NFL and StatusPro reveal NFL Pro Era cover stars, live service plans

Now there are two of them!

StatusPro

StatusPro unveiled the new NFL Pro Era cover stars alongside an announcement that the VR sports game is moving to a live service model. The Houstan Texans’ C.J. Stroud, 2023’s offensive Rookie of the Year, will feature on NFL Pro Era’s cover, with Micah Parsons of the Dallas Cowboys.

“It’s an honor to be one of the featured athletes of an incredible game that mirrors playing QB in real life,” Stroud said in a press statement. “I love what the team is doing at StatusPRO and once we started conversing I knew I wanted to be involved with NFL PRO ERA and the vision they have to be the best VR game.”

“I am a huge gamer, especially VR games and football, so being a cover athlete and playing a key role in NFL Pro Era is an awesome experience,” Parsons said. “Once I talked with the StatusPro team and they wanted to add defense to the new version of the game, I knew I wanted to work with them and was thrilled when they wanted me as a feature athlete.”

As if that weren’t enough news for one day, StatusPro also said NFL Pro Era defensive control is happening, so you’re not stuck as just the quarterback from now on.

Defensive play lets you play as a linebacker, and even though tackling the opposing QB is your goal, you can make interceptions as well, if you play your cards right. StatusPro is also tweaking how plays work so they’re more closely aligned with modern football, and they’ve revamped controls and interfaces to help make playing smoother and more fun.

“We want to provide our loyal fans and gamers with something new and revolutionary in our next version of NFL Pro Era,” Victor Lugo, StatusPro’s Chief Product Officer, said. “By adding defense to the game, we aim to bring something unique to the VR gaming world. It was important for users to feel like real leaders of their team on both sides of the ball. Being one of the first VR games to have a realistic defensive experience, we made sure that fans have the true feeling of being the defensive anchor when they are on the field.”

These updates are planned to go live during the 2024-2025 NFL season on Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest 3. Existing players will get a notification allowing access to all free-to-play modes and can upgrade to the 2025 edition for $19.99, which includes the new defensive mode, updated rosters, and further improvements. New players will need to pay $39.99.