As virtual reality continues its quest to mirror, you know, reality, it’s looking for ways to make the experience ever more engaging and immersive. And aiding in that journey is Facebook’s latest feature for the Gear VR. The social media giant-owned Oculus has now made it possible for you to react to VR experiences. Because you have real feelings, and you should be able to share them even in an artificial world.
This new update means that you’ll be able to react to VR experiences much like you would a status on Facebook — any one of the five emoji reactions can be applied, whether that’s love, laughter, happiness, shock, sadness, or anger. And given the popularity of Reactions on Facebook, it may meet with similar success in Gear as well. After all, you’ll be able to share your emotions about the experience in the experience, as you might in real life.
The decision to add Reactions also serves as a reminder that Oculus is indeed part of the growing Facebook empire, even though a number of businesses and individuals alike scratched their heads when the Zuckerberg-led social media empire purchased the virtual-reality firm back in 2014 for $2 billion. But as Facebook continues to expand its sphere of influence, it no doubt will leverage Oculus to the best of its ability.
Of course, outside of gaming, it’s still unclear as to just how well VR as a whole will catch on as a mainstream medium. After all, headsets are hardly common household items, and finding widespread applications for the technology may still present a challenge. Even so, making the VR experience more communal by way of introducing Reactions may be a good place to start, and there’s no telling what’s ahead for Facebook and Oculus.
