The Metaverse
The next big media or technology advancement that changes the way we live, work and play could be the metaverse. I already feel like I am getting too old for this—is this a place where I will be able to tell people to get off my meta-lawn?
What exactly is the metaverse? Oli Welsh explains it in an article for Polygon as “a graphically rich virtual space, with some degree of verisimilitude, where people can work, play, shop, socialize — in short, do the things humans like to do together in real life (or, perhaps more to the point, on the internet). Metaverse proponents often focus on the concept of “presence” as a defining factor: feeling like you’re really there, and feeling like other people are really there with you, too” (Welsh, 2022).
So the metaverse is essentially a video game, except real life, and the things you can do there are also things you can do in real life.
My first instinct to this is why can’t we just do them in real life then? But COVID pulse my latest weekend activities really opened my eyes to the appeal of the metaverse.
Human being adapt pretty quickly, and we’ll return to “normal” soon after COVID becomes a thing of the past, or a thing we learn to deal with. But what if it permanently changes how people feel about interacting with each other? It’s already changed how people feel about working in an office vs. at home.
I know I spent my Saturday braving Atlanta traffic and then spending an hour or two in IKEA with strangers surrounding me 360 degrees. It was the first time I had been around that many people where I could not find a space to distance myself from others. I wasn’t even concerned about COVID; it was unnerving after all that time spent apart.
I think that people are going to find that doing things in the metaverse appeals to them—no traveling, no crowds, and you can accomplish exactly what you would if you were in person.
With more and more companies establishing metaverse presences, it will be interesting to see if this grows into something permanent.
This will be my last post as we come to an end of COM 6630. I have enjoyed the class and hope those that read and commented on my posts have enjoyed this term’s blog.
What exactly is the metaverse? Oli Welsh explains it in an article for Polygon as “a graphically rich virtual space, with some degree of verisimilitude, where people can work, play, shop, socialize — in short, do the things humans like to do together in real life (or, perhaps more to the point, on the internet). Metaverse proponents often focus on the concept of “presence” as a defining factor: feeling like you’re really there, and feeling like other people are really there with you, too” (Welsh, 2022).
So the metaverse is essentially a video game, except real life, and the things you can do there are also things you can do in real life.
My first instinct to this is why can’t we just do them in real life then? But COVID pulse my latest weekend activities really opened my eyes to the appeal of the metaverse.
Human being adapt pretty quickly, and we’ll return to “normal” soon after COVID becomes a thing of the past, or a thing we learn to deal with. But what if it permanently changes how people feel about interacting with each other? It’s already changed how people feel about working in an office vs. at home.
I know I spent my Saturday braving Atlanta traffic and then spending an hour or two in IKEA with strangers surrounding me 360 degrees. It was the first time I had been around that many people where I could not find a space to distance myself from others. I wasn’t even concerned about COVID; it was unnerving after all that time spent apart.
I think that people are going to find that doing things in the metaverse appeals to them—no traveling, no crowds, and you can accomplish exactly what you would if you were in person.
With more and more companies establishing metaverse presences, it will be interesting to see if this grows into something permanent.
This will be my last post as we come to an end of COM 6630. I have enjoyed the class and hope those that read and commented on my posts have enjoyed this term’s blog.
References:
Welsh, O. (2022, March 6). The metaverse, explained. Polygon. https://www.polygon.com/22959860/metaverse-explained-video-games
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