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👋 Meta is shutting down the VR version of its metaverse platform, Horizon Worlds, effective June 15, 2026, after billions in investment
📱 The platform will still exist in a limited mobile form, but access to VR events and many virtual spaces will be removed starting March 31, 2026
📆 Subscriber perks (Meta Credits, Avatars, etc.) will be removed from the Meta Horizon Plus subscription on March 31, 2026
🪦 The move signals a shift in Meta’s focus away from VR and the metaverse, following the tech industry’s pivot toward AI
Meta has announced that its much-maligned Horizon Worlds, which was key to its metaverse strategy, will no longer be accessible in VR from June 15, 2026
Mark Zuckerberg pushed Horizon Worlds heavily and subsequently invested billions of dollars into a project which can now only be deemed a failure.
Meta Horizon will still exist in mobile form, but starting March 31, 2026, events and individual Horizon Worlds will be removed from the Meta Quest Store, and users will no longer be able to visit certain virtual spaces.
Meta Horizon Hyperscape will also be leaving Horizon Worlds, and you’ll no longer be able to share, invite or co-experience Hyperscapes with other users.
Perks that were given to Meta Horizon Plus subscribers, including Meta Credits, Digital Clothing, Avatars and In-World Purchases, will be removed from the subscription on March 31, 2026.
Zuckerberg struggled to convince consumers and businesses that the metaverse was the future ever since its inception in 2021. It was supposed to be a virtual space where people would socialize, work, and create. However, it was held back by crude graphics, awkward avatars and limitations when it came to locomotion.
That still didn’t stop bizarre collaborations like Godzilla entering the Wendyverse from taking place and Meta from paying companies and artists millions for tie-ins and metaverse music performances.
With AI the new darling of the tech industry and the metaverse suffering the same fate as NFTs, Meta will be looking to move on from its VR-centric failure fast. Whether this signals trouble for the company’s next VR headset, the Meta Quest 4, remains to be seen.
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Adam Vjestica is The Shortcut’s Senior Editor. Formerly TechRadar’s Gaming Hardware Editor, Adam has also worked at Nintendo of Europe as a Content Marketing Editor, where he helped launch the Nintendo Switch. He also runs a retro gaming YouTube channel called Game on, boy! Follow him on X @ItsMrProducts.
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