DarthBuzzard t1_j1diafy wrote on December 23, 2022 at 2:34 PM

Reply to comment by _m0s_ in The Metaverse: More Hype Than Substance? by dogonix

Most people consider chatting on a phone/PC to be not all that fulfilling and certainly not rich. This is why despite a larger barrier/commitment, socializing in VR has many benefits to doing so over regular devices.

_m0s_ t1_j1ebq0c wrote on December 23, 2022 at 5:57 PM

I agree. I am a VR user of many years now and love it for what it is and certainly it fulfills many of my interests. I think it has its place, but it is a very narrow limited space that is not replacing much more than what it does day. No matter how good VR gets only a few people would want to grocery shop or go to a bar in VR. I’m not saying VR or Metaverse don’t have its users, but with regards to fulfillment demand of immersive experiences I’m pretty sure it is a much smaller market than what it is being marketed for and certainly a very tiny market of all digital interactions. This is like comparing GTA online players to all other internet consumers. Metaverse is failing, because they put the bar too high and tried to sell it to consumers who don’t want it and to investors who don’t understand it, made too much buzz for what its worth and in few years when investors don’t see return on investment it will live slow death into a small community project.

DarthBuzzard t1_j1ejny9 wrote on December 23, 2022 at 6:51 PM

> No matter how good VR gets only a few people would want to grocery shop or go to a bar in VR.

Grocery shop? Sure, but I think there's mass appeal in going to public venues in VR. A bar specifically, I don't know, but think of all the other public venues and combine that with the state of the world being one where most people are frequently not able to meet up with friends because distance is vast, money is tight, and life gets in the way.

VR gets rid of all of that. I mean you still need the device, but once you have it you go to infinite destinations, hopefully within a few handfuls of seconds as headsets get faster/more mature.

And as VR does mature, there will simply be this gut feeling that you are actually in another place, actually with a person face to face, actually having these experiences. It won't feel as physical as the real thing, but it will be so far beyond a videocall or phonecall, that it will sell itself easily on the value of the presence VR brings.