Facebook continues to buy VR studios. This time, Facebook’s Oculus division has been supplemented by developers from Downpour Interactive, which gained fame after creating the popular multiplayer military VR simulator Onward.
“Over the years, Onward has been a huge hit, first on the Rift and then on Oculus. Joining the Oculus Studios ecosystem will give Downpour Interactive the opportunity to grow the Onward community as well as other projects in the future, ”Mike Verdu, Facebook VP of AR and VR Content, wrote in a blog post. He noted that all Downpour Interactive employees will become “to some extent” part of the Oculus team. It was also said that Onward’s VR simulator will continue to be supported on all platforms where it is currently available.
Downpour founder and CEO Dante Buckley said the roadmap for Onward’s features will remain unchanged and that the studio intends to “accelerate the pace of development” with its Facebook deal. He also noted that Downpour will continue to maintain “full control over all of its developments.”
The Downpour acquisition will allow Facebook to strengthen its Oculus division. It has previously been joined by Beat Games, the studio behind Beat Saber in 2019, Asgard’s Wrath developer Sanzaru Games, and the authors of Ready at Dawn’s Lone Echo in 2020.
