Boneworks

Boneworks uses physics on almost every aspect of the game. All objects in the world can be interacted with by the player, taking into account the object's size, weight and material. Small objects like cups or hammers can be easily picked up one-handed while larger objects like crates or barrels take more effort to be moved. Stationary objects, like railings or mesh fences can be climbed instead of picked up.

In most VR titles, the player moves through the world via teleportation, and is represented by two non-corporeal hands which respond to the motion controllers. Boneworks instead uses a fully simulated body, which uses inverse kinematics based on the location of the player's head and hands.

Boneworks is set in Stress Level Zero's shared alternate universe, which incorporates other titles like Duck Season and Bonelab.

In the 1990s, the global conglomerate Gammon discovers a strange dimension known as the Voidway, which exists outside of space and time. This dimension contains a strange quantum particle (known as void particles) which can exist in multiple places at once. Using void particles, Gammon's rival, Monogon Industries, is able to create the BONEWORKS engine, which uses artificial intelligence and void particles to create infinite instances of virtual space, accessible via VR headsets.

Stress Level Zero, the developers behind Boneworks, had previously created two virtual reality titles – Hover Junkers and Duck Season, both of which used the classic floating hands design. After the release of Duck Season, Brandon Laatsch (lead developer and co-founder) wanted to create a 'more mainstream' game with the goal of pushing the medium of virtual reality forward, while also appealing to mainstream gamers. They decided on a first-person shooter due to its mainstream appeal.

Half-Life 2, a FPS created by Valve in 2004, was a source of inspiration due to its physics-based interaction. Laatsch felt that since then, input had barely changed, with almost all games either using a game controller or keyboard and mouse. SLZ decided that virtual reality was the most promising choice to further game innovation, due to its immersive nature.

Boneworks received "mixed or average" reviews from critics, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.

Boneworks has been compared to Half-Life in its aesthetics and puzzles. The game was praised for having created an "incredible engine for a captivating VR adventure", and has been called "one of the best VR gun-adventure games on the market".