<s>
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
(	O
formerly	O
Facebook	B-Protocol
Horizon	I-Protocol
)	O
is	O
a	O
free	O
virtual	B-Application
reality	I-Application
,	O
online	B-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
with	O
an	O
integrated	O
game	B-Application
creation	I-Application
system	I-Application
developed	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
Meta	O
Platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
works	O
on	O
Oculus	B-Device
Rift	I-Device
S	I-Device
and	O
Meta	B-General_Concept
Quest	I-General_Concept
2	I-General_Concept
headsets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2022	O
,	O
Meta	O
reported	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
had	O
an	O
estimated	O
300,000	O
users	O
;	O
yet	O
,	O
by	O
October	O
2022	O
,	O
The	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
was	O
reporting	O
less	O
than	O
200,000	O
monthly	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
has	O
received	O
mixed	O
reviews	O
,	O
with	O
critics	O
citing	O
bugs	O
and	O
an	O
unenjoyable	O
environment	O
that	O
degrades	O
the	O
user	O
experience	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
may	O
be	O
played	O
with	O
an	O
Oculus	B-Device
Rift	I-Device
S	I-Device
or	O
Meta	B-General_Concept
Quest	I-General_Concept
2	I-General_Concept
virtual	B-Device
reality	I-Device
headset	I-Device
and	O
uses	O
full	O
3D	O
motion	O
via	O
the	O
motion	B-Application
capture	I-Application
system	O
of	O
the	O
headset	O
and	O
two	O
hand-held	O
motion	B-Device
controllers	I-Device
,	O
which	O
are	O
required	O
to	O
interact	O
with	O
objects	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Players	O
can	O
explore	O
the	O
space	O
around	O
them	O
within	O
the	O
confines	O
of	O
their	O
physical	O
floor-space	O
,	O
while	O
roaming	O
further	O
by	O
using	O
controller	O
buttons	O
to	O
teleport	O
a	O
short	O
distance	O
or	O
to	O
move	O
continuously	O
through	O
the	O
virtual	B-Application
space	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
integrated	O
game	B-Application
creation	I-Application
system	I-Application
allows	O
users	O
to	O
create	O
new	O
worlds	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Part	O
of	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
is	O
a	O
world	O
named	O
Venues	O
which	O
is	O
used	O
for	O
live	O
events	O
such	O
as	O
concerts	O
or	O
sports	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Users	O
with	O
a	O
UFC	O
Fight	O
Pass	O
will	O
be	O
able	O
to	O
watch	O
live	O
and	O
on-demand	O
events	O
on	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
UFC	O
debuted	O
the	O
live	O
,	O
virtual	B-Application
reality	I-Application
events	O
on	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
with	O
LFA	O
144	O
on	O
October	O
14	O
,	O
2022	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
will	O
stream	O
live	O
music	O
events	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
its	O
partnership	O
with	O
Tidal	B-Application
,	O
as	O
announced	O
by	O
Meta	O
on	O
October	O
25	O
,	O
2022	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
platform	O
will	O
stream	O
a	O
live	O
concert	O
series	O
featuring	O
artists	O
who	O
are	O
part	O
of	O
Tidal	B-Application
's	O
emerging	O
artist	O
platform	O
called	O
Tidal	B-Application
Rising	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
January	O
23	O
,	O
2023	O
,	O
Meta	O
announced	O
an	O
extended	O
partnership	O
with	O
NBA	B-Application
which	O
allows	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
users	O
to	O
watch	O
NBA	B-Application
games	O
for	O
free	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
also	O
added	O
a	O
dedicated	O
NBA	B-Application
Arena	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
development	O
of	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
(	O
formerly	O
called	O
Facebook	B-Protocol
Horizon	I-Protocol
)	O
followed	O
earlier	O
social	O
VR	O
apps	O
by	O
Facebook	B-Application
(	O
Oculus	B-Application
Rooms	O
,	O
Oculus	B-Application
Venues	O
,	O
and	O
Facebook	B-Application
Spaces	O
)	O
and	O
focused	O
more	O
on	O
user-generated	O
content	O
than	O
these	O
earlier	O
apps	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Facebook	B-Application
announced	O
Facebook	B-Protocol
Horizon	I-Protocol
as	O
a	O
new	O
social	O
virtual	O
world	O
at	O
the	O
Oculus	B-Application
Connect	O
6	O
conference	O
in	O
September	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2020	O
,	O
Facebook	B-Application
announced	O
that	O
more	O
users	O
will	O
receive	O
access	O
to	O
an	O
invite-only	O
beta	O
phase	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
an	O
interview	O
with	O
Scott	O
Stein	O
in	O
January	O
2021	O
,	O
Facebook	B-Application
Reality	I-Application
Labs	I-Application
head	O
Andrew	O
Bosworth	O
conceded	O
that	O
the	O
experiences	O
in	O
Facebook	B-Protocol
Horizon	I-Protocol
are	O
not	O
ready	O
for	O
the	O
public	O
and	O
expressed	O
concern	O
that	O
"[i]f	O
you	O
do	O
n't	O
have	O
…	O
something	O
driving	O
a	O
lot	O
of	O
people	O
to	O
the	O
place	O
,	O
then	O
you	O
run	O
the	O
risk	O
they	O
're	O
not	O
going	O
to	O
get	O
it.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
August	O
2021	O
,	O
Facebook	B-Application
released	O
the	O
open	O
beta	O
of	O
Horizon	O
Workrooms	O
,	O
a	O
collaboration	O
app	O
targeted	O
at	O
teams	O
managing	O
remote-work	O
environments	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
7	O
October	O
2021	O
Facebook	B-Application
changed	O
the	O
name	O
Facebook	B-Protocol
Horizon	I-Protocol
to	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2022	O
,	O
Mark	O
Zuckerberg	O
stated	O
that	O
a	O
mobile	O
phone	O
version	O
of	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
would	O
launch	O
later	O
in	O
2022	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
has	O
also	O
announced	O
plans	O
for	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
to	O
expand	O
to	O
the	O
web	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
March	O
2022	O
,	O
Meta	O
announced	O
“	O
Builder	O
Tracks	O
for	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
”	O
,	O
a	O
developer	O
program	O
for	O
game	O
development	O
inside	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meta	O
has	O
pledged	O
$	O
500,000	O
to	O
fund	O
the	O
program	O
,	O
including	O
cash	O
prizes	O
,	O
a	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
bootcamp	O
,	O
and	O
support	O
from	O
Meta	O
developers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
April	O
2022	O
,	O
Meta	O
started	O
testing	O
monetization	O
in	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
in	O
the	O
form	O
of	O
in-app	O
purchases	O
,	O
where	O
a	O
few	O
select	O
creators	O
began	O
selling	O
virtual	O
items	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
clothing	O
,	O
to	O
players	O
18	O
years	O
and	O
older	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meta	O
also	O
started	O
testing	O
the	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
Creator	O
Bonus	O
program	O
where	O
creators	O
are	O
paid	O
monthly	O
bonuses	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
was	O
first	O
announced	O
in	O
2019	O
under	O
the	O
name	O
Facebook	B-Protocol
Horizon	I-Protocol
,	O
Josh	O
writing	O
for	O
TechCrunch	O
compared	O
it	O
to	O
other	O
social	O
virtual	O
worlds	O
such	O
as	O
Second	B-Application
Life	I-Application
,	O
The	B-Application
Sims	I-Application
,	O
AltspaceVR	O
,	O
Dreams	O
,	O
Roblox	B-Protocol
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
the	O
fictional	O
"	O
OASIS	O
"	O
described	O
in	O
the	O
novel	O
Ready	O
Player	O
One	O
,	O
while	O
Sam	O
Machkovech	O
writing	O
for	O
Ars	O
Technica	O
emphasised	O
similarities	O
to	O
Rec	B-Application
Room	I-Application
and	O
VRChat	B-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Machkovech	O
noted	O
a	O
key	O
difference	O
to	O
other	O
social	O
virtual	O
worlds	O
in	O
Facebook	B-Application
's	O
plan	O
to	O
let	O
employees	O
welcome	O
new	O
users	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Scott	O
Stein	O
writing	O
for	O
CNET	O
agreed	O
that	O
"[m]aybe	O
Horizon	O
is	O
better	O
than	O
whatever	O
Oculus	B-Application
had	O
before	O
"	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
he	O
also	O
observed	O
that	O
"	O
there	O
are	O
a	O
lot	O
of	O
social	O
VR	O
questions	O
Horizon	O
leaves	O
unanswered	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
David	O
H	O
.	O
Freedman	O
writing	O
for	O
Newsweek	O
tried	O
to	O
answer	O
some	O
of	O
these	O
questions	O
by	O
predicting	O
that	O
Facebook	B-Application
's	O
knowledge	O
about	O
users	O
 '	O
online	O
behavior	O
"	O
will	O
explode	O
when	O
someone	O
straps	O
on	O
a	O
Facebook	B-Application
headset	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
prediction	O
is	O
supported	O
by	O
Facebook	B-Application
's	O
public	O
plans	O
to	O
include	O
face	O
and	O
eye	B-General_Concept
tracking	I-General_Concept
in	O
future	O
headsets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Freedman	O
speculated	O
that	O
Facebook	B-Application
could	O
use	O
this	O
knowledge	O
to	O
generate	O
advertising	O
revenue	O
with	O
ads	O
that	O
permeate	O
Facebook	B-Protocol
Horizon	I-Protocol
and	O
"	O
might	O
appear	O
as	O
billboards	O
,	O
signage	O
,	O
skywriting	O
,	O
computer-generated	O
characters	O
hawking	O
goods	O
and	O
services	O
,	O
logos	O
embedded	O
in	O
objects	O
and	O
surfaces	O
,	O
and	O
any	O
other	O
form	O
that	O
can	O
be	O
crammmed	O
into	O
any	O
nook	O
or	O
cranny	O
of	O
fake	O
reality.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Kotaku	O
described	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
as	O
"	O
a	O
strange	O
experience	O
"	O
and	O
that	O
the	O
overall	O
vibe	O
felt	O
"	O
less	O
toxic	O
than	O
 [ they ] 	O
expected	O
,	O
considering	O
how	O
awful	O
Facebook	B-Application
is	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
also	O
called	O
it	O
a	O
"	O
hollow	O
,	O
corporate	O
shell	O
that	O
has	O
more	O
in	O
common	O
with	O
an	O
office	O
than	O
it	O
does	O
a	O
playground	O
,	O
or	O
any	O
other	O
type	O
of	O
social	O
space	O
a	O
human	O
being	O
would	O
willingly	O
want	O
to	O
hang	O
out	O
in.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
TheGamer	O
also	O
described	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
as	O
"	O
less	O
of	O
a	O
virtual	O
utopia	O
,	O
and	O
more	O
of	O
a	O
glitchy	O
,	O
incomplete	O
cluster	O
of	O
experiences	O
"	O
and	O
criticized	O
the	O
current	O
relative	O
lack	O
of	O
safety	O
features	O
and	O
poor	O
management	O
of	O
misinformation	O
and	O
hate	O
speech	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
and	O
described	O
it	O
as	O
a	O
"	O
corporate	O
reality	O
that	O
only	O
investors	O
and	O
venture	O
capitalists	O
are	O
seeking.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2022	O
Meta	O
stated	O
that	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
and	O
Horizon	O
Venues	O
had	O
a	O
total	O
monthly	O
userbase	O
of	O
300,000	O
people	O
,	O
that	O
users	O
had	O
built	O
10,000	O
worlds	O
within	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
,	O
and	O
that	O
its	O
private	O
Facebook	B-Application
group	O
for	O
creators	O
had	O
over	O
20,000	O
members	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
an	O
October	O
2022	O
report	O
,	O
the	O
Wall	O
Street	O
Journal	O
stated	O
that	O
most	O
users	O
of	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
only	O
stay	O
on	O
the	O
platform	O
for	O
a	O
month	O
,	O
ending	O
their	O
interactions	O
with	O
it	O
afterward	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
February	O
2022	O
report	O
by	O
the	O
Washington	O
Post	O
discussed	O
concerns	O
about	O
children	O
using	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
despite	O
the	O
18	O
or	O
older	O
age	O
requirement	O
arguing	O
it	O
could	O
lead	O
to	O
the	O
platform	O
being	O
used	O
by	O
sexual	O
predators	O
for	O
child	O
grooming	O
,	O
while	O
also	O
noting	O
the	O
platform	O
currently	O
lacks	O
parental	O
controls	O
and	O
has	O
been	O
criticized	O
for	O
alleged	O
lax	O
moderation	O
on	O
preventing	O
underaged	O
users	O
from	O
using	O
the	O
platform	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
26	O
November	O
2021	O
,	O
a	O
beta	O
user	O
reported	O
being	O
groped	O
on	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
,	O
and	O
that	O
other	O
users	O
supported	O
the	O
conduct	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
February	O
2022	O
Meta	O
,	O
in	O
response	O
to	O
the	O
incidents	O
,	O
added	O
a	O
"	O
personal	O
boundary	O
"	O
to	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
and	O
Venues	O
which	O
creates	O
an	O
invisible	O
boundary	O
that	O
can	O
prevent	O
users	O
from	O
coming	O
within	O
four	O
feet	O
of	O
other	O
avatars	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
boundary	O
feature	O
is	O
similar	O
to	O
standard	O
features	O
in	O
competing	O
platforms	O
VRChat	B-Protocol
and	O
Rec	B-Application
Room	I-Application
though	O
with	O
options	O
to	O
disable	O
and	O
change	O
the	O
size	O
of	O
the	O
boundary	O
already	O
existing	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Meta	O
announced	O
in	O
October	O
2022	O
that	O
legs	O
would	O
be	O
among	O
the	O
first	O
new	O
updates	O
to	O
the	O
graphics	O
,	O
as	O
characters	O
previously	O
lacked	O
any	O
,	O
however	O
their	O
initial	O
reveal	O
was	O
criticized	O
once	O
it	O
was	O
discovered	O
the	O
models	O
in	O
the	O
reveal	O
were	O
motion	B-Application
capture	I-Application
rather	O
than	O
being	O
in-game	O
footage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
16	O
,	O
2022	O
,	O
Mark	O
Zuckerberg	O
announced	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
in	O
France	O
and	O
Spain	O
on	O
Facebook	B-Application
(	O
also	O
owned	O
by	O
Meta	O
)	O
,	O
with	O
the	O
message	O
"	O
We	O
're	O
launching	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
in	O
France	O
and	O
Spain	O
today	O
!	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
image	O
quickly	O
garnered	O
mockery	O
online	O
,	O
particularly	O
on	O
Twitter	B-Application
where	O
it	O
was	O
criticized	O
for	O
its	O
poor	O
quality	O
graphics	O
in	O
comparison	O
to	O
other	O
video	O
games	O
;	O
among	O
these	O
included	O
comparisons	O
with	O
Second	B-Application
Life	I-Application
(	O
2003	O
)	O
,	O
Twisted	B-Application
Metal	I-Application
2	I-Application
(	O
1996	O
)	O
,	O
Fortnite	B-Application
(	O
2017	O
)	O
,	O
and	O
Miis	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
generally	O
finding	O
the	O
avatar	O
dead-eyed	O
or	O
soulless	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
August	O
19	O
,	O
2022	O
,	O
Mark	O
Zuckerberg	O
responded	O
to	O
the	O
memes	O
on	O
Instagram	B-Application
writing	O
"	O
the	O
photo	O
I	O
posted	O
earlier	O
this	O
week	O
was	O
pretty	O
basic	O
—	O
it	O
was	O
taken	O
very	O
quickly	O
to	O
celebrate	O
at	O
launch	O
"	O
,	O
but	O
reassured	O
players	O
that	O
the	O
graphics	O
of	O
Horizon	B-Protocol
Worlds	I-Protocol
were	O
capable	O
of	O
"	O
so	O
much	O
more	O
"	O
;	O
included	O
with	O
the	O
post	O
was	O
a	O
more	O
modern	O
render	O
of	O
his	O
avatar	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
an	O
ancient	O
Rome	O
environment	O
.	O
</s>
