3 projects that show the metaverse isn’t dead

While the excitement surrounding the metaverse has certainly died down, some major brands are still rolling out exciting new virtual worlds.

In October 2021, Mark Zuckerberg made a big announcement: Facebook would rebrand as Meta.

This stemmed from his vision that the metaverse represented the tech giant’s future: virtual worlds where people would work and play.

But it’s been a tumultuous journey for the social network, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp. Billions of dollars have been poured into building the metaverse, but there’s little to show for it. This aggressive investment continues. Reality Labs, the division of Meta responsible for bringing this technology to life, lost $3.8 billion in the first quarter of this year, and there is a much greater focus on artificial intelligence.

Numerous other companies have also invested heavily in metadata, with mixed success. Disney was particularly bullish, as former CEO Bob Chapek declared it was “the next great frontier of storytelling.” But last year, the entire department tasked with making it happen was abruptly shut down in a brutal round of layoffs.

The Mouse House doesn’t seem to have completely given up on this dream. In February, Disney invested $1.5 billion in Epic Games with the goal of creating a “new and enduring universe.” Interestingly, the word “metaverse” wasn’t mentioned even once in the press release.

You could argue that the rise of artificial intelligence has eclipsed the excitement surrounding virtual worlds. But reports of the death of metadata are greatly exaggerated, and quite large projects continue to be announced regularly.

McMetaverse

Earlier this month, McDonald’s Singapore introduced a brand new virtual world called My Happy Place, available directly on the fast food giant’s app. Users were promised “exclusive prices and products” and the chance to win free meals for a year. Some of the games offered challenge players to make a burger or design the restaurant of their dreams.

There are also perks for lucky owners of NFTs based on McDonald’s famous purple character Grimace, which launched last year. From where? Because they will be able to unlock special wearables that no one else can access.

Source: IKEA IKEA

In late June, Swedish home furnishings retailer IKEA will also launch a virtual universe on Roblox, heralded as “the brand’s first foray into mainstream gaming.”

The Coworker Game will allow players to experience what it’s like to work at IKEA and move between levels. Levels are inspired by real-life roles performed by staff and include rearranging showrooms and serving meatballs. In a surreal development, a small number of players will also be paid £13.15 per hour for participation; this is equivalent to the living wage paid to workers in London.

Some of the questions on the application form are surreal, to say the least, including how you’d feel if you turned into pixels and what you’d do if the store ran out of pixelated hot dogs at the bistro.

IKEA said its aim was to “attract the next generation of colleagues” and demonstrate that there are ample opportunities for career development in its business.

Source: Wales in the metaverse Visit Wales

Skeptics who dismissed virtual worlds as a passing fad were also proven wrong by the Welsh government in the United Kingdom, the first European country to establish a presence in the metaverse. It is hoped that the platform, hosted on Spatial and created by the national tourism board, will offer visitors an experience of available destinations and attractions should they decide to come in real life.

Players can wander around a historic castle in search of a secret map, ride a cable car from one side of the metaverse to the other, and marvel at an amphitheater playing authentic Gaelic music. Most importantly, you don’t need a VR headset to participate, as it’s also available on smartphones, tablets, and laptops. Tourism minister Hannah Blythyn said:

“The Wales metadatabase was created to reach new audiences wherever they are in the world and inspire them to actually visit our wonderful country. By showcasing some of the best that Wales has to offer visitors in this incredibly innovative way, we are placing Wales in an online space where millions of people meet it every day.“

Hannah Blythyn

With each of these three projects announced in the past few months, it’s clear that there’s still a lot of excitement around building in the metaverse. As virtual reality headsets become cheaper and more efficient, curious consumers are likely to become more eager to take the plunge.