I've only been able to use Desktop Mode as I don't own a VR headset, but I can confidently say that the experience is still worth playing even without a headset. I've had a lot of fun with friends that are both playing in VR and desktop mode like me, and we can interact with each other on equal ground regardless. I may not be able to move my arms and legs, but I have emotes to choose from and the mouth flaps sync up with my microphone. Text chat could be more visible, however.

There are so many avatars to choose from to express yourself, you can copy any avatar you like from special avatar worlds, and pretty much any media or character you think of has a set of avatars, unless it's really THAT obscure. Public lobbies are hit or miss. Sometimes you can meet chill people, other times you meet not-so-chill people and literal children. Kinda like chat room websites, but in VR. I would recommend playing with friends for the full VRChat experience.

Likewise, there's a lot of content to play too, with many different types of worlds available. These can range from social spaces with TVs that play music and YouTube videos, roleplay worlds, clones of existing games but in VR such as Suika Game, Cards Against Humanity, and excellent reimaginings of existing games such as Super VR Ball, and so much more.

The UI isn't the most intuitive, and takes some exploring to find what you need, but it works and does its job fine. There are features that are absent that should be there like profile pictures, and some things are locked behind a subscription - but hey, they gotta make money somehow.

The public experience isn't so bad, but providing you have friends to play with, VRChat is some of the most fun you'll ever have with video games, even if you don't own a VR headset.

I've only been able to use Desktop Mode as I don't own a VR headset, but I can confidently say that the experience is still worth playing even without a headset. I've had a lot of fun with friends that are both playing in VR and desktop mode like me, and we can interact with each other on equal ground regardless. I may not be able to move my arms and legs, but I have emotes to choose from and the mouth flaps sync up with my microphone. Text chat could be more visible, however. There are so many avatars to choose from to express yourself, you can copy any avatar you like from special avatar worlds, and pretty much any media or character you think of has a set of avatars, unless it's really THAT obscure. Public lobbies are hit or miss. Sometimes you can meet chill people, other times you meet not-so-chill people and literal children. Kinda like chat room websites, but in VR. I would recommend playing with friends for the full VRChat experience. Likewise, there's a lot of content to play too, with many different types of worlds available. These can range from social spaces with TVs that play music and YouTube videos, roleplay worlds, clones of existing games but in VR such as Suika Game, Cards Against Humanity, and excellent reimaginings of existing games such as Super VR Ball, and so much more. The UI isn't the most intuitive, and takes some exploring to find what you need, but it works and does its job fine. There are features that are absent that should be there like profile pictures, and some things are locked behind a subscription - but hey, they gotta make money somehow. The public experience isn't so bad, but providing you have friends to play with, VRChat is some of the most fun you'll ever have with video games, even if you don't own a VR headset.