The 25 Best Free Meta Quest Games & Apps - Winter 2023

Looking for the best free Quest games and apps? Here are our top recommendations.

Four years after the original Oculus Quest headset arrived, the Meta Quest platform offers an impressive range of experiences that caters to all interests. However, that won’t go far if you’re someone who’s just bought a Quest 2, Quest Pro or Quest 3 and doesn’t have much budget left for paid games and apps. That’s where we come in.

You can find many free experiences across the official Quest Store here. Some are hidden away on App Lab, Meta’s experimental platform that avoids the strict curation policy but significantly reduces discoverability. As such, we recommend searching through SideQuest or the App Lab Game List if you’re keen to find more.

Demos and Free Trials

While we’ve excluded them from our list to avoid any confusion with the full games, the Quest store includes numerous demos and free trials worth considering. That includes Beat Saber, Superhot VR, Pistol Whip, Battle Talent, Ancient Dungeon, Space Salvage, The Under Presents, Divine Duel, Journey of the Gods, Creed: Rise To Glory and Space Pirate Trainer.

It’s important to note that this isn’t a ranked list. You can’t realistically compare VR concerts to a hero shooter and our aim is to highlight experiences that cover all bases. Though we’re separating social VR platforms from this list, we’re giving VRChat, Rec Room, Roblox and Meta Horizon Worlds honorable mentions.

With that out of the way, let’s jump into our recommendations for the best free Quest games and apps.

Population: One

VR does Fortnite right in this superb free-to-play battle royale shooter. Population: One takes place on a huge map in which teams of three battle it out to be the last ones standing. It can be intense, so we certainly don’t recommend it as your first VR experience. Still, there’s a rock-solid shooter with some great VR mechanics too, like scaling up walls with your hands or holding your arms out to glide when you leap off the side of a building. Crossplay support means you can play with friends using other headsets.

Read More: Population: One Review

Quest Store

Blaston

Developed by Resolution Games, Blaston is a fast-paced free-to-play arcade shooter. After customizing your loadout, this puts you into one-on-one fights as you dodge oncoming fire while being limited to a set location. Blaston also supports mixed reality gameplay, making it a good option if you’re keen to try more MR experiences beyond Quest 3’s First Encounters tutorial.

Read More: Blaston Goes Free To Play

Quest Store

X8

X8 is a free-to-play 5v5 multiplayer hero shooter with crossplay support that takes inspiration from Valorant and Overwatch. Matches take place over 14 rounds, with each X8 hero boasting three special abilities and hero-specific items to provide strategic advantages. Working alongside your teammates, you must either deploy a data-siphoning device that detonates after a countdown, while the defensive team attempts to deactivate it.

Quest Store

Cards and Tankards

Cards & Tankards is a free-to-play social collectible card game set in a fantasy tavern. Offering over 180 cards between 4 “mechanically unique factions,” placing cards on the tavern table turns them into mini-figures as you battle other people or AI opponents. Featuring customizable decks, progression rewards and avatar outfits, crossplay between Quest and PC VR is also supported.

Quest Store

Gorilla Tag

Popularising arm-based locomotion in VR games, Gorilla Tag has enjoyed phenomenal success since arriving on Quest and we previously awarded it ‘Best Competitive Multiplayer‘ game in 2021. Developed by Another Axiom, Gorilla Tag comes with four game modes that either involve running from infected gorillas or chasing down survivors to catch them.

Quest Store

Hyper Dash

Though Triangle Factory has shifted to Breachers these days, Hyper Dash remains an enjoyable fast-paced VR multiplayer shooter. Supporting 5v5 matches and crossplay, Hyper Dash includes classic modes like Payload, Domination, Control Point, Deathmatch and Capture The Flag while offering a nice alternative to military shooters.

Quest Store

Republique VR

Curious to try out some VR stealth games? Then Republique VR might interest. Playing as a young woman named Hope, you fight to bring down a system of tyranny in a totalitarian future. Though it doesn’t make the most exciting use of VR, it’s still a fun adventure in its own right and developer Camouflaj borrowed liberally from Metal Gear Solid and other series.

Quest Store

Bigscreen

You can watch Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, Twitch, and YouTube with others using Bigscreen. The remote desktop app lets you share and use your desktop in VR while a video player brings in your own files. You and a friend can also rent a movie to watch together from Bigscreen’s available library. Bigscreen’s theater designs range from rooms in simulated homes, like the relaxing Residence environment, all the way up to our favorite theatrical experience — the Grand Cinema — with its roomy stadium seating and subtle reflections of light from 2D or 3D content illuminating your surroundings.

Quest Store

Bait!

A free-to-play fishing game from Resolution Games, Bait! first appeared back in 2016 and was once one of the most popular Samsung Gear games. In 2023, it’s still going and receiving active support. After introducing multiplayer support through Fishing Buddies update, which added a hangout spot for up to 12 players and four-player tournaments, Resolution took this further by adding a new island.

Quest Store

Ultimechs

Developed by Resolution Games, Ultimechs is a competitive multiplayer VR title with crossplay that’s best described as a mix of mechs and Rocket League. Using giant war machines in arena matches, this is basically Soccer that sees you firing your arms into the ball and knocking it into the goal.

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Quest Store

Mission: ISS

Created by Magnum Opus in collaboration with several space agencies, Mission: ISS is a simulation that lets you explore the International Space Station in zero gravity. You’re tasked with performing regular astronaut duties like docking cargo capsules, conducting spacewalks, maintenance and more.

Quest Store

Glassbreakers: Champions Of Moss

Glassbreakers: Champions Of Moss is an ideal game for short and sweet play sessions. A competitive multiplayer spin-off from Moss and Moss: Book 2, it’s a MOBA-like real-time battler that’s taking a live-service approach to content updates, gradually introducing post-launch champions. Currently in open beta with PC VR crossplay support, it’s temporarily going offline on January 8, 2024, but Polyarc confirms it’ll be coming back.

Quest Store

Vegas Infinite

Vegas Infinite is the recently rebranded version of Pokerstars VR, which adapted the largest online Poker platform in the world for virtual reality back in 2019. You can challenge friends to play poker, blackjack, roulette, slots and craps and while it’s free to download, you’ll need to buy chips with real money.

Quest Store

Gym Class Basketball

Gym Class started out on App Lab for Quest before transitioning to a full release. Offering players a full basketball experience in VR with several gameplay modes including solo play and online multiplayer, in-game shooting, grabbing and moving all work from tracked movements. Though its free-to-play, paying an optional $14.99 grants access to Gym Class PRO, which includes customizable private courts and personalized avatars.

Quest Store

Gun Raiders

Another free-to-play experience, Gun Raiders is an arena-based VR shooter that includes microtransactions. Featuring mechanics like jetpacks and wall running, there’s a mix of modes ranging between deathmatch, capture the point, team assault and more. Offering considerable character customization, it also supports PC VR crossplay.

Quest Store

Elixir

Elixir is a free hand-tracking demo game developed by Magnopus and Reality Labs. Working as a sorceress’ apprentice, you’re tasked with maintaining various delicate contraptions while experimenting in an unstable alchemy lab. Though it’s use of Quest’s hand-tracking has been surpassed, we still consider it a fun demonstration of what hand-tracking can do.

Quest Store

ForeVR Cornhole

ForeVR is best known for its family-friendly sports series like Bowl, Pool and Darts, though Cornhole and Suck It are the only free-to-play entries. For the unfamiliar, cornhole sees players throwing bean bags onto a raised, angled board. Landing your bean bag on the board scores one point, while throwing it into the hole earns three points. The free version provides 5 bags and 5 boards, though additional customization and features can be unlocked for $9.99.

Quest Store

Eden Unearthed

Netflix has made increasing strides into gaming recently, and Eden Unearthed was an early example in 2021. It’s a tie-in with Eden, an animated series set in the far future in a world occupied by robots. You take control of a futuristic motorbike and ride around a vast and changing landscape, collecting apples as fuel and avoiding obstacles to try max out your speed without bumping. We were impressed with the high polish, immersion and comfort despite its limited scope.

Quest Store

MLK: Now Is The Time

MLK: Now Is The Time aims to highlight Martin Luther King Jr’s legacy through a VR experience. Taking its name directly from part of Dr. King’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech, Now Is The Time examines its themes and his impact six decades later. Presented through first-person stories, this new VR experience highlights his continued influence in modern-day protests.

Quest Store

AmazeVR Concerts

AmazeVR is a VR concerts app that combines live-action 3D footage of artists with interactive virtual environments. Following Megan Thee Stallion’s made-for-VR ‘Enter Thee Hottieverse’ concert, AmazeVR later launched a never-before-seen show from Zara Larsson and a new concert experience featuring T-Pain. While the app itself is a free download, you can only access one free song per artist.

Quest Store

I Expect You To Die: Home Sweet Home

While the main I Expect You To Die series are all paid entries, Home Sweet Home is a free mixed reality mini-mission from Schell Games that brings the spy-themed escape room gameplay into your living room. That’s achieved through using Quest’s passthrough and as a secret agent, you’re tasked with solving puzzles, escaping traps and defeating Dr Zor.

Quest Store

Gravity Sketch

Gravity Sketch is a free creative toolset for those interested in 3D design. Letting you create fully surfaced sketch models, environments and more, you can import video and image files alongside exporting work as OBJ, FBX or IGES files. It’s slowly seeing wider adoption, both with VR games like designing courses for Walkabout Mini Golf and big films like Avatar: The Way Of Water.

Quest Store

Galapagos with David Attenborough

Documentary filmmaking is nothing new in VR but Galapagos with David Attenborough is perhaps the most notable recent example. Originally produced over a decade ago, this latest VR adaptation blends live-action footage from Galapagos 3D with VR illustrations made using Quill by Smoothstep.

Quest Store

V-Speedway

Interested in trying an arcade racer? V-Speedway from Commuter Games goes a step further than most VR racing games by using fully interactive controls. Featuring solo racing, free riding, time attack modes and online leaderboards, it’s also recently been updated with Quest 3 enhancements.

Read More: Best Quest Racing Games

Quest Store

Gods Of Gravity

Developed by Trass Games, Gods of Gravity describes itself as an arcade-style RTS free-to-play game that pits celestial gods against each other. Supporting 2-8 players alongside a solo campaign, there’s a large focus on resource management as you amass a fleet, capturing nearby planets, moons or even the sun to boost your production. Whoever eventually conquers their enemy’s home planet wins.