What Is Metaverse And When Are We Going To Live In It?
Metaverse Is The Link Between The Physical World And Digital Life, The World Of Avatars And The Next Generation Of The Internet. Join This Article To Learn About This Exciting And Inevitable World.
Metaverse, Remember Heavy Rain? The unique Quantum Dream game released for the PlayStation 3 in 2010 depicts the mysterious story of the origami serial murder case in which the killer used rainwater to drown his victims. One of the four main characters in the game was an FBI agent named Norman Jayden, who was sent to assist local police in investigating the case.
If you remember, Norman had special smoked glasses that were much more capable of blocking the sun’s ultraviolet rays. THE GLASSES, called ARI (acronym Augmented Reality), helped Norman search the crime scene and analyze evidence.
When Norman wore these glasses, he could change the look of his work environment and imagine himself in the middle of a forest or even the planet Mars instead of staring at the dull, dull walls.
The world Norman saw through his augmented reality glasses was a metaphor; An alternative digital reality in which people work, play, study, shop, and socialize and no longer need to connect to the Internet; Because they are always “online” in this world. Name it whatever you want; Metaverse, the world of mirrors, virtual reality, magic, or space internet. But one thing is certain: Metaverse is on its way and is set to make a dramatic change in human lifestyle.
The titles you will read in this article:
- What is Metaverse?
- Three Key Concepts of Metaverse
- Benefits of living in Metaverse
- Metaverse and the world of games
- Metaverse and the world of movies and series
- Metaverse and China Block
- How far are we from realizing the real Metaverse?
What is Metaverse?
Matthew Ball, an investor and former head of strategy at Amazon Studios, describes Metaverse with seven characteristics: Metaverse is always active and “bright”; It is experienced life and in real-time; Can host any size audience; It has a very dynamic and unique economy; Spread across digital and physical platforms and worlds; It is possible to transfer digital assets across these platforms; Users and large companies create experiences and content.
In other words, Metaverse is a vast network of ever-active virtual environments in which individuals can interact with each other and with digital objects around them in the form of avatars or augmented reality glasses; It is a combination of immersive virtual reality, multiplayer online role-playing game, and web browsing.
Metaverse is the successor to the Internet today.
Metaverse is a compound word consisting of meta meaning “beyond” and universe meaning “world” and can be translated as “beyond the world.” The term was first used in the 1992 science fiction book “Snow Crash” by Neil Stephenson. The American author used the word metaverse to describe a virtual world in which the protagonist socializes, buys, and even defeats real-world enemies in the form of his avatar. Of course, the very concept of a world similar to Metaverse before this book became famous in 1984 with the novel Neuromancer by William Gibson.
When we turn on the lights or open the refrigerator door, we know that the electricity turns them on, but we usually do not think about how it works. Similarly, AI, sensors, and communications between the robot and the “electric current” device power the Metaverse. In the distant future, or perhaps closer than we think, our physical world will become an infinitely large amount of data that a computer can process, click on, brush through, and search like a Google search. There will be new relationships and ways to move and create content in this world, and we will create new words and even architecture to host our digital version and the digital world around us.
This new convergence between the digital and physical worlds is based on the 5G and 6G Internet, quantum computing, and graphene processors. Our view of this world will be through the lenses of our virtual reality glasses.
If you still have a hard time imagining Metaverse, the following concept video from Adobe paints an inspiring vision of the future of human life in this world:
Metaverse, which many describe as the successor to the Internet today, is not just a single destination that everyone will one day enter, but a complex network of millions of destinations, hundreds of profiles, and dozens of browsers. According to Pim de Witt, founder, and CEO of Medal Video Clip Sharing Platform:
The Internet is a vast array of protocols, technologies, cables, languages, and devices for accessing content and communication experiences. Metaverse will be the same.
Three Key Concepts of Metaverse
When we talk about Mtavrs is important with three key concepts that will be familiar: the presence (presence), interoperability (interoperability), and standardization (standardization).
” Presence ” is the feeling of being in cyberspace in a real and tangible way with other people. The results of decades of research have shown that the quality of online interactions improves by creating a sense of real presence in this space. This sense of presence is also created through virtual reality technologies such as screens placed on the head.
The second key concept that differentiates Metaverse from our current Internet experience is ” interactivity .” Interactivity means that Metawares can travel from one destination to another while carrying all our digital assets, including avatars, and collecting virtual items. For example, you can use the rifle shell you bought in Counter-Strike, Fortnite, or give it to your friends via Facebook. Or, for example, you can drive a car you designed in a Rocket League game or even a Porsche website in a Rolex game.
The third concept is ” standardization, “which enables interoperability between platforms and services across Metaverse. The standards set for Metaverse allow its widespread use around the world. International organizations such as the Metaverse Open Interactivity Group define these standards.
Benefits of living in Metaverse
Metaverse is a situation that is supposed to replace the current Internet and offer all its content to users but with much fewer access restrictions. Current online platforms allow users to move somewhat freely within the same range for each service but limit cross-platform interoperability; For example, you are free to create anything you like in Minecraft, but you cannot transfer what you have created in Minecraft to Fortnite. MetaVers, meanwhile, allows users to generate content of their choice on any platform and distribute it freely throughout the digital world.
Unlike the current Internet, Metaverse users will experience changes made by other users in real-time. If a user makes any changes to Metawares, it is a permanent change immediately visible to everyone. Continuity and interoperability allow users to maintain their online identities and experiences across Metaverse, unlike the Internet. This means that in Metaverse, users no longer need to have a separate profile on Twitter, a character in Fortnite, and a Reddit account, but can only be read on all of these platforms. This continuity of identity will be a key factor in shaping how content is purchased and consumed by Metaverse users.
In Metaverse, an avatar can be present on all platforms
Thanks to Metaverse, we no longer need to be in the real world to work in the physical environment; Rather, our workplace will be the same. Virtual reality glasses and Metaverse environment are made together, and shortly, these glasses will have many applications in the workplace.
For example, these glasses can be used for authentication, remembering the names of colleagues, departments, and projects you have worked with before, and generally as a remote window into offices, manufacturing facilities, and packaging factories worldwide. Virtual reality goggles can replace smartphones and laptops. Digital images, tactile feedback, biometric sensors, and audio playback and recording are all features of life in Metaverse, and car vision will be an important part of this world.
AR glasses can also help people on their first day of work by showing the work process in as much detail as possible. In a world where “distance” is fast becoming a habit, AR glasses can turn our home into a workplace, our workplace into a playground, and our lives into creative, colorful expressions of who we are.
Access to the virtual world through these glasses also allows companies to rethink their products or even their brand in innovative ways; Accelerate business processes, and test their virtual version before producing and distributing the product. Researchers and medical professionals can also use artificial intelligence to try out new treatments without compromising the health of patients or even animals.
Metaverse and the world of games
For many, video games are the pioneers of Metawares. Games such as Roblex, Fortnite, and Animal Crossing, in which gamers can build their own world, including some Metaverse features.
When Epic went into developing Fortnite in 2017, it had no intention of creating Metawares. But what was then described as a castle defense game in which gamers battled zombies became an international phenomenon a year later.
With millions of gamers flocking to Fortnite Battle Royale, something like “The Hunger Games,” the company quickly added social features, such as voice chats and dance parties. According to Epic, the company’s fortune from Fortnite has totaled more than $ 9 billion in 2018 and 2019. This huge fortune comes from gamers’ money on completely virtual items such as superhero costumes or banana suits for their characters. Has earned.
For many, video games are the pioneers of Metawares
Now Epic does not refer to Fortnite only as an interactive experience but as a meta-metric. The concerts of famous singers, which are held on the Fortnite platform, attract millions of gamers.
The Roblex game, in which independent developers design popular children’s games, is perhaps the closest and broadest perspective to the future Metaverse.
In the first quarter of 2021, gamers spent nearly 10 billion hours playing on the platform, with more than 42 million users logging in daily, according to the company. Gamers also spent $ 652 million on the platform’s virtual currency, called Robox, which can be used to buy hats, weapons, balloons, and other digital items for their characters.
David Bazowski, founder and CEO of Roblex, says the company even holds business meetings on the platform.
Just as letters, telegraphs, telephones, messages, and videos are tools for teamwork, we believe that Roblex and Metaverse join them as essential tools for business communication. Finally, one day we may even be able to shop at Roblex.
Millions of games are created on Roblex every year, and a large portion of the revenue from the sale of digital items and upgrades goes to developers. There have been cases where young actors have become millionaires in this way.
But it should note that platforms such as Fortnite, Minecraft, and Roeblocks are not Metawares in themselves, but only destinations in Metawares. In the future, as Metawares arrives, there will be millions of such destinations just like the websites on the Internet today.
According to Tim Sweeney, CEO of Epic,
Metaverse is not an app store with a list of different titles for downloading games and applications. At Metaverse, you and your friends, with your digital appearance and assets, can go from place to place and have completely different experiences while still maintaining your connections on social media.
He also said that one day there might be a “tunnel” between platforms such as Roblex and Fortnite through which gamers can move characters and game items between the two games.
Metaverse and the world of movies and series
Maybe there is a long time left until the realization of Metaverse, and maybe seeing such a day will not reach the life of any of us. Still, you can experience aspects of what is supposed to be part of the reality of human life in the future, right now in games like Fortnite, or watch a conceptual image of Metaverse in movies and TV series.
Undoubtedly, Steven Spielberg’s “Ready Player No. 1” is arguably the most popular of all the films that portray an aspect of Metaverse. In fact, many people suggest this movie to explain Metaverse; However, in this film, we see that the control of the whole virtual world is in the hands of only one company, while in real Metaverse, we will see a completely decentralized world and no company or institution can rule in this world.
With that in mind, watching this movie is a good starting point for understanding Metaverse and user experiences in virtual reality. Other films and series that feature aspects of Metaverse include Minority Report (2002), Avatar (2009), The Matrix (1992), Iron Man (2008), Upload (2020), Black Mirror, Altered Carbon, and Animation. Ralph is a saboteur.
Metaverse and China Block
Metaverse views a decentralized world controlled and shaped by its users and citizens, not a governmental or international institution. The citizens need the platform and the currency to buy and sell their digital products and technology-based Rmzarz·ha block China’s.
Companies such as Decentraland and The Sandbox have created virtual worlds where gamers can use cryptocurrencies to create structures such as amusement parks and even make money from them.
Irrevocable tokens (NFTs) also play a key role in meta-transformation, giving people full ownership of characters, items collected in the game, and even their virtual pitch. For example, NFT, a virtual plot of land in Decentraland, recently sold for nearly $ 1 million, making it one of the biggest-selling tokens to date.
Blockchain is responsible for the security of transactions and users’ identities.
There are no governments or regulators in Metaverse, and it is the job of blockchain technology to ensure the security of transactions and users’ identities. In addition, NFT tokens allow Metaverse users to own their own custom items, just like in the real world, and move them from platform to platform; And in Metaverse, for example, you can sell a piece of land you bought in Decentraland and use the money to buy a weapon in Fortnite.
In the meantime, the cryptocurrencies will be considered as the only legal currency used in Metaverse and will draw the roadmap for the formation of the economic structure of Metaverse. Of course, this transformational economy is already taking shape; Some companies are already auctioning off their brand NFTs worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Arthur Madrid, CEO and founder of The Sandbox, points to the willingness of people to pay large sums for digital assets in games and says gamers have already spent millions of dollars buying these items; Items that do not exist externally and their value is defined only in the virtual world.
Converting these assets to NFT and creating an NFT-based economy will add a new layer to the current digital economy.
How far are we from realizing the real Metaverse?
To some, we are already living in a kind of metaverse; Because a large part of our lives has become completely digital. But there is probably a lot of time left to see a metaphor for the size of “Ready Player 1”; Because there are still some obstacles to the realization of Metaverse. The biggest obstacle is hardware limitations. At present, the World Wide Web and computing capabilities worldwide cannot support a stable digital world that can host millions of users simultaneously and instantly. Even if this network and computing power level is available, energy consumption will pose many problems for power grids and the environment.
Metaverse may be realized in the future, But it is inevitable.
Even when there is the necessary technology to create MetaVers, it is necessary to make extensive cultural changes to encourage more people to use MetaVers. According to Thrive Analytics and ARTillery Intelligence, in 2020, while the highest quality virtual reality and augmented reality technology is available to the American community, less than 20% of them have turned to VR headsets.
Another big problem is the realization of interoperability, one of the three main pillars of Metaverse. Even Metaverse pioneers such as Fortnite do not allow gamers to transfer the content created to another platform. Companies that own these platforms need to relinquish some control over their players’ content and user experience for interoperability to be truly established.
Despite these problems, the metaverse is likely to be unavoidable; Future users may refer to it only as the Internet. The point here is that no buttons are to be pressed to transition from the Internet age to Metaverse; Rather, the transcendent gradually comes into being and encompasses us. Just as no one noticed the transition from the first generation to the second generation, the development of Metaverse will occur naturally with the wider presence of people in the virtual world and the greater connection of their identities to virtual life.
On the other hand, the technology giants are also trying to prepare their users for life in Metaverse sooner than their competitors. Among them, Facebook’s position on Metaverse has made a lot of noise. Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg recently said he plans to use the social network to build Metaverse. He said he expects people to see Facebook in the future not as a social network but as a transformational company. In his view, Metaverse is “a virtual environment in which you can be with different people in digital spaces. It is a visualized Internet that you are inside, not just looking at it from the outside. “We believe that Metaverse is set to replace mobile internet.”
There will be no noticeable change between before and after Metaverse
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella also talked about his plans to create Metaverse. In a speech at Microsoft Inspire this year, he described Metaverse as “a new layer of infrastructure” in which “the digital and physical worlds come together.”
Matthew Ball, former head of strategy at Amazon Studios, describes Metaverse not as a virtual world but as a “mobile Internet successor”; It is a framework for a highly connected and online life. According to him, “there will be no sudden and obvious change between before and after Metaverse. “Instead, Metaverse gradually emerges by integrating different products, services, and capabilities.”
Although games such as Roblex and Fortnite are often referred to as the pioneers of Meta-transformation, the most important pioneer of Meta-transformation is the Internet itself. If we consider the Internet as a video tour of an apartment with a glimpse of each room, the metatarsal will be the apartment itself. We have not lived in this apartment yet, but we have signed the lease for a long time.
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What do you think about Metaverse? Is the arrival of such a day inevitable, and will Metaverse help improve the quality of human life?