World War Z VR [Meta Quest 3] | REVIEW

With World War Z VR, Saber Interactive have brought the chaotic, swarm-filled zombie action of its flat-screen counterpart into an immersive VR experience on the Meta Quest 3, and it absolutely succeeds in delivering the spectacle of massive undead hordes – even IF a few design choices and hardware limits stop it from becoming the definitive VR horde shooter.

Check out some screenshots down below:

The premise of World War Z VR is pretty straightforward: you’re part of a small squad pushing through zombie-infested cities, completing objectives, and rescuing civilians along the way. Across three difficulty levels, you choose your operator, weapons, and perks to shape your playstyle, with the game following a typical shooter formula that most players will be familiar with (and particularly if they played the flat-screen version of the game).

Gameplay follows a linear mission structure, with quiet stretches of scavenging for ammo, med kits, and gear punctuated by intense defence sequences that’ll leave you on edge as you deal with the zombie threat. And believe me, these set pieces are the absolute heart of the experience, with hundreds of the vicious undead pouring in at once while you scramble to hold them back with heavy weapons, explosives, and deployable defences. It’s absolutely f*cking manic, whilst the sheer volume of zombies (up to 200 at a time!) is simply astonishing in VR, creating both awe and panic as distant figures turn into life-sized threats in seconds. It makes for some breath-taking moments in-game, with the threat bringing staggering situations that really emphasise the fear that the zombie threat of World War Z instils… it’s fantastic.

“World War Z VR captures the frantic thrill of fending off massive swarms impressively, with each zombie showdown proving epic inside a VR headset.”

Level design generally sticks to a narrow path to keep things focused, but alternate routes and extra areas to explore break up the corridor feel to ensure it doesn’t grow stale. Your arsenal is pretty varied but ordinary, ranging from revolvers and rifles to machine guns and rocket launchers, whilst different zombie types add some tactical spice to keep players on their toes. Environmental traps add a layer of strategy to the chaos, and believe me, with the overwhelming odds against you, you’ll need to take advantage of everything at your disposal.

It makes for a satisfying gameplay loop, though the unforgiving save system works against it. Progress is tied to checkpoints at the end of missions, so failing at the final objective means replaying the ENTIRE stage from the beginning. In a game where missions can run 20 minutes or more, that repetition can sap the excitement quickly, especially with the poor teammate AI that can make allies more of a burden than anything.

Check out some screenshots down below:

The biggest loss compared to the flat-screen version is the removal of multiplayer, with players instead stuck with AI companions that are… well… a bit crap. They contribute little to the fight, frequently go down, and often just stand around doing nothing, leaving you to carry the load as an onslaught of zombies overwhelm you. The absence of real teammates makes the game feel lonelier and, at times, unfairly punishing, and given how pivotal the co-op camaraderie and shared survival of the flat-screen game was, the lack of multiplayer in World War Z VR feels like a big omission.

The visuals are guilty of being a little bland and lacking in detail, whilst fog is used to mask a lot of imperfections, so it’s not the best looking game on the Meta Quest 3. You won’t be too impressed by the zombie character models either, with a big loss of detail seen as they overwhelm you. But you know what? Given the scale of the zombie attacks, it’s probably to be expected, and when facing the hordes itself feels so frantic and satisfying, the visual shortcomings are more forgivable. The Meta Quest 3 handles the sheer zombie numbers better than I expected, even if it’s clear there are some technical compromises made, and it’s never ugly at all… just a little basic, especially when comparted to similar shooters.

Developer: Saber Interactive
Publisher: Saber Interactive
Platform(s): Meta Quest 3 (Reviewed), PC VR
Website: https://www.meta.com/experiences/world-war-z-vr/5323873594311530/