This article provides a critical review of the current studies in VR-based health and safety training, assessment techniques, training evaluation, and its potential to improve the training evaluation outcomes in various high-risk engineering industries. The results of this analysis indicate the breadth of VR-based applications in training users on a combination of topics including risk assessment, machinery, and/or process operation in various industries. Data showed that the use of fully immersive VR increased significantly due to the improvements in hardware, display resolution, and affordability. Most of the articles used external assessment to measure the changes in the satisfaction and the declarative knowledge of trainees as these are easier to implement, while some articles started to implement internal assessment that provides an automated assessment capable of measuring complex skills. The results of the study also suggest that it has the potential to improve the training evaluation outcomes compared to traditional training methods. The findings from this study help practitioners and safety managers by providing a training design framework that may be adopted to optimise the condition of a VR-based training.