Startup opportunities: Fitness meets Gaming in the metaverse

We should all move more, after all, sitting is the new smoking, right? The fitness industry is booming, as we saw over COVID people took up cycling in their homes rather than outside. Peloton skyrocketed. But as the world has gone to a recovery stage for the pandemic and Peloton stocks plummeted, maybe people do like to exercise outside or at the gym rather than in their own homes? It’s hard to workout at home with the millions of distractions, and most of us need the structure and motivation that comes from a gym environment or a coach.

The pandemic and new technology has impacted the future of work, maybe not to the degree (yet) as envisioned by Mark Zuckerberg, where our avatars meet and work collaboratively in the metaverse. How does this translate to the future of fitness? With countless new workout concepts happening in studios, what’s the truly immersive way of bringing these into people’s homes, and would there be a market for it.

Gaming in the metaverse

When Facebook rebranded to Meta they ran a series of promo videos on their social media channels featuring Mark Zuckerberg’s avatar showing us his vision of working and socializing in the metaverse. So far though, the main driver of VR headset purchases has been among Gamers. That’s not to say that Meta’s vision of connecting, socializing and working in the metaverse won’t take off, but for now, the opportunities are in the gaming sphere.

The portrayal of a metaverse in which we lead a second virtual life, through a headset, is something we should be wary of. In my opinion, we should be using the experiences offered in the metaverse to benefit and enhance our real life.

Gaming is already a huge hit on Oculus Quest 2 as well as other VR headsets that support games. According to a report from Fortune Business Insights:

"The global virtual reality in gaming market is projected to grow from $7.92 billion in 2021 to $53.44 billion in 2028 at a CAGR of 31.4% in the forecast period.”

Fitness in the metaverse

The booming fitness industry has caught onto the hype. If you thought gaming in the metaverse is all about sitting on your sofa while immersed in a VR world, think again. A high-interest segment in VR is Fitness. More specifically, Fitness meets Gaming.

During Meta’s Connect conference, Mark Zuckerberg highlighted fitness as one of the use cases for the company’s expansion into the metaverse. Meta has acquired VR fitness subscription service Supernatural. This fitness startup, along with Fit XR, has had strong demand and customers willing to pay monthly subscription fees, proving that this concept works as a Saas model. Monthly subscription models make it easier for investors to evaluate a startup. These at-home fitness-tech products have seen success with rhythm game-inspired workouts. They also invite users to do boxing and dance workouts to the beat of licensed music, all in virtual reality.

Target market for fitness in the metaverse

First of all, we have the gamers. They’ve already got their headsets and are roaming in Epic Games’ Fortnite, with their virtual mates. For them the switchover from sitting down gaming, to engaging in fitness while gaming is relatively straightforward. Epic Game’s CEO Tim Sweeney recently commented on the Metaverse and called it a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity.

Secondly, we have fitness people who want a new immersive experience to enhance their training. They’re already into fitness, they probably bought a Peloton during the pandemic and are members of Classpass, trying new workouts monthly to keep it interesting. Peloton promises to level up your workout with Peloton Lanebreak, “an immersive, gaming-inspired workout set to incredible music, including levels featuring our exclusive David Bowie remixes and David Guetta’s heart-thumping catalog. By adding variety to your routine, Lanebreak will motivate you to push past your limits—and help you have fun while doing so.”

Then, we have those who struggle to exercise but want to get healthier in a fun way. This concept can be of real value as a way to get fit and lead a healthier life.

Conclusion

Gaming in the metaverse is on a mega-growth trajectory, mix that with Fitness in the right way to make the most of this startup opportunity. The secret sauce for longevity and not short-lived hype, think about how to benefit the user’s real-life, not just their VR life. The gaming aspect is important, for an immersive experience, as Peloton are doing with Lanebreak, but how does this translate to real-life and go beyond a game. Cross-over between gamers and Fitness people.

Startup opportunities: Fitness meets Gaming in the metaverse

Startup opportunities: Fitness meets Gaming in the metaverse

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