Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?
This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.
Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.
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Notes -
I think it's Valve index or the HTC Vive pro. I know there's a Vive pro 2, but as far as I know it's not better than the pro 1 in every way, just some. And if you have a lot of money there's high-res headsets like the Pimax 8K but it requires a beast of a graphics card. If you want a good mic, I think the valve index is best. The index controllers aren't as durable as the Vive controllers, and they have less battery, but they offer finger tracking which is cool.
The fun does happen in private worlds (or friends+/friends only, really), but many regulars still go to public now and then. After befriending them you just have to catch them in a friends+ or friends-only world, and add the people on there you think are cool. By meeting friends and friends of friends, you can expand your network very quickly. Some more picky people will be in the orange mode which means "Ask me", i.e. send them a request if you want in. They probably need to be somewhat familiar with you before they accept such a request. People like this go orange mode because they have more friends who wants to join them that they have the energy to handle.
For the most part, the most popular places suck (trolls go the places with the most victims - surprise surprise). The exception to this is event-worlds. There are a lot of events in VRChat, and those who join them tend to be serious and invested players rather than trolls. Sometimes you need to add the event-host as a friend in order to join (they are quick to accept, don't worry)
Bonus knowledge: Asian cultures have much less of a need for walled gardens, I'm not sure why (wait, yes I am. It's a combination of 'high trust society' and lives not revolving around politics. This will all be gone perhaps 15 years from now as Western problems hit Asia. I'd be happy if this problem doesn't get worse due to me making this comment). If you speak some Asian language, you shouldn't have any problems getting close to people (even if they're somewhat famous in the community).
So the Index or the Vive Pro is the best headset? Got it. As for the “VRChat Newbie Flowchart”, is it something like this?
Hang around out-of-the-way places (public worlds with low pop. count) and events
Meet the occasional fun person
Join the friends/friends+ worlds that said fun people are hanging out in
…
Profit
I also bet that in general, the wheat gets separated from the chaff pretty quick in these sorts of environments. People who put up with trolls and screaming children eventually find others of their sort, and they end up coming together. This sound about right?
(As for the Asian languages point: thankfully, my 日本語 is not nearly good enough for me to feel confident about barging into some JP world and mucking up the place. Unfortunately, I fear that your timeline for when Western culture war cancer metastases to Japan is probably too optimistic. Already, there are hints in various places of Western culture-war concepts being imported to Japan. I might make a top-level post about this at some point, but I probably won’t.)
Yeah, sounds about right!
But even among well-meaning people, there's different types and playstyles. I might jump words a few times without finding anyone who feels compatible with my mindset, even if I don't encounter any trolls. You'll quickly learn what sort of people you're encountering. Eventually, you can tell the personality of people just by their avatars (there will be a few false positives, so don't act on your heuristics too quickly. Those who break them are the most interesting ones)
You're right, it's too optimistic. 5 years ago I thought 30 years. Perhaps 8 years is more correct. I can't predict the amount of resistance and stubbornness remaining. I'd love to read your thoughs on the issue, but no pressure!
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