In a development that is being perceived as possibly a change of direction for its virtual reality drive, Meta laid off an unknown number of workers within its Reality Labs unit, affecting some acquired game studios. The development, according to The Verge, rocked the VR gaming space, especially focusing on those associated with popular titles such as Supernatural and Asgard’s Wrath.
The layoffs are also part of a wider restructuring effort that is looking to boost the productivity of Oculus Studios, Meta’s in-house game development arm for its Quest VR headsets. The action was confirmed by a Meta spokesperson with The Verge, who said the aim was to enable the studios to “work more efficiently on future mixed reality experiences.”
Although no specific number of impacted employees has been disclosed, over 100 employees are said to have been affected. The reductions are said to have hit multiple teams, including developers working on VR fitness app Supernatural. Supernatural’s team confirmed layoffs in a community post, lamenting the loss of skilled colleagues and assuring that the frequency of new workouts would slow down subsequently.
The newest round of job cuts follows on the heels of a bigger job reduction at Meta earlier this year when about 3,600 employees, or 5% of all global employees, were terminated as part of so-called “performance-based reductions.” That yet another such round of personnel loss is hitting the VR space now raises questions about how big of a long-term commitment Meta actually still has to immersive tech efforts.
The impacted studios, including Asgard’s Wrath’s developers, were purchased by Meta in the last few years as part of its metaverse growth drive. These cuts signal a possible realignment of investment in VR game development even for successful and well-established titles. The sector will be watching closely how these moves impact future content pipeline for Meta’s VR platforms and the broader direction of VR gaming.
