- Meta just announced that Horizon Worlds VR will be shutting down on June 15
- The platform will still be active for mobile users
- Fans have mixed feelings about the announcement
Meta’s virtual reality rollback is entering phase two as the company revealed its timeline for the full shutdown of its Meta Horizon Worlds metaverse. At least the VR version.
In an email sent to Meta account holders – including this writer – Meta revealed that starting June 15, 2026, we will no longer be able to create, publish, or update VR worlds. Additionally, we will not be able to access Meta Horizon Worlds with VR headsets; instead, Spaces will be exclusive to the Meta Horizon mobile app.
That is, provided they have been optimized for mobile.
Article continues below
Additionally, starting March 31, Horizon worlds and events will no longer appear in the Quest Shop, and Horizon Central, Events Arena, Kaiju, and Bobber Bay will no longer be available in VR.
On the one hand, this decision is welcomed by many VR fans. Horizon Worlds has never been too popular, and its growing prominence in Meta Quest streams – pushing for the release of third-party software that many would prefer to see – has been a major criticism among many.
As one Reddit user said in a post about the announcement: “So this means this world stuff won’t be mixed into my games anymore? I see that as a win.” They are far from the only ones with this mentality.
GOOD? Maybe not
At the same time, I can’t help but agree with others who share this positivity but feel a pang in their hearts, with comments like “I’m glad it’s gone but I worry about what this means for Quest and VR as a whole” succinctly summarizing that feeling.
For starters, this is a major RV stop. While Horizon Worlds may not have been the most popular, it was a major platform from arguably the industry’s most important company: Meta, as its headsets make up the vast majority of those in the hands of virtual reality users.
So this is a serious reversal of its VR approach, and while Meta has said it’s still dedicated to the medium, it feels like the end of an era.
I also feel sorry for this title’s loyal base, people who would have spent hours creating their perfect VR hangout space and now have lost that work because exploring on mobile just won’t be the same.
Maybe there are only dozens of these people, but if your favorite VR software shuts down, you’d be upset – even though I’m not a fan, there will be plenty of people who loved Meta Horizon Worlds and seriously don’t want to see it go away.
Follow TechRadar on Google News And add us as your favorite source to get our news, reviews and expert opinions in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on YouTube And TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form and receive regular updates from us on WhatsApp Also.
