OmniDate Virtual Dating

The NY Daily News reports that giving people too many choices can backfire. Users of online dating Web sites actually experience a “cognitive overload” and make poorer decisions as a result. The article concludes that “Yet there is hope — at least in the online dating world. A new start-up company, called OmniDate, offers users the chance to interact with 3-D avatars in a virtual world, revealing information about themselves that may only come out through conversation.”

We agree: Virtual dating addresses a big gap in the online dating process and can effectively neutralize “cognitive overload.” (more…)

Virtual experiences are sometimes dismissed as unrelated to the real world.  However there is mounting evidence that virtual experiences are actually linked closely with our daily life.

For example, a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience earlier this year illustrates an effect of a virtual experience on people’s choices.  Volunteers who played a simple cycling game learned to favour one team’s jersey and avoid another’s.  Days later, most subjects were subconsciously drawn to one jersey and shunned the other in a real-world test.  Other studies have found that virtual experiences can influence our emotions, help treat post-traumatic stress disorder, and even trigger the same biological pathways as food and cocaine. (more…)

Virtual dating is proving to be a highly effective tool for improving online user experience and real life success, as well as increasing user activity, time on site, etc.

As this technology continues to evolve, an interesting question arises: How “real” should virtual dating be?

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