Virtual Reality
The term ‘virtual reality is often used as a synonym
for the use of electronic games, but it really has to do with the idea of being
able to recreate sensations or experiences that normally take place in physical
environments and using them that way. This can be done, for instance, by having
your computer watch movies in real life, watching an online video, playing a
game, etc. Or simply making an experience that involves moving around with
little or no involvement from other users.
Virtual reality provides us with such a range of
possibilities, it’s difficult to imagine how we might want to go back to the
world of physically interacting with people and places. At one end of the
spectrum, there are some very interesting uses beyond purely visual ones, like 3D
printing and robots made out of materials. On the opposite end, even better,
what would happen if you could actually travel around the universe and have the
same sensory experiences in different ways and in real-time? You can explore
this type of technology on VR headsets, as well as other types of interactive
devices like Oculus Rift Go.
For most people, the first real interest came at the start
of 2009 when Valve released its groundbreaking piece of software called Steam,
which allowed consumers to buy games and hold sessions with others in the form
of mini-jams, complete with sound. In a similar manner to gaming, these
sessions were created by allowing participants to try different new
environments before purchasing any more shares of them. It was also revealed
that Valve’s system had been designed to allow developers to create content
that could then easily be stored on Steam; in short, it was meant to help
people learn more about this medium so they could feel a genuine sense of
immersion within a virtual environment. But the company did have several
problems in their attempt to capitalize on virtual reality, specifically a lack
of understanding about the limits of computing power which limited the
development of games and games consoles, while also causing creators to either
completely rewrite their entire titles, or find creative alternatives. It could
be argued that this was due to the fact that Steam was seen as taking over from
Sony Interactive Entertainment, who had been creating consoles from the outset.
While the whole concept of virtual reality remains
relatively unexplored by society, technology has evolved over the past decade,
especially in terms of rendering virtual worlds with high quality graphics.
There is also been great progress made towards helping developers achieve the
goal of combining games and environments and enabling those players to become
immersed in their digital surroundings. For example, Unity has provided a
framework for building environments on top of each other; Adobe also offers
support for VR. And lastly, Facebook has built environments that look a lot
like actual buildings.
The potential opportunities for virtual reality are
enormous, yet there are still many doubts about whether this area will ever
make its way into mainstream culture, given the sheer number of ideas involved,
and the practical difficulties and technical limitations that need to be
overcome in order to get started with something that involves a level of
immersiveness like real-life spaces. That said, there are plenty of projects,
from companies like Apple, Google, and Facebook, which have demonstrated that
virtual reality can be integrated into the systems of our lives and can serve
not only as a window into our own inner worlds but also as a means of exploring
entirely new areas of exploration.
Nowadays, it’s possible to think of virtual reality as
something much more than just another form of entertainment; instead, it’s a
powerful tool that can allow people to see other worlds in new ways that can
inspire creativity, improve teamwork and bring new perspectives into the human
condition. Virtual reality seems to have the potential to transform every
aspect of modern living and provide incredible new perspectives to everyone who
takes part in it. Because it’s never been easier.
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