Online gaming platform Roblox has partnered with Horizon Worlds company Meta to bring Roblox to Meta Quest, starting with an open beta that’s set to arrive in App Lab in the coming weeks.
The Roblox community has grown significantly over the past few years as the platform records over 66 million users log in every day on multiple platforms including iOS and Android, desktops and Xbox.
And now, Meta is bringing the popular platform to Meta Quest 2 and Quest Pro in the coming weeks, as well as Quest 3. The open beta will allow Roblox developers to optimise their existing titles for Quest and build new ones for VR.
Meta said in a post, “Developers will be able to experiment, learn and iterate on VR experiences before Roblox is ready for prime time and its full release on the Meta Quest Store.” Developers are also open to receiving feedback from the Quest community.
With an ever-growing number of over 15 million active experiences, Roblox presents an extensive collection of content for the Quest community to delve into. Notably, the platform is automatically releasing certain experiences that utilise default player scripts to ensure compatibility with VR devices.
Bringing an immersive world to Meta Quest
“They’ve found that those experiences typically run well in VR without modifications, so they’re seeding the Roblox VR library with great content from day one,” wrote Meta. “And because Roblox is cross-platform, you’ll be able to connect, play, and hang out with friends across Xbox, iOS, Android, and desktop – helping to make VR more social than ever before.”
Meta’s own Horizon Worlds has been underperforming lately as the player base has shrunk and continues to shrink due to its lack of returning users. In early March, the Instagram company attempted to raise its Horizon Worlds numbers by bringing the minimum age of users down to 13, but was told by two US senators not to move forward with its plans of allowing teens and underage minors to sign up on its platform.
Roblox on Quest will be available for individuals aged 13 and up. “Parents can use existing Meta Quest parental supervision tools to help create a level of safety and supervision that’s right for their family,” Meta writes.
Is Meta’s decision to bring Roblox into its VR headsets a strategic move to expand and refocus on its metaverse ambitions?
Isa Muhammad is a writer and video game journalist covering many aspects of entertainment media including the film industry. He's steadily writing his way to the sharp end of journalism and enjoys staying informed. If he's not reading, playing video games or catching up on his favourite TV series, then he's probably writing about them.
