Minecraft Cuts VR in 2025 as Tech Giants Pivot To AI

Key Takeaways

• Minecraft has announced that they will no longer support VR headsets.
• Interest in VR has dwindled in recent years as adoption has stalled.
• For major players in the space like Meta, resources have been diverted to focus on AI instead.

Minecraft developer Mojang Studios announced plans to discontinue virtual reality (VR) headset support after March 2025.

The decision marks a significant shift for the game, which was one of the early adopters of VR technology in the gaming industry. It also comes as some of the biggest names in the space are dialing back their ambitions to focus on AI.

Minecraft to End VR Headset Support

Mojang first announced that it would discontinue VR support for PlayStation in September. And now, the Microsoft-backed studio has confirmed that its four-year experiment with immersive reality is ending.

“Our ability to support VR/MR devices has come to an end and will no longer be supported in updates after March of 2025,” an Oct. 22 changelog stated.

Minecraft’s decision follows a broader industry trend: Other tech giants like Meta have also begun scaling back their investments in VR.

Meta Dials Back VR Ambitions

Meta, which had heavily pushed its vision for the metaverse, recently axed plans for a new premium headset for its Quest range.

At the same time, staff at Reality Labs’ metaverse unit were reportedly told to cut costs as the company seeks to minimize losses from CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s metaverse project in the coming years.

Refocusing on AI

In gaming and beyond, once-exciting VR technology is being eclipsed by an emphasis on AI, which many in the industry believe will deliver tangible results sooner.

Even within gaming, VR adoption hasn’t kept pace with the hype, and Mojang has clearly calculated that not enough users own headsets to justify the expense of continued development.