This summer, I have been reviewing ideas, startups, consultancy projects… related to the Metaverse. At the end of the day, to visit other worlds getting experiences and having opportunities to improve your professional/personal life is strongly connected to Touristology’s principles!
When Eric Peckham talks about Metaverse, He sees the merger between Social Media and Gaming. He also says that Multiverse could be a more appropriate word than Metaverse. Of course, enterprises will claim to be THE Metaverse, but as happens in Tourism Destinations, Hotels, Airlines Companies, Cruises companies… Tourists can have a different opinion and it is our job as Touristologists to try to seduce them!
If we go deeper (you know how much I love going deeper!), we can combine the Multiverse AND the real world so, we have the wonderful opportunity to build Hybrid Experiences where we can mix Tourists, Inhabitants, Local Enterprises with members of their community in any country around the world.
He also talks about how Fortnite in 2017 popularize MMO (Massive Multiplayer Online). In the same way, that in Tourism we have Mass Tourism and Specialized Tourism, in these new hybrid worlds we can apply one of our favorite Touristology’s principles. As we always say, in YOUR METAVERSE… First Specialized, then Generic! So, what about to try to build your SMO (Specialized Multiplayer Online) where the members of the community will be members of a Specialized Segment?
But Jordi… We are Touristologists! Fortnite is a GAME!
Listen to your inner Touristology's voice! Is it possible to mix/to find synergies between Games Sciences and Touristology? Of course! As a matter of fact, Touristology (and all Sciences) should be multidisciplinary. Who better than Edwars O. Wilson to share his vision of Consilience. The unity of knowledge.
The development of the Metaverse need the vision of scientists that know about games development, psychology of gamers... BUT also experts in the benefits of going to a different environment (change of perspectives, building professional/family teams, overcome fears, doubts or disabilities, to learn and practice your professional skills in an international environment…) and experts in the management of Tourism Enterprises/Destinations.
The development of the Metaverse is a great opportunity for building Games focused on collaboration instead of conflict.
Games focused on Tourists helping Local enterprises and earn a living doing it!
Games focused on building international communities improving their personal/professional life through International Routes or different Multiverses!
Games where Tourists will share experiences in Real-Time with members of their Specialized community in different countries around the world.
We can lead the way to this new kind of games!
Together, experts in Games and Touristologists can visualize, create and animate new scenes. We will need “Scenes” develop for designers BUT ALSO real scenes based on where the Tourists’ camera is looking at. Creating Real-Time point cloud of the physical environment using SLAM (Simultaneous Localization And Mapping) captured by photogrammetry/photoscanning (a lot of photos turned into 3D models), LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging)…
Experts in Games and Touristologists can visualize, create and animate new characters, new skins. Characters develop as mesh and riggings BUT also scanning real Tourists/Inhabitants, members of their specialized community around the world.
Together, they can trigger events rooted in the Tourists’ space and context. Events based on “Anchors” 3D models that all the members of the community will see in the same position and place. Events that will generate a wave of events (the World Wide Wave!!!) that then can be processed (Stream Processing ) in order to provide solutions and opportunities to improve/transform the personal and professional life of the Tourists, members of his/her community around the world, Inhabitants and local Enterprises!
As Jamie Burke says here “I don’t think the metaverse is necessarily or inherently disruptive. I actually think that if approached in the right way can enhance existing businesses” For instance… #Tourism!!!
So, definitely, in the GDD (Game Design Document) you have to add some Touristologists to the team!!!
