Green Hell VR Review: Quest and PCVR edition

A challenging and fun VR survival game

 Amanda BlainPosted:April 9, 2022
Updated: August 25, 2022

Let’s get started on this Green Hell VR Review of both Quest and PCVR editions.

What is Green Hell VR?

Green Hell VR is a beautiful and challenging survival simulation game. You play as Jake Higgins, a famous anthropologist. You are left alone in the jungle with no supplies, food, or tools. You will use real-life survival techniques to craft, hunt, fight, gather resources, and survive in the Amazon jungle.

How long will you be able to survive in this demanding environment?

Who Makes Green Hell VR?

Green Hell VR is developed by Incuvo S.A.They are a Polished-based game developer since 2012. They are experienced with VR and moving popular PC games into VR.

They are responsible for other popular VR experiences like Blair Witch VR and Layers of Fear VR.

Which VR Headsets is Green Hell VR On?

Green Hell the PC game, was previously released in 2019 by Developer Creepy Jar. This Virtual Reality version of Green Hell VR has been remade and changed with specific VR features.

You can play Green Hell VR on Oculus Quest 2 and Steam VR PCVR.

Green Hell VR Quest 2 Version Review

The Quest 2 version of Green Hell features amazing graphics, interesting gameplay, and an immersive environment. Let’s get started on the Green Hell VR Quest 2 review.

Green Hell VR Quest 2 Tutorial

When you load the game for the first time it will take a while to load, this is a one-time thing.

There are several different versions of the game with different challenging levels when you start playing. I fully recommend if you are new to survival sims or just want to get familiar with stuff you should start with the easier versions. Green Hell VR is hard stuff.

There is a small amount of a tutorial, that mostly gets you involved in the story and has some basic actions that allow you to get familiar with moving around and interacting with objects.

Everything you can interact with and pick up will have a small dot and can easily be picked up from the ground with the trigger.

You also have a handy notebook that will automatically add any new items you come across and information you find. This notebook will also be your crafting tab as a house tab on the bottom right side. As you explore the forest and find more items and plants your knowledge book becomes very important, check it often!

After playing through the short tutorial, you will watch a short 2D movie story experience in front of you, and you will finally end up alone and equipment-less in the Amazon jungle. Now, the real game will start.

Green Hell VR Quest 2 Review Gameplay

Green Hell VR will be a challenging experience. After the initial game tutorial, you will literally be left in the Amazon jungle to fend for yourself. There is one additional small help screen that tells you how to make a stone ax, and then that is it. You are on your own.

You will need to walk around, collect things, eat things, drink things, heal yourself, and build things. None of it will be explained.

Because the game throws you into survival mode without a lot of instruction, many users can be frustrated by this. This is part of a survival simulation game. Even a game like Minecraft doesn’t really explain too much how things work. You are supposed to explore and try things out and that is part of the fun of the genre to many players.

For example, you hold things up to your mouth and a circle will appear showing that you are eating. You will need to go to the water and use your hands to drink. When you craft you will need to select a craftable item from your knowledge book, select it with trigger, and then go about actually making it with the items shown in the book.

You have a backpack on your back that is similar to several other VR games for inventory. You can hold up to 50 items which is quite generous and helpful. I picked up everything I could. You also get a spot on your left and right side for a major weapon or chopping item. It all feels quite natural.

The VR crafting experience is pretty cool. You will need to go to a tree and physically chop it down with an ax. Then you will need to pick up the various sticks and drag them to your building item. This can be a little clunky at times, but nothing unuseable. You will need to move the items around until you get them just right and they highlight green meaning you can release the trigger and they will snap in place. Overall crafting is a very interactive and immersive experience. You will feel like you are truly trying to survive in the jungle.

Green Hell VR is considered an open-world environment. The world is quite large, but for the most part, there are paths you will follow and become familiar with. I found with trial, error, and experience, I was able to move between the ‘main areas’ in one day without issue. There are not endless areas to explore.

You have a watch on your wrist that will be very important in helping to figure out what you might be lacking to stay healthy. Remember to look at it and use it. Your watch is also how you sleep at night.

*HINT* You need carbs, fats, protein, AND water. Eating one of the same types of foods over and over won’t likely go well for you.

As you slowly lose health, sanity, thirst and more Jake will start complaining. Loudly. Every few moments sometimes. It gets pretty annoying. I know the game is trying to warn me that I am on my path to death, but it overall just increases your level of frustration with his constant whining.

For the most part, you can try out most things and just “see what happens”. Nothing is crazy complicated or not achievable if you take a few breaths and think about things.

If something you do or eat is really bad, you may get sick, your screen will visibly show your sickness, you may eventually die, and restart back at your last save point. This is how survival games should be played. You might learn something that will help you survive for your next round.

The savepoint was one thing I wish was explained and highlighted a bit more.

How do you save in Green Hell VR: Quest Edition?

There is NO autosave in Green Hell VR: Quest Edition. You will probably die pretty quickly when you first start out and then bam you will see that your reload is back at where the tutorial ended and you are trying to call Mia.

In order to save in Green Hell VR: Quest Edition you will need to craft a shelter. This can be found in your knowledge book. It requires 3 long sticks, 1 rope, and 4 palm leaves. I fully recommend making several of these as you explore as they will be your save points and there is no other way to save.

I learned this the hard way.  The first time I died, I fell off a log and realized I lost hours of gameplay. The second time I used the ‘in game’ quit option thinking I was good, and upon the next start-up realizing that again, I lost several hours of gameplay.

There was no warning when I quit, and it would be easy for the developers to add this shelter as part of the tutorial or to add a warning if you try to quit – you haven’t saved in several hours and there is no autosave – to elevate frustration.

Green Hell VR: Quest Edition Graphics and Sound

Green Hell VR looks absolutely beautiful for a Quest-only experience. The developers have done an amazing job with the environment to create something that works on a standalone headset. There are lots of plants and animals moving around everywhere. Almost everywhere you look there will be some kind of animal, butterfly, bird, or fish.

The main thing most people notice on non PC VR versions of games is a lack of shaders or detail. That is not overly the case here. The developers have done some VR magic to make these environments come to life. You may notice as you move around and as you get closer to certain objects, they appear more detailed and then less as you move away again. It is slightly noticeable, and some users may not like this. I thought it was fine.

Because of this focus, objects have some depth and texture to them that you don’t normally see in Quest-only versions. This will not be a AAA PC graphic game, character models and certain rocks can look a bit off at times, but overall things look pretty good. Just don’t be expecting top-of-the-line PC VR graphics and you should be happy here.

The sounds in this jungle are pretty awesome too. As you move around and through the environment, you will hear so many different things. There are constantly animals skittering by you. You will hear all kinds of animal grunts at night which is a truly scary experience. As you approach a waterfall you will hear the water rushing by and as you move away, it will fade. You are moving through a very lively jungle experience.

Sounds will also be very important when hearing the toxic and aggressive animals. When you hear that rattlesnake shaking for the first time the hairs will likely stand up on the back of your neck. You just know there is a snake ready to attack you somewhere nearby and you will hear it well before you see it.

The environment is really well done. I felt I was in a jungle, so I was pleased here.

Green Hell PCVR Review

The PC VR version of Green Hell features even more amazing graphics, more complicated gameplay, and an immersive environment. Let’s get started on the Green Hell VR PC VR review.

Green Hell PCVR Tutorial

The Green Hell PCVR tutorial is pretty similar to the Quest 2 tutorial. It follows the same story and steps. The main difference is there is more complicated crafting in the PC VR version of Green Hell. Much more complicated.

You will now need to build a crafting table to make some items and there are even MORE steps in crafting some items than before. If you thought Green Hell Quest 2 was hard, you ain’t seen anything yet.

Green Hell PCVR Review Gameplay

The PCVR version of Green Hell is extremely similar to the PC version of the original game. It includes a full map, story, and all the items to craft. It still does not include co-op though it may appear in a future update.

Green Hell VR on PC is extremely hard. That is exactly what it is supposed to be. Some users were disappointed with the “toned down” version that existed in the Quest 2 (some thought that one was too challenging). That will not be the case here. With an even larger map and more things to kill you, it can feel like you are getting nowhere. That is the fun of hardcore survival games.

Crafting is a lot more work here. In the Quest version, it is a lot of work to make even a simple fire. You will have to cut down trees, cut the sticks to the right shape, dry leaves, flint, and stone. You will need to place all these items in the right location and order.

In the PC VR version, you need to do everything above, but the fire starting part requires the additional step of the Hand Drill and extra tinder. The Hand Drill is made on the crafting table. You then need to get the tinder going in the hand drill and then drop it correctly onto the fire. Those extra steps are definitely a chunk of extra time. This is just one example of the additional steps needed to do one basic thing in the PCVR version. You will notice the difference.

Green Hell PCVR Edition Graphics and Sound

Because you have a PC computer backing gameplay, the PC VR version is going to be more detailed and more experienced than the Quest 2 version.  Everything is lush, beautiful, and full of movement. There is just more of everything that you saw in the Quest 2 experience. In fact, depending on your computer graphics power you may even have a few snags and slow moments. Try to lower the graphics settings if you notice this.

Green Hell VR Multiplayer Experience

There is no multiplayer experience in Green Hell VR. There are some rumors that it may happen at some point, but currently, the existing game is more than interesting without other players coming around to troll or bug you as you try your best to figure out how to survive.

Does Green Hell VR cause motion sickness?

Green Hell VR requires that you move around in-game and explore an expansive jungle environment. There are several options including snap turning, teleportation, and other adjustments that can be made for movement.  I did not experience any motion sickness issues.

Green Hell VR may cause motion sickness issues so use the many in-game settings to adjust if needed.

Final Thoughts On Green Hell VR Review. Is A Green Hell VR Worth It?

YES! Green Hell VR is Worth it in either the Quest 2 version or the PC VR version. Decide which features are important to you if you are deciding between the two.