Metaverse Dating App Thinks Full Relationships Will Be Goggles-On
The movie and book “Ready Player One” was less of a science fiction fantasy and more of a peek into our future, if the Mark Zuckerberg‘s of the world have their say.
The “metaverse” is a topic you hear bandied about often, but if you’re under 30 chances are you haven’t experienced it. It’s essentially social networking meets an “open world” video game with goggles on your head. There. Metaverse. Big tech is expecting many of us to live, work and play with these things on in our living room in the near future… and we hate it.
The New York Times recently put the spotlight on one company in particular that is putting the love into logging in. It’s called “Nevermet”, one of more than a couple virtual reality dating options that links your digital avatar up with another in the hopes of finding love.
Now, the premise they initially sell is cute. CEO Cam Mullen told NYT “physical attraction will become one of several factors rather than the primary way people connect”. So let’s talk about that premise for a second. We have entire shows based on “catfishing”, the act of lying what you actually look like or who you really are. So if your avatar is a six-packed hunk, but you decide to meet IRL (in real life) and you realize Dwight is more sumo than super, and he wasn’t forthcoming with that information, you’re going to be cool with that?
People are really getting into it. Some people in virtual reality night clubs over-drink to being digitally passed out on the floor.
A new HBO documentary “We Met In Virtual Reality” puts the spotlight on the services that connect real people in virtual life. Some people are yoga teachers, some people teach sign language, and some have long distance relationships and use VR to feel closer to one another.
The “Nevermet” CEO puts it plainly: “virtual reality will be so immersive that more and more relationships will flourish online.”
We are all about finding new ways to connect, but at what point are we taking away the human experience? A cable company had a commercial showing family members that were several countries apart and hadn’t hugged in years. The production flew a camera crew to both family member’s homes, thousands of miles apart, and filmed their reaction wearing “hug vests” that would help them feel the embrace of the other…
…when they could have spent a fraction simply flying one to see the other.
The human experience is a complicated one, and sometimes it’s not fun. We’d all love to avoid the awkwardness of life, but it ends up shaping who we are. So if you’re going to enter this world, take it slow, and remember to look around the world sometimes – the real one.
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