Please note: none of this blogpost was written or edited using GenAI; this is me, Ryan Schultz—and yes, as a matter of fact, I do use em-dashes (see what I just did there? 😉).
You might have noticed a dearth of content on my blog lately.
Due to both personal and professional obligations, I regret that I will be unable to write my blog for the next little while. It’s not due to any shortage of news; in fact, I have had a couple of people reach out, specifically to ask me to comment on Rec Room shutting down, for example. Or that once-mighty Fortnite is losing money. The hardware and software companies powering immersive experiences in general appear to be going through what the Gartner consulting group has politely termed the “trough of disillusionment.”
But, unfortunately, at the moment, I simply don’t have the time, nor the energy, to devote to documenting the latest events happening in what is clearly a “metaverse winter” (or, perhaps even more harshly, a “virtual reality winter,” as many companies do appear to be stalling or even abandoning further iterations on their virtual/augmented reality headsets and associated gear, in an all-out corporate stampede towards more-wearable, but still less-functional, glasses).
Once July 1st, 2026 hits, and I can finally start my Research and Study Leave from the University of Manitoba, I hope to be able to pause, catch my breath, and survey the current landscape as I research and write my Open Educational Resource on the metaverse. The timing seems very auspicious to me. There’s definitely a change in the air, and perhaps I will be lucky enough to be able to document this pivotal moment properly.
But not today, and not for a little while yet. Thank you for your patience while I have to deal with what is in front of me at the moment.
