Here's the public version of my Virtual Worlds keynote at Defense Gametech 2013 in Orlando.

1. Gametech Virtual Worlds Keynote
Vivisecting Virtual Worlds
via a time machine
Bruce Joy – Founder, VastPark
Image: H.G. Wells, The Time Machine, book cover

2. If a VW platform was a vehicle…
Source: http://www.kk.org/streetuse/archives/2009/07/scooter_contraption.php
A creative tool for
prototyping,
collaboration,
social, etc: It is a
“Jack of All Trades,
Master of None”.
That’s the opposite
of the new breed of
popular tools on
the Web today!

3. First, the bad news
• In 2007, $1 bill was invested in VWs
– Excitement in virtual malls, virtual land, virtual goods,
avatar identity issues, stories of people making millions in
Second Life and other virtual “Kool-Aid” craziness
• 2008-2011 OUTCOME: CATEGORY FAILURE
– Low investor return on *VW platforms*
Diagram: secondtense.com/2009/01/virtual-worlds-game-worlds-and-user.html

4. Casualties of the Virtual Tech Wreck
Wave 1 was ‘90s
• Blaxxun, etc
• Adobe Atmosphere
• VRML (“dead on arrival” yet still around)
Investment wave 2
• Metaplace
• Multiverse
• Vivaty
• Webflock
• Twinity
• Various venture backed ones
• Google Lively
• Blue Mars
• There & Forterra
• Teleplace (as a VC-backed co.)
• Etc

5. Image: Koen van Gorp, 2007 www.koenvangorp.be
Much of the promise of VWs has been
delivered by various web tools.

6. Why Virtual Worlds now?
The old vision of virtual worlds has
stumbled and needs to be superseded
Image: http://thenextweb.com/lifehacks/2012/12/29/13-web-apps-you-need-to-start-off-2013-right

7. Let’s go back in time… 30 years
Image of Rod Taylor from MGM’s “The Time Machine”, 1960
2013200720031997
199319871983

8. VWs could be imagined by a group

9. VWs could be books

10. And once I had played “Colossal Caves”…

11. Even in 1983 there was a sense that this was
a new medium that could touch our psyches
in new ways
– Reflect “I chose who I am”
– Explore “I chose my way through the story”
– Socialize “I hang out with my tribe” (NPCs!)
– Reward “I’m king of the world”
– Experiment “I hack my own experience”
– Build narrative “I create worlds for others”
– Connect “We can weave this as a community”
Back then, community was via User Groups & PC mags.
My dream at the time was that one day we’d be able to
film our dreams and broadcast them like TV channels.
Adventure Gaming

12. Image of Rod Taylor from MGM’s “The Time Machine”, 1960
1993

13. Habitat to WorldsAway to Vzones
“a variety of possible experiences within the cyberspace”
Randy Farmer & Chip Morningstar, lead designers on Habitat
25+ year old virtual
worlds platform

14. History – Fujitsu WorldsAway
1996
1997
1998
1999
Reached 17,000 subscribers in 3
months
Reached $10 million run rate in
subscription revenue
Secured marketing partnerships
with Virtual Vineyards, Xoom,
CompuServe, Reel.com, Barnes &
Noble, Digital River & others
Went from 0 to 33,000 visitors
within 4 months
Average user session reaches 3.1
hours
Purchased division from Fujitsu;
began trading publicly
Changed name from inworlds.com
to Avaterra.com
Opened first virtual zone
(Dreamscape)
First of several patents
issued
Opened second virtual zone
(Club Connect)
Debuted first commercial
“AdObject” on the Internet
Opened third virtual zone
(New Radio World)

15. 1993: Doom starts 3D FPS genre
The 3D environment became a place where
we could imagine living within. It felt real. A
new medium beyond gaming might be born.

16. Image of Rod Taylor from MGM’s “The Time Machine”, 1960
2003

17. What were we thinking? 2003 perspective
What we thought we knew:
• Don’t be CompuServe: VWs are the natural future
of the Web and will “swallow the Web”
• Social is important and VWs are beating the Web
– The web will never be multiuser because it is about
serving pages of content. People search for
information and consume it without caring who else is
looking at the same page
• People understand bricks and mortar so virtual
metaphors get dragged back to real life
equivalents

18. What virtual worlds promised
• Experiential: Compelling interactive experiences
• Co-Creation: Together we shape the world around us
• Productivity: Do and see more, faster
• Crossing distance, time and culture: To access other
people and places on-demand, on our own terms
• Micro-economy: Trust-based economies of interest
• Games: Fun casual activities alone or in a group
• Gamification: Leveling up within a community
• Co-presence in events: Something beyond WebEx
• Emergent behavior: Freedom enables the unexpected
• Social identity: People can experiment with identity

19. Web 2.0 wasn’t dominant yet
Until 2007:
• The phrase “User Generated
Content” didn’t exist
• Users did not expect the
power to interact with
brands, celebrities, etc
• Facebook had less than
100,000 users
I find it amazing to
think that YouTube
began in 2005 and
now influences
global culture!

20. 2007: Investment in VWs went crazy
Diagram from GMO Venture Partners’ 2007 Virtual World Investment Fund

21. Metaverse paradigm
2007
UGC + 1 open MMO = a big mess
Why I always loathed the

22. If the Metaverse is
user generated...
Metaverses grow into
BIG places where you
walk or fly a lot(even with teleport)

23. It would require
a lot of moderation.
Someone has to govern and police it
because there are so many communities
of interest in the one Metaverse

24. No onramp
One of the reasons VC funded VWs platforms
have not survived is because no-one got the
onramp right!
For example, any organization (new to virtual
worlds) that wanted to suddenly get thousands
of staff into an Enterprise virtual world soon
discovered the hardware, network and
onboarding challenges were problematic.

25. Collaboration HATES Friction
Friction is everything that slows down or prevents
participants to interact together in a satisfying way
when and how they want. Friction includes:
– The need for training/expertise to succeed socially
– Time spent configuring & learning new apps
– Downloading & installing software
– Internet, port and firewall issues
If collaborators meet together and a key decision-
maker is missing that meeting is usually a waste of
people’s time
Image: Bob Kolar whoop-dee-do.blogspot.com

26. SL proved to be the user generated
VW high-water-mark, but did it pass
the “Mom test”
Image: Wings of Love Inc. Bird Show
If she feels it takes this much skill to make it work, it’s a FAIL

27. Passing the “Mom test”

28. Passing the “Mom test”
International calls
2005: 2.9%
2012: 34%
2012 Report
50% call growth in 1 quarter
600m users

29. Failing the “Mom test”
The differences add up:
• More complex to set
up & run than Skype or
Facebook
• Higher hardware and
network requirements
• SL’s own reliability
challenges
• No perceived need:
Both FB &
Skype are free and
enables your mom to
see her grandchildren
Do you think any VW could pass this test yet?

30. Creativity is not mainstream

31. Casual experiences are mainstream

32. Minecraft
WEEDfaction mod. Source: pcgamer.com
It is being adopted by kids in droves
It might have got the balance right

33. And so a meta-bomb has gone off
• The Web became fast, social and scaled well
• Facebook & Skype & new niche tools dominate
• Mobile platforms don’t suit VWs with social avatars
• “Reality” imposed: Investment dried up, GFC, Fed cuts
Changing the Virtual World landscape forever

34. Commoditized
high quality
gaming tech

35. VW developers lost a major platform
Flash was the universal interactivity platform.
It’s clear VWs need a Web-First philosophy
and minimize plugins & desktop apps.

36. Does this affect you?
In 2012 it made less and less sense to talk about "the
Internet," "the PC business," "telephones," "Silicon
Valley," or "the media," and much more sense to just
study Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and
Microsoft. These big five American vertically
organized silos are re-making the world in their
image.
Bruce Sterling
These behemoths are no longer responding to any
one customer’s needs no matter how big (e.g. Fed
government needs for Flash on mobile are meaningless)

37. Ok, what was I up to through all this?
Now that I’ve critiqued the whole approach to
VWs, was I doing any better? Did VastPark pass
the “Mom test” for example? Absolutely not.
• What started as an experiment with one staff
member in 2003 grew into a dozen or so
developers and designers creating a platform
• We wanted to utilize what made the Web great
but add in features like smarter content caching,
reusable smart objects, replayable experiences,
sharable micro-experiences that could be
plugged together. We got part of the way there.

38. In 2003, I imagined micro-worlds
would be part of a future multiuser operating system.

39. 3D Windows Desktop demo, 2003
The concept was of multi-user visual O.S.
where gamers had their own “home”
that they could share with others and
access multimedia and start up games

40. Infinite Corridors, 2004
An experiment in
using XML tree
structures that were
represented as
corridors and doors
where a door could
be a local or
external link.
Outcome: We
created an infinite
3D world that could
connect to anyone’s
similar world file
hosted on the web.

41. Worlds built with IMML
are like building blocks

42. Worlds connect
using simple URL
requests that can
be generated
before or during
runtime.
Worlds built with IMML
are like building blocks

43. Worlds connect
seamlessly together.
Connections can be
redefined during
runtime to suit the
world owner or the
user’s desires.
Worlds built with IMML
are like building blocks

44. Worlds as widgets
World 1 World 2
Various connection
types include
geometric connections,
tele-connections and
embedded
connections (widgets).
Worlds inside worlds are “widgets” subject to physics, etc
World 3 widget

45. Distributed (independent) world servers
If a server fails,
users can still walk
around and enter
other worlds, but
without any
handover of game
state information
between servers.
X

46. Each server owner
can choose the
environments to
link to. Once
accepted by
another server
owner, the
geometric link is
bi-directional.

47. The Immersive Media Markup Language
IMML

48. The Challenge: A simple, compact metadata
describing time & space interactions
2013 update: We now have a
JS version of IMML and the
core of IMML for Unity3D

49. Coming: IMML workflows

50. Flexible content syndication
Open, discoverable, updatable, remixable
(Making it automatic – so it’s easy)

51. OpenAvatar specification
Example Female avatar with Texture Specifications and Body Parts Overview
Body Parts Texture maps

52. https://vimeo.com/25552334

53. 53
© VastPark 2011© VastPark 2012
Are 3D avatars necessary?

54. Yes for sure in Scenario-Based Training

55. 3D is just 1 part of Team Response Training

56. AR can make 3D instantly engaging
AR demo in VastPark

57. 2D is new again
Native HTML worlds using
JavaScript and HTML 4 & 5:
• Wide device & browser support
• Fast access to secure
collaboration rooms
• All remote team members can
access with presence & chat:
– Automatically goes through
firewalls as standard HTTP traffic
• Will work with 3D worlds soon
• Uses IMML specification

58. How do we train decision making?

59. Image of Rod Taylor from MGM’s “The Time Machine”, 1960
2013

60. new interaction devicesMass-marketinterestin

61. • BCI began in 1970s funded by NSF & DARPA
• Close to ready for mass market:
– Emotiv
– Necrommi by Neurosky
– InteraXon
• Lots of innovation occurring
– “Neurogaming” has game devs excited
– Research: Brain-to-brain communication
– OpenViBE FLOSS library
– Emotions, cognition, sensory & behaviors
Brain–computer interfaces

62. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w06zvM2x_lw

63. Haptics
• Force feedback
• Tactile screen feedback
• “Feel-able” screens
• Sound sensations

64. Oculus Rift
Virtual world view

65. www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAC5SeNH8jw

66. Real becoming virtual?
Real world objects not yet addressable & responsive.
When will most things have virtual identities?
Wearable devices
will augment our world view
and connect the real world to
meta & virtual worlds
Pebble
Google
Glass

67. The real purpose of Google glasses
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=8UjcqCx1Bvg

68. Perceptive Pixel
• 82” multi-touch
• Support up to 4 stylus pens at once

69. Augmenting collaboration
Multiple screens, one experience
Microsoft SmartGlass is
one example of this.

70. • 3D virtual reality – Oculus
• Touch tracking
– Perceptive Pixel
• Gesture tracking
– Microsoft Kinect
– LeapMotion
– Intel’s perceptual platform
Immersive UX peripherals
$300 kit
Up to 82” multi-touch display
Native support in Win8
Version 2 coming!

71. Striding into the Uncanny valley
We are fast
approaching
perfect
rendering of
human avatars,
but is it critical
for learning?
It adds to the
cost of each
project that
creates new
content!
Activision R&D.

72. Source: Jorge Jimenez www.iryoku.com
Real time 3D is looking REALLY good

73. Fidelity in Healthcare
The fidelity needs are different from Military. Focus on the learning outcomes 1st.

74. Gamification/Experience Economy

75. Passing the “Mom test”
Image: Marius Watz - Web Science

76. Passing the “Mom test”
No barrier:
• Every smart device has a
browser
• Web applications can use
Flash and WebRTC
(immature) to create
web-based alternatives to
Skype with no download
– E.g. Lowering the friction
• Skype may open up its
platform to compete and
so websites will connect
users via Skype’s RT
presence service Image: Marius Watz - Web Science

77. Ergonomic Web
• Adaptive web elements that can build into
personalized applications that suit the device,
screen and input devices
– Automation supports greater personalization, “flow”,
feedback, and big data
• Diverse web technology ecology: Massive choice!
• Multi-device delivery
• Bring people into “my reality”
• Collaborative vs. Presenter mode when desired
• Workflow structures

78. Build your reality = Search
The future of building virtual worlds
will be via custom search requests

79. In the future,
widgets entertain us
(or we delete them)
In Facebook, widgets annoy us and are hard
to opt in and out of. This won’t scale!

80. A viral medium
If you got a scare and you liked it,
you recommend it to another friend.

81. Opportunity on top of a wider web stack:
• Short term value: Apps that use Unity3D (or
similar) to be available across more devices
• Microformats, SCORM2/TinCan, etc
• Web pipes such as "If this, then that" (ifttt.com)
• New devices and input methods
• New web friendly virtual world libraries that work
natively on the web.
– VWF is a good effort in this direction
– Forget standards, focus on choice & immersion
– We’re working on VastEvents based on IMML in JS
New vision: VWs living in the web

82. It’s up to us to answer
“Why VWs now?”
Good luck & thanks for your time
Bruce Joy – Founder, VastPark
bruce.joy@vastpark.com
Image: H.G. Wells, The Time Machine, book cover