A few months ago, I attended a summit on virtual innovation where the topic of discussion was the rapid pace of technological transformation taking place across large swaths of society.
Not surprisingly, the metaverse was a hot topic. It is predicted that the metaverse could be a $8-trillion (U.S.) to $13-trillion industry with five billion users by 2030, according to a March 2022 report by U.S. investment bank Citi, able to connect us anytime, anywhere. The metaverse will offer users immersive 3D experiences they otherwise wouldn’t be able to experience in real life.
As a wheelchair user, I was intrigued and excited about the possibilities. Would I be able to do things in the metaverse that I normally wouldn’t be able to do in real life? Could I visit the Grand Canyon for example, which I can only assume would be near impossible to navigate in a wheelchair and be there without having to go through the stress and agony that air travel causes a person with a disability? While I know the metaverse cannot replace the real life, the unlimited opportunities of this new world piqued my interest — I wanted to know how accessible it is for a wheelchair user.
I was loaned a virtual reality (VR) headset by my IT department and invited into my firm’s metaverse collaboration hub, a space where teams can work together virtually. The first thing I needed to do before entering was create an avatar, so I tried to create one that looked like me: short curly hair, glasses, and a wheelchair. Unfortunately, there was no wheelchair option (I was informed that this is the case for most metaverse platforms on the market).
I stopped to ask myself: even if there was a wheelchair option, would I choose it? As the metaverse is an alternate reality, which parts of the real me would I want to take there, and which parts would I choose to omit? It’s a question many people with disabilities will likely ask themselves when entering the metaverse.
It certainly made me pause. On one hand, having a walking avatar might be a welcome change, an escape from the stares I get when I enter a room in a wheelchair. But on the other hand, a wheelchair is a natural part of my identity; it is a part of who I am, so why would I want to hide that?
Either way, it didn’t matter because a wheelchair wasn’t available, so I created an avatar and joined my colleague in the collaboration space.
It was surreal to be sitting right next to him, when in real life he was 18,000 kilometres away. We could look at each other and do virtual high-fives (stars replace the feeling of actually touching hands).
The metaverse is still in its nascent stage, and the tools created to experience it have been designed with limited consideration for people of varying abilities. Many of the metaverse platforms being used by organizations still have technical limitations that don’t allow for customizable avatars with devices such as wheelchairs. On some metaverse platforms, avatars don’t even have legs because they are not within the headset’s view, so they won’t render correctly. Many metaverse platforms are working on this design flaw, and some have even said publicly that wheelchair avatars are coming soon, but how soon?
Societies have often been designed for the average user first, leaving all other users as an afterthought, which is why so many spaces are still inaccessible to so many, including me as a wheelchair user.
If the metaverse is going to live up to its potential as an alternative world with limitless opportunities, it must incorporate accessible design from the start, otherwise it will simply be a virtual copy of the real world, which is simply not good enough.
To make the metaverse accessible it needs:
- Universal captions or descriptive text for users who are deaf or with hearing loss on all metaverse platforms.
- More lightweight VR headsets for people with chronic pain or other physical disabilities or limitations.
- Widespread availability of screen readers or audio narration for people who are blind or with low vision.
- Adaptable experiences for people with neurodiversity who might find the sensory-rich 3D experience of the metaverse overwhelming.
- VR controllers for users with motor or dexterity disabilities and people with neurodiversity who may have challenges operating two controllers simultaneously. While there are some adaptive options on the market, they can be expensive, ranging upwards of $1,000, nearly twice the amount of a regular device.
- Metaverse platforms that consult with all types of users from the start and incorporate their feedback into the design process.
There are about 6.2 million people living with disabilities in Canada and 1.85 billion people with disabilities globally. If they don’t have a great experience in the metaverse now, they might never be inclined to return. I haven’t picked up that VR headset since I first used it. I was excited at first, but the emotional experience of being excluded as a wheelchair user still lingers. Addressing accessibility should not be an afterthought.
The development of the metaverse provides a unique opportunity to create a truly equitable and inclusive world from scratch. Let’s do it right and design the metaverse for everyone.
Read More: news.google.com