‘Batman: Arkham VR’ Sequel Cancelled Amid Meta XR Studio Closures

By
Scott Hayden
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Meta’s recent rash of studio closures means that the planned sequel to Batman: Arkham Shadow has also officially been cancelled.

Batman: Arkham Shadow (2024) was developed by Camouflaj, released exclusively on Quest 3 in late 2024, coming just one week after the launch of Meta’s $300 Quest 3S.

Although it was confirmed the sequel was already underway, with Mark Rolston tapped to reprise his role as Commissioner Gordon, the next Batman: Arkham Shadow VR game is now cancelled.

And it’s not due to poor reception of the game—we scored it a solid [8.5/10] in our review—or recent headcount reductions at Camouflaj, which Meta acquired in 2022. It’s due to Meta’s recent closure of Sanzaru Games, developer of Asgard’s Wrath.

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As confirmed by UploadVR, Sanzaru was apparently tasked with production of the Batman: Arkham Shadow sequel. With the broader shakeup at Reality Labs, which saw a reported 10 percent staff layoff, Meta has closed Sanzaru Games along with Armature Studio (Resident Evil 4 VR port) and Twisted Pixel (Deadpool VR).

Additionally, budget cuts reportedly also saw the cancellation of a Harry Potter VR game for Quest, which was supposedly being developed by Skydance Games.

This comes amid a broader shift at Meta’s Reality Labs division, as the company appears to be making a clean break from VR game development and its wider metaverse ambitions as it doubles down on AI and smart glasses production.

Meanwhile, Meta and hardware partner EssilorLuxottica are reportedly upping their target for smart glasses production from 10 million to 20+ million units by the end of this year.

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Scott Hayden
Well before the first modern XR products hit the market, Scott recognized the potential of the technology and set out to understand and document its growth. He has been professionally reporting on the space for nearly a decade as Editor at Road to VR, authoring more than 4,000 articles on the topic. Scott brings that seasoned insight to his reporting from major industry events across the globe.
  • Dragon Marble

    Not surprising after the other closures. Meta has now turned into Valve and Sony, leaving their platform to the indies. I am sure those two are not happy because they must have hoped to ride the wave of Meta investments.

    This is bad for everyone. There is no silver lining. I hear some argue that VR market may "reset and get healthier". No. Stop watering your lawn during dry weather will not somehow spur long-term growth. You personal finance my be healthier, not your lawn.

    Meta's pullback in gaming investments is not the end of VR, but it will not lead to a "more competitive industry". I expect even less competition in the future.

    Those who celebrate Quest's demise is not grasping what is really happening. Quest is fine. It's just drifting further toward Gorilla Tag — which hit new user records the same day the AAA studios closed.