Meta Reportedly Slashes Funding for Third-party VR Games Amid Greater Push for Lifestyle Content

Meta Shifts Focus to Non-Gaming Apps, Cuts Funding for Some VR Game Developers

Meta is reportedly rethinking its strategy for third-party app funding, with a focus on non-gaming apps leading to cuts in funds for some VR game developers.

According to a report from The Information, Meta is becoming more selective in how it invests in apps for its Horizon Store on Quest.

Unnamed sources within Meta have revealed that funding has been reduced for certain outside app developers as the company prioritizes funding apps with better traction, particularly in the lifestyle category such as fashion, beauty, and music. Funding for these apps is expected to come through an accelerator program offering seed-stage funding.

Two VR developers, Monks and Atlas V, have reportedly been impacted by these funding cuts, leading to staff reductions at both studios. Monks, based in the Netherlands and working on Horizon Worlds, has halved its team of 100 people. Atlas V, based in France and known for titles like Wallace & Gromit in The Grand Getaway (2023) and Mobile Suit Gundam: Silver Phantom (2040), has also cut half of its team according to The Information.

In addition to these changes, Meta recently shut down its first-party VR studio Ready at Dawn, which was responsible for the Lone Echo franchise and Echo VR. This closure came after Meta’s acquisition of Within, the studio behind the popular VR fitness app Supernatural, following a legal battle with the FTC.