In April, Meta promised to begin removing the barriers between the tightly curated Horizon Store and the App Lab, its alternative early access store. According to the announcement, App Lab titles would soon be featured in a dedicated section of the Horizon Store.
This has now been done. When you open the Horizon Store on Quest, you will see a banner inviting you to browse the App Lab, and you can switch to the alternative store at any time via an App Lab tab. When you open the App Lab section, you will find selected titles as well as app categories such as “Fun Fitness,” “Shooting Range,” “Social Starters,” and more, similar to the Horizon Store. This also applies to the browser version of the Horizon Store and the Meta Quest app if you have the latest version of the mobile app.
App Lab titles are now easier to find in the search box, and the rather annoying warning window that appeared when opening an App Lab store page is finally gone.
In an e-mail that Meta sent to Quest users, the company promotes the App Lab:
“Discover experimental games, cutting-edge apps and immersive experiences that push the limits of mixed reality. Browse our growing library of apps and games in development, and join a vibrant community of developers, early adopters and gaming enthusiasts.”
I don’t know if letting everything into the store is ultimately good for anyone. Users won’t be able to distinguish between shovel ware and quality titles. And developers will see their games drown.