Rec Room, a social gaming platform that allowed users to create and share virtual experiences, announced it will shut down on June 1, 2024. The company made the announcement in a blog post, marking the end of a platform that had attracted more than 150 million players and creators.

The platform, which competed with Roblox in the user-generated content space, had previously achieved significant investor interest and was valued at $3.5 billion at its peak. Rec Room enabled users to build games and virtual experiences that others could play and explore in a social environment.

In its shutdown announcement, the company acknowledged that despite its substantial user base and high valuation, it "never quite figured out" key aspects of its business model. The platform had operated as a free-to-play service where users could create and monetize their own content.

The closure represents a significant development in the social gaming sector, where platforms compete to attract creators and players in the growing market for user-generated virtual experiences. Rec Room's shutdown comes despite the broader growth in social gaming and virtual world platforms in recent years.

The company did not provide specific details about what services, if any, would be available to help users preserve their created content before the June 1 shutdown date.