Metaverse Stocks: Investing in the Megatrend
Admission only possible with import
The term became better known through the novel “Snow Crash” by Neal Stephenson from 1991. The book and its film version of the same name “Ready Player One” also give a good impression. In both, the metaverse is called “Oasis”. But the principle remains the same: put on your glasses, get out of the dreary everyday life and into the digital world.
Entering Happiness: The Meta Quest 2 takes you into the Metaverse.
However, it’s not that simple yet. First of all, users have to get the right hardware – the VR glasses Meta Quest 2 (formerly Oculus Quest 2). Problem: The device is not officially sold in Germany. But you can get them for a small surcharge from Austria, Switzerland or for a little more money from Amazon dealers. In the USA they are available from 350 US dollars (around 306 euros). COMPUTER BILD procured the Meta Quest 2 and at first felt uneasy about the old Windows days: During the initial setup, the glasses hung up immediately after switching on. Science fiction looks different.
Appropriate apps not available in some cases
Obstacle number 2: Some of the necessary software is not yet available in Europe. Everything related to Zuckerberg’s Metaverse is accessible via the “Horizon” cosmos. This in turn is currently made up of the three apps “Horizon Workrooms”, “Horizon Venues” and “Horizon Worlds”.
Horizon Worlds is particularly exciting because the application allows users to create their own games and play with friends. However, the app is currently only open to VR pioneers over the age of 18 in the US and Canada. There is the possibility of installing VPN apps on the Meta glasses via detours; But she doesn’t let that fool her. Even if it does, it would take a bit of luck. In numerous forums, Metaverse fans complain that they cannot download the app even though they meet all the criteria. Sometimes it helps to put the app on the wish list and check again after a few days whether the installation is possible. That didn’t work in our test.
In the beginning there is the avatar. You can create a new virtual self in each app. Here’s the variant for Meta’s custom apps.
The situation is similar at Horizon Venues. With the service, friends can watch films together or attend virtual concerts. This app can at least be installed, but after a short introduction it only shows an error message and then quits the service.
Only work, not play?
Then finally a ray of hope: Horizon Workrooms, the office workplace of tomorrow, so to speak, actually works without any problems – and is actually really cool. Users can digitally recreate their desk and even transfer the real computer keyboard to the virtual world. You can then find them with your glasses on. With the optional Oculus Remote Desktop software, digital workaholics can also bring their screen to the virtual workplace and spend the entire day in the parallel world.
Come to the Metaverse – your desk is already there! That is not completly correct. However, it can easily be transferred to Horizon Workrooms.
Also practical: the two controllers that come with the Meta Quest 2 to control the apps and games are not needed in the digital workplace. Instead, users simply hold their hands together briefly in front of the headset. The glasses recognize them and display them digitally in VR – amazing! The controllers then serve as pens for the whiteboard. Great for presentations or brainstorming meetings. Users without Meta Quest glasses can also participate in Horizon Workrooms. They can easily be added to the conference via the video chat service Zoom.
Hand on it: The Meta Quest 2 also works without a controller if necessary. Mark Zuckerberg introduced the function at OC6 2019.
meet people and play
If you don’t want to work but play, you have to ignore Meta and install third-party apps. In addition to classic VR games for entertainment only and some sports apps, there are apps in the style of Horizon Worlds. One of them is “Rec Room”, an app that invites you to create games and gamble. If you want to play, you first have to create a new user account and can design your avatar according to your own wishes. Also important: Users must agree to the specifications for use. Among other things, they say that you should treat your teammates well and not insult them. This is followed by a brief introduction to the controls and the virtual adventures can begin.
In Rec Room you float around as a colorful avatar and gamble against other users or meet them.
In the brightly colored world you move as a figure without legs, floating. Gamers jump directly into a game via a menu. You can also visit the “Rec Center”, the gathering place for players. It’s pretty chaotic there though. Numerous users run aimlessly through the area and throw objects around. Quite a few of them babble on for no apparent reason, while others make fun of insulting passing users. Only a few are really nice and a real exchange does not come about here. If you do meet a likeable person, you can add them to your friends list, just like on Facebook.
If you want to avoid the chaos, jump straight into a game. Many are about defeating little block monsters alone or in a group. But there are also car racing and sports games. After all, communication works better here. But that is also logical, after all, all players want to win the game. Basically, Rec Room is free. You can still get rid of money by buying new items and weapons for the avatar. 12,000 virtual tokens are available for 20 real US dollars (around 17.50 euros).
There are nice people too
There are other titles similar to Rec Room. This includes Multiverse. Here, too, you can explore digital worlds and play games. When trying it out, there was very little going on in the app. A replica city with tall buildings looked as if the corona pandemic had also gripped the virtual world and forced it into lockdown. It is precisely these impressions that the Metaverse actually wants to avoid.
When it’s cold outside, just virtually sit around the campfire and have a chat in AltspaceVR.
AltspaceVR is livelier. The app is now owned by Microsoft. Accordingly, you can simply log in with an existing user account from the Windows maker. Here the focus is less on games. Instead, the exchange is in the foreground. When grilling marshmallows at the virtual campfire, you can actually start a conversation in peace. A user from India asks how she is. Everything fine here. And even? But the spontaneous meeting quickly came to an end. The lady floats on without greeting. That would have been pretty weird in real life, but in the Metaverse it’s a part of everyday life. What the apps all have in common: There is currently nothing more than comic graphics. No wonder: With the Meta Quest 2 you strap a smartphone in front of your eyes. The cheap glasses are technically limited; Movements sometimes feel jerky and not very natural. It can also happen that the quest carrier gets a queasy stomach. That was the case with a racing game in Rec Room, for example. Key word: motion sickness.
There is no such thing as a metaverse
The apps stand for themselves. Each requires its own user account and avatar. So there is no such thing as a metaverse. That shouldn’t change anytime soon. In addition to Meta, other companies are also working on their visions for virtual worlds. At the Ignite 2021 conference, for example, Microsoft gave an outlook on the future of the Teams communication platform. Here, companies should be given the opportunity to create their own metaverses for their employees. Microsoft understands this as “immersive spaces”, in this case unfortunately not playing fields, but simply digital offices for working. In an interview with the business portal Bloomberg, Microsoft boss Satya Nadella also described the company’s major game titles “Halo”, “Minecraft” and “Flight Simulator” as metaverses.
This is how Meta imagines the Metaverse. It will probably be a while before it actually looks like this.
Epic Games boss Tim Sweeney is also a big fan of the Metaverse. With “Fortnite” the company is also well positioned for this. You can already go to concerts with friends in the game. In the end, however, it won’t be the one company that develops the only true Metaverse. Instead, in a few years it will be about linking existing offers with one another. Until then, the Metaverse will remain a closed society. Don’t be sad if you can’t get in yet. You are currently not missing much in the virtual world.