Oculus has given indie developers a new pathway to putting their games on the Oculus Quest 2 through App Lab without having to meet Facebook's demanding quality standards. Now, gamers can buy or download demos, early access betas, or full experiences and access them directly from their Oculus Library, without using sideloading. These games aren't visible on the Oculus Store without a direct link, so we've collected a full list of Quest 2 App Lab games approved thus far so you don't have to go searching for them.
List of paid App Lab games for Oculus Quest 2
At-home arcade shooter
Crisis VRigade 2
Staff Pick
While the original had cartoonish action, this sequel SWAT shooter uses a more realistic engine and adds new weapons and difficulty modes. Dodge bullets and duck in and out of cover in this popular VR shooter, now finally freed from wires.
Help humanity evolve
Deisim
In this roomscale sandbox simulator, you'll watch human society evolve as its all-powerful deity. The NPCs will move independently while you grant them resources, build new environments, expel heretics, and perform other actions that change mankind's history.
Dodge bullets, save the day
Crisis VRigade
With single-player, co-op, and multiplayer modes, the original Crisis VRigade isn't as polished as the sequel, and can be brutally difficult despite its cartoonish appearanc. However, it provides a fast-paced cover shooter experience you can enjoy with friends at a low price.
Shoot 'em up to the beat
Rhythm 'n Bullets
Your Touch controllers are two starships flying through space, and you must time your shots to the beat while switching colors to match the enemies you're shooting. With an endless mode, relaxation mode, boss battles, and more, there's plenty of depth to enjoy.
Fast-paced sports action
Cyber Tennis
This isn't a Wii Sports-like sim where you just swing your arms wildly. You face challenging AI opponents who hit the ball fast, and you'll need to hit the ball at the proper height and angle. Challenge other players online or face AI that will grow and improve over time.
Rugrats in VR
Baby Hands
Crawl around your home as a toddler, exploring your giant home (from your perspective) and finding hidden treasures or mini-games to play. It's meant to be a relaxing sandbox where you have to simulate crawling with the controllers and solve puzzles to cause mischief.
List of free App Lab games for Oculus Quest 2
Procedurally generated roguelite
Ancient Dungeon Beta
Staff Pick
This extremely popular beta lets you dive into a Minecraft Dungeons-esque world with a sword and throwing knife, facing random enemies and bosses while rescuing NPCs and discovering secrets. Each dungeon crawl will take different paths with varied environments, giving you tons of replay value for free!
It's always ski season in VR
Descent Alps - Demo
Ski down challenging slopes that you'd be afraid to take on in real life! You must ski on the correct side of poles to stay on the course, adjusting your whole body to steer. Challenge the ghosts of your friends or people on top of the leaderboard to compete or improve your skills.
Reconstruct remote locations
Puzzling Places - Beta
Using 3D photogrammery scans, the developers take real-world locations, split them up into pieces, and challenge you to rebuild them in VR. You can summon pieces from afar to place them or walk around the puzzle in roomscale mode. You might be relaxing, but these puzzles will challenge you.
Beat drumsticks
Smash Drums! demo
Like most rhythm games, you'll swipe the Touch controllers to the music, avoid obstacles, and replay songs on harder difficulties. It's just a demo for now, but the final version will feature 21 indie rock songs, which is great for people who prefer vocals and percussion to electronica and lightsabers.
Virtual hoops
Gym Class
Hit the basketball court and challenge friends or strangers online to dunk contests, HORSE, or one-on-one duels. The avatars let you signal your teammates or taunt your friends, while the physics engine makes the shots seem realistic.
Learn to sail
MarineVerse Cup
Are you someone who enjoys sailing but doesn't get to go out as often as you'd like? This demo is meant to be a realistic sailing simulator with yachts and dinghys. You can relax on the water or (with an account) race other players online.
Test augmented reality creations
Spark AR Player
Built by Facebook, this tool is specifically created for people who use the Spark AR Studio application. Once you've made something, you use this VR app to see how the AR objects would look in different virtual environments.
Learning sandbox
Zoe
Zoe is an educational platform that students or teachers can use to create virtual experiences or projects, then share them with others. Build customized rooms that a child can explore, or put them inside it and see what they come up with.
Find your next Quest experience through App Lab
Figuring out how to find and download App Lab games for Oculus Quest 2 can be a bit challenging if you don't know where to look. Start by clicking any of the links above and purchasing or installing a game that sounds exciting to you. Then you should be able to open the Oculus mobile app, find the App Lab game in your official library, and choose "Install to Headset" to add it to your Quest 2.
We split up the free and paid experiences because many people will only see the App Lab as a source of free content. But App Lab is also a pathway for games to officially get listed on the Oculus Store, and a way for developers to directly connect with gamers for feedback and financial support. Don't sleep on the paid games, which can offer longer experiences and often cost far less than official Quest games.
If you're wondering where to start with this long list of Quest 2 App Lab games, Crisis VRigade 1 and 2, along with Deisim, are popular releases with extensive updates, lots of replay value, and plenty of fans — so you know you're getting a quality experience for your money. As for the free experiences, Ancient Dungeon already provides an in-depth experience with fun combat that'll keep you entertained for hours on end. For more chill (but still challenging) gameplay, Puzzling Places made our list of the best SideQuest games for Oculus Quest long before it became an App Lab title, and is worth your time.
The App Lab will hopefully continue to add more SideQuest games over time, and we'll keep this list updated once they're approved. Until then, if there is an unofficial SideQuest game you want to try, you'll need to follow our guide on how to sideload apps on the Oculus Quest. Or if you're only interested in official Quest experiences, be sure to look through the best free games for Oculus Quest 2 right now.
Source: androidcentral