Back in February, we wrote about the release of Pokemon VR, a free fan-made game to sideload onto Oculus Quest. It was a fun multiplayer app with some issues. Six months on, though Pokemon VR on SideQuest has evolved into something pretty special.
The game — which was recently updated to version 1.5 — now much more closely resembles a full Pokemon adventure, bringing the Kanto region map to life inside your headset and pitting you against wild Pokemon, trainers and gym leaders. You even start out in Professor Oak’s lab to select one of the three classic starter Pokemon: Squirtle, Charmander or Bulbasaur. Check out our latest gameplay video below.
Make no mistake, this is still very much a fan-made project, but it might well be the best of its kind on Quest. Levels from the Gameboy classic are faithfully recreated and the battling system remains an accurate recreation of those games too. Not only that, but Pokemon VR on SideQuest goes above and beyond with its multiplayer support, which lets players explore the world together and enter into battles or trade with each other at any time. It’s so close to the game we’ve been beginning Nintendo to give us for years it’s headset to believe it really exists.
Plus the app’s seen a bit of a visual tune-up, with a more cel-shaded art style for Pokemon models that gives them a smoother feel. Overall it’s a really impressive experience, and far closer to the Pokemon VR game we all want than even the official VR theme park that you can visit this month. We’re surprised Nintendo hasn’t shut the project down yet, but fingers crossed that never comes to pass.
You can download the app from here. Have you checked out Pokemon VR on SideQuest? What do you make of it? Let us know in the comments below!
