Instagram parent company Meta is finally launching its VR social app Horizon Worlds on the web and mobile after more than a year and a half in development. Meta has begun rolling out Horizon Worlds to select early-access users who can now try out the app.
The company’s decision to make Horizon Worlds available on mobile and web will allow even users without its Quest VR headset to access the app, opening the platform up to a much larger audience, but it won’t matter how many devices it can be played on if the experience isn’t fun.
Meta writes in a blog post, “We’re excited to announce that Meta Horizon Worlds is beginning to expand beyond VR. We’ve started rolling out our first Meta Horizon world to mobile and web in early access, with more experiences to come. To start, a small number of people can now access Super Rumble through the Meta Quest app on Android, with iOS rolling out in the coming weeks.”
Expanding beyond VR
“The metaverse should be available to everyone – no matter what device they’re on. And while Quest headsets are the most immersive way to access the metaverse, we believe there should be multiple entry points
“Whether you want to see when your friends are online and jump in to join them on the go, invite a friend who doesn’t have a headset to easily meet up, or otherwise share the fun, this new flatscreen version of Worlds is a great way to keep the FOMO at bay,” said Meta.
Although Meta has yet to publicly release any of its user data for the VR version of Horizon Worlds, many reports suggest that the platform has a relatively small user base and is actively seeking ways to bring in new users.
As for when Horizon Worlds will become publicly available to users, Meta says it is currently testing things out and will gradually roll out early access to more users as it continues to gather feedback to evolve the experience.
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.
