Meta mercifully spun out VR fitness game Supernatural instead of just killing it

Meta’s attempt to pioneer a metaverse and make VR cool totally flopped, except for one shining diamond in the rough: Supernatural, a VR fitness game that made working out feel fun and accessible. Now, users can rejoice that Supernatural isn’t shutting down after all.

Meta went through the hassle of fighting an eight-month antitrust battle so that it could acquire Within, the game studio that made Supernatural, in 2023. The deal was reportedly worth around $400 million, plus however much it costs to fight and win an FTC lawsuit. Yet after all that effort, Meta laid off much of its VR team and announced that it would stop adding new content just a few years later.

But Meta had a rare moment of mercy and listened to the Supernatural users who protested the app’s sad fate. About five months later, Meta is now letting the Supernatural team spin off into a new independent company called Supernatural Health, which will take over the app later this year.

“Supernatural is being reborn. Same coaches, same DNA, same obsession with making fitness feel like the best part of your day — now under a new, independent company we’re starting from the ground up,” Supernatural Health says on its website.

Who’s behind Supernatural Health? The original founders, of course.

It’s a happy ending, yet it’s maddening. It’s the regulatory equivalent of a high schooler confessing their undying love to their crush through an elaborate prom-posal, then navigating a tense dinner with their date’s parents to prove they have good intentions, only to break up right after the dance.

“We’re grateful for the platform and resources Meta provided during a critical growth phase,” Supernatural Health wrote. “This transition reflects a shared belief that Supernatural’s community is best served by a focused, independent team. Meta has been supportive throughout.”

I’ll be over here pulling my hair out at how dumb this whole situation has been, but at least I know that one online community has escaped the harsh anvil of big tech.

“Like so many of us I was so devastated when the coaches were let go and we were told our beloved Supernatural, while we loved it and it was great, would never get any better than it was. What we had was what we had. We all felt like it was purchased to kill,” one user wrote in the public Supernatural Facebook group. “I am such a sap. Why am I tearing up?”