that means.

It’s a brilliant premise that will feel familiar to those who have played games like Lethal Company, and like that silly/scary game, Deadly Delivery delivers both constant tension and foolish slapstick.

Controls and Polish

Deadly Delivery is a mechanically solid game. Grabbing, throwing, and manipulating objects feels direct and precise, and everything in-game is weighted and balanced with a logical physics engine. The tactility of toggling a flashlight or walkie-talkie, or fending off a monster, or climbing hand over hand up the rungs of a ladder, all feels great. Movement is tight and responsive, walk/run speeds are well-modulated, and plenty of options exist for comfort, view, and control.

The gameplay loop feels balanced and intelligently implemented. The learning curve is gradual and progression feels linear. All told, it’s a thoughtfully designed game.

Style and Atmosphere

Deadly Delivery’s visuals are similarly polished. The cel-shaded, comic-book graphics give the fantasy world a cartoony yet rich personality. Environments, characters, and objects look great at any distance, but up close they really shine with delightful detail.

Our home base and the biomes’ dungeons are all lovingly crafted. While the pre-game meeting rooms feel warm and safe, with comically sarcastic corporate messaging plastered on every wall, the dungeons and caves feel claustrophobic and frightful by contrast. Visibility in these spaces is limited, unless we’re carrying a flashlight or huddled by a fire, which helps to ground us in the experience and hone our attention. This makes the waiting terrors even more startling.

But you won't need to have your cardiologist on standby. The game is certainly scary and startling, as mentioned, but we need to remember context. This isn't a horror game in the hardcore sense. Its main objective is to make you laugh while you scream, and players expecting the blood-chilling experience of something like Resident Evil or The Exorcist may come away disappointed.

Social Dynamics

Deadly Delivery is absolutely best as a co-op experience, which is both a blessing and a curse. For those gamers with a solid roster of friends able and willing to plumb the mines, nothing but joy awaits. For those who find it tough to get friends together for a round of VR, and who may not want to join strangers in a public lobby (a viable option here), Deadly Delivery will be dead on arrival.

For those with a squad on call, however, we're more golden than the game's Fortnite-riffing unlockable banana suit. Teamwork makes the dream work, and Deadly Delivery does a fabulous job encouraging multiplayer antics. Anyone can do anything anytime, which is funny and chaotic, but there's also enough intelligent design here to ensure that strategy actually matters. The most successful teams will work together to bring the most useful tools, carry the most expensive packages, and deliver the goods in the safest way. There’s light combat, and teams who fight together will do better, too.

If the game has a problem, it’s that the single-player experience is never going to be as fun as multiplayer. If you don’t have friends who play the game and you’re averse to gaming with strangers, Deadly Delivery will lose a lot of its charm.

Deadly Delivery - Final Verdict

Deadly Delivery is a clever, effective, and genuinely funny VR co-op that nails the feel of physical play in a spooky, comic world. Its controls and polish make the mechanical side of things feel just right, while its blend of fearful atmosphere and inherent silliness leads to sessions equally packed with legitimate screams and belly laughs.

Deadly Delivery is not designed for solo sessions played alone, and those looking for a pure horror experience may be let down by the game's silliness. But for co-op gamers and those who enjoy their jump-scares served with a side of slapstick, Deadly Delivery delivers.

UploadVR uses a 5-Star rating system for our game reviews – you can read a breakdown of each star rating in our review guidelines.

Meta is rolling out the ability to link your account to Discord to share what Quest app or Horizon World you're currently in.

At Connect 2025, Meta announced that Discord was coming to Quest in 2026, including the ability to share your status to show friends what you're playing.

The Discord app for Quest is still set for 2026, so isn't here yet. But what is now "rolling out", seemingly ahead of schedule, is the status sharing feature.

You can set it up on the web in the App Connections section of the Meta Accounts Center on the web, or in the mobile app at Accounts Center --> Your information and permissions --> App connections.

If you don't see Discord listed yet, it means it hasn't rolled out to your account yet, so you need to check again at a later date.

Meta says that the rollout is "gradual" in case there are any issues or bugs.

Note that for the app or world you're in to show up you'll need to have your Horizon Active Status set to Online or Joinable, and you can thus hide your current activity by switching to Offline.

Tracked: Shoot to Survive now lets you continue exploring after completing the story.

Following last month's release on Quest 3 and 3S, Incuvo has continued patching its latest survival adventure Tracked: Shoot to Survive. The first patch introduced visual upgrades, bug fixes and a new sleeping feature, and its second post-launch update, Patch 1.2.0, is now live. This lets you continue playing and exploring after rolling credits, spawning you back at your father's cabin.

Other changes largely focus on UX improvements and further bug fixes, such as changes to prevent you from losing critical narrative items. Knife damage has been buffed, new markers on the Fast Travel boards show currently active quest locations, missing sound effects have been fixed, and autosaves “should no longer occur at inopportune moments.” You can read the full patch notes here.

It's welcome news for Incuvo's latest VR game, as we came away with mixed impressions during our 3/5-star review. While we believe Tracked: Shoot to Survive offers an engaging survival adventure and praised its VR-focused crafting mechanics, we criticized its launch build for issues with its presentation, enemy AI, and performance.

Tracked: Shoot to Survive is available on Quest 3 and 3S.