Virtual reality is everywhere these days, but shelling out for an Oculus Rift might be a pricey investment if you’re a VR novice. Google Cardboard, though not the flashiest headset, is the perfect entry point into 3D gaming.
Now, before you start exploring the library, you should download the actual Cardboard app:
The app helps you set up a viewer and get familiar with the VR landscape. Plus there are some cool experiences built right in — from a tour of the Northern Lights to an Urban Hike. This lets viewers walk around the world’s greatest cities.
If you’re looking for a cheap VR option, this can be your answer. If you’re looking for something else, we’ve still got you covered:
3 ways to use VR without paying for an expensive headset
Find out now ►After you’ve learned the ropes, you’ll likely want to broaden those virtual horizons.
Below, we’ve compiled a list of the best apps you can download for Google Cardboard. Whether you’re up for a bone-chilling horror game or just chilling with friends.
Best Google Cardboard VR apps
vTime
A real step up from Second Life, vTime is a VR app designed for socializing in immersive, virtual destinations. The app is device-agnostic and has a lot in common with traditional social media apps. Users create an avatar and customize their profile. From there, you can chat with friends, family, and strangers.
While this does just look like a digital hangout — you’re dropping yourself into a video game landscape. vTime also allows you to share photos and videos from your camera roll with your digitized pals.
vTime isn’t exactly the kind of app that creates an adventure. It’s a more sedentary experience. You and your pals can hang around a campfire, on a rooftop, or on top of your photo album.
Netflix VR
“Netflix and chill” may have a whole new meaning.
Even though no one talks about it, Netflix has had a VR offering for quite a while now. The Netflix VR app lets users watch content through the cardboard headset through two different viewing modes.
One is a zoomed-out view of a living room and the other is just the content. The second mode takes away the living room environment and plops you right into the next episode of “Stranger Things” or “Bojack Horseman.”
Netflix has yet to release any 3D Netflix Originals, but you can watch everything in the catalog through your headset. Hopefully, we’ll see some VR content soon. In the meantime, the immersive viewing experience is still pretty cool.
Sisters
Don’t play this game with a full bladder.
Sisters VR is a horror game that’s been around for a few years but still holds up as one of the best entries in the Google Play store.
The ghost story takes place in a Victorian mansion, loaded with creepy portraits, dusty furniture, and plenty of jump scares.
While Sisters is an entry-level game, it’s the perfect way to get used to Google Cardboard and get your horror fix.
10 most terrifying survival horror games
Read Now ►Star Wars VR
Now you can find a wretched hive of scum and villainy in VR!
More than a game, Star Wars VR is fans’ mobile connection to the franchise. There’s a big trivia component built-in and it’s a go-to source for announcements and new content.
This VR experience transports you to the Jakku Desert from “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” as a resistance agent. Hone your lightsaber skills in the immersive Star Wars universe, unlock 3D characters, and take selfies from inside the app.
Frame-by-frame breakdown of the Star Wars Episode IX trailer
Discover the secrets ►CINEVR
Why go to the movies when you can experience the theater from the comfort of home?
CINEVR aims to bring the movie-going experience to you with a realistic 3D movie theater with customizable lighting effects to boot.
You can watch movies through the app from various streaming sources and invite up to eight friends to watch with you. You can talk over the movie and send emoji reactions.
Watch streaming movies with friends using Rabb.it
Read Now ►Minos Starfighter VR
Minos Starfighter VR is a first-person space shooter with Android graphics that rival PlayStation quality.
Players fight off enemy ships in waves and shoot them down using a trigger button from your Bluetooth or USB controller. If you don’t have a controller, no big deal. You’ll also have the option to play using gaze navigation.
While the premise of Minos Starfighter is standard arcade fare, experiencing the flight simulation in VR breathes new life into the classic style.
Google Expeditions
Google’s Expeditions is a VR field trip app that makes learning fun. The app used to be exclusively available to teachers and their students. However, now anyone with Cardboard (or Daydream) can sign up for the field trip, too.
Okay, it’s actually pretty cool. Adventurers can visit the International Space Station, the African Plains, the Great Barrier Reef, or another planet. You can choose to be a leader, which means you’re given information to present to a group. You can be a tour guide in a museum, or you can be an adventurer and let someone else do the talking.
The app will pair you with people on the same Wi-Fi network if you’re a solo explorer, you can just join a tour.
Wrapping up
If you haven’t tried virtual reality yet, Google Cardboard is just $15 and offers a low-stakes intro into VR. Whether you’re into exploring the world from home, hanging out with friends, or up for an adventure, Cardboard is a great way to find out if VR is up your alley. And hey, if you happen to get motion sickness, it’s no major hit to the wallet.
