A huge virtual world based on the science fiction novel and film Ready Player One is in the works. This story, which takes place in 2045, features characters who flee their lives on an Earth in the grip of chaos, and take refuge in a virtual world, called the OASIS. Although it’s only 2024, fiction seems about to catch up with reality.
According to Variety, Futureverse, a company specializing in artificial intelligence and the metaverse – a virtual space where connected people can interact as in real life – announced the creation of a studio, Readyverse Studios. Co-founded with Ernest Cline, the novelist behind Ready Player One, and Dan Farah, the producer of the Warner Bros. film adaptation of the novel, the company intends to immerse players in the world of the film. It will be “a multi-world metaverse experience (…) for a large number of consumers,” the company said. “The future has arrived even faster than I imagined,” Ernest Cline said. With Readyverse Studios, we have the opportunity to leverage the revolutionary technology that Futureverse has been building for several years to bring to life the best possible version of the Metaverse. I am confident that with this team, we have the brightest minds and biggest hearts to lead us into the next chapter of our collective future.”
Ready Player One producer Dan Farah, also involved in this digital venture, added: “Readyverse Studios will provide Hollywood studios, talent and brands with exciting new opportunities to create new revenue streams and creative outlets. for brand expansion, while providing consumers with the opportunity to take advantage of the promise of the open metaverse.”
The metaverse is a technological concept that dates back to the 1990s but which has recently (and quickly) attracted Internet users since Mark Zuckerberg, the boss of Meta, declared in 2021 that it would be the successor to the Internet. The Meta group has also made large investments there, but the project seems to be running out of steam and is struggling to attract new users.