User:Shadowboxer2005/Metaverse selfie
The metaverse selfie (also known as the Horizon Worlds selfie) is an image taken by Mark Zuckerberg in the virtual reality, online video game Horizon Worlds, developed by his company Meta Platforms for the Oculus Rift S and other platforms; the image depicts Zuckerberg's avatar in front of digital interpretations of the Eiffel Tower and Sagrada Família, and was posted to Facebook in celebration of Horizon Worlds' launch in France and Spain on August 16, 2022.
Upon its release, the image received widespread criticism and mockery from viewers and publications, with it often being cited for its poor quality of graphics in comparison to other contemporary and older video games, as well citing the large amount of money Meta had invested into the metaverse. It soon became an internet meme, leading to Zuckerberg responding to the mockery by stating that the image had been taken in a hurry, and that Horizon Worlds would be capable of much more.
Background[edit]
Horizon Worlds (originally Facebook Horizon[1]) is a free virtual reality, online video game developed and published by Meta Platforms for the Oculus Rift S and Oculus Quest 2 virtual reality headsets.[2] After a closed beta test,[3] the game was officially released for people in the United States and Canada on December 9, 2021.[4][5] The game, commonly referred to as a metaverse, has players create virtual avatars before heading to separate "worlds" created by other players while playing minigames.[1][3][6] By February 2022, Horizon Worlds had grown to an estimated 300,000 users, as well as 10,000 worlds.[7][8]
On August 16, 2022, Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the release of Horizon Worlds in France and Spain on Facebook (also owned by Meta), with the message "We're launching Horizon Worlds in France and Spain today! Looking forward to seeing people explore and build immersive worlds, and to bringing this to more countries soon." Included with the post was an image depicting his avatar in front of interpretations of the Eiffel Tower (France) and Sagrada Família (Spain).[9]
Reactions and legacy[edit]
The image quickly garnered mockery online, particularly on Twitter where it was criticized for its poor quality graphics in comparison to other video games;[10][11][12][13] among these included comparisons with Second Life (2003),[10][11] Twisted Metal 2 (1996),[10] Fortnite (2017),[14] and Miis,[13] as well as generally finding the avatar dead-eyed or soulless.[13][15] People also noted the amount of money Mark had invested into the metaverse; Wes Fenlon wrote for PC Gamer "Meta spent $10 billion on developing whatever the hell it's doing with the metaverse last year, and all it's got to show for it is a baby doll-faced Zuckerberg hovering in front of a miniature Eiffel Tower."[10]
On August 19, 2022, Mark Zuckerberg responded to the memes on Instagram writing "the photo I posted earlier this week was pretty basic — it was taken very quickly to celebrate at launch", but reassured players that the graphics of Horizon Worlds were capable of "so much more"; included with the post was a more modern render of his avatar, as well as a ancient Rome environment.[15][16][17][18] Commentators had mixed opinions on the new render with Polygon stating "doesn’t exactly look like a place that’s appealing to spend time in, but I suppose that’s all in the eye of the beholder,"[16] while Kotaku felt it still "doesn’t look nearly as good as what you can find in other VR offerings."[19]
Meta announced in October 2022 that legs would be among the first new updates to the graphics, as characters previously lacked any,[20][21][22] however their initial reveal was criticized once it was discovered the models in the reveal were motion capture rather than being in-game footage.[23][24][25]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Machovech, Sam (September 29, 2019). "Facebook's new VR chat app will throw paid staffers at "on-boarding" trolls". Ars Technica. Condé Nast. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ George, Anita (October 11, 2022). "Meta brings Horizon Worlds to the web, expanding beyond VR". Digital Trends. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ a b Zwiezen, Zack (January 27, 2022). "I Traveled To Facebook's Soulless (But Popular) Metaverse So You Don't Have To". Kotaku. G/O Media. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Bonifacic, Igor (December 9, 2021). "Meta's Horizon Worlds opens up to adults in the US and Canada". Engadget. Yahoo!. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Silberling, Amanda (December 10, 2021). "Meta's Horizon Worlds is available in the US and Canada for 18+ users". TechCrunch. Yahoo!. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ "Facebook to create VR world called Horizon". BBC. September 27, 2019. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Horwitz, Jeff; Rodriguez, Salvador; Bobrowsky, Meghan (October 15, 2022). "Company Documents Show Meta's Flagship Metaverse Falling Short". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
"Most visitors to Horizon Worlds generally don't return after first month; 'an empty world is a sad world'".
- ^ Heath, Alex (February 17, 2022). "Meta's social VR platform Horizon hits 300,000 users". The Verge. Vox Media. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ Zuckerberg, Mark (August 16, 2022). "We're launching Horizon Worlds in France and Spain today! Looking forward to seeing people explore and build immersive worlds, and to bringing this to more countries soon". Facebook. Meta Platforms. Retrieved November 15, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Fenlon, Wes (August 18, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg spent $10B on the metaverse and all he got was this stupid selfie". PC Gamer. Future plc. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ a b Baker, Gavia (August 17, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg's new Metaverse selfie is so bad people can't believe it's real". Daily Dot. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Edwards, Charlotte (August 18, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg's metaverse slammed for looking 'terrible' after billionaire posts VR Paris selfie". News.com.au. News Corp Australia. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ a b c Zwiezen, Zack (August 17, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg's Soulless Metaverse Avatar Has Me Worried About Our Digital Future". Kotaku. G/O Media. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Tassi, Paul (August 20, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg Promises 'Horizon Worlds' Graphics Boost After Metaverse Mocking". Forbes. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
- ^ a b Cuthbertson, Anthony (August 22, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg updates 'dead-eyed' metaverse avatar after being teased". Yahoo! Finance. Yahoo!. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ a b Clark, Nicole (August 19, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg updates his metaverse avatar to look slightly more human". Polygon. Vox Media. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Parsons, Jeff (August 22, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg responds to everyone that mocked his metaverse selfie". Metro. DMG Media. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Weber, Harri (August 20, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg says the metaverse won't be as cringey as his cursed selfie". TechCrunch. Yahoo!. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Hernandez, Patricia (August 20, 2022). "Mark Zuckerberg Responds To Graphics Backlash, Promises Metaverse Won't Be Depressing To Look At". Kotaku Australia. Pedestrian Group. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Matney, Lucas (October 12, 2022). "Meta announces legs". TechCrunch. Yahoo!. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
- ^ Moyer, Edward (October 15, 2022). "Meta's 'Horizon Worlds' Virtual Land Isn't Grabbing Users, Report Says". CNET. Red Ventures. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
- ^ Peters, Jay (October 12, 2022). "Meta figured out legs for its avatars". The Verge. Vox Media. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
- ^ Mehta, Ivan (October 15, 2022). "Meta's legs update is not on the horizon yet". TechCrunch. Yahoo!. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
- ^ Plunkett, Luke (October 13, 2022). "Facebook's Legs Video Was A Lie". Kotaku. G/O Media. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
- ^ Moon, Mariella (October 14, 2022). "Meta's VR legs video wasn't what it seemed". Engadget. Yahoo!. Retrieved November 18, 2022.