- Echo VR is a multiplayer virtual reality game made by developer Ready At Dawn.
- Ready At Dawn announced Tuesday it would only continue running Echo VR until August 1, 2023.
To the dismay of many avid gamers, Echo VR will soon be shutting down.
On Tuesday, Ready At Dawn, the game developer behind the multiplayer virtual reality game announced in a post on Medium that the game would be shutting down on August 1, 2023.
Until that time, players can play to their heart's content, purchase the game, and re-download it, according to the post. After that point, however, the servers and services for the game will be shut down, the post noted.
Gamers will also be able to spend their Echo Points until that time, but there will be "no refunds on in app purchases, DLC, and in game currencies," the post noted.
Ready At Dawn was acquired by Meta in 2020.
"After many discussions internally and with our partners at Meta, we have made the difficult decision to shut down Echo VR," the post stated.
Still, the reasons why Ready At Dawn is shutting down Echo VR remain vague.
In response to the question of "Why is support for Echo Arena ending" (which was Echo VR's former name) the post noted, "Ready At Dawn is working on our next project and are consolidating studio support to work on it."
Over the past few years, Echo VR has catapulted into the league of an e-sport.
Echo VR can be played using the Meta's Oculus Quest, Quest 2, Meta Quest Pro, and Rift S devices, according to the Oculus website. Once players put on their headsets, they're transposed into a zero-gravity arena, where they battle for victory as robots using a mix of video game savvy and athletic prowess.
The game was one of the flagship games of the Oculus Quest and Rift S launch, according to The Verge.
One fan on Reddit went as far as to describe Echo VR as "more than just an esport, Echo VR is a sport. Full stop."
A petition titled "Save Echo VR" has been created on change.org, and has already racked up 9,848 signers.
Meta and Ready At Dawn did not immediately respond to Insider's request for a comment.