nDreams, the innovative team behind the free-to-play arena shooter FRENZIES, has announced that the game will officially exit early access later this year. However, contrary to previous plans, it will not be launching on the PSVR 2.
Addressing eager fans, the studio shared an update: “We’re thrilled to let you know that FRENZIES will remain free-to-play once it leaves Early Access later this year! Since we debuted in Early Access on Meta Quest, we’ve received amazing feedback from players who are really enjoying FRENZIES’ unique, chaotic charm. Our priority is to build on this momentum as we transition out of Early Access.
To ensure the best possible experience, we’ve chosen to focus exclusively on the Meta Quest release for now, which means FRENZIES won’t be coming to PSVR 2. We understand this might disappoint some who were eagerly awaiting the PSVR 2 launch, but rest assured, we have some thrilling announcements lined up for PSVR 2 fans soon!
Stay tuned for more updates in the coming weeks as we unveil our Early Access roadmap.”
Initially released in early access for Quest 2 and later models back in October 2024, FRENZIES offers heart-pounding arena shooting paired with a variety of classic weapons and game modes, all tailored into an impressively robust VR-native gameplay experience.
For those who were anticipating the PSVR 2 version, this news might be a bit of a letdown. However, from the developers’ standpoint, this strategic decision seems to be pretty sensible.
Over the past year, the Quest platform has gained traction, especially among younger audiences, further boosted by the introduction of the $300 Quest 3S. This shift has, in turn, increased demand for free-to-play content on the platform.
In February, Samantha Ryan, Meta’s VP of Metaverse Content, noted, “We foresee free-to-play (F2P) emerging as a robust strategy for developers. Historically, many have depended predominantly on premium apps, but we believe F2P won’t entirely replace premium apps. Instead, both models will coexist.”
Developers also have to navigate a challenging economic landscape. It’s likely nDreams wants to focus its energies on the more extensive Quest player base to maximize returns. Recently, the UK-based studio consolidated its operations by merging nDreams Studio Orbital and nDreams Studio into a new internal division called ‘Compass’ following some layoffs.
Nevertheless, nDreams stands as one of the veteran XR game studios with an impressive catalog of top-tier VR titles such as Vendetta Forever, Power Wash Simulator VR, Ghostbusters: Rise of the Ghost Lord, Synapse, Fracked, Little Cities, and Phantom: Cover Ops, among others.