Echo VR’s days are numbered, as Meta introduced earlier this 12 months it could quickly be pulling the plug on one in all its most profitable video games on Quest. However hardcore gamers of zero-G sports activities recreation Echo VR and its shooter variant Echo Fight aren’t happening and not using a combat.
Organizers behind a protest group referred to as ‘The Battle For Echo’ need to maintain their favourite recreation alive, and so they’re apparently able to take drastic measures.
On Wednesday, March 1st, the group commissioned an airplane-towed message to fly over Meta’s HQ in Menlo Park, California, which then circled the guts of Silicon Valley for over three hours for all to see. The message was directed at Meta founder & CEO Mark ‘Zuck’ Zuckerberg, stating: “ZUCK, DON’T KILL VR ESPORTS FIGHTFORECHO.COM”
You may see the aircraft in motion, courtesy of a YouTube livestream by ‘rev2600’, one such devoted Echo VR participant:
The protest group defined the transfer on the Battle For Echo web site:
Whereas we’re extraordinarily captivated with these video games and are very supportive of the staff at Prepared at Daybreak and the Echo Video games franchise on the entire, we expect we are able to nonetheless assist Meta and Prepared at Daybreak by persevering with to be the testing floor and supportive group we all the time have been and supply a spot the place bigger concepts for different VR video games may be examined.
We can not try this nonetheless with out some form of recreation server being offered to the group to host ourselves, or minimal infrastructure to play on and the permission to work with the individuals required to do it.
We perceive that there’s a future course being taken; and that it’s tied to laws and compliance, and our intention is to not maintain something again. We solely want to proceed to do what we’ve all the time executed and be the ambassadors of VR that you really want us to be.
The Meta-owned builders Prepared at Daybreak introduced in late January that it was shutting down the favored free-to-play multiplayer recreation Echo VR, which is slated to go darkish on August 1st.
On the time, the studio mentioned the choice to close down the sport “was made for a lot of good causes and chief amongst them is the studio coming collectively to concentrate on our subsequent venture.”
Undeterred by the airplane-towed plea, Meta despatched out the next message to Echo VR gamers final evening:
We’re reaching out to let you recognize that Echo VR servers will shut down on August 1st, 2023 – 10:30 AM Pacific. On this date, each Echo VR and Echo Fight will now not be playable.
Add-ons are now not accessible for buy within the Quest retailer. Echo Factors are now not accessible for buy within the Echo Store. Any Echo Factors presently in your account can be utilized till August 1st, 2023 – 10:30 AM Pacific, with gadgets closely discounted within the Echo Store.
It has been our pleasure to see this group develop and compete over time. Thanks to your time and fervour. For extra info, please learn Prepared At Daybreak’s weblog publish at https://medium.com/@EchoGames/an-update-on-the-future-of-echo-vr-7f074dca1ed1.
Whereas a reversal of the shutdown appears much less seemingly now that Prepared at Daybreak has fully neutered the free-to-play recreation’s in-game forex, the founders behind ‘The Battle For Echo’ initiative have setup a change.org petition so others can present their help. On the time of this writing over 25,000 individuals have signed.
