By Harlan Rose
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Virtual reality is a wonderful invention. It allows us to simulate reality in our experiences with social media, movies, video games and other entertainment outlets. Virtual reality is, in a sense, readily available to everyone, whether it be the hardcore video gamer or the avid smartphone user. However, in lieu of the recent announcement that Facebook is purchasing Oculus Rift (a virtual reality video game machine), it raises one question: have we, as consumers, become too dependent on virtual reality?
The development of virtual reality has increased dramatically in recent years. The video game industry has forayed into virtual reality through many outlets, whether it be Nintendo’s 3DS handheld console or Sony and Microsoft’s lifelike graphics. Other subtle forms of virtual reality which move us closer to completely digitizing our lifestyle include text messaging, personal assistants such as Siri and social networks. Text messaging has allowed friends and family to communicate with each other through short and sweet messages. Social networks have revolutionized the world of virtual reality, as they allow loved ones all over the world to connect and share memories over the internet.
And now, we have the Oculus Rift (also known as the Rift), an upcoming headset video game console with the intention of simulating virtual reality. The Rift intends to use 3D graphics that simulate our normal human vision almost perfectly. It intends to use incredibly life-like graphics to help us become immersed in the video game experience even more. The Rift is currently in its beta development period and is rumored to be released to the general public in late 2014 or early 2015.
However, things changed when the company behind the Rift, Oculus VR, announced on March 25 that they would be joining with Facebook to produce the peripheral. This marks the first time that a major social network has partnered with a video game company. Facebook intends to bring the world of Oculus Rift to the public through mass exposure over the internet by allowing the two fanbases to mingle. Yet this is not all Facebook intends to do with the new technology. In his announcement about the acquisition of Oculus VR, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg mentioned that while video games will be their first priority, they intend to expand on the Rift by essentially making it your digital life. “Imagine enjoying a courtside seat at a game, studying in a classroom of students and teachers all over the world or consulting with a doctor face-to-face − just by putting on goggles in your home,” Zuckerberg said in his announcement. With Facebook intending to have the Rift become your virtual life, it brings back the original question: have we become too reliant on virtual reality to live our lives for us?
Unfortunately, this is true, and the truthfulness of this statement will always manifest itself as technology continues to advance. With virtual reality being literally everywhere, with virtual reality able to do anything we desire, consumers have come to expect that the virtual world will do everything for them. Prior to the boom in technological advancement, we needed to find information through encyclopedias and other informational books. The invention of the internet and Google digitized these outlets, allowing us to use technology to find the information we need. Texting and social networks have allowed us to communicate with other people without having to physically talk to them. With smartphones, we simply need to speak to Siri and she will carry out any task for us. Now, with the announcement of Facebook buying Oculus Rift, we won’t even have to leave the house to meet with our doctors or to go to school. This shows that we have become too dependent on virtual reality to do everything for us rather than making the effort to do a simple task ourselves.
Virtual reality is an extraordinary concept that has revolutionized our way of life. It can be very helpful at times and it provides a new outlet of entertainment not previously available to us and has allowed us to communicate with other people in a manner never seen before. However, we have become so dependent on it to live our lives for us that it has ruined our interactions with the outside world. We must take measures to use virtual reality in moderation, rather than spend our entire lives stuck in that realm with no escape.
