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Echo VR shutdown

128ajb
Explorer
To whoever it may concern, 
 
I am deeply saddened by the news that EchoVR will be closing its doors on 1st August 2023. The Echo community is huge, established and it will be a great loss to many of us should the game disappear entirely. This is why I write to you today, to show that there is still demand for the game and I hope that you will reconsider your approach to close down the servers for Echo VR on the due date. 
 
We do not need much, or for the game to continue to be developed, simply the request to keep the servers open so that we can continue to enjoy and play this game with the friends we have made and the teams we have formed over the years since the game was released. 
 
If it is a matter of cost, I am willing to offer, along with many others, monetary contribution to upkeep the servers. A small subscription fee each month should be enough to keep your servers open and I hope you will read and consider this proposal.
 
The community is huge, still growing, and it would be a shame to cut its potential short. There are community members holding tournaments, finding funding for LAN events and all this hard work will be lost the moment you shut down the servers for this game. Some of us play it daily, for exercise, with friends and for mental health and all this will also be lost. 
 
There is no good reason to cut the life of the game short just because you are putting resources into another game. I am not asking much of you, simply to honour the community that has dedicated so much of their time, energy and sweat into what I believe to be one of the best e-sports in the VR world today. 
I hope this message finds the relevant people with power to overturn the decision in August.
 
I would like to stress the importance of Echo VR to our community and I sincerely hope that you / Meta, reconsiders the decision to shut down the servers on the 1st August 2023.
196 REPLIES 196

Mach_Sin1
Honored Guest
I am deeply saddened by the news that EchoVR will be closing its doors on 1st August 2023. The Echo community is huge, established and it will be a great loss to many of us should the game disappear entirely. This is why I write to you today, to show that there is still demand for the game and I hope that you will reconsider your approach to close down the servers for Echo VR on the due date.
 
We do not need much, or for the game to continue to be developed, simply the request to keep the servers open so that we can continue to enjoy and play this game with the friends we have made and the teams we have formed over the years since the game was released.
 
If it is a matter of cost, I am willing to offer, along with many others, monetary contribution to upkeep the servers. A small subscription fee each month should be enough to keep your servers open and I hope you will read and consider this proposal.
 
The community is huge, still growing, and it would be a shame to cut its potential short. There are community members holding tournaments, finding funding for LAN events and all this hard work will be lost the moment you shut down the servers for this game. Some of us play it daily, for exercise, with friends and for mental health and all this will also be lost.
 
There is no good reason to cut the life of the game short just because you are putting resources into another game. I am not asking much of you, simply to honour the community that has dedicated so much of their time, energy and sweat into what I believe to be one of the best e-sports in the VR world today.
 
I hope this message finds the relevant people with power to overturn the decision in August.
 

I would like to stress the importance of Echo VR to our community and I sincerely hope that you / RAD, reconsiders the decision to shut down the servers on the 1st August 2023.

 

DoomBlossom
Honored Guest

I am part of the OG community from the Beta days of Echo (Arena) VR when you could 11.5 off your teammate by bouncing off them and win a joust, before the rule changes and the Meta buyout. I can attest to the power of this software to foster and create community. Community should be the basis for the metaverse, and yet, ironically, Meta is blowing up a foundational IP that if it had been emulated, could have propelled the metaverse forward. 

It seems, from the outside, that Meta is a profound dysfunctional mess. Carmack seemed to confirm this in his farewell letter and this decision seems to be further proof. If this isn’t the case, step up. Meta sits on so much potential and if they were wise, they could build a better future for VR. 

Please listen to us. We are the base. If we scatter, you lose our big time. 

thrice801
Honored Guest

Echo VR is the ONE, and only game, that has ever felt like playing an actual sport. Saying you’re shutting it down is like I'm being told, you can never play basketball again. It’s also, hands down, the closest thing you have to the ill defined “meta verse” you have in VR, no other game even compares to the sense of immersion the game provides. 

 

I have made countless good friends because of this game, many who have helped me get through difficult times, many I’ve met IRL. Many who ONLY STILL HAVE A QUEST TO PLAY ECHO, MYSELF INCLUDED. I’ve heard so many people say they wouldn’t have made it through the pandemic without echo. Shutting it down would be a huge mistake.

 

Please consider one of 3 options.

1. Open sourcing and letting the community run the servers. There’s plenty of talented programmers in the community, so even if the argument is “but the client needs updates because Oculus pushes breaking changes all the time”, we could continue to maintain it.

2. Charge a subscription fee. YOU’D BE SURPRISED HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL BE WILLING TO PAY MONTHLY TO CONTINUE PLAYING THIS GAME. I can assure you it would EASILY pay for the server costs/developer salaries. Please at the very least try it and see how many people choose to subscribe. We're not asking for any sort of updates, just that it continues running. It should not take much developer power to do so.

3. Do a yearly kickstarter. You ask for a target number that you deem necessary for echo to continue running for a year, I guarantee you it will be funded.

CuddlingPenguin
Honored Guest

I've just recently been able to enjoy Echo Arena, this game is ground breaking. I've lost weight playing this game, it means the world to me. This game alone has made me consider getting a room dedicated to VR with when I buy a house. I've always known the best way for me to lose weight would be to play a competitive sport everyday. This game makes me love being active, I know it's not the best fitness app, but I want to enjoy being active and I finally found a game that I can play after work everyday, that I LOVE, it's changed my life. If there is no other solution I would happily pay a monthly subscription or to buy the game for $45. I would pay any amount to keep this game in my life.

DoobieWan420
Honored Guest

Besides the fact that it's literally the best gaming experience of all time... besides the fact that it was a flagship game experience in VR... besides the fact that it breaks every gaming barrier and stereotype... besides the fact that it has grown in popularity and become a VR phenomenon... besides the fact that there is NOTHING like this anywhere in VR or otherwise... besides the fact that is the first truly physical and legitimate eSport...

All of those facts aside: Echo VR is a community that you created, and you are now destroying.  As a company, you claim to want to promote the Metaverse, this abstract concept that has many iterations (from Horizon Worlds and VRChat to NFT cities), but you are taking away one of the few ORGANIC places where the Metaverse has grown and flourished.  

Over 10K signatures on the change.org position in a single day should tell you all you need to know about this community.  We are passionate, we are dedicated, and we feel EXTREMELY slighted by the news that you will be shutting down this game. Echo VR is an experience that got many people, like me, through this pandemic.  Friendships that may have lasted a lifetime, may now fade away (along with a dedicated consumer base) because of the carelessness of how this community is being treated.  That is sad and wrong, and will have lasting affects on how your customers view you.

There are few experiences in my life that I would fight for the way I want to fight for Echo VR.  And I KNOW that all my teammates, Echo cohorts, and metaverse friends (most of whom I've never met in real life) feel the exact same way.  

While I understand the need to grow and work on new projects, you also need to take the things that exemplify what you are capable of... and LEAN INTO THAT!  Instead, you are forsaking it with little (or no) explanation.  I wish I had faith in you as a company to follow Echo with something better, but your track record (especially in gaming) is not great.  If this were Nintendo, I would be on board because they have proven that they can create hit after hit.  Every Zelda and Mario game will compete with its predecessor.  And also, none of those games ever truly disappear.  

Echo VR is groundbreaking.  It creates community.  It pushes VR to its limits.  These are all things your company claims to promote, yet you leave your following in the darkest of dark places.  

At the very least, tell your community what it can do to keep its game alive, rather than making a unilateral unpopular decision that risks your entire reputation.  The people who defend Meta as a forward thinking, VR focused, next-level company WERE people like me.  We may not be around very long if this is how Meta gaming will be in the future.

Sincerely,

A very disappointed customer

Illuminati_confirmed
Honored Guest
 

Z0diacL0rd-
Honored Guest

facts dude its such a short lived game with so much potential if they could see that it would be huge for them and not just "one of the biggest" sadly i dont see em changing their mind and been biggoted ab it 

I just bought a membership for supernatural, this alone has made a yearof change for me tolerable.  I lost my Dad in 2021, my journey back to normal included,  taking better care of myself,  for the price of a gym membership, I get to work out at home and enjoy it. Another change,  moving across the country,  another change a total career 180 from at home customer service to on-site manufacturing.  Being a part of meta community I have been able to game with friends,  stay in touch, over the distance and be fit in my new Career which is far more physical than I expected.  If this were to disappear it would make me feel a great sense of loss for the community and the investment I made in it a year ago... 

SaladSlayer1201
Honored Guest

I hope to god that the new project that their making it an improved version of echo for free, otherwise I’m boycotting the company entirely. It’s the only reason I have a vr atm and I don’t think I’ll play much vr without echo

Mosselkots
Honored Guest

best VR game ever. with a great community.

Killing it would be madness!

Jelle.