In meta-conceived metaverse future, users will be able to socialize, work, and play in a virtual environment. Microsoft's vision seems closer to reality, revealing a new plan called Vortex from job postings for senior designers.
Microsoft writes:
Vortex is a new studio within the Microsoft Mixed Reality Group that explores the cutting edge of products, combining collaborative science, missions that benefit the planet, and entertainment while driving the frontiers of technology. We are looking for a senior designer to join our team as we define the future of mixed reality experiences.
In this role, you'll work closely with designers, engineers, and project managers to drive narrative design into the user experience workflow. You'll bring lasting experiences spanning Hololens, VR and physical locations, laying the groundwork for the next era of interactive entertainment.
The new studio, called Vortex, will work on a mixed reality product that combines persistent virtual and physical locations, presumably much like Pokémon Go, but is expected to have better rendering, with the help of Microsoft's HoloLens headset and the like.
In the form of Azure Spatial Anchors and Azure Remote Rendering, Microsoft already has the technology to do so. Spatial Anchors is a cross-platform developer service that allows you to create mixed reality experiences with objects that are located on different devices for a long time. This enables developers to build applications that map, specify, and invoke precise points of interest that can be accessed on HoloLens, iOS, and Android devices. It allows people in the same location to participate in multi-user mixed reality apps.
Remote Rendering allows developers to render complex 3D models from the cloud and stream them to mobile devices and mixed reality headsets. This allows for a high-quality experience even with low-power AR devices. It seems likely that Microsoft will use these technologies to quickly establish a foothold in the nascent market, but, like Microsoft's other AR efforts, it remains to be seen whether the company will reap any significant adoption.