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SKEUOMORPHISM TAKES ALL THE FUN OUT OF VR

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But not for much longer!

Mary Glazkova

Not going to lie, this post started as one of those slightly unoriginal “I’ve attended a VR event, and here’s my take” pieces. Yes, all of those things did happen: I attended a VR-based conference (not like there are any other kinds these days), and I “walked away” thinking deep thoughts. But it was my fifth conference in VR over the past month, so I thought I’d try and summarize what irked me about every one of them.

But first, a few words about my latest experience, XRBase’s yearly Investor Event, held entirely in VR for the first time. It’s a public pitch event where pre-select startups are each given three minutes to pitch. I was there to hear those pitches on behalf of my VC firm.

The format was to be expected: put on the headset, and it’s almost like 2020 never happened. There’s a stage with a large screen, a moderately original, relaxing natural background, some audience (but no heckling), and speakers saying “next slide, please” (SRSLY!?).

1. Designing for a modern 3D world: A UX design guide for VR

2. Scripting Javascript Promise In Spark AR For Beginners

3. Build your first HoloLens 2 Application with Unity and MRTK 2.3.0

4. Virtual Reality: Do We Live In Our Brain’s Simulation Of The World?

The organizers did their best by sending every registered attendee clearly written instructions on how to access the conference, complete with some VR etiquette tips. Unfortunately, not many people bothered to read the latter, which resulted in some attending avatars standing up and obstructing “the view” without even realizing their mistake. I guess we’re far away from VR being able to communicate the sensation of someone’s death stare.

For many, the overall experience was another welcome break from being locked at home, and unlike Zoom, VR has the benefit of allowing spontaneous gatherings of small groups for discussing things in a smaller circle. In my view, this is the best selling point of VR conferences, the ability to discuss possibilities and close deals informally. The experience will, however, improve immensely once the technology is able to recreate or mimic body language with life-like accuracy. At the moment, some avatars look like they’re suffering a severe neurodegenerative syndrome or just being zombie-like.

Another good thing about VR-based conferences is the theoretically limitless size of the on-stage screen. It’s this seemingly positive thought that made me realize the thing that bothered me about this VR-based conference primarily made by and for the industry insiders: WHY ON EARTH DO WE NEED THE SCREEN AND THE STAGE IN THE FIRST PLACE? It’s VR, goddammit! Why can’t we have a virtual crystal ball instead? Why do the speakers need to present human-looking avatars? Why can’t they be more imaginative with their visuals? After all, they’re the ones making all the tools!

And then the word finally emerged: it’s the damn skeuomorphism all over again. Remember mobile apps before iOS 7? Many things looked like their real-life analogies: contacts in a leather-bound on-screen Rolodex, tear-off calendars, those kinds of things? Professional designers found them tasteless, but the workaround had its purpose: it gave incoming hordes of mass-market consumers who were having their first experience of mobile computing certain helpful references, visual cues telling them what to do.

The same is true with VR in 2020: thanks to the epidemic, many more “commoners” will experience it this year, and the industry won’t have the luxury of a more gradual adoption curve. VR will have to accommodate people of all ages and backgrounds with varying tolerance for shticks and gimmicks. VR will have to remain slightly on the bland side before it can become more inventive in a more accessible, universally appealing way.

Next slide, please.

Source: https://arvrjourney.com/skeuomorphism-takes-all-the-fun-out-of-vr-a9ecfb809e1?source=rss—-d01820283d6d—4

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