Meta Considers Free-to-Play Strategy Amidst Surge of New Quest Users

Meta is rapidly advancing its metaverse vision, and throughout 2024, younger users alongside mainstream consumers are driving significant changes within the Quest platform. Samantha Ryan, the Vice President of Metaverse Content, suggests that these developments may pave the way for a surge in free-to-play content.

In a recent blog post for developers, Ryan shed light on how user behavior has shifted over the past year, largely fueled by new users coming to Quest.

Ryan shared, “Compared to last year, sales of our devices went up in 2024. Users, on average, spent more time on Quest 3S than any other headset when launched,” she explains. “Additionally, spending across Quest devices increased, resulting in a 12% jump in total payment volume, largely thanks to the rise in in-app purchases.”

These in-app purchases are crucial for free-to-play games. For instance, Another Axiom’s hit VR game, Gorilla Tag, made over $100 million in revenues last summer, mainly from in-game cosmetic sales.

Ryan adds, “We’re building a platform centered around social experiences, and it’s the younger users who are more inclined to engage in multiplayer events and hangout apps with friends. They’re driving the popularity of free-to-play titles, a trend we’ve historically seen on other platforms. Notably, more young users are also joining Horizon Worlds.”

Meta’s Chief Technology Officer, Andrew Bosworth, emphasized the importance of their cross-compatible social platform. A recently leaked memo revealed that the mobile version of Horizon Worlds “absolutely has to succeed for our long-term strategies to succeed,” Bosworth stated.

Ryan mentions that, “We believe free-to-play (F2P) will become a feasible strategy for many developers who used to depend solely on premium apps. However, we anticipate both models—F2P and premium—to continue side by side.”

Yet, the group of VR enthusiasts on Quest, who demand top-notch premium content, “still forms a backbone of our expanding ecosystem.” Existing Quest users led to “a wave of device purchases, with 27% of Quest 3 and 20% of Quest 3S users upgrading from older models.”

However, Ryan notes that in 2024, most new device users weren’t former enthusiasts upgrading but people entirely new to Quest. “The familiar traits of VR enthusiasts no longer define our complete Quest user base,” Ryan highlights.

Turning to traditional media and entertainment, she points out that while 2D apps and browsers haven’t always attracted much attention on Quest in the past, engagement has been rising lately.

“Our continual improvements to the operating system, like multitasking features, theater mode, and immersive audio, are aimed at supporting this expanding customer base,” Ryan notes. In 2024, she reports, Quest saw a 10% increase in monthly time users spend on media apps, with a 21% hike in usage of the headset’s default web browser.

Current trends indicate that Quest is at a crucial juncture. Meta aims to balance catering to early adopters’ premium content expectations with the growing role of social-driven, free-to-play content in financial forecasts. The challenge for Meta lies in leveraging this growth while ensuring neither group feels sidelined.