It looks like Meta is planning to launch its own version of Xbox Game Pass for the Quest 2 and Quest Pro that will give you access to free VR games and apps every month while you are subscribed. Unfortunately, it’s not shaping up to be the service we were hoping it would be.
The Oculus Quest 2 might be the best VR headset out there for most people, in part because it has access to an incredible library of VR software. However, for every great VR game or app out there, there’s some chaff that isn’t worth your time – and filtering out the bad from the hidden gems can be tough unless the title is already super popular.
That’s why we’ve felt that Meta needs to borrow HTC’s Viveport Infinity idea – a subscription model for VR software. These kinds of services reduce the risk of trying unfamiliar VR apps as you aren’t individually paying for every title. You can try as many games as you need to find your new favorite, and all you wasted on the hunt was some time rather than a load of your hard-earned cash.
So we were pretty excited to see a leak from Shiny Quagsire on Twitter (opens in new tab) that teased a subscription model – Quest Pass, or Project Apollo – is seemingly in development for Meta’s Quest platform. However, Quest Pass’ leaked terms aren’t quite the Viveport Infinity or Game Pass style model we were after.
Apparently Meta is adding a game pass thing soon for Quest, “Project Apollo”. Accessible via this deep link URI (on Android at least)oculus://view/platform_subscription pic.twitter.com/Bz5321zRpvMarch 4, 2023
Despite the Quest Pass name conjuring up thoughts of Xbox Game Pass, it’s actually looking more like Games with Gold or PS Plus Essential. Rather than getting access to a library of titles, you can “get up to two new apps or games every month.” What’s more – just like these rival services – you’ll apparently lose access to all of your Quest Pass games and apps as soon as you stop subscribing.
Games with Gold or PS Plus Essential are certainly good deals, but the limited number of games you get access to each month makes it more likely that you’ll be offered a title that isn’t your jam compared to Game Pass – where the library of games and apps is much larger. Because of this, the leaked version of Quest Pass doesn’t look like it’ll be quite the VR software solution we were hoping it would be.
That said, this is just a leak for the service and not a full-on announcement. If Quest Pass is still in development there’s a chance the service could change. Even if it doesn’t change and launches as the leaked version, Quest Pass could still be an excellent deal if the software selection is great and the price is reasonable.
We’ll have to wait and see what Meta announces in the coming months, but with it already reducing the price of its VR headsets, we wouldn’t be surprised if it has a few more tricks up its sleeves like Quest Pass to give people another reason to go for its headsets rather than Sony’s PSVR 2 or the HTC Vive XR Elite.
