I'm wondering why metaverse is receiving so much hype, despite not having progressed past being a vaporware product.
This is one angle that comes to mind.
I think the cost, safety and ethics of such products will be the first major milestone and they will grow independent of the hype about metaverse. This is the Facebook metaverse we are talking about. Another bunch of products that these huge companies will give to us, market them as something we all need and then people will get addicted to these immersive experiences just like we did to our 5" touchscreens. This metaverse has nothing to do with the crypto-metaverse.
Infact, what Zuck is offering is little more than a product that we do not really need as humans. It is only going to increase dependence on technology for our dopamine boosts with little direct benefit. The crypto-metaverse is about owning virtual items in a virtual world. It is really just a footnote compared to what Zuck is trying to do. Still, i think it holds more value in terms of what it can do for artists and virtual-world developers. If it evolves through crypto, we can have it decentralized. If it takes the Zuck route, then we are all Z/F***ed.