NFL PRO ERA, the NFL football VR game series, is relaunching as a live service game later this year, giving previous owners of both NFL PRO ERA (2022) and NFL PRO ERA II (2023) the new version of the game.
Slated to release sometime this Fall, the new base game is set to include free play, full season mode, exhibition mode, updated rosters, and uniforms.
Players who owned previous versions get the new base game for free, developer StatusPro says in a Meta blog post, which will include the option to purchase the planned 2025 Edition Upgrade at a discounted price, which includes additional content.
The paid 2025 Edition is also tacking on some new abilities, like the ability to play on defense as a linebacker, taking the game beyond its previous quarterback-only gameplay, as well as online multiplayer.
The linebacker position will first be introduced in single player simulation mode at launch, however in an update later this year the game will include full head-to-head multiplayer, including defensive play.
According to Variety, additional content packs will be priced at $5, made available throughout the season.
NFL PRO ERA is also set to feature a new Social Sports Complex hub where players can interact and do challenges, not to mention “smarter” AI, the studio says.
Both the original 2022 version of NFL PRO ERA and the 2023 NFL PRO ERA II are available across Quest, SteamVR headsets, PSVR 2, and Pico headsets. The studio hasn’t confirmed whether the new 2025 edition is coming to all of those headsets this Fall, confirming only Quest support thus far.
The pivot to the live service model follows a recent investment led by Google Ventures earlier this year, which included $20 million in Series A funding which the company said would help them expand its growing catalog of sports-focused VR titles.
