Metaverse
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Joining The Metaverse – coming soon
Enter the Metaverse
It is a virtual world, featuring avatars, digital objects, functioning economies, where technology is not just a tool, but something that is all-encompassing.
Metaverse is not a new term — it has been used and explored thoroughly in movies, comic books, games, books, and alike. Depending on the source, it represents variations of a single concept — connecting people from different places, separate universes, or spheres of life and allowing them to interact with one another.
Translating that to the real-world situation and technology, and we get a concept of metaverse that refers to a new version of the internet. This was imagined as a new kind of environment that allows for more immersive social sharing.
It involves a variety of products and technologies, such as NFTs and crypto, 3D avatars, decentralized applications, virtual landscapes and realities, the ability to win rewards, participate in airdrops, conduct deals through smart contracts, operate businesses in a digital reality, and more.
Metaverse is an alternative to the real universe, and it “represents a collection of open worlds and settings, joined by interoperable assets and experience,” as explained by the Decrypt online magazine.
Obviously, this means that metaverse has massive potential to change the way communication between people works. More than that, it can change the way businesses operate, how we spend money, what we spend it on, and more. Metaverse is potentially also the next step in technological and social evolution for the entire human race.
It will have at least as big of an impact on the world as the internet itself did, back when it went mainstream, which is already a huge promise.
Metaverse Characteristics
BOUNDLESS
As a 3D virtual space, the metaverse eliminates all types of barriers, physical or otherwise. It’s an endless space where there are no limits to how many people can use it at the same time, what types of activities can take place, what industries can enter it, etc. It widens accessibility more than current internet platforms.
PERSISTENT
A metaverse can’t be unplugged, reboot or reset. Users can enter it freely at any time, from anywhere in the world, and in doing so there’s always continuity to their experience. A metaverse will evolve over time based on the shared contributions of its users, like the content and experiences designed by them.
DECENTRALIZED
The metaverse isn’t owned by a corporation or a single platform, but by all of its users, who can also take control over their private data. Blockchain technology is a big part of this (more details later on) because it ensures that all transactions within a virtual world are public, easily tracked and safe at all times.
IMMERSIVE
Whether you’re using a VR headset, AR glasses or just your smartphone, you’ll be able to enter a new level of immersion and interactivity, where all human senses are more fully engaged and users feel more present in their experiences. As a highly realistic space, the metaverse will also have the capacity to adapt to its users who can directly influence, for example, its environments, objects, colors, lighting, and more.
VIRTUAL ECONOMIES
Metaverse participants are able to engage in decentralized virtual economies powered by cryptocurrency. This includes marketplaces where users can buy, sell and exchange items like digital assets like avatars, virtual clothing, NFTs and event tickets.
SOCIAL EXPERIENCES
The beating heart of the metaverse boils down to its users. Every participant in a virtual world takes part in co-experiences and helps co-create the future of the metaverse through user-generated content, from virtual creations to personal stories and interactions with AI-driven avatars.
AR, VR and MR Explained
Augmented Reality (AR)
AR enhances our view of the real world by overlaying what we see with computer-generated information. Today, this technology is prevalent in smartphone AR applications that require the user to hold their phone in front of them. By taking the image from the camera and processing it in real-time, the app is able to display contextual information or deliver gaming and social experiences that appear to be rooted in the real world.
Virtual Reality (VR)
VR completely replaces a user’s view, immersing them within a computer-generated virtual environment. This type of XR technology has existed for a while, with gradual improvements. It is used primarily for entertainment experiences, such as gaming, concerts, films, or sports but also accelerating into the social domain. VR devices are now enhancing video conferencing experiences through platforms like RecRoom that enable virtual meet-ups in different virtual worlds.
Mixed reality (MR)
MR sits somewhere between AR and VR, as it merges the real and virtual worlds. There are three key scenarios for this type of XR technology. The first is through a smartphone or AR wearable device with virtual objects and characters superimposed into real-world environments, or potentially vice versa. Mixed reality is also beginning to be used to enable VR real-world players to be superimposed into video games to bring real-world personalities to game streaming platforms such as Twitch or YouTube.
Types of Metaverses
Corporate
With a great part of the world population moving to remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic, working online is already a reality for many of us. The metaverse would be just a continuation of that as Facebook (sorry Meta) has already tried showing us with Horizon Workrooms. Others like Microsoft are following suit and we can only expect more companies to try and send their workers into the metaverse.
Gaming
It’s fun, you can make new friends and earn a lot of money. That’s why games like Axie Infinity, Sandbox, Illuvium and Decentraland are at the forefront of the metaverse race. With a strong social network and a decentralized economy at its core, these are the types of platforms likely to attract the most users to the metaverse.
Entertainment
Downtime can soon look very different in the metaverse. From socializing with real-life users and making friends with AI-driven avatars to watching your favorite performers headline a mind-blowing virtual concert, the metaverse hypes entertainment to a new level. Sensorium Galaxy is one of the metaverses focusing on out-of-this-world experiences. Built in collaboration with some of the world’s leading artists like David Guetta, Armin van Buuren, Steve Aoki and more, this metaverse has a vast musical offering that appeals to a whole universe of fans. In addition to its music-dedicated world, Sensorium Galaxy will also consist of additional content hubs, including a world for meditation and self-actualization practices.
Real Estate
Feeling the rent crunch? Can’t buy a house? There’s no clear way out of the rat race? While real-world real estate might be out of reach, buying a plot of virtual land on the other hand could make you very, like very rich. Just a few days ago, Decentraland broke yet another metaverse record after a ‘virtual estate’ sold for $2.4M. And there’s plenty more to buy in virtual worlds like, for example, Sandbox. You’ll be able to find not only land, but also houses or even yachts (equipped with helipads, hot tubs and DJ booths) for those into more exotic real estate options.
How to join the metaverse – Coming soon