The first (almost) full year of full-scale consumer-grade virtual reality is just about in the books. We saw the release of the Oculus Rift, the HTC Vive, the PlayStation VR, Google’s Daydream platform, the Oculus Touch controllers, and the continued growth of both the OSVR and Samsung Gear VR platforms. Throw in plenty of other advancements from the likes of AR devices and other peripherals and this has been the first true “Year of VR”. We broke down many of the biggest milestones in celebration of UploadVR’s 2nd birthday right here.

But that’s just the hardware. Since everyone knows that software sells hardware, the more important question to ask is what were the good apps, games, and experiences? Was there anything worth trying out on these fancy hunks of plastic, or is it just cool tech with nothing to do? With over 1,000 pieces of VR content on Steam, there clearly isn’t a lack of quantity, but the lack of quality is a common thread in conversations among VR enthusiasts.

We’ve mashed our heads together as an editorial staff and put together what we think is a relatively thorough list of nominees for this year’s best VR content. We’ve got categories for the obligatory best game of the year, as well as platform specific and genre specific nominations to cover most of the bases. Some of these categories (such as Best Immersive Film) are works in progress because the industry is still trying to figure out terminology, but it should be relatively self-explanatory.

Without further ado, here are our nominations in alphabetical order, for the best games and apps in VR this year in over 20 categories! The images selected are not meant to indicate front runners, but are just meant to be representative of the categories as a whole — often chosen alphabetically, avoiding repeats. That way it’s kept fair!

Best VR Game of the Year Nominations

Arizona Sunshine

Damaged Core

The Gallery: Episode 1 – Call of the Starseed

Job Simulator

Onward

Rez Infinite

SUPERHOT VR

The Unspoken

Breakout VR Game Studio Nominations

CCP Games (EVE: Valkyrie, Gunjack, Project Arena)

Cloudhead Games (The Gallery)

High Voltage (Damaged Core, Dragon Front)

Insomniac (Edge of Nowhere, The Unspoken)

Owlchemy Labs (Job Simulator, Rick and Morty)

Playful Corp (Lucky’s Tale, Wonderland)

Squanchtendo (Accounting)

Survios (Raw Data)

Most Innovative VR Game Nominations

Accounting

Damaged Core

Eagle Flight

Fantastic Contraption

The Gallery: Episode 1 – Call of the Starseed

Job Simulator

The Lab

SUPERHOT VR

Best Social Variety Experience Nominations

AltspaceVR

Bigscreen

Destinations

High Fidelity

Rec Room

Toybox

Best PS VR Game Nominations

Battlezone

Bound

How We Soar

Job Simulator

Rez Infinite

RIGS

Thumper

Until Dawn: Rush of Blood

Best Vive Game Nominations

Arizona Sunshine

The Brookhaven Experiment

The Gallery: Call of the Starseed

Job Simulator

The Lab

Onward

Raw Data

Vanishing Realms

Best Rift Game Nominations

Arizona Sunshine

Chronos

The Climb

Damaged Core

Edge of Nowhere

Lucky’s Tale

SUPERHOT VR

The Unspoken

Best Mobile VR Game Nominations

Dark Days

End Space

Minecraft

Neverout

Sisters

Tactera

Wands

Most Surprising New Game Nominations

The Brookhaven Experiment

Eagle Flight

Onward

Space Pirate Trainer

Thumper

The Unspoken

Vanishing Realms

Best Shooter Nominations

Arizona Sunshine

Damaged Core

Onward

Raw Data

RIGS

Space Pirate Trainer

Best Puzzle Game Nominations

Fly to KUMA

Hitman GO: VR Edition

Neverout

Please, Don’t Touch Anything

SUPERHOT VR

Water Bears VR

Best Action/Adventure Game Nominations

Chronos

Edge of Nowhere

SUPERHOT VR

Vanishing Realms

Windlands

Best Horror Game Nominations

A Chair in a Room: Greenwater

The Brookhaven Experiment

Dark Days

Sisters

Until Dawn: Rush of Blood

Best Racing Game Nominations

Blaze Rush

DiRT Rally

Driveclub VR

Project CARS

Redout

Best Creativity App Nominations

Gravity Sketch

Medium

Quill

Tilt Brush

Best Productivity App Nominations

Bigscreen

Envelop

LightVR

Virtual Desktop

Best Immersive Film Nominations

Ctrl

Gnomes and Goblins

Henry

KÀ The Battle Within

Best Narrative Nominations

The Assembly

Edge of Nowhere

The Gallery: Episode 1 – Call of the Starseed

Obduction

Robinson: The Journey

Best Online Game Nominations

Arizona Sunshine

Battlezone

Dead and Buried

EVE: Valkyrie

Onward

RIGS

The Unspoken

Werewolves Within

Best Art Direction Nominations

ADR1FT

Bound

The Climb

Obduction

Robinson: The Journey

SUPERHOT VR

Thumper

Best Music/Sound Design Nominations

Bound

EVE: Valkyrie

The Gallery: Episode 1 – Call of the Starseed

Thumper

Until Dawn: Rush of Blood

Most Anticipated Upcoming VR Game of 2017 Nominations

Arktika.1

Fallout 4 VR

Farpoint

Lone Echo

Resident Evil 7: Biohazard

Rock Band VR

Star Trek: Bridge Crew

Wilson’s Heart

We will officially unveil our selections for the winners of each category next week.

Did we cover things well enough? What are your picks for some of the best games and experiences this year? Did we leave out your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!