Backrooms VR

Backrooms VR is a fan-made horror game from FireBlast set in The Backrooms. The developer describes it as a fairly small project focused on exploration and on staying away from the things that live in those rooms. It is distributed through SideQuest, where it was first listed in May 2022.

How it plays

You wander through three areas taken from the Backrooms setting: Level 0, Level 1 and the Poolrooms. They are not empty. Entities move through the spaces and react badly when they notice you, so exploring means keeping track of what is around you and getting away when something gets close.

Movement borrows the arm-driven locomotion of Gorilla Tag. The developer says this was a shortcut rather than a design statement, since it saved writing a custom movement system. In practice you push yourself around with your arms, which makes running from an entity a physical effort.

The listing summary also calls Backrooms VR a multiplayer game, and multiplayer appears in its tags, but the description does not explain how sessions with other players work.

Comfort

SideQuest rates its comfort as moderate, and the game is not marked as seated. Arm-swing movement can take some getting used to, so players who are new to VR or sensitive to motion sickness in VR should start with short sessions.

How to get it and what to know

• Price: free.
• Install it from SideQuest by sideloading; our guide to sideloading on Meta Quest walks through the setup.
• It is also listed on the Meta Horizon Store.
• Supported headsets: Meta Quest headsets such as the Quest 3 and Quest 3S, plus the original Quest, Quest 2 and Quest Pro. The listing also names Varjo headsets.
• Rated 3.8 out of 5 by 39 SideQuest users.