The key to a good stealth game is immersion. You want to feel like you’re in it, with a stake to claim and something to lose, and jump scares are always welcome. If you find yourself running low on games to creep around and attack the enemy on your console of choice or PC, there are plenty available on VR.
Losing yourself in a game is doubly important when you’re playing stealth in virtual reality, as you have most of your senses locked into gaming. You want a VR stealth experience that will make you sweat a little, breath heavily, and increase your pulse.
10 Stifled (2017)
Stifled is incredibly unique as a stealth-thriller-action-mystery based entirely on sound. You only see through echolocation, and the enemies in the game can hear your microphone input to locate you as you sneak around.
You’ll want to make as little noise as possible without putting yourself completely in the dark, making Stifled a thrilling game to try your hand at over and over again.
9 Unknightly (2017)
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If you’ve ever thought about being a thief or traveling back in time to the Medieval Ages, Unknightly is the best of both worlds for you. You are a retired thief that was the best of the best, who gets pulled back in for - hopefully - one last gig.
You’ll be doing a lot of physical work playing this single-player game, with jumping, climbing, bending, and more, but you’ll have so much fun running past guards to pull off the job that you’ll barely notice the workout.
8 Budget Cuts Series (2018-)
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This indie VR game has a lot of buzz, and it’s understandable why. The entire series tends to be at the top of everyone’s list when ranking VR or stealth games, mainly because there’s something for everyone. Robots, AI, escaping the office where you work all while hiding from all incoming enemies.
If you do get caught, you have to fight your way out of the scene to the next room, giving you high-energy action as well as sneakiness - and it’s a single-player, so it all falls to you to survive the worst workday ever.
7 Espire 1: VR Operatives (2019)
Focusing on the single-player experience over the co-op format many virtual reality games have, Espire 1: VR Operatives allows you to act as an agent following through with assignments, but gives you tons of freedom to explore and achieve your goals with your methods in your own way.
In the VR equivalent to the Metal Gear Solid games, you’ll spend hours losing yourself in this world of high action and even higher intensity as a spy on a mission.
6 Panther VR (2020)
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Panther centers around a heist, so you have the option to approach it stealthily or kicking down doors spraying bullets everywhere, making it slightly different from the other VR stealth games.
Missions are randomly generated, and everything is up for grabs - literally - so you have limitless options when it comes to gameplay. You can take on each job from a different angle each time, with different weapons and goals, giving Panther replayability. If you were a fan of Splinter Cell, you’ll want to add this to your collection.
5 Phantom: Covert Ops (2020)
Good visuals are a must with VR, and Phantom has them; you may just get a little motion sickness from the kayak. It also offers a great storyline, not always a guarantee with stealth games, or virtual reality in general.
One criticism Phantom gets frequently is that it’s a sit-down VR game - as you’ll spend most of your time in the kayak sniping away at targets - but this aspect of gameplay actually makes it one of the few fully accessible VR games for physically impaired players.
4 Jurassic World: Aftermath (2020)
The dinosaurs have fully taken over, and have been thriving for two years while you’ve merely been surviving. That’s the set-up to Aftermath, and it puts you directly in the shoes of a person at the park, giving you a realistic insight into what happens to the people after the movie credits roll.
You can go stretches of time without encountering a dino, but don’t get lulled into a sense of security - as soon as you’re spotted, this action/stealth game becomes a horror in a matter of seconds.
3 The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners (2020)
Any fan of The Walking Dead knows they’ve critiqued the characters’ responses to the zombie apocalypse at least once an episode, and with this VR game, you get the chance to put your strategy to the test.
Part stealth and part survival, you have to avoid the Undead and elude any rival Survivalists, all while keeping your crew alive. The graphics are fairly decent, and you’ll have more than enough haunted house-style jump scares to fill the spooky hole in your heart year-round.
2 Sniper Elite VR (2021)
If you like war games, or WW2 games specifically, and enjoy first-person shooters, this is a VR game you’ll want to check out. Hide far away and set up your shots in this stealthy shooter.
You will definitely want to get this on your Oculus or Vive set up because the up-to-date VR technology can be disappointing on older consoles. Still, the fully fleshed-out campaign and the realistic hand-held controls make this a clear top dog when it comes to VR stealth.
1 Hitman 3 VR (2021)
Hitman is already a notable stealth game with near-limitless possibilities and expansive worlds, so making it a VR stealth only doubles down on the vastness it offers. It manages to play on consoles, even older ones like the PS4, with few issues, showing the strength of the development team behind the virtual transition.
You can lose yourself in crowds at balls or fashion shows, and watch your surroundings as a bystander between sneakily taking down your targets. The only negative is that you may forget to finish your mission because you’re caught up in experiencing the (virtual) world around you.