Meta is pulling the plug on its VR metaverse and Meta Quest 3 fans don't know how to respond

• Meta just announced that Horizon Worlds VR is shutting down on June 15
• The platform will still be live for mobile users
• Fans have mixed feelings about the announcement

Meta’s VR scale-back is heading into phase two as the company has revealed its timeline for the full closure of its Meta Horizon Worlds metaverse. At least the VR version of it.

In an email sent out to Meta account holders — this writer included — Meta revealed that starting on June 15, 2026, we’ll no longer be able to build, publish or update VR worlds. What’s more, we won’t be able to access Meta Horizon Worlds using VR headsets; instead, the spaces will be exclusive to the Meta Horizon mobile app.

That is, provided they’ve been optimized for mobile.

What’s more, starting on March 31, Horizon Worlds and Events won’t appear in the Quest Store, and Horizon Central, Events Arena, Kaiju, and Bobber Bay will no longer be available to enjoy in VR.

On the one hand, this move is being cheered by many VR fans. Horizon Worlds has never been overly popular, and its increasing prominence in Meta Quest feeds — pushing out third-party software many would rather see — has been a major criticism amongst many.

As one Reddit user put it under a post about the announcement, “So that means that those world thingies won't be mixed up with my games anymore? I see that as a win.” They are far from the only person with that mentality.

Good? Maybe not

At the same time, I can’t help but agree with others who share this positivity but feel a twinge of sadness, with comments like “I'm glad it's gone but I'm worried about what it means for Quest and VR as a whole” summing up this sentiment succinctly.

For a start, this is a major VR shutdown. While Horizon Worlds might not have been the most popular, it was a major platform from arguably the most important company in the space: Meta — as its headsets make up the vast majority of those in the hands of VR users.

This is therefore a serious reversal of its VR approach, and while Meta has said it’s still dedicated to the medium, it does feel like the end of an era.

I also feel sorry for this title’s loyal base, folks who would have spent hours crafting their perfect VR hangout space and have now lost that work, as exploring on mobile just won’t be the same.

Maybe there are only dozens of those people, but if your favorite VR software just shutdown you’d be upset — while I’m not a fan, there will be plenty of people out there who adored Meta Horizon Worlds and who seriously don’t want to see it go.

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