Why Avatar-Based Social Gaming App Rec Room Doesn’t Consider itself a ‘Metaverse’ Company – GeekWire

Nearly two years after officially achieving ‘unicorn’ status, Seattle startup Rec Room continues to grow the audience for its eponymous flagship app recording roomnew physical gift card, virtual haunted house, branded crossover with Mattel Masters of the Universeand perhaps most importantly, the potential of the legs.

free recording room The app is currently available in 2D on PC, Xbox, PlayStation, iOS, and Android, and in VR on the Meta Quest store. recording room Users can create, customize and dress up a simple avatar. Then, using those avatars, he travels to one of millions of player-created “rooms” where he can play games, create custom his experiences, and interact with other users. You can interact with

In the course of the 2020 pandemic lockdown, recording room‘s player population grew rapidly, with users creating in-app “rooms” for events such as socially distanced birthday parties, school classes, and therapy sessions. The company then rode that wave of interest, and by December 2021 he reached a valuation of $3.5 billion.

As of this month, Rec Room is reporting 640% year-over-year growth on mobile, with 29 million active users across all platforms in Q1 2022. that time frame.

Despite positioning itself as a virtual social space, Rec Room does not consider itself a “metaverse” company.

“One of the things we talk about is recording room It’s a place you can go to, not an alternative or alternative to real life,” Mike Schmid, Rec Room’s head of publishing, said in a recent interview with GeekWire.

“We don’t use the word ‘metaverse.’ We don’t talk about ourselves in the creepy way that other experiences do. We just complement real life.”

The app also allows users to create and monetize in-app content, such as unique outfits for their avatars that other users can obtain for real money. In the first quarter of 2022, Rec Room paid these creators his $1 million and recently announced a series of physical gift cards that can be redeemed at Walmart stores nationwide.

In a virtual event space, Rec Room held its third annual “Rec Con” in September, attracting over 400,000 users and promoting the upcoming Rec Room Studio app. Based on Unity, this feature set aims to speed up and simplify the process of creating ‘rooms’ and open up possibilities for collaboration on individual projects.

On December 13th, Rec Room announced a deal with Mattel. Masters of the Universe to franchise recording room From December 15th to January 15th, Motu40th anniversary.

A photo booth and pop-up shop have been added to the in-app Rec Center. recording room Users dressing up as He-Man, Skeletor, and Teela. The three pieces that make up each costume, as well as another accessory made to resemble He-Man’s Power Sword, will be available for purchase until March 31st.

“We’re really at the point where we’re like, ‘Let’s try something with a few partners and see who we can spend more time with,'” says Schmid. “When you look at other people in our space, physical goods and toys really matter.”

Schmid adds: recording room Two years later. ”

“We want to start building those relationships…we want to build the physical version. recording room in the truest sense recording room, building and creating is a big part of it. There are currently no concrete plans. ”

The possibility of moving into the toy space is part of the motivation behind options currently being developed to change the signature look. recording roomA player avatar of , known internally as Beans. These avatars now have a unique rounded appearance and no arms, necks or legs.

Over the next year, Rec Room will be experimenting with ways to change avatars and add more personalization options. It’s currently in what Rec Room calls “Ready, Fire, Aim” phase, and we may see the first tweaks to the app by the end of Q1 2023.

These tweaks could include some or all of the now missing limbs. recording roomavatar. It seems that the demand for legs is particularly high. recording room A content creator launching a new line of fashionable virtual shoes.

“I really like how the avatars are stylized and feel like they’re in the game space,” says Schmid. “How can we give them that option without completely destroying their brand identity? That’s really important to us.”

Next year, Rec Room plans to explore more brand partnerships, especially with local businesses in Seattle.This may include music, apparel, or other video games, plus official “game-adjacent” content recording room such as trivia night.