The Meta Quest 2 (once called the Oculus Quest 2) is nearing its fourth birthday, and we’re expecting to see some major deals happen this year, particularly once Amazon Prime Day rolls around, which we expect may happen in the coming weeks. We’ve seen the headset hit as low as $99 leading up to the expected Prime Day 2024 date, and a price like that is the only time you should still consider picking one up.
That’s because, like any console that’s been around for a while, buying one at a discount means you’ll be missing out on some of the best new games and features that 2024 has delivered so far. Several upcoming Meta Quest games will be Quest 3-exclusive, like Hitman 3 VR: Reloaded, Alien: Isolation, and Batman Arkham Shadow, to name a few.
Several upcoming games will be Quest 3-exclusive, but the Quest 2 can still play the classics.
FOMO is a real thing, and seeing lots of new Meta Quest games come out with no Quest 2 support might make you regret your purchase. As a gamer, there are only a few reasons I’d still recommend picking up a Quest 2 at a crazy discount this year.
First, it’s a great way to get into VR gaming without spending much cash. The Quest 2 still runs 99% of Meta Quest games, including all of the best Meta Quest games. If you’re currently not a VR gamer and just want to give it a try, this is an excellent way to do that.
I play VR games with my son all the time, and he uses a Meta Quest 2. We have yet to run into any games that we want to play that don’t support a Quest 2. While that’ll eventually happen, the vast majority of games play on it just fine.
If you find that you enjoy the experience, I’d recommend picking up a new headstrap and a new face pad from our list of best Quest 2 accessories.
Other folks might want to consider a potential $99 Quest 2 as a secondary headset for local multiplayer or even as a dedicated PCVR headset. The Quest 2 can be used as a SteamVR headset indefinitely, even when Meta eventually discontinues support for it in the future, giving the device some added longevity.
That would give you access to Half-Life: Alyx and many other games that aren’t on Quest at all, although it won’t solve the problem of giving you access to Meta-developed titles like Batman Arkham Shadows since that’s Quest 3-exclusive.
Not only that, but mixed reality content is only available on the Quest Pro and Quest 3. The Quest 2 does have passthrough video so you can see the room around you when you put the headset on, but it’s very low resolution and only in black and white.
PCVR gamers might want to consider the Quest 2 as a cheap option.
All the latest mixed reality and passthrough quality improvements have been made for the Quest 3 since that headset features substantially higher-resolution cameras and delivers full-color video passthrough vision, as well. In other words, while the Quest 3 is a mixed-reality headset that helps meld the virtual and real worlds together, the Quest 2 is very much a VR-only headset that’ll make you feel more isolated.
If newer games or mixed reality sound like things you want—but you still don’t want to spend $500 on a regular Quest 3—rumor has it that Meta is launching the Meta Quest 3s later this year.
That headset is purported to pack in the same powerful processor as the more expensive Quest 3—which means it would support all Quest 3-exclusive games like the ones mentioned above—but pack in the Quest 2’s last-generation lenses and some other cost-savings to keep the price around $299 or less.
That’s obviously a lot more than a potential $99 Quest 2 sale, but if you can keep it around for a few years and still get access to all the latest games, it might very well be worth waiting for.