Using the Internet for dating and dating seems almost inevitable for our digital age (and especially our culture). When
When online dating sites like Match.com, or Meetic, were growing in popularity in the early 2000s, many people still considered them weird, it was kind of taboo. We all underestimated the often clunky and unattractive interfaces of dating websites. Then, in 2013, Tinder came. Many hesitations had already fallen, but after this app the biggest stigma about getting the first date through the internet finally collapsed. When will VR encounters lead to similar things?
Today, virtual reality technologies are being used more and more to facilitate social gatherings. This raises an obvious question: Will someone go on a first date one day simply by wearing a VR headset and "meeting" another person to get acquainted in a virtual environment?
The first appointment in virtual reality: word to three experts
There are two things that will make the first virtual reality date mainstream.
1 - Adoption of virtual reality.
Virtual reality is not a simple "thing to do". It is a place to be with friends, or anyone in the world. Virtual reality will spread with social use by niche early adopters to replace communication methods such as Zoom, calling, and even texting. Spending time together in VR is just as good as it is in person: with VR you can hear someone's voice, read their body language and feel their presence as if they were in the same room as you, even if they are on the other side. of the world. The adoption of VR headsets has doubled in recent years and I believe its mainstream adoption will take place within 5 years.
2 - A shift in the online dating experience. From a compulsive swipe to a meaningful bond.
Compared to larger dating apps, VR allows people to get past surface-level images, forced jokes, and awkward messages to jump right in and test chemistry. Virtual reality will offer new types of experiences to bond with. You can have a "first date" by visiting museums or monuments together. It will be possible to have immersive virtual experiences: adventurous, playful, in all kinds of settings. How will spending time with someone from any culture, identity and background open people's minds? Apart from the first date, love in all its forms will free itself from the limitations of what is close. When one is not "trapped" in a physical body, one also loses the urge to judge others. With VR encounters you will have a window into another's true personality (or soul).
For starters, people need spaces and platforms that are capable of hosting VR encounters and providing adult-relevant entertainment and things to do. The current social horizon of virtual reality still doesn't have the right option for that, it goes from Pixar-style over 13 metaverses straight to porn.
While social virtual reality spaces are filled with general users doing general things, there isn't much to be done when it comes to social erotic explorations. For this we are building Raspberry Dreamland to provide a space for curious adults to make the first date, and also the following ones, in an intimate connection at a distance. VR dating projects like these will make everything mainstream.
The first step more important is to make the VR headsets more user-friendly. I believe the future of VR encounters lies in standalone headsets like Oculus. Maybe much more advanced, of course.
The second step is to create multiple distribution channels for 18+ content for standalone VR headsets. The problem is that with increasing censorship it is more difficult to transfer these ideas to people because the Oculus store completely avoids adult content, which makes it impossible to distribute environments such as VIKI Right now. One day he who knows that VR meetings cannot be held, perhaps after the company has implemented a robust parental control policy.
In summary
It's not just a matter of first date: VR dating apps are becoming much more popular, and with the upcoming developments in headsets and technologies, virtual reality will take them to the next level.
