The Metaverse Was Snake Oil for Isolation

A follow-up point from my post yesterday linking to Nick Heer’s blockbuster “ The Metaverse Fever Dream ”. In particular, the connection Heer draws between the rise of “metaverse” hype and the pandemic. I always sort of knew that metaverse hype roughly coincided with the Covid lockdown and our collective period of isolation and loneliness, a year-plus stretch when we relied mostly on computer platforms for nearly all socializing. But here in 2026 it’s now clear that metaverse hype and lockdown-induced isola