The Meta Quest 3S Is Virtual Reality's Shot to Go Mainstream
It's 2025 and virtual reality is just about mainstream... almost. That's still a cool thing to say. It feels futuristic. We don't live in cyberspace, but VR headsets have come a long way in the past decade or so. The Meta Quest 3S is an encapsulation of where that growth has taken us. It's a comfortably portable headset that doesn't need to be wired in to anything to run the best in mixed reality and VR gaming.
The Quest 3S is the latest in Meta's attempts to bring VR to the people (I guess). Point being, there's no PC or PlayStation required. Although, the Quest headsets continue to work attached to a PC as a method of playing your SteamVR library of games—yes, including Half-Life: Alyx. At £289 for the starting model, and £339 for the headset with double the app storage, this is the most entry-level that VR gets. But how does it compare to other headsets, namely the Meta Quest 3? And if you haven't bit the bullet on VR, is this going to be enough to sell you? I dove into the Metaverse to find out.
Meta Quest 3S 128GB – Get Batman: Arkham Shadow and a three-month trial of Meta Quest+ included – All-in-one mixed reality headset
Right off the bat, you'll notice this isn't the Meta Quest 4. Instead, it's a more entry-level alternative to the Meta Quest 3, like the Xbox Series S is to the Series X. At best, it's £200 cheaper than the Quest 3, which will run you £469 anywhere you turn. For better and worse, they are different headsets and the more expensive Quest 3 is clearly the more powerful.
The Quest 3S displays at a resolution 1832 x 1920 pixels (compared to the Quest 3's 2064 x 2208) and uses the Fresnel lenses of the Quest 2 headset. These lenses create a blurred effect around the periphery of your vision. It's a bit of an annoying downgrade coming from my time with the Quest 3, especially combined with the slightly lower resolution image. But it's not that inferior. With similar specs under-the-hood, the Quest 3S runs all my old VR favorites as smoothly as my old headset. Technically smoother because it doesn't have to output as high of a quality image. For experiences that toe the line between mixed and reality, like the Wallace and Gromit game I spent time checking out, this doesn't end up being an issue. And the improvements over the last headset really start to show. The gains from the slightly out-of-date tech make spending more time in VR more pleasant and possible.
The Quest 3S has a long battery life and a more comfortable head strap than the Quest 3. Those together make playing longer a more pleasant experience in this Quest 3S. The newer headset is easier to wear for longer. In general, the extra 30-45 minutes of battery turn play sessions from "Oh shit, I better wrap up before my headset dies," to "This feels like the right amount of VR." It's an unexpected, but totally life-changing, little upgrade. I'm sure the battery life will only improve from here, but much farther beyond what it is now and you start to encourage some unhealthily long sessions. The Quest 3S is currently in the sweet spot
Batman: Arkham Shadow is Meta's killer app
It's telling that Batman: Arkham Shadow now comes included with every headset Meta sells. It's one of the most full-fledged video games I've played in VR and one I actually keep thinking about and pulling out my headset to return to. The only issue I have is to wonder if I should keep playing on this headset or switch back to my Quest 3.
I put a handful of multi-hour sessions into Meta's exclusive prequel to Rocksteady's Arkham trilogy (games I have great fondness for, especially Arkham Asylum) and came away wanting more. A rarity for a game that requires a headset. But that speaks to how successful Arkham Shadow is at translating the combat, traversal, and stealth mechanics of that series into virtual reality.
I love Batman, so the notion of becoming the Bat is exhilarating in theory. Developer Camouflaj has brought that fantasy to live with really intuitive (and adjustable) controls and a hand-to-hand combat system that doesn't just feel like mushy swinging. Every action feels right in Arkham Shadow, which makes it easy to feel like the bad-ass the game wants you to instead of like a fumbling cosplayer.
If Justice League and Gotham Knights weren't scratching the Arkham itch, this will. It's the most authentically Arkham Batman game since Arkham Knight in 2015. And it just happens to be one of the greatest single-player VR adventures yet.
My final thoughts
If you're looking for the breeziest way to check out the handful of VR games you're interested in (unless one of those games is Half-Life: Alyx) the Meta Quest 3S is that gateway. It's a solid piece of headgear that won't break the bank, and it will give you access to most of the VR essentials. For now, it even comes with the best title to hit any VR headset in years with Arkham Shadow.
That said, aside from maybe the price, there is nothing in the package that makes a more compelling case for VR than the Meta Quest 3. But I also can't see entry-level VR getting any cheaper than £289 and being sustainable. VR is still a niche subset of gaming, even if it's in more homes than ever. If this thing fails to catch on in a major way, it will take more than cheaper headsets to save it. So if you're considering buying a VR headset, I won't blame you for saving the £200, but I'd still consider springing for the top-of-the-line Meta Quest 3.
Meta Quest 3S 128GB – Get Batman: Arkham Shadow and a three-month trial of Meta Quest+ included – All-in-one mixed reality headset
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