Jamie F
A new online space marketed as “the first explicit metaverse” is set to launch next Wednesday (January 10, 2024), promising a (sort of) sexually explicit version of Meta Horizon Worlds.
Pornverse [NSFW], created by a team of French developers, will screen professional, amateur, pre-recorded and live camming porn content inside its metaverse space, as well as VR porn. It will not in fact be the “first explicit metaverse” —spaces like Utherverse also allow explicit content within them—but the new space is promoting itself as the first wholly dedicated to adult content.
A tour of the demo version of Pornverse suggests that the focus will be on screening porn videos rather than explicit interactions between avatars of people using the platform. The demo space is not currently showing porn content, but gives a glimpse of the virtual screens films will be shown on.
Around 50 porn content creators have signed up to show their content in Pornverse, which also lists VR porn site Only3X VR and camming site Stripchat as collaborators. The developers describe Pornverse as “the first adult content ecosystem including a metaverse accessible with or without [a] VR headset to a large adult audience.”
They added that their aim is to create an online porn space that will keep users anchored, and not have to switch between various porn sites when searching for porn content.
Pornverse is free to access, although the developers said that premium functions within it will be available to buy with $PVERSE: the metaverse space’s cryptocurrency. $PVERSE is set to become available on the blockchain early in January, 2024, when the metaverse space launches. Adult content creators signed up to the space will receive royalty payments in $PVERSE.
The developers are attempting to create an environment that encourages long metaverse sessions by cultivating a social environment. There will be non-playable characters (NPCs) such as bar staff in Pornverse, and you’ll be able to chat to other avatars. You’ll also be able to create your own ‘virtual apartment’ in the space: think along the lines of The Sims meets Pornhub.
Pornverse already has nearly 700 subscribers to its Telegram channel, suggesting there’s a healthy community base for next week’s kick-off, although it’ll probably be a while before porn users are ditching the traditional tube sites for their virtual apartment. A quick pre-launch lookaround of the space showed some of the promise it holds, if it can attract both creators and users.
Pornverse will probably have to deal with increased focus on user safety, if it does gain popularity. Many metaverse spaces, including those that ban sexual content, are rife with sexually aggressive behavior from user-controlled avatars.
On New Year’s Day it was reported that British police are investigating the alleged ‘virtual rape’ of the avatar of a girl under the age of 16, within a VR game.
