Beat Saber

Beat Saber
Information
VR/AR	Virtual Reality
Developer	Beat Games
Publisher	Beat Games
Platform	SteamVR, Meta Quest, Oculus Rift, PlayStation VR, PlayStation VR2
Device	SteamVR-compatible headsets; Meta Quest 3S, Meta Quest 3, Meta Quest Pro, Meta Quest 2; PlayStation VR, PlayStation VR2; Oculus Quest (legacy version)
Operating System	Windows (PC version); PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5
Type	Game
Genre	Rhythm, Indie
Input Device	Tracked Motion Controllers
Play Area	Standing, Room-scale
Game Mode	Single Player, Multiplayer
Language	English, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Spanish (Spain and Latin America; Steam listing)
Rating	ESRB E (base game); music downloads rated separately
Release Date	May 1, 2018 (PC early access); November 20, 2018 (PS VR); May 21, 2019 (PC full release and Quest); May 24, 2023 (PS VR2)
Price	US$19.99 (Steam base game, checked September 17, 2026); paid music packs sold separately
App Store	Steam, Meta Quest Store, PlayStation Store
Website	https://beatsaber.com/
Infobox Updated	September 17, 2026

See also: VR Apps and VR Games

Beat Saber is a virtual reality rhythm game developed and published by Beat Games. Players use tracked controllers as sabers to cut incoming blocks, matching each block's color and arrow direction while moving to music. It is available for PC VR, Meta Quest and PlayStation VR systems, with different update and multiplayer support across platforms. At Meta Connect 2026, Beat Games announced an update for spring 2027 that adds a hand-tracking mode called Flux and makes the whole game playable without controllers.

Reviewed 25 September 2026. Meta Connect 2026 update announcement: timing, platforms, Flux mode, song count, announced features and their sources. About review dates.

Platform availability and support

The following support information was checked on September 17, 2026.

Availability by platform

Platform	Status
PC VR	The Steam version uses SteamVR. The August 2026 Hip Hop Mixtape 2 release also included the Oculus Rift PC version.
Meta Quest	The current store listing supports Meta Quest 3S, Meta Quest 3, Meta Quest Pro and Meta Quest 2.
Original Oculus Quest	Updates, multiplayer and customer support ended November 2, 2024. The installed standalone version remains playable; OST 7 was its final content update.
PlayStation VR and PlayStation VR2	Content updates ended after June 18, 2025; multiplayer ended February 26, 2026. The game and previously released music remain available to buy and play. Customer support and PS4/PS5 cross-buy continue.

Cross-buy shares the base game and purchased music between the Meta Quest and Rift stores. Purchases do not transfer between Meta, Steam and PlayStation. PS VR owners can claim the PS VR2 upgrade and their purchased packs without another charge.

Description

Beat Saber challenges players to cut color-coded blocks in the indicated direction while dodging obstacles. Levels are hand-authored. A song's beatmap specifies the notes, obstacles and lighting events placed along its timeline. Bombs must be avoided with the sabers; walls require the player to move their head out of the obstacle's path. Standard maps use two sabers and four incoming lanes. Dot notes can be cut from any direction, while arrow notes specify a direction.

As of September 17, 2026, the Quest listing advertises 60+ included songs and a total catalog of 300+ songs. Paid music packs include artists such as Queen, Green Day, BTS, Timbaland and Daft Punk.

Design and scoring

Scoring for a regular block rewards the saber's movement and the position of the cut. A full cut can earn 115 points before multipliers: up to 70 for a 100° approach, 30 for a 60° follow-through, and 15 for cutting through the center. The developer's May 2019 scoring revision increased the center-cut bonus from 10 to 15 and changed the approach angle from 90° to 100°.

Maximum base score for a regular block

Component	Requirement	Points
Approach	100° before contact	70
Follow-through	60° after contact	30
Cut position	Through the block's center	15

In his analysis of the game's design, Ben Lang describes this guidance of the player's movements as "instructed motion". The arrows and scoring encourage broad, deliberate swings.

Modes and features

Ways to play

Mode or feature	Description
Solo	Individual song selection with difficulty options.
Campaign	A sequence of levels with objectives and challenges.
Party	Players take turns with one headset and compare scores.
Practice	A level can begin at a selected point or run more slowly to rehearse a difficult section.
One Saber and No Arrows	One Saber uses a single saber. No Arrows removes the requirement to cut in the indicated direction.
90° and 360° maps	Notes approach from different directions: 90° maps span 45° to each side of the initial forward direction; 360° maps can approach from any direction.
Online multiplayer	Up to five participants, with cross-play between Quest and Steam. See platform availability for discontinued multiplayer services.

The current Quest version offers five difficulty levels and gameplay modifiers, with customizable environment colors.

Development and releases

Jan Ilavský and Vladimír Hrinčár created an early prototype in 2016. Beat Games later made that one-level build available as Beat Saber Origins for the game's first anniversary. The project originated at Hyperbolic Magnetism, and composer Jaroslav Beck worked on its first soundtrack. In a 2018 interview, Ilavský and Beck described designing musical phrases and note patterns together; for "Lvl Insane", the beatmap preceded the finished music.

Release milestones

Date	Release
May 1, 2018	PC early access.
November 20, 2018	PlayStation VR release for PlayStation 4.
May 21, 2019	Full PC release and Oculus Quest release.
May 24, 2023	PlayStation VR2 release for PlayStation 5, alongside the Queen Music Pack.
September 23, 2026	Spring 2027 update, including the Flux mode, announced at Meta Connect 2026 for Meta Quest, Meta VR Glasses and Steam.

Facebook announced its acquisition of Beat Games on November 26, 2019. The studio joined Oculus Studios as an independently operated team in Prague. The announcement committed to content and updates for the platforms then supported.

Flux and the spring 2027 update

Beat Games announced what it calls the "biggest update in Beat Saber's history" on September 23, 2026, during Meta Connect 2026. Meta's announcement describes it as the start of the game's "evolution into a multi-mode rhythm platform" on Meta VR Glasses and Meta Quest. Beat Games' Steam post schedules the update for spring 2027 on Meta Quest, Meta VR Glasses and Steam, and does not mention the PlayStation versions, which stopped receiving content updates in 2025. The Meta VR Glasses, a headset Meta also announced at Connect 2026, are due in spring 2027 as well. As of September 25, 2026, the update has been announced but not released. MIXED reported that Meta had given no date beyond spring 2027 and had not said which Quest models are covered, whether the update is free or Flux costs extra, or what happens to music packs players have already bought.

Flux mode

Flux is a new single-player mode designed around hand tracking. Beat Games calls it the largest addition to the game since its full release in 2019. In place of sabers, players use "Flux Powers". The Flux Tether channels power between the player's palms to slice notes in time with the music, and the same power goes to each hand separately for punching through other note targets. Destroying notes fills a Jolt energy meter; squeezing the fists while slicing triggers a Jolt, which raises the score. Road to VR described rod-style notes that are cut by channeling energy between the palms, and punch-through notes colored blue, red or light purple, with light purple notes requiring both hands together.

Flux also works with controllers; Meta names the Touch Plus controllers. The mode launches with 35 songs from the Original Soundtracks, Extras and Anniversary packs. They include tracks by Lindsey Stirling, Teminite, DragonForce, Haywyre, Camellia and Boom Kitty, plus in-house tracks by Jaroslav Beck and Zakka G. Beat Games plans to add more Flux songs after launch.

Other announced changes

Changes announced for the spring 2027 update

Area	Announced change
Hand tracking	The entire song library becomes playable without controllers. Beat Games states that controllers remain supported and that hand tracking is an additional way to play, not a replacement.
Campaign	The single-player Campaign is refreshed with a light narrative element, new barriers and missions, and checkpoints that unlock exclusive in-game rewards.
Menus	A new menu system is intended to get players into game modes and new content faster, with an improved experience for first-time players.
Progression and rewards	The game's first progression and rewards system awards cosmetic items, including sabers, notes and bombs, plus profile badges and banners. Unlocked items are managed in a new inventory.
Visual identity	The first logo redesign in nearly a decade, together with new key art; Beat Games says the red and blue color scheme is kept.

Community, mods and competition

The Beat Saber Modding Group documents community tools for PC and Quest, including custom beatmaps and models for sabers, avatars and notes. These are community modifications, separate from the official music packs. ScoreSaber operates custom-song leaderboards and a competitive ranking system. Community tournaments include the Beat Saber World Cup, whose 2026 event featured national teams.

The official FAQ lists which songs have Content ID disabled; the list has exceptions within OST 6 and OST 7. It does not promise that every original track or paid pack is free of Content ID claims.

Soundtrack and selected releases

Original Soundtracks and other free additions accompany the paid music catalog. The official music site lists OST volumes 1 through 8 as well as artist packs.

Selected music releases

Release date	Release	Tracks	Notes
May 24, 2023	Queen Music Pack	11	Paid pack released with the PS VR2 version; includes a band-themed environment.
March 7, 2024	Daft Punk Music Pack	10	Includes live recordings from Alive 2007 and an environment based on the duo's triangular stage.
April 9, 2024	Hip Hop Mixtape	9	Introduced uncensored songs and an explicit-lyrics visibility setting.
May 15, 2025	"Danger" by Teminite x Boom Kitty	1	Free seventh-anniversary track in Extras, added in version 1.40.5; the update also refreshed The Second environment.
August 27, 2026	Hip Hop Mixtape 2	8	Paid pack with a new environment; artists include Kendrick Lamar, Cardi B and Doja Cat.

Reception and research

Beat Saber won Best VR/AR Game at The Game Awards 2019. In Sony's 2023 PlayStation Store download rankings, it placed second among PS VR2 games in the US and Canada and third in the EU. Those rankings exclude upgrades and copies bundled with hardware.

Researchers have studied Beat Saber as an active VR game. A 2025 study of 16 children, with an average age of 10.7, compared 15-minute sessions of Beat Saber and Gorilla Tag on Quest 2. Heart-rate measurements indicated very light to light activity during Beat Saber, and participants rated both games highly enjoyable. The authors cautioned that the small sample, selected songs and settings, and single session limit how widely the findings apply.

PC system requirements

The Steam listing gives the following requirements, checked September 17, 2026. These published requirements do not measure the installed size of a user's music library.

Published Steam requirements

Component	Minimum	Recommended
Operating system	Windows 10/11 (64bit)	Windows 10/11 (64bit)
Processor	Intel Core i5 Sandy Bridge or equivalent	Intel Core i7 Skylake or equivalent
Memory	4 GB RAM	8 GB RAM
Graphics	Nvidia GTX 960 or equivalent	Nvidia GTX 1060 or equivalent
DirectX	Version 11	Version 12
Storage	200 MB available space	200 MB available space