Why was Minecraft removed from Oculus store?
The Short Answer
Minecraft was likely removed from the Oculus store due to the cancellation of VR support plans directly following Facebook‘s acquisition of Oculus. When the 2014 acquisition was announced, Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson tweeted that "Facebook creeps me out" and he halted ongoing discussions to bring an official VR version of the game to Oculus devices. This reaction and decision appears to have kicked off the removal of Minecraft from the Oculus store and its lack of VR optimization for Oculus headsets still today.
Acquisition Aftershocks – Notch Cancels Oculus Plans
Notch‘s strong negative reaction stemmed from concerns over Facebook‘s handling of user data and privacy controls. As an indie developer himself, he likely heavily valued his independence from large corporate interests as well. This acquiring of Oculus – a leader in VR gaming innovation – by the social media giant did not sit well.
While growth opportunities and resource access for Oculus as part of Meta could be significant, the community backlash was immediate. Beyond Notch cancelling VR development priorities for Oculus, many VR enthusiasts and gamers echoed a sense of resentment towards the acquisition online across social media and gaming forums.
However, for Mojang and Microsoft, priorities clearly shifted…
The Microsoft Acquisition of Mojang
In September of 2014, only a few months after the Oculus deal, Microsoft announced intentions to acquire Mojang and the intellectual property rights for Minecraft. The deal closed for $2.5 billion marking another major acquisition in the gaming industry landscape.
And with Microsoft‘s Windows Mixed Reality platforms among its other hardware initiatives, bringing Minecraft officially to those headsets and storefronts became the more obvious priority.
Official Minecraft VR Support
Fast forward to today in 2024, and Minecraft does maintain official VR ports for Windows-based VR headsets like Windows Mixed Reality. Support comes integrated for cross-platform play even with pancake Minecraft on PC and consoles.
However, Oculus Quest devices still lack that formal optimization and distribution partnership. The reasons largely tie back to Notch‘s reaction ending those initial discussions followed by Microsoft‘s siloed focus on supporting their own ecosystem.
But with Meta still dominating market share in the VR space, it begs the question – just how are Quest users accessing Minecraft VR at all?
Unofficial Methods – Making Minecraft Work on Oculus
Despite not having a native title right in the Oculus Store, development teams have successfully brought Minecraft support to Meta‘s standalone VR headsets. This has opened up Minecraft VR gameplay using motion controls on accessible hardware without the high cost of a VR ready gaming PC.
Methods do require initial sideloading applications outside the Oculus Store system functionality. And titles stay in ongoing development with periodic bug fixing and updates needed. But with enough technical savviness, Minecraft on Oculus Quest provides another quality VR gaming option.
| Method | Minecraft Version | Major Pros | Major Cons |
| QuestCraft | Java Edition port | – Full feature support – Mod compatibility | – Sideloading required – Performance limitations |
| Bedrock / Windows 10 Stream | Bedrock Edition | – Smoother performance | – Less community mods |
The Quest for Oculus Store Adoption
As calls from Quest modders and the VR community grow to #BringMinecraftToQuest, there is renewed pressure on all stakeholders from Microsoft to Meta to cut a deal. However, with persisting bad blood from past acquisitions and relationships, negotiations may continue stalling.
Yet their shared innovation around all things metaverse could position Minecraft as an olive branch between parties. And further more, Meta‘s underwhelming avatar and world-building tools still seriously lag dedicated Minecraft capabilities.
Perhaps Notch‘s original grudge thaws in coming years if industry trajectories align. For now, Quest users eagerly await potential changes in status of this blocky phenomenon.
Final Thoughts
Minecraft availability for various VR headsets remains a complex situation tied to business relationships and technology partnerships. Yet the evident demand shows gamers and an entire generation eager to explore this creative sandbox world in virtual reality.
Both Microsoft and Meta would benefit significantly from collaborating here – as the hardware capabilities and content libraries deepen, so will the drive towards true metaverse adoption. An official Minecraft VR port would be an obvious win.
Yet for other modders and indie developers, Notch‘s ethos likely still inspires mixed feelings on big acquisitions like this. But with both Facebook and Microsoft shaping the future of XR technologies, perhaps pragmatic progress wins out.
I know as a gamer and creator myself, the allure of those VR vistas braces many for the obstacles still ahead. We eagerly await the day those blocky horizons open virtual worlds to all!
