Have you ever wondered what it is like to live like a spider or fly like a bird?

Psychologists are working to understand how VR can be used to transport individuals into different bodies and whether it is possible to do so with animal avatars.

Researchers pushing the boundaries are looking for answers to questions like: How different and alien can a virtual body be before we no longer believe it is our own? What are the benefits of playing as an animal in VR?

Andrey Krekhov, a member of the project research team from the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany, says that virtual reality (VR) is suitable to some extent for perceiving our virtual avatar and connecting it with our real body, and that such an interaction has previously been overlooked.

They studied 37 volunteers for the experiment, measuring how they responded to virtual reality, examining their reactions to the illusion, and asking about their experiences. To explore possible avatar controls and game mechanics based on specific animal abilities, they looked closely at three animals in particular: a scorpion, a rhinoceros, and a bird.

Krekhov and his team found that embodying an animal could be more convincing and more enjoyable than controlling a human form.

One of the participants said: “The bat behaved exactly as I expected. Controlling my own wings completely was very impressive because it was so realistic.”

Krekhov and other researchers believe their findings show massive potential for virtual reality (VR) games.

Research documents: