Why You Can Trust CNET Meta Starts Subscription VR Gaming With Quest Plus
The new service adds a few free games each month, starting with Pistol Whip and Pixel Ripped 1995. The service will also work with Quest 3.
- Nearly 20 years writing about tech, and over a decade reviewing wearable tech, VR, and AR products and apps
Subscription gaming has arrived everywhere else, so coming to Meta's VR felt like an inevitable move. Meta just announced its new VR subscription service, Quest Plus, ahead of a fall launch of the company's Quest 3 VR headset. The $8-per-month service will add a few new games each month, similar to how PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold work. The games will be added to a player's library, but will only stay there as long as the player is subscribed to the Quest Plus service.
The subscription service will work across the Quest 2, Quest Pro, and the upcoming Quest 3 headset, also possibly adding an incentive over time for current Quest gamers to stay with the platform. It won't work with the original Oculus Quest, though.
The service officially starts in July, but early subscribers get the first month for just a dollar. A year of the service, prepaid, costs $60, which is competitive with similar console services.
Subscription VR gaming makes sense, depending on what the games are. VR games can cost anywhere from a few dollars to $40 each, and VR isn't always something everyone will spend tons of time in. VR games also have a weirdly long shelf life: Many of the best VR games back in 2016 are still classics in VR now. HTC already has its own subscription VR service with Viveport, and Sony is likely to add more PSVR 2 games via PlayStation Plus over time.
Meta's first two games for the service in July are Pistol Whip and Pixel Ripped 1995, which are two of CNET's favorite Quest 2 games. August's games are Walkabout Mini Golf (which is maybe my favorite VR game right now) and Mothergunship: Forge.
Considering the Quest 2's recent price drop, this service could also make an attractive bid for players looking for a simple budget way of playing a handful of games over time and not spending up further. But again, it will all depend on how good the subscription game offerings are.