UEVR is Praydog's Universal Unreal Engine VR Mod, a tool that can add VR rendering and tracking to many PC games made with Unreal Engine. Instead of waiting for a separate hand-built VR mod for every title, UEVR can inject VR functionality into compatible games and then load game-specific settings or profiles.
This guide walks through the safest beginner setup, from downloading UEVR to choosing OpenXR or OpenVR, injecting into a game, loading a profile, and fixing the most common first-launch problems.
Before you start: Never inject UEVR into an anti-cheat-protected multiplayer game unless the game's community documentation explicitly provides a supported offline method. UEVR's own documentation says to assume multiplayer games use anti-cheat if you are unsure.
What games work with UEVR?
UEVR is for Unreal Engine PC games. It is not a generic injector for every engine.
Compatibility has several levels:
- Excellent: correct stereo rendering, good camera, stable performance, usable menus, and working controls.
- Playable with a profile: needs community settings to fix the camera, rendering, UI, or controls.
- Experimental: boots in VR but has significant issues.
- Not currently playable: crashes, anti-cheat conflicts, unsupported rendering behavior, or major game-specific problems.
Instead of guessing, search the title in the PCVR Central mod database and look for UEVR compatibility notes and profiles.
Step 1: Confirm the game uses Unreal Engine
UEVR is designed for Unreal Engine games. PCVR Central identifies the VR method for supported games, so the easiest option is to search the game database.
If you are investigating a game manually, clues can include Unreal-related files or folders in the game installation, but filenames alone are not a guarantee. Community compatibility databases are usually faster.
Step 2: Download UEVR from the official source
Use the official UEVR site or Praydog GitHub project rather than an unknown mirror.
Official sources:
Extract UEVR to its own folder. Avoid placing it inside a protected Windows directory if you can. A simple location such as a tools folder on your gaming drive is easier to manage.
UEVR's documentation notes that antivirus software may sometimes quarantine files needed by the injector. If that happens, verify you downloaded UEVR from the official source before restoring or allowing anything.
Step 3: Install prerequisites
The current UEVR documentation lists .NET 6.0 as a prerequisite and normally directs you to install it if it is missing.
Do not download random DLL packs from third-party sites. Install prerequisites from the official vendor or from the link provided by the official UEVR documentation.
Step 4: Make sure normal PCVR works first
Before testing UEVR, verify your headset can already run PCVR.
Launch SteamVR or another known PCVR game. Confirm:
- Head tracking works.
- Controllers are recognized.
- Audio routes correctly.
- Your wired or wireless headset connection is stable.
If the baseline connection is broken, solve that first. Otherwise every headset problem can look like a UEVR problem.
Quest users can see our Quest PCVR setup guide for Link, Air Link, Steam Link, and Virtual Desktop.
Step 5: Decide between OpenXR and OpenVR
UEVR supports both OpenXR and OpenVR.
A practical starting rule is:
- Try OpenXR when your headset or streaming solution has a good native OpenXR runtime.
- Try OpenVR if OpenXR has compatibility problems or the game's working profile recommends it.
UEVR's documentation says OpenVR generally offers high compatibility, while OpenXR can provide better performance when it works well with the headset's runtime.
OpenVR requires SteamVR. OpenXR requires an active OpenXR runtime, which may be supplied by your headset software, SteamVR, or another supported runtime.
UEVR's current documentation instructs Virtual Desktop users to choose OpenXR because its OpenVR path can cause rotational lag.
For a plain-English explanation, read OpenXR vs OpenVR vs SteamVR.
Step 6: Launch UEVR and the game
The basic official workflow is:
- Launch
UEVRInjector.exe. - Launch the target game normally.
- Wait until the game process appears in UEVR.
- Select the game process.
- Select OpenXR or OpenVR.
- Apply any required pre-injection settings or profile instructions.
- Click Inject.
In many games, it is best to reach the main menu or a stable in-game scene before injection. Follow the individual game's profile notes if they recommend a specific point.
Step 7: Load a community profile when available
Profiles are one of the most important parts of the UEVR ecosystem.
A profile can save settings that would otherwise require manual adjustment, including camera behavior, rendering choices, controller mappings, and game-specific fixes.
If PCVR Central lists a tested profile for the game, start there before manually changing dozens of options.
See How to Use UEVR Profiles and Settings.
Important checks before injection
UEVR's documentation recommends several checks that can prevent crashes or strange output.
Check for anti-cheat
This is the most important one. Do not experiment with injection in protected multiplayer sessions.
If a game offers an official offline mode with anti-cheat disabled and the community documents that method, follow those exact instructions. Otherwise, skip it.
Disable HDR if the image looks wrong
UEVR documentation warns that HDR can cause the VR image to appear darker. If the colors or brightness are clearly wrong, test with HDR disabled.
Disable conflicting overlays
Overlay and monitoring software can hook into the same rendering process as an injector. If UEVR crashes, test with overlays disabled, especially GPU monitoring, frame overlays, RGB/peripheral suites, recording overlays, or other hook-based software.
Do not permanently uninstall everything at once. Disable one category, retest, and isolate the conflict.
Run UEVR as administrator only when needed
The UEVR docs suggest administrator mode when the target game does not appear in the process list. Avoid making elevated permissions your default fix for unrelated problems.
Recommended first-launch settings
There is no perfect global configuration for every game, but beginners can avoid a lot of pain with a conservative baseline.
Start at a moderate headset refresh rate
90 Hz can be harder to maintain than 72 or 80 Hz, and 120 Hz is much more demanding. If a game is struggling, reduce refresh rate before assuming the mod is broken.
Disable ray tracing initially
Ray tracing can be extremely expensive in VR. Get the game stable first, then re-enable premium effects one at a time.
Use a reasonable render resolution
Supersampling can quietly double the amount of work your GPU is doing. Check both the headset software and SteamVR because multiple resolution multipliers can stack.
Keep a performance overlay available
Frame-time data is more useful than simply saying a game "feels laggy." Determine whether the bottleneck is the CPU, GPU, encoder, or wireless network.
Native Stereo, Synchronized Sequential, and other rendering modes
UEVR exposes different rendering methods because games vary in how well they tolerate stereo rendering.
Native Stereo can provide excellent results when the game renders correctly in both eyes.
Synchronized Sequential is an alternative for games that have problems with native stereo.
Other methods may exist for specific compatibility cases. Do not assume the most technically impressive sounding mode is always best. Start with the profile recommendation for the exact game.
What to do if the game crashes when you inject
Work through these in order:
- Confirm the game is supported and uses Unreal Engine.
- Check the PCVR Central listing for known issues.
- Disable overlays.
- Switch OpenXR/OpenVR if the profile allows it.
- Remove unrelated mods temporarily.
- Verify the game files.
- Try the recommended graphics API or launch parameter.
- Test without HDR.
- Confirm antivirus did not quarantine UEVR files.
- Try a clean UEVR profile.
Avoid changing ten settings at once. If the crash disappears, you need to know which change fixed it.
What to do if the game appears in only one eye
One-eye rendering usually indicates a stereo compatibility problem rather than a headset failure.
Try the rendering method recommended by the game's profile. Also disable problematic post-processing effects and check whether the title needs a particular DirectX mode.
What to do if menus are stuck to your face
Flat-screen UI was not designed for head-mounted displays. UEVR profiles can often reposition or project interfaces differently, but the result is game-specific.
Some titles remain easiest to navigate with a controller or mouse even when the 3D gameplay is excellent in VR.
What to do if motion controls do not work
UEVR does not magically turn every game's weapons and hands into native tracked interactions. Motion controls require mapping and, in many cases, game-specific configuration.
Check whether the profile is described as:
- Gamepad only.
- Head aim.
- Basic motion controls.
- Full 6DOF motion controls.
A gamepad-only profile can still be a great VR experience.
Can UEVR break a game installation?
UEVR is primarily an injector rather than a traditional installer that permanently replaces the entire game, but profiles, plugins, companion mods, or manual tweaks can still affect files and configuration.
Back up anything you manually replace and keep notes about launch options you change.
Frequently asked questions
Is UEVR free?
UEVR is an open-source project distributed through Praydog's official project pages.
Does UEVR work with Quest 2, Quest 3, and Quest 3S?
UEVR works with PCVR runtimes rather than one specific headset. Quest headsets can access PCVR through supported wired or wireless solutions.
Should I choose OpenXR or OpenVR in UEVR?
Use the game profile's recommendation first. In general, OpenXR can perform very well with a native runtime, while OpenVR through SteamVR can offer strong compatibility.
Does UEVR add motion controls automatically?
Not always. Motion-controller quality depends on the game and profile.
Can I use UEVR in online games?
Do not inject into anti-cheat-protected multiplayer sessions. Follow documented offline methods only when they are explicitly supported.
Next steps
Once UEVR successfully injects, the biggest gains usually come from a good game-specific profile and performance tuning rather than random global changes.
- Browse UEVR-compatible games
- Learn UEVR profiles and settings
- Optimize PCVR performance
- Troubleshoot PC VR mods
Sources and further reading
- UEVR official site: https://www.uevr.io/
- UEVR documentation: https://docs.uevr.io/
- UEVR GitHub: https://github.com/praydog/UEVR