Meta Pulls Back on In-House VR Gaming, Shuts Down Three Studios
BARCELONA, SPAIN – In a significant recalibration of its metaverse ambitions, Meta has confirmed the closure of three prominent virtual reality (VR) studios: Armature, Sanzaru Games, and Twisted Pixel. This move, coupled with the cessation of new content updates for its popular VR fitness application, Supernatural, signals a strategic pivot away from internal VR game development towards a renewed focus on wearables and third-party partnerships.
The Immediate Impact on VR Development
The closures have sent ripples through the VR development community. Employees from Twisted Pixel, known for its recent release Marvel’s Deadpool VR, and Sanzaru Games, celebrated for titles like Asgard’s Wrath
, took to social media to share the news of their studios’ demise. Bloomberg further reported the shuttering of Armature, the studio behind the highly acclaimed
Resident Evil 4 port for Quest in 2021.
Adding to the shake-up, the beloved VR fitness app Supernatural will no longer receive fresh content or feature updates. In a statement posted on Facebook, the company informed users, “Due to recent organizational changes to our Studio, Supernatural will no longer receive new content or feature updates starting today.” While existing users can continue to access the app, the absence of new workouts marks a notable shift for a service that has been a cornerstone of VR fitness.
Meta’s Shifting Sands: Wearables Over VR Games?
A Meta spokesperson confirmed the closures, linking them directly to a broader strategic adjustment. “We said last month that we were shifting some of our investment from Metaverse toward Wearables,” the spokesperson stated, adding, “This is part of that effort, and we plan to reinvest the savings to support the growth of wearables this year.”
This announcement follows a series of indicators suggesting a re-evaluation of Meta’s VR strategy. The company has not unveiled any new VR headsets since the Quest 3S in 2024, and just last month, it “paused” plans for Horizon OS headsets developed in partnership with Asus and Lenovo. The latest cuts to in-house game development further underscore a potential de-emphasis on directly funding and producing VR content.
Questions of Commitment and Future Strategy
Despite these significant cutbacks, Meta maintains, at least internally, a commitment to the broader VR industry. Oculus Studios director Tamara Sciamanna, in a memo reported by Bloomberg, asserted, “These changes do not mean we are moving away from video games.” She clarified the intent: “With this change we are shifting our investment to focus on our third-party developers and partners to ensure long-term sustainability.”
This pivot raises critical questions about the future of Meta’s heavily invested VR ecosystem. While a focus on third-party development could foster a more diverse and robust content library, the closure of established internal studios and the curtailment of popular services like Supernatural inevitably spark debate about the company’s long-term vision for the metaverse and its direct involvement in shaping the virtual worlds it champions.
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