Speaking to the people who live out love affairs in virtual reality
Max* met his partner around 18 months ago, when they struck up conversation in a bar. The pair found they had lots in common; small talk turned to flirting, flirting turned to dating, dating turned into an exclusive relationship, and the couple are now engaged and planning a “traditional wedding” with a guest list including each of their closest friends.
“The relationship developed just like a real world one, and the feelings we have for each other are exactly the same,” says Max, who speaks to me between his real life part-time job as an office administrator and the ten-hour shifts he puts in daily on VR Chat. “I didn’t start using VR Chat with the intention of meeting someone – it just happened by chance, and now the part of my life that is about romantic relationships feels fulfilled.”
But while virtual relationships and the feelings underpinning them can be real and intense for those involved, the users I spoke to all referred to the real world implications of virtual love. Max and his fiancee live on different American coasts but are determined to make their relationship last by meeting up offline in the near future. Hybridninja7 explains that a previous relationship that didn’t work out due to “time zone differences and real life situations getting in the way”. And, as highlighted in a recent Reddit post, virtual relationships entered into by those already in monogamous IRL relationships can raise all the same feelings and issues as traditional infidelity.
The ethics here are complex, and still the subject of much debate, says Dr Trudy Barber, a Senior Lecturer in Media Studies at the University of Portsmouth who specialises in VR and sexuality. “The foundation should always be respect” she says.
“A few years ago, people saw online dating as a strange, perverted new trend and now it’s part of normal behaviour” says Dr Barber. “The future is haptic and it’s immersive. The avatar will become part of everyday life”.
See the full story here: http://www.dazeddigital.com/science-tech/article/40892/1/vrchat-sex-love-virtual-reality-affairs-and-relationships