Unmetaverse is a free VR platform for loners with no friends

Written by. Ryuki Ishii based on the original Japanese article (original article’s publication date: 2021-12-17 18:50 JST)

Japanese indie game developer Mito Memel launched their new social VR platform Unmetaverse on Steam. The game is free to download but only supports Japanese. It requires HTC Vive, Oculus Rift (Rift S), or Valve Index to play.

Unmetaverse is a VR platform for “people who have no friends.” It does away with the voice chat and text chat features that have been essential in previous VR platforms. Gestures are the only means of communication here.

It moves away from the industry standards that have been established by VRChat and other platforms and provides a loner-friendly experience. Everything is tailored to be experienced alone, so you don’t have to ask others for help. Build houses, cultivate land, develop your village, and just explore the virtual world alone.

The map is 10 km x 10 km in size, and everyone shares the same world, so unlike existing VR platforms that have friends-only private rooms, you don’t have to hesitate before entering a room. “You don’t have to be a creator or an influencer in this world. Everyone is equally a pioneer here.”

Unmetaverse initially launched on BOOTH as an Early Access title. The fully released version on Steam adds a horse racing feature where you can build stables, train your horses, and participate in races.

The developer, Mito Memel, is an ex-FromSoftware employee who worked for the company until 2017. Memel worked on designing, implementing, and operating game servers for the Dark Souls series. They are currently working in the field of VR research and development. Last year, Memel created and distributed a VRM of the Shift_JIS art Kumā.

Unmetaverse is currently available on Steam for free.