The Future Of Rec Room: An Upsetting Update

Hey everybody, it’s UnderMyCap. I hope you’re all having an awesome day. This is a little bit of a different video because, if you haven’t heard, Rec Room has unfortunately had to lay off 50% of their staff recently. Well, as of today, which is nuts. When I first started playing Rec Room, which was probably about a year ago now, I decided I was going to take a massive risk and start making VR content on my channel. I’ve been making Minecraft content for, I don’t know, since I first started the channel—such a long time. Just having the idea to switch up the content and jump into a game that was kind of going downhill at the time seemed absolutely crazy. And to be honest, in the time I’ve been playing this game, it has been so cool. There are so many creative people, and it has really changed the way I think about content and engaging with the community. The fact that this game provides such powerful tools to create whatever you want, wherever you are, is just mind-blowing. When I first saw this game, I thought, “This is such a cool idea. I have to share it with everyone.” Unfortunately, over time, because of how markets operate and how the VR and AR industry is not taking off as quickly as people expected, there’s now a problem. Many VR companies and startups are really struggling. We can see that through Rec Room—they initially cut 16% of their staff, and now they’ve had to cut another 50%. That’s insane. It’s really hard for me, and I’m sure it’s hard for everyone. I don’t want to make this about me; I want it to be about everyone. It’s tough for everyone to see this amazing game, which is quite unique and unprecedented, and watch much of its infrastructure just disappear. If you don’t play this game, that’s completely fine, but if you’re not aware, there was a huge creative community run by some staff members. There were video-partnered staff who used various programs they developed to encourage more people to create content online. There’s so much in this amazing game, and much of it is now gone due to restructuring within Rec Room. Now, there are two ways I think this can play out for Rec Room. One, they’re not making enough profit. As I mentioned earlier, the VR and AR market isn’t developing as expected, so they’ve had to cut staff in an attempt to keep the game afloat. Or, the second reason—which I hope is the case—is that some external company or factor is trying to take control of the game and help provide financial support to keep it thriving and surviving. They might see this as an opportunity to improve the game. But it’s really difficult right now because I’ve invested so much into this game. I don’t quite know what I’m going to do going forward. I love Minecraft and want to get back into it, but it’s hard to return to a game I loved when there’s such an awesome game like Rec Room that more people should know about and be building in. It’s really difficult for me. I want to get back into Minecraft and other platforms, but I think I might have to stop creating Rec Room content, which is really upsetting. If the game continues to decline and isn’t gaining traction, then no one will watch the videos, and I love making them. But if no one’s watching and it’s not helping people be creative, then I see no point in continuing. What I love about making tutorials—whether for Minecraft or Rec Room—is seeing how people comment and how they’ve used those tutorials to be more creative. In Minecraft, you can develop your own maps and worlds. For Rec Room, I’ve made tutorials to help more people create in VR. Although I also admit, I’ve been doing silly videos, and honestly, they haven’t been very good. So, my plan for the channel is that I will probably have to cut back on Rec Room content, and maybe even stop making those videos altogether. I’ll focus more on Minecraft again. I know many Minecraft fans will be happy about that, and I’m happy too. But I also want to find a new platform to be able to create on. I’m considering trying Meta Horizons, because that platform seems to have a lot of funding—since Meta is very rich—and might be able to support its development and growth. My hope for the future is that Rec Room recovers. I hope they’re able to provide new tools to creators to keep creating. I also hope everyone impacted by the layoffs finds new jobs, and I wish the best opportunities come to all the staff members who were let go. I know how much hard work they’ve put into making this game great. Even though I haven’t met all of you, I wish you the best. Thank you for making this game great over the past year. Thank you for helping this platform grow and for allowing more people around the world to be creative. Again, I hope all of you have the best of luck in the future. You all do amazing work. This is UnderMyCap signing out. I hope you all have an incredible day. That’s just what I wanted to say. Stay awesome, everyone.