Supernatural VR Review – Not Worth The Price

Is Supernatural VR worth the monthly subscription?

 Amanda BlainPosted:March 9, 2021
Updated: November 23, 2022

Let’s get started on this Supernatural VR Review.

What is Supernatural VR?

Supernatural VR uses music, landscapes, and fitness coaches to get you a workout you can do at home. There is a steep price though at $19.99 USD per month!

There are many fitness games available for the Oculus Quest 2, so Supernatural’s subscription model makes it rather different. So the big question is Supernatural VR worth the $20 a month subscription?

Who Makes Supernatural VR?

Supernatural is developed by Within Unlimited Inc, which is known for creating many VR films and experiences. I personally have heard Within founder Chris Milk, speak several times over the years. These guys know VR, but usually, it is movie VR experiences, not gaming.

It should also be noted that Supernatural will not work for any user located outside of North America due to music licensing restrictions. Don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

Supernatural VR is a subscription-based fitness game exclusively for the Oculus Quest and Oculus Quest 2.

Supernatural VR Gameplay Review

Supernatural is similar to other rhythm and fitness VR games, perhaps most notably Beat Saber. You stand in one spot while balloons and triangles come toward you. You hit the balloons with a black and white bat that is in your hands.

As triangles fly towards you, you will need to duck and lunge to make sure that you are in the triangle.  There are also sometimes trails coming off the balloons that you will need to follow along with your arms, similar to what you see in SynthRiders.

Supernatural VR is not a dance game. Supernatural workouts are focused on doing motions that get your cardio happening and your heart rate up. Thinks of lots of rapid up-and-down motions, squats, and lunges. Beginners in fitness may have a hard time with Supernatural.

Part of the appeal of a game like Beat Saber, is you are not aware you are “working out” while playing a game. In Supernatural,  you are attending an aerobics class. You are very aware you are working out while playing.

Each day when you log in there is a new daily workout. You select a class, there is a small stretching section and then you are transported to some very beautiful locations.

A volcano, a beautiful sky, a blowing desert. You won’t really have time to look at them though because you will be focusing on the objects flying toward you. All workouts involve hitting the balloons and squatting in the triangles at different intensities.

There is a lot of focus on your core and squatting into triangles. Side-low lunges are a thing. There is no way to turn off the squats. Many songs will turn you 360 degrees around in real life. There is no ability to turn this off.

There is no fail for any song, so you will always be able to finish though, regardless of how you are doing. There is some intelligence built into Supernatural to adjust how well you are doing, automatically moving you up or down in difficulty.

At the end of each song, you will be presented with a score that includes the number of squats you did, your accuracy, and the power you hit objects with.

Supernatural VR Classes and Songs

The songs in Supernatural VR are songs you likely know. The musical selection is really endless. From Billie Eilish, The Weeknd, Nirvana, Diana Ross, Lady Gaga, Panic! At the Disco to Macklemore. It goes on and on. This is likely a good portion of where the monthly cost from the subscription goes.

These songs are built-in and included with no additional work which is a big plus for many. Many other fitness games offer custom songs, but they are third-party, not officially supported, and usually involve you downloading things to your computer and installing them onto the headset manually.

A few other VR fitness games like Synth Riders and Audio Trip have songs built-in from artists that you likely know, and they don’t have the subscription cost Supernatural does.

No Custom Playlists In Supernatural VR

Unfortunately, a huge downside of Supernatural is there is no ability to create your own playlist from all these songs or upload your own custom songs. You are also NOT able to just select one song and play it. That’s right. You have to select the entire premade workout playlist and play through EACH song. You can’t skip any.

So you like The Cranberries – Dreams, but next is that icky song you hate – Slide – Goo Goo Dolls. Too Bad. Play through it because you wanted to hear The Cranberries – Dreams. I really don’t like this mechanic. At all.

If you need to restart that song in the middle of your workout. Nope. Can’t do that either.  You can now pause and grab a drink of water between songs as a recent new feature. The idea here is the entire workout is one experience that is needed to play together to keep your heart rate up. So at the end of the day, even though there are lots of “songs you likely know”, you have to play through “songs you probably don’t like” to get to them. Big yuck from me.

There is a new workout released every day. There are various lengths of workouts which are 5-30 minutes. Frequently the ‘new’ daily workout will be old songs and workouts that were previously released, remixed with some new songs, and new workouts.

There is an intro video with various trainers taking you through a few various warmup and cool-down stretches. You can skip this part if you want. The playlist of songs will start and you have to play them all as is. As mentioned, no skipping full songs.

But….The Trainers Are Not Real?

The trainers will give you motivation at times.  It is not live feedback though. To be clear here, there is no real trainer watching you. What you will hear is more of a  “people usually have a hard time at this point” phrases,  like “Remember to breathe”, and “We are almost done, finish strong”. Basic generic words of encouragement.

Until recently, there was no ability to mute the trainers either. This much-requested feature was FINALLY added after several years. It was beyond frustrating playing the same song a few times and hearing the coaches ramble on and on. Thankfully this option was implemented.

There is also a companion Supernatural mobile app that lets you see today’s workout and keep track of your profile. Many users like the mobile app experience, but I found I didn’t use it much. You can easily see your stats in the game. But perhaps if you wanted to show your friend your scores or see if you are interested in today’s workout without logging on you could do so via the app.

Supernatural Multiplayer Experience

There is no Multiplayer Supernatural experience.  You can not play against your friends in VR. There is no Party Mode. You can not pass the headset back and forth in your house and see who gets the highest score one after another.

You do have the ability to create up to 4 total profiles in Supernatural. Each member of your family can have a separate profile that keeps track of your scores and you can kind of compare that way, but it’s not on one screen at one time like many other VR fitness games have.

Can you workout with Supernatural? Is Supernatural a Fitness Game?

Supernatural says it is the premium VR fitness game for Quest 2. It offers a cardio workout with a focus on your core and squats.

Yur.Fit says it falls into the 7.4 kCAL/MIN or equal to Tennis. There may be more squats on average per hour in Supernatural than in other equal calorie-burning games, but overall calories burned are equal to Synth Riders, Audio Trip, OhShape, and yes, even Beat Saber.

The main thing Supernatural has going for it is that forced playlist. Because you are moving for 30 minutes straight of music with no breaks, you will be getting that heart rate up, not because you are doing anything more or less than the other VR fitness games.

Does Supernatural cause motion sickness?

You play Supernatural in a stationary environment as balloons and triangles come towards you. There is also a 360-degree movement with lunging to the right and left that may upset some. There is no way to turn this off.

Supernatural does have forced 360 degrees turns but it should not cause motion sickness issues in most people.

Is Supernatural VR worth it and the monthly $20 subscription price?

Finally, we need to get into the big question…. Is Supernatural VR worth a monthly subscription? There are many, many fitness games available to play on the Meta Quest 2 that do NOT cost a monthly fee. So when we have a look at is Supernatural worth it, we must compare it to those other games and see it be a step above and beyond them.

First of all, Supernatural tries to sell itself as a replacement for your monthly gym subscription. It is a decent cardio workout, but it doesn’t compete with a gym membership. Your gym membership, on top of cardio classes, has access to a large supply of weights, real coaches, and equipment you won’t get in Supernatural VR review. So keep that in mind. Of course, if you are not using your gym membership at all and this motivates you to get moving that would be a plus to many.

Do you get a better workout in Supernatural than in other VR fitness games? Not in my opinion. Not based on fitness trackers either.

As mentioned above there are several other fitness games that give you AS much a workout (and in some instances more). The visuals in Supernatural are hands down the best, but you won’t really be looking at them too much. All other parts of Supernatural are available in a different VR fitness game, that has a one-time cost.

The main thing Supernatural does is force you to do a half-hour workout without any breaks. You can’t fail or select the next song as you can in other games.

How to get a Workout Equal to Supernatural VR in Other VR Games

If you’re looking to get the best workout in other games, turn on no-fail mode, above easy level, and rapidly select songs for your half-hour workout. This will keep your heart rate up. You will burn the same amount of calories and save yourself a lot of money.

You could honestly buy every other VR fitness game we have reviewed on this site, (in just the first year!) and have money left over! You will have a much larger variety of VR games to keep you interested in your fitness goals.

Final Thoughts On Supernatural Review

Many people swear by Supernatural as their go-to fitness app. Pretty locations, songs they are familiar with, and daily ‘new’ workouts are likely a big part of that. If those three items are really important to you then Supernatural VR might be for you. If it works for you and gets you motivated, and you don’t mind the monthly $20 fee, great!

If you can pass on pretty visuals, and don’t mind finding some custom songs online to use in a fitness game, there are many other options out there that will give you a similar if not superior workout. Beat Saber, Until You Fall,  Synth Riders, OhShape, and Audio Trip may be worth checking out for you instead.