Sports VR games are changing the fitness game. These highly interactive apps have the potential to transform the way we stay fit by making sports and fitness activities more fun, engaging, and convenient.
They allow players to immerse themselves in a virtual environment and engage in physically demanding activities, such as playing virtual basketball or boxing, within the confines of their own homes. With research indicating increased energy expenditure while playing, VR games offer a fun and convenient alternative to traditional workouts.
If you’d like to get some sports into your fitness routine but do not have time to hit the gym or stay out on the field, here are five of the top sports VR games you can try out at home. These games provide a full-body workout that challenges players to improve their hand-eye coordination, reaction time, and physical endurance. They can help burn anywhere from 4 to 13 calories per minute.
5 Sports VR Games to Up Your Fitness Game This Year
Gym Class VR
Love shooting hoops? Gym Class VR brings the ball game right where you are. Join players from all over the world for an immersive basketball game. Warm up with jumping jacks, wall squats, and other drills. Form a team with your friends and compete with other teams.
This game transports you into a virtual court and makes you feel as if you were playing on a real one. Dribble, pass, and shoot the same way you do in real life. For an extra level of motivation to keep playing, track your progress with statistics, shot charts, and streaks.
Racket: Nx
Court meets arcade in this sports VR game that blends elements of racquetball and pinball to create a fast-paced and exciting workout experience. Racket: Nx takes you inside the glass dome of a pinball machine for a one-of-a-kind racquetball experience.
Get your ball ready and hit targets as soon as they light up. Score points and dodge obstacles in the giant pinball arena. With its high-paced, psychedelic, and competitive gameplay, you’ll have a blast as you improve your hand-eye coordination, speed, precision, and agility.
The Thrill of the Fight
Feel the thrill of a real fight with the hyper-realistic gameplay of this sports VR game. The Thrill of the Fight lets you face off with your opponent in a virtual ring set at room scale.
Dodge hits, throw jabs, cross hooks, and land knockout punches as if you were in a real boxing match. Play the game regularly to learn and hone different boxing styles and techniques. Progress faster through the levels as you improve your skill, timing, and strategy.
Eleven Table Tennis
Smash your way to fitness. With the fast-paced gameplay and intense action in Eleven Table Tennis, you’ll be breaking a sweat in no time. Touted as the best simulation for table tennis, this game mimics actual movements and physics.
Whether you are competing online against other players or practicing with an advanced AI opponent, you’ll feel as if you are playing the game in real life. The exercise intensity depends on a player’s skill level from a light workout for beginners to a super intense game for dedicated or highly skilled players.
Sports Scramble
Go berserk with all the fun you’ll be having while playing a mix-matched sports VR game. Sports Scramble combines the distinct elements of different sports to create unique and totally fun VR experiences.
Play tennis with a badminton birdie, bowl a strike with a basketball, or score a home run with a racket. This game lets you play in a large tennis court, a zany bowling lane, or a baseball field but makes the experience more exciting—and crazily fun—by giving you unusual sports gear for your game.
Start Your Fitness Journey the Fun Way
Indeed, sports VR games are good workout alternatives that offer more enjoyment, convenience, and accessibility than traditional workouts. By providing an enjoyable and interactive way to exercise, they help people start their fitness journey the fun way and make it a sustainable part of their lifestyle.
However, it is important to be conscious of your mobility and fitness levels and consult a doctor if you have any medical concerns before using VR. Also, while sports VR games are a fun workout option, they should not replace actual sports training and one should be careful not to over-exercise.