Meta Quest 3: Wonder offers reality-bending MR experiences
Wonder is a collection of reality-altering mixed reality experiences. MIXED tried out an early access build.
Mixed reality has the potential to replicate your physical world with sensors and change every pixel of the resulting digital reality at will.
Wonder does not go that far because the technology is not there. But the MR app is a step in that direction.
For Wonder to work its magic, you must scan your home with Meta Quest 3 or 3S. The MR application will then transform your home into a series of fantastic environments.
Changing realities
There are three experiences in the early access build that I got to try.
In Ancient Ruins, your room turns into a prehistoric cave that is being swallowed by a black hole. In Jellyfish Bloom, the world turns blue and bioluminescent jellyfish float through the room. Finally, in Parallel Worlds, you experience your room as an ice formation, a matrix-like data stream, a point cloud, and a colorful dreamscape.
You can see what this looks like in my video or the official trailer below.
The experiences in Wonder are based on a 3D scan of your room, so even with all these effects, you still feel like you are in your own four walls, but experiencing different layers of reality.
Wonder lives primarily from its audiovisual stimuli. There is little interactivity: you can touch jellyfish and open portals, both via hand tracking. Because there's not much you can do wrong, Wonder is ideal for demonstrating the magic of mixed reality to newcomers.
Wonder has plenty of room for improvement
Wonder is being developed by Canadian studio Metanaut, creators of the physics puzzle game Gadgeteer.
The MR app will be released in the coming months, and my wish list for the launch version is long.
I would like to see more experiences that explore the concept of layers of reality, more interaction overall, and the ability to stay in and influence an experience. Currently, Wonder feels more like a very promising demo than a finished product.
You can pre-order Wonder for $4 from the Horizon Store.
Are you curious about Wonder? Join the conversation on Facebook, Bluesky or X or share your opinion in the comments below.
For feedback, topic suggestions, or other ideas, please email us at hello@mixed-news.com.
Note: Links to online stores in articles can be so-called affiliate links. If you buy through this link, MIXED receives a commission from the provider. For you the price does not change.
