Metaverse
The Metaverse is a collective virtual space where users can interact, participate in activities, and experience environments that simulate real-life or fantastical scenarios. Coined by author Neal Stephenson in his 1992 novel *Snow Crash*, the term combines "meta," meaning beyond, with "verse," short for universe. In the Metaverse, users typically engage through avatars and immersive experiences facilitated by technologies like virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). Notably, popular video games such as Fortnite and Minecraft serve as examples of metaverse environments where social interaction and entertainment converge.
As technology continues to evolve, the potential applications of the Metaverse expand beyond gaming into virtual meetings, concerts, and even digital real estate, with companies exploring innovative ways to monetize these spaces. Noteworthy instances include virtual concerts by artists like Lil Nas X and Ariana Grande, which demonstrate the blending of entertainment and interactive digital experiences. However, the development of the Metaverse also raises concerns about accessibility and diversity, as issues of privilege and representation within these virtual spaces echo broader societal challenges.
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Metaverse
A metaverse is a virtual world in which users can interact with one another. The word metaverse comes from the prefix meta, which means “beyond,” and verse, short for “universe.” Author Neal Stephenson coined the term and used it in 1992 in Snow Crash, a science fiction novel. In his book, people wear headsets that allow them to interact in the Metaverse, a virtual world that operates like a video game.
Metaverses can allow individuals who are far apart to interact; for example, coworkers could have a virtual meeting. Others might compete against one another in an activity such as tennis or go on a virtual vacation. Popular video games such as Fortnite and Minecraft operate in metaverses. As technology advances, metaverse connections are expected to become increasingly common.
Background
Snow Crash is a near-future, cyberpunk science fiction novel by Neal Stephenson. It is also a dystopian novel, in which the US government is privately owned, including intelligence agencies. The protagonist, Hiro Protagonist—he uses a pseudonym—is a skilled hacker who sells information to the CIA. He also delivers pizzas for an organized crime group that guarantees delivery in thirty minutes or less—or else. He was one of the earliest citizens of the Metaverse and wrote some of the code during the development stage, so he knows some of its secrets. In real life, he ekes out an existence, but in the Metaverse, he is a VIP living the good life.
Hiro’s mentor in hacking, Da5id, encounters a drug called Snow Crash. It both destroys Da5id’s mind and crashes his computers. Hiro realizes Snow Crash is more than a drug; it is also a computer virus and an ancient physical-world virus that affects individuals’ mental functions and brainwashes them. The author created a situation in which digital information goes viral, infecting a host and progressing through a population in the way memes are shared in modern times.
The novel is known mostly for Stephenson’s vision at a time when technological advances were developing rapidly. Cell phones existed but were much larger than those of the twenty-first century, and without smartphone capabilities. Use of the Internet was limited to the few who could plug into it for research. Finding information could be tedious; for example, libraries relied on card catalogs, which individuals had to sift through to find books, periodicals, and other sources. Stephenson imagined a host of future developments, including avatars that represent users in the Metaverse; global Internet access; wireless access; smart phones; VR goggles; digitization of books, videos, and other information; digital currency; Google Earth; digital rights management (DRM) to protect data; and rogue hackers. Stephenson joined Magic Leap, a VR start-up, in 2014 with the title chief futurist.
Overview
Technology available in modern times offers users two means of access to the metaverse. These are virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). Virtual reality involves a completely created digital world, such as a Sims community or a battleground in an adventure video game. The user is completely immersed in the metaverse through the use of a VR headset. Google Cardboard, PlayStation VR, and Oculus Rift are some of the VR devices available. Augmented reality is the real world overlaid with digital elements. The Pokemon Go game, for example, has players using their smartphone cameras to “find” digital creatures. Most devices used in AR are smart glasses the user can see through, such as the Microsoft HoloLens, but smartphones have had the capacity to overlay restaurant reviews or other information on the real world for some time. A third form of metaverse experience that is in development is mixed reality (MR). This combines elements of VR and AR and involves digital and real-world elements interacting. All the technologies involved may be described as extended reality (XR).
Many Silicon Valley innovators, including Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg, have been inspired to develop metaverses. His company has invested heavily in headsets for VR and AR and in 2021 introduced Horizons Workrooms, where people can work together virtually. Microsoft is another big player in the push to build metaverses. However, a great deal of attention is being focused on finding ways to loop people into metaverses without headsets, which only a small percentage of the population owns. Instead, companies hope people can access metaverses using phones, tablets, and other more-common devices.
Possibilities for metaverses are virtually limitless. Beyond gaming, individuals might visit a travel destination or attend a concert. For example, rapper Lil Nas X performed virtual concerts in Roblox, a children’s game, in November 2020, garnering 33 million views in a few days. The metaverse around the performer changed to match each song. In 2021, Ariana Grande recorded a concert presented on Fortnite in which attendees were snatched mid-show by a roller coaster-type ride, which whisked them away to shoot at a monster in the game. Fortnite was a veteran at staging virtual concerts by that time, having first presented a show featuring Marshmello in 2019.
The metaverse field has attracted many investors and involves a wide range of companies. Republic Realm, for example, is a company that manages digital real estate non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in multiple metaverses. This includes digital fantasy islands, destinations such as art galleries and pools, and a shopping district called Metajuku, with stores leased and operated by digital wearables brands.
Some critics have cautioned against embracing the metaverse unreservedly. The companies developing these worlds are investigating means to profit in them, such as marketing digital and real-world goods as product placements in metaverses or signing deals with companies to include digital merchandise for sale to consumers. Prominent indications of this trend have emerged as luxury fashion houses team up with video game companies. For example, fashion company Balenciaga commissioned a game, Afterworld: The Age of Tomorrow, and gave gamers the chance to dress their avatars in Balenciaga attire. The fashion house also sent VR headsets to select individuals in 2020 so journalists and VIPs could enter and experience its digital runway show during the global COVID-19 pandemic. Although it was not the first fashion brand to use VR and gaming, the game and digital runway show were very well-received. Other companies create digital versions of designers’ physical fashions and, for a fee that might be several hundred dollars, “dress” a customer’s avatar in them. Some limited-edition digital items are sold with blockchains that ensure the customer always owns the items, even if the merchant ceases to exist, and can sell the goods if desired. Virtual fashions are also being developed for use on Zoom, in much the way users can change their backgrounds.
Author Stephenson included discriminatory practices in the Metaverse of Snow Crash. People judged individuals based on their avatar. Those with more privilege are able to access better Metaverse experiences. In modern times, gaming is predominantly a male pastime. While the community has become more diverse, leaders in metaverse development say the digital realm must be as diverse as the real world, including gender, ethnicity, and age, if it is to be embraced by the masses.
Bibliography
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