Hello,
Today we’re talking about the metaverse, an all-encompassing online world that we will all eventually be living in. Rad right?
In it, every real-world object would be connected to a network so people do things like fix washing machines, meet friends, and buy groceries all while being in one virtual space. It’s kind of like Second Life on steroids.
Buckle up we’re going cyber chasing.
What are the components of a metaverse?
According to Roblox CEO David Baszucki, there are eight features a platform has to provide to be a metaverse.
User created avatars - Players need something they can feel ownership of in digital spaces. This character should be able to be personalized by each individual user.
Friends to hang out with - A metaverse needs to be a space that people willingly go to to spend time with each other.
Frictionless - Load times need to be almost nonexistent and there shouldn’t be much lag.
Global - It needs to reach more than one continent.
Immersive - The graphics need to be good enough to get over the uncanny valley effect, which is easier said than done.
Millions of experiences - There should be a wide breadth and depth of activities to do on the platform.
Economy - The digital world should have its own form of currency.
Civility - There has to be a code of conduct that people follow while in the digital world.
What are some companies that could create the metaverse?
Surprise surprise, it’s probably going to be a social media, gaming, or tech company. A lot of companies have chunks that make them good candidates, but none of them have the complete package yet.
Social networks have the community and economic aspects of a metaverse but lack the virtual spaces that people can hang out in. Gaming companies have the opposite problem. A lot of them lack the community at scale and economic aspects needed to make it a reality but excel in their immersiveness and worlds.
What might happen is that a social media company and gaming company partner with each other to make the metaverse happen faster.
What will hold people from adopting it?
While it may be one of the hottest things to put in a trends deck right now, there are going to be some major issues that companies are going to have to find solutions for before a majority of people jump into a metaverse.
Getting past the uncanny valley is going to be hard. There’s a certain amount of creep factor people are going to have to overcome before avatars become the norm. Sure they are fun to play as, but for the metaverse to happen avatars need to become a primary tool of communication. Memojis and Bitmojis are the closest things we have to that right now.
Data privacy is going to be a big concern as metaverses will ask us to put even more of ourselves online. It also begs the question, who will govern an entity like a metaverse? We’re starting to have crises right now over how social media companies monitor their communities. That will get so much messier as people put even more equity and data into these companies.
Lastly, the immersiveness of wearable tech has a long way to go. The key is to make strides in devices that deal with sight and touch, so people can feel as if they are in another world. Apple and Facebook have plans to produce wearable smart glasses. It'll be interesting to see if they fare better than the Snapchat Spectacles did. If they do, that’ll bode well for a metaverse.
What to take away:
The internet is changing and gaming is one of the core drivers of it. While I don’t think a true metaverse is getting here any time soon, it's coming. Start to learn how to advertise in online worlds now before it becomes a norm. Also, get in the habit of having all of your comms live in the same online ecosystem because they are only going to get closer to each other.
Shameless Plug:
Balance the Grind: I was featured in a great publication all about routines. Check it out if you want to hear my perspective on how to set yourself up for success.
Gaming news that caught my eye:
Kotaku: A great piece about Hades, a game where the Greek goddess Athena is a Black woman. The developers’ rationale was that Greek Gods represented all people of the Earth, not just white people. I love it.
Cnet: Microsoft acquired game developer Zenimax Media for 7.5 billion dollars. It gives Xbox the rights to a number of great games.
Polygon: Fall Guys, one of the bigger games of this year, is having a ball engaging their community about the anatomy of their weird, bean-shaped characters.
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