The availability of virtual reality and Web3 are leading to significant changes in the way online communities are built and managed. In contrast to Web2, which primarily focused on building communities around text, image and video-based applications, virtual reality communities dwell on interaction via spatial immersion.
Being able to interact with others in a 3D virtual world has opened up new possibilities for community building, with much more “tweaked” experience. Today we are going to explore the prominent features of virtual communities and how these will be impactful in the years to come.
Diving Into 3D — Building Social Presence in Real Time
Virtual worlds enable users to interact with others in a three-dimensional environment. It is a type of online interaction that allows for far more natural and engaging experience compared to interacting via flat media. Sure, at this point most people wouldn’t agree that it’s more natural. Messaging, commenting, leaving reactions — that seems to be natural based on our current habits. Yet, this way of interacting leaves out so many informational channels, which makes us rely on text, image and video-based communication (or the 2D world). These types of media will find their place in the 3D virtual reality, but the context around it and use of it changes. But how will this impact community building?
VR communities have their history in massively multiplayer online gaming. The reason why they became so popular was, besides the entertainment and fantasy element, the possibility to interact with others in a 3D fantasy environment while communicating with them in real time via text or voice chat. It is the level of social presence that was significantly higher than in Web2. VR communities can range from simple chat rooms to complex virtual worlds, the scale does not matter. It is the awareness and the sense of being in the same space as others, even though it is digital and people are physically separated.
The Features of Virtual Communities
Immersive online experiences come with several features that differ from our experience of Web2 online presence. The 2D image-based avatars in the profile turn into full 3D digital selves, the wall people scroll on Twitter, Instagram or other communicators is converted into a 3D space and the images or text we view become 3D objects or flat media within the 3D space. Everything has a shape, texture, curvature, is localized in space and stands in relation to other objects. In the light of this, let’s summarize the main characteristics of virtual communities:
Immersion — is a term that refers to the process of becoming fully engaged or absorbed in an experience or environment. In VR you are presented with a digitally created environment that is different to your physical surroundings, and therefore interacting with it, people become fully immersed.
Social Presence — Users become fully engrossed in a new world and characters, and therefore the social presence is much stronger than on Web2 non-immersive platforms. They become digitally physical (phygital), can move, touch, gesture, hug or walk together which come with the possibility of sharing a digital space with others.
Customization — To be able to create and personalize virtual avatars or environments is crucial for the virtual community. Customization not only empowers users to feel more in their “own skin”, but also allows them to express belonging to a community, if they wish so, by wearing symbols, colors or objects of that particular collective identity. In a social VR platform such as OWNverse, users can create their own virtual rooms or environments, decorate them with personalized items and invite other members of the community to join and interact with them.
Interactivity — in VR users can engage with each other and their environment in real-time, which allows them to interact with objects and other users in a way that is not possible in 2D environments. It is a real-time shared experience, even if they are physically located in different parts of the world. They engage in activities together, such as playing games, socializing, attending events and collaborating on projects.
Interactivity in VR can take many forms, including hand gestures, voice commands, body movements or haptic feedback. For example, users may be able to use their hands to manipulate objects or communicate with other users or they can use their body movements to navigate through the virtual world.
Real-time communication — Virtual communities interact with each other in real-time, just as they would in the physical world. This can include voice chat, text chat and a video presence as well as other forms of communication that allow users to communicate with each other while immersed in a shared virtual space.
For instance, on a virtual platform designed for gaming, players use real-time communication to strategize, give each other feedback and form alliances, enhancing the gaming experience. On an educational platform, real-time communication allows students and teachers to engage in interactive discussions and collaborate on projects, creating an engaging learning environment.
Collaboration — is the ability of users to work together in a shared virtual space, in real-time, to achieve a common goal. It can be co-creating 3D content, graphics or even virtual environments and other team-based tasks.
The OWNverse Virtual Experience
The OWNverse world is built and designed to facilitate all aforementioned features. Not only we create this world for all our users — our team itself is a working virtual community.
Our international team consists of members living around the globe in multiple time zones — and we have a shared goal and a mission. By having a shared virtual space with a real-time virtual presence, we can be in constant exchange and interact about daily tasks, which is crucial to be effective in bringing our users the best possible service.
This is how we collaborate:
- Virtual meetings and events — We engage daily and come together for meetings and exchanges. We interact with each other in real-time, share ideas, work together on projects via collaborative software and test features before we release them to the public.
- Co-creation of content — We use collaborative software to create content together such as 3D models and assist each other during creative and technical tasks. Since we have a shared goal, it reflects our interests, and VR technology allows us to explore our creativity.
- Group activities and games — We use VR to create shared experiences and team-based simulations, that allow us to work together on creating VR experiences for our users. This is a fun and engaging way to build a sense of teamwork and camaraderie within our team.
Overall, we can safely announce that it helps to foster a sense of connection and engagement in our team. In our shared virtual space where we can work together in real-time, VR enable a level of interaction and collaboration that is difficult to achieve through other means.
Final Thoughts
Virtual community building is a powerful tool for connecting people and fostering a sense of belonging in the digital age. With the advent of social media and other online platforms, individuals from all walks of life can come together to share their experiences, interests and passions. Virtual communities have the potential to provide a safe space for people to connect, collaborate and support one another, regardless of physical distance or cultural barriers.
However, it requires careful planning and active engagement. Community managers must cultivate an environment of trust and respect, and foster meaningful interactions between members. They must also be responsive to the needs of their community and be willing to adapt and evolve as the group grows. Yet, it is a unique opportunity to connect and foster social relationships. With the support of technology, people can come together to share their experiences and build lasting relationships, no matter where they are in the world.
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Would you like to test out one of the collaborative virtual spaces? Explore here.
