Meta’s Metaverse Shifts Focus Beyond VR
▼ Summary
– Meta is shifting its Horizon Worlds platform from a VR focus to a mobile-first strategy to compete with platforms like Roblox and Fortnite and reach a larger market.
– The company believes its strength lies in connecting synchronous social games to its massive social network user base, making this its main strategic focus.
– For VR software, Meta is prioritizing support for third-party developers, as they account for the vast majority of user time spent in VR headsets.
– Meta still plans to develop future VR hardware, including a potential new Quest headset, with a roadmap targeting different audience segments, possibly at higher prices.
– CEO Mark Zuckerberg views AI as the new frontier for social media, with Horizon Worlds positioned as part of a vision for immersive, shareable AI-generated 3D experiences.
Meta is making a significant strategic pivot for its metaverse ambitions, moving its Horizon Worlds platform beyond virtual reality to embrace mobile and desktop access. This shift aims to dramatically expand the potential audience by meeting users on the devices they already own, rather than requiring a dedicated VR headset. The company is positioning itself to compete more directly with massively popular user-generated platforms like Roblox and Fortnite, which thrive on accessible, cross-device play.
The executive leading this charge, Meta’s VP of Horizon, emphasized the necessity of this move. To genuinely transform the gaming landscape and reach a much broader market, the company is now going all-in on mobile. This new direction leverages Meta’s core strength: its unparalleled social network reach. The strategy involves connecting synchronous social games with the billions of people active on apps like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. This approach began to take shape last year and has now become the central focus for the Horizon team.
Regarding the future of VR software, the focus is shifting toward empowering external creators. While the company’s first-party Oculus Studios has produced acclaimed titles, data shows that the overwhelming majority of time spent in VR is on third-party applications. Consequently, Meta plans to concentrate its efforts on supporting this independent developer ecosystem.
This does not signal an end to VR hardware development. The company maintains a detailed roadmap for future headsets, designed to cater to different user segments as the overall market evolves. These new devices, which may include the next generation of the Quest line, could come with a higher price tag, reflecting more advanced or specialized features.
The broader strategic realignment has been echoed by other top executives. Meta’s Chief Technology Officer recently discussed the shift on a prominent tech podcast, highlighting the company’s adaptive approach. Following challenges in establishing its initial metaverse vision, CEO Mark Zuckerberg is now championing artificial intelligence as the next frontier for social connection. He envisions a future where AI-generated games and experiences become a staple of social feeds. Within this framework, Horizon is seen as the ideal vehicle for delivering immersive 3D versions of this AI-driven social content, complementing simpler 2D formats.
(Source: The Verge)
