ARCHITECT’S DIVE INTO THE METAVERSE
In the 1990s, with the introduction of “the internet”, which brought along websites, apps, live streams, and most importantly cat memes with it, the world went through a digital transformation. Now zoom into 2021 we have what is said to be the internet2.0 — Metaverse, which brings along NFTs, Blockchain, VR chat, and other soon-to-be common terms that are yet to be generalized to the common audience, which all begs a question, what is Metaverse?
Metaverse in its all complexities and glory is simply a digital world, where anything we can imagine can exist. It is a digital frontier where we can interact with each other in a 3D virtual space from the comfort of our home. It is designed to be a fully immersive 3D environment where buildings, art, music, and human connection can exist digitally. The platform might be premature right now, but the foundation has already been laid by Facebook, Microsoft, Epic Games, and many other tech brands and it’s fair to say the concept is an interesting and possibly lucrative domain for designers to leverage their design skills in the physical world and to extend that into the virtual world.
As for architects, the metaverse is an uncharted territory full of possibilities, and a utopia without the constraints of the physical world. Architects have the freedom to design and execute exactly what they desire. They can even create unique art collectibles called non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for the demographic that like to collect one-of-a-kind assets. Architects can also build digital library assets like the furniture to full-fledged cities, and sell them multiple times to the virtual worlds, games, and movies. They can also provide digital products/services across the globe now. It might be difficult to find clients who value their design from their region, but it’s much easier to find users that appreciate their taste globe-wide.
The rise of the Metaverse is a seismic level event for architecture and as for their designs, even the sky is not the limit. With correct tools of 3D modeling software that architects are more or less familiar with: Blender, 3Ds Max, Maya, Houdini, city engine, Substance Painter and also game engines like Unity and Unreal, one can easily take the mantle as spatial environment designer in this new medium. After all, it’s the architects and designers that can harness the power of creativity and imagination that can build an online space as rich and complex as the real world.