Toast Interactive, known for their VR games, Max Mustard (2024) and Richie’s Plank Experience (2017), has seen both titles unexpectedly pulled from the Horizon Store for Quest. Details about this sudden removal are still fuzzy, leaving the veteran indie game studio feeling deeply disappointed and without recourse.
“Without any input from our side, Meta has decided to remove Max Mustard and Richie’s Plank Experience from their store,” the studio shared in a post on X. “This decision has left us feeling simultaneously betrayed and powerless.”
Mistakes leading to temporary delistings are not unheard of, but this situation seems different. Toast Interactive acknowledges there is more to the story but can’t share details just yet. They did express eagerness to reveal everything soon, stating, “We’re looking forward to discussing the full story with everyone.”
In a separate Reddit post, the studio hinted that the underlying reason would be quite shocking but hinted, “I’ve been told to keep quiet for now.”
According to the Horizon Store pages for both games, the removals stem from non-compliance with Meta’s Platform Abuse Policy. However, specifics on how the games violated this policy remain undisclosed.
Meta’s policy on platform abuse includes diverse offenses, such as involvement with pirated content, exploiting security gaps, or any form of deception. Still, it also involves vaguer areas likely open to interpretation. Deviations from developer guidelines or terms within Meta’s extensive policy framework can result in app removal, with or without prior notice, as stated by Meta.
Interestingly, players on other platforms aren’t affected, as both Max Mustard and Richie’s Plank Experience remain accessible. Max Mustard spans PC VR, PSVR 2, and Pico headsets, whereas Richie’s Plank Experience is available on PC VR, the original PSVR, and Pico devices.
This development compounds the challenges for Toast Interactive, coming at an unfortunate time. The Gold Coast, Australia-based studio recently announced the closure of its office, alongside substantial staff layoffs. This followed an initial round of layoffs in November 2024, where ten employees were let go. At that time, the studio confessed that though Max Mustard received high ratings on both PSVR 2 and Meta Quest, it failed to sustain a large indie team.
As this story is still unfolding, we’ve reached out to Meta for further clarification and will update with any new information or responses as they become available.
