SOME people think the metaverse is spooky but one happy couple like it so much they got married in the virtual world.
The metaverse wedding has sparked a bit of backlash and debate online as people seem to either love or hate the idea.
Traci and Dave Gagnon met in the cloud so thought it was only fitting they have a virtual wedding as well as a real one.
The metaverse ceremony featuring the Gagon’s virtual avatars was staged by a company called Virbela.
It usually creates virtual environments for work or big events.
Traci and Dave’s avatars first met at a company event in Las Vegas.
They both work as real estate agents at eXp Realty, that’s part of eXp World Holdings, which owns Virbela.
That’s why when their engagement was announced to work colleagues, it was decided that Virbela would create a virtual wedding venue free of charge.
Traci told The Sun US: “It was the idea of Jason Gesing, the President of our company, eXp Realty.
“He said it would be a great way for everyone to attend our wedding. We have one of the most robust cloud campuses in the world.”
She described the experience as “very exciting” and “easy” despite not being able to seal the marriage with a kiss at the virtual altar.
The couple enjoyed the experience so much they’d even consider a metaverse honeymoon.
Traci told us: “Our cloud campus has a beach and speed boats and even a pirate ship! Maybe we could make that happen!”
Ms. Gagnon, 52, and Mr. Gagnon, 60, technically had a hybrid wedding because they also had a real ceremony while simultaneously hosting a virtual one.
Guests of the virtual ceremony, which took place back in September, had to download software to their computer and create an avatar.
Real life guests were invited to Atkinson Resort & Country Club in New Hampshire to see the event in person.
Traci thinks the virtual wedding would have cost around $30,000 had the couple paid.
The metaverse ceremony had fine details that were present in the real life wedding.
This included similar wedding dress details and decorations.
You can’t technically legally get married in the metaverse so a real life ceremony is also necessary.
However, the virtual ceremony did have wedding speeches and dancing.
Not everyone was as impressed with the metaverse wedding as the Gagnons when the New York Times tweeted an article about the event.
One man tweeted: “This s*** was happening nonstop in Second Life & WoW like 15 years ago. and the graphics were better.”
Another said: “Why are people even going gaga about this so-called “metaverse” when MMOs and Second Life have existed for the past couple decades?”
Others were much more supportive.
One person tweeted: “My wife and I got married in Animal Crossing, where’s our article???”
Metaverse is a broad term. It generally refers to shared virtual world environments which people can access via the internet.
The term can refer to digital spaces which are made more lifelike by the use of virtual reality (VR) or augmented reality (AR).
Some people also use the word metaverse to describe gaming worlds, in which users have a character that can walk around and interact with other players.
There is also a specific type of metaverse which uses blockchain technology.
In these, users can buy virtual land and other digital assets using cryptocurrencies.
Many science fiction books and films are set in fully-fledged metaverses – alternative digital worlds which are indistinguishable from the real physical world.
But this is still the stuff of fiction.
Currently, most virtual spaces look more like the inside of a video game than real life.
Facebook Inc recently changed its name to Meta and the company plans to create its own metaverse.
In other news, smartphone experts are warning anyone thinking of buying an iPhone for Christmas to think again.
WhatsApp is adding a cryptocurrency feature for some users in the US.
And, we revealed an iPhone document scanning trick you need to try.
