Rec Room, the popular social VR platform, is set to take its next big step outside of VR by offering a version of the app for iPhone and iPad.

Against Gravity’s Head of Community Shawn Whiting says it should be available in the App Store soon, and that the studio is currently undergoing internal testing.

Beta invites are due out sometime this month; Whiting maintains that depending on how the beta test goes, it should land on the App Store shortly afterwards. You can sign up for iOS beta testing here.

“It’s kind of mind blowing the first few times you play it on a phone,” Whiting explains. “You’re so used to Rec Room being this giant network of rooms and games that it feels crazy to be able to visit it on something that fits in your pocket. But then you get use to being able to just get a text from a friend and hop right in no matter where you are and it’s a really powerful feeling.”

Continuing: “Players kept telling us they wanted to hang out with their friends who didn’t have a headset. Last year we took that feedback and launched screen mode, allowing anyone on a PS4 or PC to play Rec Room along with our VR players. We’ve seen really great growth and creativity in the community on screens and we’re looking forward to seeing how that plays out again on mobile.”

The studio hasn’t mentioned when Rec Room will be headed to Android devices, however Whiting notes that the three most requested platforms by far were iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch.

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However you slice it, the upcoming support for mobile devices is no doubt a byproduct of Against Gravity working to optimize Rec Room for Oculus Quest, which launched just yesterday. In that light, it’s possible other Quest-optimized social VR platforms could follow suit in order to capture yet more concurrent users.

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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.
  • Firestorm185

    they will never survive in paintball. But let them come. We will be waiting. >:3

    • jj

      ill be waiting on my quest on my bed most likely without pants on, but let them come!

  • Arcticu Kitsu

    Was expecting to hear an Oculus Quest type announcement, not an iphone & ipad related announcement. I guess this works.

    • Jerald Doerr

      Yeah…. Got to admit I’m a little butt hurt there’s no Android version….

      • Shawn Whiting

        We want to get to Android too! Lots of us in the office with Android phones

  • PJ

    The more player the better, Rec Room is amazing

  • Justos

    Am i an asshole for wanting a ‘VR Players only’ toggle?. Some games i just want to play against VR users :/

    • L

      Not really. Playing with a controller or keyboard and mouse versus physical aiming and turning and movement has different advantages and disadvantages in a design sense. Not really a bad thing to want.