How do you feel about the Metaverse concept?

[nightglow]

I recently learned about articles recently written about this concept that big industries are working on to become a reality. The concept is called Metaverse. Virtual worlds for gaming, finance, and various experiences. Facebook has recently announced to be working on the goal of building the Metaverse.

Zuckerberg's Announcement Video with Concept Footage 1hr 17min long


Links about Metaverse.

The Metaverse is here, but what is it exactly?

The word “metaverse” is often traced to Neal Stephenson’s 1992 dystopic, cyberpunk novel Snow Crash, and many see a more recent inspiration in the dazzling warren of experiences at the heart of Earnest Cline’s 2011 novel Ready Player One. However, the metaverse is far from the stuff of sci-fi. It’s not even new.
A new kind of working from home is only part of what the metaverse can provide those out to make a buck.
Whether in virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) or simply on a screen, the promise of the metaverse is to allow a greater overlap of our digital and physical lives in wealth, socialization, productivity, shopping and entertainment.

What is the Metaverse and when will it get here

The metaverse has been a hot topic of conversation recently, with Facebook and Microsoft both staking claims. But what is the metaverse? And when will it get here?

Money in the Metaverse

In recent months, the metaverse has been described as a kind of online place, combining virtual reality, augmented reality, the Internet, entertainment experiences, gaming, and remote work. The key idea is that, no matter what you’re doing in the metaverse, or where you are, your identities and assets will be multi-platform and transportable: you’ll be the same “you” at work and at leisure.

Pandemic driving the Metaverse

Since the initial pandemic lockdowns in the U.S. during spring 2020, businesses have been largely on a "will they or won't they" level of commitment to bringing back physical work. Obviously, some companies aren't able to go without physical workers, but for those who have office workers and others who can work from home, the debate about when it's safe to return, and if people should return to work full-time at all, is still ongoing.
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Virtual Real Estate Explained short video

Real-estate transactions in the metaverse are reaching record highs. We spoke with companies investing in digital real estate to understand the economic model, and why investors are spending millions on virtual property.

Metaverse can avoid ills of social media

The OASIS Consortium was founded last year, and pulls together leaders deeply invested in the metaverse: from gaming, dating apps and immersive tech platforms like Roblox, Riot Games and Wildlife Studios to address safety and privacy in Web 3.

 

[Millysaurusrexjr]

I don't like how vague it is. I've read the concept multiple times and I still don't quite get it. Is it the next evolution of the Internet? Is it virtual reality? Is it just a pretentious Facebook thing?

Maybe the thing I hate most is the name. Metaverse sounds like the title of a game, or a game within a game, or a dumb movie or something. Why can't we just call it Internet 2.0 and be done with it.

 

[nightglow]

I don't like how vague it is. I've read the concept multiple times and I still don't quite get it. Is it the next evolution of the Internet? Is it virtual reality? Is it just a pretentious Facebook thing?

Maybe the thing I hate most is the name. Metaverse sounds like the title of a game, or a game within a game, or a dumb movie or something. Why can't we just call it Internet 2.0 and be done with it.

It is also called Web 3.0
From what I can understand, the goal is to merge reality and virtual reality into one existence. It seems there are more companies involved than Facebook, but I guess Facebook is trying to take the lead for the social aspect of it?
And I forget who, but it is in the links somewhere, but someone is working on holograms. The
Metaverse concept also seems to address the employment problem many people are having. Finding a job, job creation, ability to work from home. But like with all things internet related, cyber security is a concern along with real world problems potentially becoming worse like food deserts. Your digital money may buy physical food but where is the food to buy? 3 hours away?

I find the Metaverse interesting but I feel unsure about it.

 

[Alienfish]

Big thumbs down too all Metaverse and NFT things there is. Just look at the Neopets fiasco and while Meta/facebook is bigger and hopefully better managed I don't see the point, like just play The Sims or whatever, lol. And yeah I'm not too big on VR either, ike okay it was a cool manga concept let it rest there.

 

[Millysaurusrexjr]

It is also called Web 3.0
From what I can understand, the goal is to merge reality and virtual reality into one existence. It seems there are more companies involved than Facebook, but I guess Facebook is trying to take the lead for the social aspect of it?
And I forget who, but it is in the links somewhere, but someone is working on holograms. The
Metaverse concept also seems to address the employment problem many people are having. Finding a job, job creation, ability to work from home. But like with all things internet related, cyber security is a concern along with real world problems potentially becoming worse like food deserts. Your digital money may buy physical food but where is the food to buy? 3 hours away?

I find the Metaverse interesting but I feel unsure about it.

Hmm, that makes a bit more sense. Thank you for the explanation.

Yeah, I agree, what good will Metaverse/Web 3.0 be if, say 20 years from now, climate change has taken a much bigger toll on the planet? It's a bit frustrating that companies/billionaires would rather focus on stuff like going to the moon/Mars instead of saving life on Earth... maybe Web 3.0 ties in to that. I remember reading that Bezos wants to send the majority of humanity to other planets (while he gets to stay on Earth); what better way to help them forget that they're on a dead rock by giving them a super futuristic web interface that makes it look like you're some place nicer?

I like playing Poker in VR though, it's pretty cool

 

[nightglow]

Hmm, that makes a bit more sense. Thank you for the explanation.

Yeah, I agree, what good will Metaverse/Web 3.0 be if, say 20 years from now, climate change has taken a much bigger toll on the planet? It's a bit frustrating that companies/billionaires would rather focus on stuff like going to the moon/Mars instead of saving life on Earth... maybe Web 3.0 ties in to that. I remember reading that Bezos wants to send the majority of humanity to other planets (while he gets to stay on Earth); what better way to help them forget that they're on a dead rock by giving them a super futuristic web interface that makes it look like you're some place nicer?

I like playing Poker in VR though, it's pretty cool

Something I was thinking, if everyone finds employment in the Metaverse, who is gonna willingly work in the real world? Are we going to have tons of robotics owned by top earners in the Metaverse?
Will real world things become more expensive? Will wages take longer to earn?
What about hackers tampering with identities and currency?
Would the Metaverse make the healthcare system issues worse?
I'm sure Metaverse would be cool for games, I mean it is kinda already here in a way with the large MMO games. But mixing reality and virtual reality seems really risky with stability and sustainability impo. I know something has to be done with reality. It can't stay the way it is right now. Wages hours and availability issues ect.

 

[justina]

I’ve heard of the term before but never really knew anything about it till reading just now.. this sounds interesting but in a way scary? The way we rely on technology now is kinda crazy but that just seems insane. The idea of putting yourself in a room with someone across the world sounds exciting but I think too many people would use it for evil. Plus what if your job and life is tied to this and there’s an internet crash or something? Your whole life is gone? I think we should try to not rely on technology as much as we do and this seems like a step too far to me.

 

[Millysaurusrexjr]

Something I was thinking, if everyone finds employment in the Metaverse, who is gonna willingly work in the real world? Are we going to have tons of robotics owned by top earners in the Metaverse?

I think most jobs are going to become automated at some point, it's literally only a matter of time. And honestly, that is a good thing, so long as governments introduce a liveable universal basic income to their citizens. People should not have to work 40+ hours a week for most of their lives.
The jobs that humans will do at that point will probably be programming and whatever careers that might be too complex for machines to do, at least until we get true AI

 

[.: Meri :.]

I'm not expecting much to come from it, myself—I think it'll probably either a) never actually get released, or b) fizzle out shortly after it does (and probably look like a bad MMO). I think enough people are wary of the general concept and the companies involved that we won't really see super widespread/expected use of it. And if it winds up having any connection to cryptocurrencies/NFTs, I'm certainly not going to touch it with a ten foot pole. Ick.
I think people should definitely have more options when it comes to working from home and things like that, but I don't think we need the Metaverse to get there, and I don't see it actually helping. It feels more like a flashy distraction than an actual means of addressing workers' rights issues. Which, I mean, we already know these companies don't actually care about in the slightest.

 

[Chris]

I'm not a fan. I think that most people would be happier and feel more fulfilled in life if they got outside more and put some distance between themselves and the internet/social media rather than increasing dependence on it.

 

[Croconaw]

I don’t have an opinion on it, really. I’m not too familiar with the concept of metaverse. I think we could all do without social media, though. I don’t like how negative social media is. I hate Facebook, and that’s an understatement. It doesn’t do anything positive for anyone, for the most part anyway. I’m not big on virtual reality either. I hope it just fades away after it starts.

 

[Alienfish]

I don’t have an opinion on it, really. I’m not too familiar with the concept of metaverse. I think we could all do without social media, though. I don’t like how negative social media is. I hate Facebook, and that’s an understatement. It doesn’t do anything positive for anyone, for the most part anyway. I’m not big on virtual reality either. I hope it just fades away after it starts.

Yeah exactly, I 100% agree with you and Chris here. I mean I know kinda too well about these things cause, yeah Neopets, this and all the stuff floating up from it but yeah, we should spend more time offline than online.

And yeah I dislike most social media as a whole, mostly cause they destroyed debate climate so hard, and yeah woke teens getting credited and deemed legit, lol.

 

[nightglow]

I found Zuckerberg's Announcement video of the matter and he goes into some detail of what he envisions, for the social aspect of it anyway. It is over an hour long, but it does have concept footage and examples of what he is wanting.
The footage is interesting, such as in Metaverse's Horizon Home graphics, which is why I am sharing the video for those who are curious or if you want more detail from Zuckerberg himself. The video makes me think of someone navigating a dream state world while being fully awake is the best way I can describe it. I wonder how this will effect the psyche long term.

Spoiler: SOME Details of Video

I still have to finish the video, I have other stuff to get to right now, but from the first 16 mins I saw:
Some concept of full immersion with hyper realistic graphics and an example of Metaverse things in the real world. The example is called AR pieces that you find in the real world. In the video, the art piece that was found started to fade upon viewing, but to view it longer, or admire it longer... you can tip the artist.
Items made or bought can be transferred to more than one world or platform.
Holograms in the physical world, and digital things in the real world can go into the metaverse. Lowkey digimon and sword art online comes to mind...
Headsets, phones, and computers would be the tools for the most part. He wants people to have less screen time and more hologram time. People appearing in places as holograms.
Metaverse is estimated to be mainstream in the next 5-10 years.
When building games in the Metaverse's Horizon Worlds, it appears the "coding" is similar to how Scratch has theirs.

I'll put his video link in the original post.

I am not familiar with NFTs and still trying to understand them. I know it has something to do with buying digital art expensively but that is all I have been able to find out. It does appear NFTs are a part of the Metaverse from Zuckerberg's video.

 

[daringred_]

i don't think it's particularly realistic, and i don't see it doing much if any good either. we can't live virtually when we ourselves are not virtual beings. what happens when we all plug ourselves into what's effectively a simulation all day? the real world just ends up in ruin? we should be focusing on doing what we can do minimize the effects of global warming and all the pollution we've been causing. it's a shame billionaires are too far up their own backsides to tackle things like world hunger, poverty, pollution, climate change, healthcare and vaccine accessibility in third world countries etc. i know people like to spout the whole "it's their money, they can do what they want with it," rhetoric, but no one human needs billions, especially if they're going to throw it at frivolous things. take it off them lmao. i disagree with the whole "the internet is inherently bad and makes you sad, go outside" idea as someone who doesn't have the energy to go outside and finds solace, almost, online, because it feels like a very disingenuous and narrow minded take overall, but humans do need some degree of physical and real interaction with each other, and fresh air is good even if you just go and sit in the garden for an hour or so. can't get that in some fake virtual world.

 

[-Blue-]

Sounds like a bunch of fancy words strewn together to try to sucker people into buying their 'idea' that barely holds any water. I know it's a cartoon, but I feel like Ducktales nails it perfectly with how these 'ideas' are just a load.

Like NFTs are just basically owning nothing. But making money on nothing. It's all stupid.

 

[nightglow]

Sounds like a bunch of fancy words strewn together to try to sucker people into buying their 'idea' that barely holds any water. I know it's a cartoon, but I feel like Ducktales nails it perfectly with how these 'ideas' are just a load.

Like NFTs are just basically owning nothing. But making money on nothing. It's all stupid.

lol that video reminds me of Fake Block from this show we watched this past fall called Arrested Development. It was a cyber security app that didn't exist that this rich kid lied about developing to impress some girl, but the lie went out of his control and ended up being this big thing that didn't exist at all. Anywho, he ended up selling it for a big sum of money to avoid bankruptcy just for his dad to buy it thinking he was saving his son's company. His dad didn't know that Fake Block, was well, fake.

 

[Soigne]

It seems like the plot of a poorly budgeted dystopian film to me. Like they've seen one too many futuristic films and thought, hey, let's just make all of this a reality.

 

[Millysaurusrexjr]

I kinda hope it turns out like this.. awkward and chaotic

https://twitter.com/x/status/1478094074909540354

 

[nightglow]

I kinda hope it turns out like this.. awkward and chaotic

https://twitter.com/x/status/1478094074909540354

I think that is the scariest shopping experience ever.
I saw my first Metaverse ad on youtube, probably because I was reading those articles and stuff. It was for The Sandbox. You can build, play, and earn according to them. It seemed way more normal than that Walmart experience.

 

[Millysaurusrexjr]

I think that is the scariest shopping experience ever.
I saw my first Metaverse ad on youtube, probably because I was reading those articles and stuff. It was for The Sandbox. You can build, play, and earn according to them. It seemed way more normal than that Walmart experience.

Upon first glance The Sandbox looked actually kinda cool but then I scrolled down and saw "NFTs" I'd rather shop in virtual Walmart than have to look at NFTs honestly!