In this paper we outline a paradigm that has existed in interface and interaction design for Virtual Reality (VR) since the first wave of VR in the 1980s and 90s. Focussing in particular on VR as a research tool, we argue that the field has moved away from immediate, embodied interaction towards interface paradigms adopted from desktop software and computer gaming. We introduce a VR experience we have developed for use in a research project, Layered Horizons, and discuss how it fits within the alternative tradition of the ‘no interface’ interface, where interaction is triggered by body movement and natural gestures. We discuss what this means for our project. We argue that this kind of interaction design in VR takes full advantage of the media’s affordances, without relying on metaphors from other interactive media, yet being familiar enough as to engender intuitive and meaningful use