Chris DeGraw/Digital Trends
We’ve all seen virtual reality as the next logical step in gaming, and why shouldn’t we? Console manufacturers and game developers are always looking for innovation and increasingly immersive experiences, and the idea of skipping the TV screen and jumping right into the body of a video game protagonist in a fantasy world was a very exciting prospect.
In the end, virtual reality has proven crucial to many industries, not just gaming. It is used in therapy and even in military training in some cases. Those who are stuck questioning their bodies also use it as a temporary respite, a way to experience life in the body they wish they were born in without the risk of going public before they are ready.
“It reminds me that some people are really good in this world,” one person told Digital Trends.
Technology improves our lives every day in a million ways beyond simply making things more convenient. Here are companies and people who fight to make a difference.
One of the best examples of using virtual reality to help transgender and gender-questioning people is the meme machine that VRCchata virtual center similar to the one that no longer exists playstation home or the advertising paradise that was Other life.
VRCchat is a virtual meeting place for gamers to socialize (with or without a headset thanks to the desktop client). It is a sandbox simulation that allows them to build and play on virtual terrain. You can also import 3D models and interact with other players in many different ways. That level of creative freedom is what draws people in, and the ability to be what you want encourages people to seek out the expensive equipment necessary to virtually experience what it would be like to be themselves.
virtual freedom
Just about anything you can bring to the game can be your next avatar. This level of freedom is the reason many VRCchat The gameplay videos are a mix of copyrighted character models, famous faces, and classic improv comedy contests. For people who are re-examining their gender, it’s a way to temporarily alleviate the dysphoria they experience with the body they were born with, and instead live in one that is more like the one they truly identify with. Sure, you’ll see plenty of busty anime girls, Muppet characters, and odes to popular memes as you travel through their weird and wacky community-driven worlds, but for some, the avatar they wear serves a much deeper purpose. .
I visited various Reddit groups like /r/asktransgender, /r/VRChat, and /r/transgamers to find gamers who discovered themselves through VR or by using VRChat’s virtual playground as a way to explore their feelings safely without the potentially humiliating and sometimes even violent ramifications of coming out as one’s true gender in the real world.
For those born with dominant gender characteristics, such as broad shoulders, a small build, or a chiseled jawline, presenting their true gender in an unforgiving society is a challenge not easily overcome. However, using a virtual reality headset is a safer way to get the information and perspective they need to confirm or refute their questions and concerns to ultimately make an informed decision about a social transition that could have implications for lifetime.
“It’s very therapeutic to look in the mirror and see a girl, even if it’s virtual.”
Zambina, a closeted transgender MtF (male to female) student, considers herself VRCchat “the best” at providing these gender-affirming experiences because it allowed her to be “treated like a girl.” Zambina shares a room with her younger brother and is unable to speak to her family for fear of losing her scholarship and college acceptance due to possible retaliation from her parents.
As for his brother, he says that “he’s always been his role model” and he doesn’t want to risk disappointing him. So when she occasionally has some time to herself, Zambina checks in VRCchat be the girl she really is on the inside. “…others almost always assume I’m a girl because I don’t speak and mostly write/dance, which they read as a woman,” she explains. “It’s very therapeutic to look in the mirror and see a girl, even if she’s virtual.”
VRCchat It wasn’t an egg-cracking experience in and of itself. Zambina already knew that she was transgender. But she says that she “definitely helps alleviate the dysphoria” and strengthens her “desire to transition.”
Then there’s KS, a transmasculine/non-binary person in his early 20s. “I’ve been questioning my gender my whole life,” she said. “When I turned 18, I discovered the term non-binary and knew right away that this was it, this was me.”
The term non-binary refers to people who do not identify as “male” or “female.” Some people may be gender fluid, identifying with a mix of masculine and feminine traits, while others may choose not to identify with either gender. These are just a few examples, of course; many people have their own unique identities that ultimately do not fall into the masculine/feminine binary.
By being a member VRCchat With a friend they were already dating at the time, KS “didn’t want to deal with the gender confusion” caused by his usual voice, so he used a voice modulation program to “experience what it would be like to be read as a man of the beginning.” This worked almost too well, as KS was called out as a biological male playing a female character when they changed his avatar.
Facing real obstacles
Skye, a transgender MtF, unfortunately did not have a perfect experience with VRCchat. We’ve heard plenty of horror stories about keyboard warriors harassing people online, and poorly moderated online games certainly don’t help fix that part of society.
Questioning her identity as a transgender girl since she was 14 years old, Skye found herself embroiled in VRCchat in mid-2018. She didn’t want to talk much in-game for fear of bullying, but she managed to make friends very quickly despite being socially awkward.
Fast forward a week and one of her new “friends” has lured Skye into revealing her delicate situation. Skye was unaware at the time that she was being recorded and the evidence was used to blackmail her.
Skye was able to foster friendships, and even a relationship, by accepting herself online.
It wouldn’t be until a few weeks later that Skye would return. VRCchat. There she met a “lovely lady” who invited her to the Fallen Realm, a compassionate Discord group of other LGBTQ people. “I came out in front of the people there…everyone is rooting for me,” Ella Skye explains. “I met my now IRL partner there.” Although it was a tumultuous experience at first, Skye was able to foster friendships, and even a relationship, by accepting herself online. She told us, “It reminds me that some people are really good in this world.”
When hypersocial virtual spaces like VRCchat are too much for someone questioning their gender identity, who can I turn to? That place for Mika, a transgender woman who is effectively outside of her family, was immortal Bethesda. skyrim.
When you can’t count on other people to correctly identify your gender or use preferred pronouns, a scripted single-player adventure like skyrim can fill the void. I remember the first time I played skyrim virtual reality“, recalls Mika. “Upon entering the War Maiden Shop in Whiterun… The merchant greeted me each time with: ‘Now, my child, you have definitely come to the right place,'” referring to how the NPC, Without fail, answer with the correct pronoun for your character’s gender. “I distinctly remember being thrown around,” he said.
Mika says her family often misbehaves, so “subtle things” like a video game’s unquestionable, unbreakable code help.
This does not mean that VRCchat and virtual reality spaces are the holy grail of safe gender expression and outreach. Just like in the outside world, it can be difficult for people who don’t fit into the status quo, and playing roles of your true gender online won’t always be greeted with positive encouragement. But in these places there are supportive communities and genuinely understanding people to befriend. People who don’t care how you look or sound, or how far away you are from your avatar in real life.
Whether you’re communicating with people online at VRCchat, Star Trek: The Bridge Crew, and RecRoomor saving the region for skyrim virtual realityVirtual reality offers those who are unprepared or unable to open up to family and friends the opportunity to discover and explore their feelings before making the decision to come out for good.
Categories: GAMING
Source: newstars.edu.vn