As the metaverse dream fades, where now for virtual reality?

by Kate Dimbleby | April 2026

Cast your minds back to 2021. A year and a half into the global pandemic, social distancing has forced the world to seek connection in digital and virtual spaces.

Against this backdrop, Zuckerberg confidently revealed his new vision for his network of social networks. The promised land was the metaverse – a shared VR space that heralded a vision of the future. No need for physical connection when you can fly around a vibrant cyberworld.

In the wake of Meta’s new direction, marketing departments rushed to be the first to establish their own presence in this new frontier. Those with lavish budgets created digital showrooms, branded games and virtual stores. Shared VR spaces like Horizon Worlds and Rec Room attracted widespread curiosity and irrational investment as they waited for the mass migration.

Fast-forward less than five years, and it appears that the metaverse, as it was originally envisioned, has faded. Rec Room is set to disappear on June 1st after being unable to monetise its (not small) following. Horizon Worlds almost shut down before being saved at the last minute.

This indicates that the decade-long era of VR gaming is transitioning to the next phase.

From a positive angle, this could signal the moment that VR can begin to be actually useful. To quote Gartner’s hype cycle, we’re moving between the current ‘trough of disillusionment’ into the ‘slope of enlightenment’.

While there is a current trend for immersive entertainment, Virtual Reality is primarily used for upskilling and training at work. Simulations, scenarios and soft skill training are where it really shines and adds sustainable value, particularly in DIRE situations (an acronym adapted by my co-founder Ru Howe) – Dangerous, Impossible, Remote or Expensive.

At Stornaway, an increase in immersive 360 video and VR training projects suggests there is still a place for it in the market. And as VR creative tools become more powerful and accessible, their space in the learning and training sector looks set to expand.

Combine that with the understanding that headsets are not for everyone and the arrival of smart glasses, I think we will also see a shift to mixed reality opportunities – where learners get to choose whether they want to view the same experience in VR or on the web, where VR, AR and the web are used together and the viewer gets more choice as to how they interact.

Combine that with the understanding that headsets are not for everyone and the arrival of smart glasses, I think we will also see a shift to mixed reality opportunities – where learners get to choose whether they want to view the same experience in VR or on the web, where VR, AR and the web are used together and the viewer gets more choice as to how they interact.