2016 has been a big year for Samsung VR. The service expanded to a mobile app that quickly established itself as a top app on Gear VR—not just by hosting content for any viewing taste, but by incorporating a host of features and capabilities that make the VR experience more intuitive and socially oriented.
- Advance Downloading. Gear VR users can download content in advance to ease the friction of VR viewing.
- User Uploading. Users can upload their own content to the service, allowing for broader reach on a robust platform.
- Reactions. Just last month, Samsung VR implemented a “reactions” feature to let us share our opinions with emoticons.
Samsung VR also found its way to the web, which allows for intuitive browsing to find the latest and greatest content available. Though there were many hits among the 1200+ title service, these are the top five pieces viewers just couldn’t get enough of this year.
5) The Conjuring 2 – Experience Enfield VR 360 (Warner Bros.)
Kicking off the list is the VR tie-in for The Conjuring 2. Nurse your fright delights by moving through the house that famed demonologists Lorraine and Ed Warren investigate. It’s a great way to prove your guts-of-steel to friends, but if you’re not in the business of showcasing your finest shrieks, take part in the comfort of a private space to witness the paranormal spirits lurking in the Hodgson’s home.
4) Six Flags | Twisted Colossus (Samsung)
Speaking of thrills, if you’re too busy to make it to an amusement park this holiday season, Six Flags has an answer (or two). Jump the lines and strap in to the Twisted Colossus roller coaster as you careen and corkscrew.
3) Invisible | Trailer (Condé Nast, Samsung, and Jaunt)
Get a glimpse of the supernatural drama helmed by Bourne Identity director Doug Liman about a New York family carrying a mysterious secret. After all, nothing can stay secret forever…
2) Six Flags | Tatsu (Samsung)
Viewers obviously craved a rush this year, and Tatsu was where they craved it most. Hang off the steel flying ride as you twist and turn in the skies, and enhance the hair-raising experience by making sure you don’t have your feet planted on the ground.
And clocking in at the #1 most watched piece on Samsung VR…
…Drum roll…
1) The Beginning (Singularity Lab)
It’s understandable why this video left such a mark with viewers: where else can you get this up-close-and-personal with life, the universe, and everything? Witness the birth of our planet through space and time, beginning with the Big Bang, and remind yourself why everything around you—including that HMD strapped to your face—is an unspeakable miracle.
