Meta Quest 2

£299.99

Having heard all the rage about VR headsets over the past few years, I was thrilled to finally get the chance to try one out. I got to test out a few games using the Meta Quest 2 including Beat Saber and Red Matter 2, and I have to say I was blown away with the whole experience!

Straight out of the box, the Meta Quest 2 was easy to set up, and after a few minutes of trying to figure out how to make it all work with the app and a Meta account, I was quickly able to test out the games. The box includes the headset which is adjustable to securely fit it to your head, and the TwoTouch controllers which are remarkably lightweight. I was pleased to see the controllers had wrist straps as I was worried I might accidentally drop them or send them flying across the room. After getting it all setup, I had a go playing Beat Saber – this was super fun! You can choose from a wide range of big hits and with each song, blocks fly towards you in rhythm with the music. Each block has a colour which is linked to the saber colours that you are holding virtually in your hands, as well as a direction in which you need to aim to hit each block in.

After a few minutes, I got the hang of it on an easy mode, but it took a little more coordination than I think I have! Personally, I was no match for the harder levels, but with a great song on it was super fun to play. I must say that playing it can turn into a bit of an arm workout as you reach up and down to hit through blocks in time with the music, but with the great music and impressive graphics, it was all worth it. The audio of the game through the Meta Quest 2 was top quality and perfectly synced to the graphics thanks to Meta Quest’s 3D positional audio which is built directly into the headset. It allows for full surround sound through its 3.5mm audio port, so you don’t need additional headphones to hear the game's sound which is great.

I also had a go at playing Red Matter 2. The graphics were incredible, all of which were made possible by the Meta Quest 2’s high pixel density screen and the headset’s dynamic resolution scaling, as well as its range of hand and body tracking systems – all of which give you a fully dynamic experience inside every game. In Red Matter 2 you get to experience life as an astronaut as you step into the role of Sasha, an agent awoken in a lunar base, who is tasked to uncover the secrets of the Mysterious Red Matter through a series of immersive puzzles over the course of the game. I found this game a little more difficult to get the hang of at first, but soon I was in my spacesuit and having fun using the jetpack feature. The game's graphics are nothing if not impressive, as you get to see space up close and personal. This is a game I can't wait to come back to and see how the story develops in line with its puzzle-adventure game style.

A big plus of the Meta Quest 2 is the Guardian Activated feature that allows you to set up a safe area for gameplay. This means that you can trace a safe space without obstructions so that when you are in games you can move around with confidence that you won't knock anything over or trip on anything on the ground. This is a great feature that ensures the safety of the player as it informs you if you try to leave the pre-set safety area. I think this is a great feature, and essential for when playing alone.   

Overall, the Meta Quest headset is just as good as everyone has been saying. Even from playing a few of the games, you can see that they are all designed to make the most of the Meta Quest’s dynamic features to bring fun and exciting VR experiences to everyone. This is a must-buy gift for any video gamer in your life who wants to take their games to the next level. However, as you connect the headset to a TV or phone screen, your friends and family can also watch your gameplay and join in on the fun. Therefore, if you haven’t tried out the world of VR yet, the Meta Quest 2 is the obvious choice for you!

Pros:

- Easy set-up

- Incredible audio and visuals

- Massive range of games to suit any taste from music to puzzle games

- Lightweight and in-built safety design

Cons:

- Requires the further download of a smartphone app/creation of a Meta account to play