Open Waves

Browser & VR surf game · private beta

Surf, foil and wing real spots with your friends.

Open Waves puts Pipeline, Teahupoʻo, Jaws and almost any real coastline into your browser, with live wind and swell, photorealistic 3D scenery and shared sets for your whole crew.

Play the beta
  • 5 sports
  • Live conditions
  • 8 riders per lobby
  • VR on Meta Quest

Five ways to ride

One ocean, every board

Surfing

Drop in, carve and pull into the barrel on steep reef and beach-break sets.

Surf foiling

Pump between bumps and link waves on mellow peeling points with real foil physics.

Wing foiling

Harness the forecast wind and fly flat water or open ocean swell.

Windsurfing

Rig up and blast across strong side-shore wind in the lagoon.

Downwind

Chase wind-swell bumps on long coastal runs from one beach to the next.

Your gear

Choose boards, foils and wings, and tune everything in advanced settings.

Built on the real world

Conditions that match the ocean today

Before you paddle out, Open Waves loads the latest wind, swell and weather for the spot you picked. The sun sits where it really does. Shorelines and seabed depth come from open map and survey data, so the lineup looks the way it should.

  • Live wind, swell and weather forecasts
  • Photorealistic 3D coastlines and buildings
  • Mapped shorelines, piers and jetties
  • Generate a spot anywhere on the coast
Wing foiling beside the Statue of Liberty and New York skyline in Open Waves

Virtual reality

Stand on the board in VR

Put on a Meta Quest, open Open Waves in the headset's browser and press Enter VR. You are on the board: look over your shoulder at the set rolling in, lean into the carve and watch the lip throw over you. Touch controllers are mapped for every sport, and nothing needs installing from an app store.

  • Plays in the Meta Quest browser through WebXR
  • Touch controller layout for surf, foil and wing
  • Ride with friends on desktop in the same lobby
A rider wing foiling beside the Golden Gate Bridge in Open Waves

Real spots

Ride the world's famous breaks

  • Banzai PipelineNorth Shore · Oʻahu
  • TeahupoʻoTahiti
  • Peʻahi (Jaws)Maui · Hawaiʻi
  • CloudbreakFiji
  • Jeffreys BaySouth Africa
  • Snapper RocksGold Coast · Australia
  • Hood RiverColumbia Gorge · Oregon
  • TarifaAndalusia · Spain
  • Maliko RunMaui · Hawaiʻi
  • CabareteDominican Republic
  • Le MorneMauritius
  • Pleasure PointSanta Cruz · California

…and any coastline you pick on the 3D globe.

Surf together

Same waves. Your people.

Shared sets

Everyone in the lobby sees the same waves, so you can call each other into the good ones.

Public or private

Host an open lobby or send an invite link to just your crew, up to 8 riders.

King of the Hill

Chat in the lineup and battle for the best ride of the session.

FAQ

Questions

Do I need to download anything?

No. Open Waves runs in a modern desktop web browser. There is nothing to install.

Which sports can I play?

Surfing, surf foiling, wing foiling, windsurfing and downwind foiling, each with its own boards and gear.

Are the spots real?

Yes. Spots are built from real coordinates, mapped shorelines and seabed depth data, with the latest available wind, swell and weather loaded before you paddle out. You can also generate a spot anywhere on the coast.

Can I ride with friends?

Yes. Host a public or private lobby for up to 8 riders who share the same sets, with chat and a King of the Hill mode.

Can I play in VR?

Yes. Open the game in the Meta Quest browser and choose Enter VR to ride with your headset and Touch controllers. No app store download is needed.

Who makes Open Waves?

One person, as a passion project. Servers, map data and 3D scenery cost money every month, so donations help keep it online and free.

How do I get into the beta?

Open Waves is in a private, invite-only beta. Invites are personal and tied to your email address.

Made by one person

Built out of love for the ocean

Open Waves is designed, coded and kept running by a single developer, out of the goodness of their heart. There is no studio and no investors, just a lot of late nights.

Keeping it online has real monthly costs: the game server, Google's photorealistic 3D scenery, map and forecast data, and the domain. If you enjoy riding here, a donation of any size keeps the waves running and the game free.

Supporters get a Beta Supporter badge and early access to new spots and features as they land.

Secure checkout by Stripe. Thank you, it genuinely helps.

Paddle out.

Got an invite? Your next session is one click away.

Play the beta