Okay, so things got rough over at Meta recently. On January 13th, they basically decimated their VR division, Reality Labs. We’re talking over a thousand layoffs, three studios completely shut down, and even their fitness app, Supernatural, is gone. As a VR gamer, this was a massive shock, because Meta’s so central to the whole scene. But it gets worse – I heard they also cancelled a Harry Potter VR game that was in development during all the cuts. It’s a really tough time for VR right now.
Popular VR YouTuber Gamertag VR recently shared details about projects canceled at Meta due to the company’s layoffs. Developers told him that several games were quietly scrapped, including a new, unannounced title being developed by the team behind the VR game Pistol Whip. The studio behind Pistol Whip recently had to lay off most of its staff, likely because Meta stopped funding the project. Another canceled game was a VR Harry Potter game in development at Skydance Interactive.
We don’t know much about the cancelled Harry Potter VR game, as details were scarce. However, Skydance, the developer, is well-known in the VR world. They’re the team behind the popular 2020 game, The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners, and its 2022 sequel, The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners – Chapter 2: Retribution (developed with Skybound Entertainment). While the sequel had some issues with bugs and limited post-launch support, the original game was highly praised and considered one of the best VR experiences of its time. This demonstrated Skydance’s ability to successfully create a VR game based on an existing, popular franchise – something they would have likely done with the planned Harry Potter VR game.
Fans Have Modded VR into Hogwarts Legacy, Though
Despite the huge popularity of Harry Potter, there hasn’t been an official virtual reality game released. However, fans have found ways to experience the world in VR. The open-world game Hogwarts Legacy, released in 2023, can be played in VR thanks to mods created by fans. A popular mod by Luke Ross allows players to enjoy the game from a virtual reality perspective, and can even be combined with another mod called SpellCaster, which lets you cast spells using voice commands. While these fan-made solutions aren’t as refined as a professionally developed VR game, they offer a taste of what a full Harry Potter VR experience could be like – and hint at the potential of a previously cancelled VR title from Skydance.
In December 2024, Skydance launched Skydance’s Behemoth, a VR game where players battle massive creatures. The game received mixed reviews. Skydance hadn’t revealed its next project, and it’s now unclear what the future holds for the studio, including the possibility of job cuts following this recent announcement.
It might be just a coincidence, but the team recently shared artwork from The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners on January 14th with the caption, “Some people just want to watch the world burn.” Even though these games came out a few years ago, the studio still promotes them. However, the timing of the post, combined with the caption, seems pointed, and many commenters have noticed this as well.
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2026-01-15 02:40