Major VR developer closes Amsterdam studio, citing market challenges

VR developer Vertigo Games, known for Arizona Sunshine VR, The 7th Guest VR, Thief VR: Legacy of Shadow and Metro Awakening, is closing its studio in Amsterdam. CEO Richard Stitselaar said in a message posted on LinkedIn, "The VR market remains a challenging space, and after careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to close Vertigo Studios Amsterdam." The number of people affected by the shutdown was not disclosed.

Vertigo was acquired by the Embracer Group in 2020, and Stitselaar had expressed optimism at the time that "the VR gaming market seems to be on the edge of really taking off," but that has not materialised. The Steam Hardware and Software Survey still shows very low VR adoption, and rising hardware costs are unlikely to help.

The company is not alone in its struggles: Meta closed three VR studios and cut 10% of its Reality Labs workforce in January, and two months later announced the end of the VR version of Meta Horizon Worlds. Hardware improvements have not produced a matching surge in interest.

vertigo games, amsterdam studio, arizona sunshine, embracer group, richard stitselaar, vr market, steam survey, meta, reality labs, horizon worlds