Leaked Quest Theater Environment Hints Meta’s Move Toward Social VR Platform ‘Bigscreen’

Dang, Meta’s at it again with their virtual concoctions! Remember back in January when they were all like, “We’re totally building this awesome home theater thing for Horizon OS?” Now, word on the street—or rather, from the depths of the internet—is there’s some leaked prototype floating around. Frankly, it’s starting to look an awful lot like Bigscreen. You know, that other VR app where you can pretend you’re in a movie theater with your buddies?

Ah, Meta. Always trying, but never quite sticking the landing. I mean, they’ve tried this theater thing before—so many bits and bobs, but nothing’s really glued. So, there was this big news drop from Mark Rabkin (he was sorta the big cheese around Horizon OS and Quest) about how his team’s been tinkering with immersive cinema-type stuff. Lights, effects, all that jazz. Hum, was this back in the spring or earlier? My memory’s a sieve sometimes.

Anyway—or was I supposed to say “but”—along comes ‘lukegotbored’ on X. They heckled out this sneaky theater environment, claiming it’s still a “work in progress.” Wonder if Meta’s poaching features from Bigscreen. I mean, you’ll get to invite your pals and all. Luna, another one with her finger on Meta’s pulse, chirps it might pop up in Horizon’s next update. Imagine flipping seats in a sci-fi auditorium (sounds cooler than it probably is) and watching a bit of Hot Ones. Spicy wings in VR? Someone pinch me.

But here’s the kicker: Meta’s notorious for playing catch-up. Like that drama with Virtual Desktop—they pretty much sneaked its features into their own software. Stopped Wireless streaming from hitting Quest, then spun around and launched Air Link like it was their brilliant idea all along. Classic, right?

Looking at it, though, scaling up that social streaming from Bigscreen could be Meta’s big ol’ headache. I bet licensing is like a minefield of legal shenanigans. Bigscreen lets people stream their Pluto TV sprees and even mirror content. Meta doing that might be a stretch—a big one.

Bigscreen’s kinda cheeky too, skirting some rules by putting the legal stuff on users. No moderators snooping about like in Horizon Worlds—users do their thing, mostly unchecked. Could Meta handle that sorta wild party? Doubt it.

Man, I ramble. The real clincher is if Meta can make this theater gig keep people glued. No extra downloads, just hop into Horizon Worlds for movie night. Be way easier, and honestly, I’d stick around. Stay tuned for Connect 2025; Meta might finally spill the beans then. But who knows? This ride’s just getting started.