Meta has released v178 of its Horizon Worlds metaverse platform, complete with updates on travelling with virtual friends.

On Tuesday, Meta revealed several changes to the pioneering social metaverse, including quality of life (QoL) improvements, bug fixes, and other enhancements to functionality and user experience (UX).

Regarding QoL upgrades, Meta Horizon Worlds will improve invitations for joining friends on the platform. This allows users to invite more than one person simultaneously, rather than individually. They can also choose to invite others manually or by using invite codes.

Other bug fixes include:

• issues with file-backed scripts running before loading their dependencies.
• Shaking cameras when poking an avatar’s head into walls.
• ‘Mobile optimized’ text spilling onto the details page when using mobile phones

The news comes just a week after the v177 update, which improved on world discover and considerations for the Horizon Feed. Users can hover their cursor over a world to auto-play a teaser video, as well as badges appearing next to specific worlds with recommendations.

Meta has also opened its script library tab to all creatives, allowing users greater access and control over their worlds with file-backed scripts.

Destroy, Erase, Improve?

News of the update comes as the Menlo Park-based firm pushes to retain its position in the extended reality (XR) market. Over the last few weeks, the tech giant has launched several new hardware ventures following the success of its Meta Quest 3 headset in October last year.

To date, reports have revealed the tech enterprise will release a Quest 3S, or budget-friendly version of the Quest 3, in a bid to expand spatial computing access to larger customer bases.

This is a complete pivot from its initial plans to develop a Quest Pro 2 device, which it scrapped last month due to poor sales from its rival headset, the Apple Vision Pro.

Meta has also binned its Spark AR platform for third-party creatives, leaving many scratching their heads on the internet. However, sources speculate that the announcement will come ahead of the Meta Connect 2024 event on 25 September.

At the annual meetup, Mark Zuckerberg, Founder and CEO, Meta is expected to reveal a trove of new updates aimed at improving the Quest, Horizons, social media, and Llama large language model (LLM) products.