We are born, grow up and die. What if we came too close to finding immortality? Although a future where we can transfer our consciousness to a virtual world and live in our own virtual world forever is inevitable, it seems like we have to wait a little longer for this.
We, on the other hand, want to talk about the near future, that is, the years when the era of virtual reality will begin and the change that games will go through. In the near future, games will become such that we will throw the real world into the background and spend most of our time in virtual worlds, which we call the “metaverse”. So, let’s move on to our article.
We are at the beginning of it all: the first age of virtual reality
Before we go on a little trip to the years ahead, let’s go back 15 years. The year is 2007. Cell phones have just started to become popular in our country and we have a smashed computer. So much so that these devices, which we can easily call old-fashioned now, were so precious back then, weren’t they? Our lives have been greatly facilitated by the fact that technological devices have gradually become popular and take their place in markets in all countries.
When we compare a device released 10 years ago with a device released this year, we can easily see the difference between mountains and the developing technology. While we couldn’t play anything other than snake game and tetris with a button cell phone in the past, when we compare what we can do now, doesn’t it seem very impressive to you? Moreover, these were only about 20 years ago. Considering the technology at our disposal right now, it’s pretty exciting to predict 20 years from now.
Since we have made a small journey into the past, let’s make this journey to the near future with today’s technology. When we look at the current state of the gaming world, we see that the industry is experiencing its golden age and has never had such a large market share before. Today, when we say virtual reality, we think more of; a big title we think about, virtual reality games that we can play with this title, and the curiosity of taking part in a virtual world.
Let’s not forget the success of PlayStation VR and Oculus VR in particular. Even now; We can put on our virtual reality headset, enter a world overrun by zombies, fight against zombies and even explore planets. If this is the case now, can you predict 20 years from now? We are currently living in the first age of virtual reality and we will witness it develop much more than we expected.
Subscription systems, cloud technology and virtual universes: The future of gaming
When it comes to the future of the game world; we see that subscription systems, cloud technology and virtual universes are inevitable. So much so that we have already begun to witness the great rise of subscription systems. The Xbox Game Pass system, which started with Microsoft, the owner of Xbox, continues to increase its popularity in the game world day by day. We have also seen that PlayStation has entered such a path with PlayStation Plus, which has undergone major changes in the past months.
When we take a look at the biggest of the game world, for now; We see it being Tencent, Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo. These steps, taken by the biggest brands of the game world such as PlayStation and Xbox, are slowly shaping the future of the game world. Let alone the near future, in the next few years, subscription systems will become such that we will begin to leave the days when we buy games slightly behind.
Cloud technology will become so widespread that you will be able to instantly access and play any game you want from anywhere, anytime, on any device. Of course, we would like to underline that a very strong internet infrastructure is required for this. Along with subscription systems and cloud technology, virtual reality technology will develop to a great extent.
Virtual reality will become such that we will forget our real lives and have a second life that we have built in a game. In addition, our previous sentence is a common situation especially in massive multiplayer online games that we call “MMO”, although they are not virtual reality games. One of the best examples today is Second Life.
One of the early examples of Metaverse: Second Life
Second Life, a video game developed by Linden Research and operating completely free of charge since 2003, takes place in a massive multiplayer online virtual world. This internet-based virtual world, with its role-playing structure and almost no limit to what you can do, offers its users the opportunity to experience the life of their dreams in a virtual way.
First of all, Second Life is not a virtual reality game. In other words, you experience all these while looking at your computer screen and feel like you are part of a virtual world. The developers of Second Life are working on the virtual reality version of the game and aim to make a huge contribution to virtual reality. But in fact, they offer this virtual life even now.
First, you create your dream character and customize your avatar as you wish. What you do after that is entirely up to you. Whether you are exploring new places, sitting in a bar and socializing with other people, participating in various activities or trying to earn money. This world, where what you can do is left to your imagination, is as scary as it sounds impressive. Although this situation may not seem too scary while looking at a computer screen, imagine that you are in this game, where you are constantly interacting with people, with a virtual reality headset.
These titles will develop so much in the near future that they will be able to deceive our five senses. So while playing a virtual reality game; We will see, hear, smell, taste and touch. We will reach a level where we feel as if we are really living, even if we are not really experiencing them. As such, the concept of crime will always exist in the virtual world.
A different experience: Why do people play these types of games?
Think games like Second Life, MovieStarPlanet, or even Virtualika. These are games that manage to offer an almost real virtual life experience behind their simple looks. The biggest common point of all these three games is to socialize. The biggest reason why people play such games is that they can interact with other people constantly.
They meet, mingle and make new friendships in virtual environments. There are even many people who marry a person they met through an online game. It will sound very strange, but this has happened even in League of Legends. Some people prefer multiplayer games over single player games. Another of the biggest reasons behind this is that they do not want to feel alone in a big game.
Here is the most curious question: Can we exist permanently in a virtual world?
Although scientists state that this is unlikely in the near future, they also say that it is inevitable that our technology will reach such a level. Humanity will come to such a level that we will be able to leave our body that makes us who we are and live in our own virtual world with our loved ones forever. Considering that the future will be like this, the question “What if we are simulations?” can be quite frightening.
So what can we do with our virtual reality glasses in the near future? Imagine standing in front of a huge wall with your own avatar. Behind you is an army of about 100 knights. You are the commander of this army and every knight in your army is a real person like you. The responsibility of each of your men is in your hands. Will your strategic intelligence and combat skills be enough to conquer the castle? Here we are faced with a true medieval experience. Now consider this example with different themes and topics. Virtual reality will be indispensable in the near future.
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