Introduction.
I always fished a lot, as it was our Family tradition and Hobby. Some people even said that I fished to much (as they said), which I completely disagree with.
Also, I did not use any glasses if I could manage without any. My eyesight was OK, as you can guess, and surprisingly improved in Australia, despite getting older and spending more than 10 hours behind screens.
So, I avoided glasses for as long as I could. Eventually, reading glasses became part of my everyday life, which makes it slightly ironic that another kind of glasses would later open an entirely different world for me.
A different story is my journey with AI, mixed-reality glasses, and headsets.
For some time, I had been following the news, reading reviews, and trying different VR and augmented reality devices at events. Nevertheless, I kept postponing the decision to buy one for myself.
That changed recently when I finally decided it was time to own one.
The first step came after my friend Giuseppe showed me his Meta Ray-Ban AI glasses. Shortly after that, I went to the shop and bought a pair for myself.
Although I do not have an internal display and neural band (cos I am living in Australia), I enjoy the Meta AI glasses from the first second I put them on. I felt in love with it steadily, discovering and trying multiple features, but I am planning to write about it in a separate article. Muse Spark is another story which deserves a dedicated piece of writing IMO. So, I will focus on it another time, as I said. Now back to the main virtual fishing topic.
How one thing leads to another.
Buying the Meta AI Ray-Bans led me to install and start using the Meta AI app. I set up my Meta Verified account and started enjoying my interactions with the new model. It was surprisingly friendly, even funny on some occasions, so I spent more and more time with Meta AI.
In my FB account centre, I noticed the Quest family of devices and different smart glasses. I knew it was only a matter of time before I would buy a pair for myself.
In the meantime, I installed the Meta Horizon app and created an account in my name. As you can probably guess, that move led me to start playing a simple game on my mobile phone.
It made me smile, because I missed playing games when I was in my 30s. Even more ironically, I once banned my own kids from playing games. How noble, but also how stupid that was. That is my recent view as I get older.
Nevertheless, better now than never, I said. I won some points in Horizon+, dressed my avatar quite decently, and was almost ready for the next big step.
Buying the Magic Tool.
The time came when I noticed a discount on QUEST 3S 128GB models. In less than half day, I was unpacking my set and asking three different AI models how to set it up properly and also interconnect all my associated accounts together.
I must admit that managing accounts is not an easy task. It requires good knowledge, patience, and a smart strategy.
Thank goodness (or “ainess”), we now have individually tailored personal AI intelligence available. I try my best to use it as much as possible, not to collect random information, but to learn the most relevant facts in the shortest possible time.
Then came the moment of truth. I pressed the power button on my brand-new Quest 3S.
After all the research, reading, and decision-making, I felt ready to act. In other words, I was super ready for action – plenty of it.
AI helped again. The setup was smooth, and my first experience was genuinely awesome.
After all the reading, preparation, and small worries, it was a good reminder that sometimes technology can still surprise us in a very positive way.
Use One to Know One.
VR and mixed reality are also becoming much more than tools for gaming and everyday fun. Their use is growing across education, training, healthcare, engineering, design, property, tourism, collaboration and many other industries. IMO, we are still discovering what these technologies can really become.
But there is another point I want to make here. The best way to understand VR is to actually use VR. I often see people talking confidently about emerging technologies, and sometimes criticising them, without having much practical experience with the technology itself. I do not want to be one of them.
My approach has always been simple: use it first, learn how it works, build some real experience, and only then share my opinion. Reading research, reviews, and other people’s experiences is important, but putting the headset on your own head changes the conversation completely. You start noticing things that specifications and YouTube videos simply cannot explain.
Use one to know one. Then talk about it from real experience.
Then the Journey and Questions begin.
As you can probably expect, after the initial euphoria came a few small disappointments.
First, I quickly realised that I was not really controlling the controllers properly, especially when using apps and working with multiple screens. And that is without even mentioning hand tracking – trying to control things with bare hands felt even more challenging at the beginning.
It proved that every new technology has its learning curve, which may be sometimes steep. The promise may be exciting, but the practical experience always starts with a few clumsy moments.
First, my lack of gaming experience from childhood quickly became obvious.
My AI assistant said something like: “Jacek, you have a gigantic gap here. It needs to be filled. You missed the natural learning and playing experience that many people gained through games when they were younger, and it will take some time to grow into it.”
It made me laugh, but it was true.
But I overcame it surprisingly quickly, trying different possibilities and combinations one by one. Once something worked, it became much easier because I started memorising the controls automatically. The is some logic in that as well I guess, but you need to be born with a joystick in the hand to get it straight from the early beginning. I was not! I was born with a fishing rod instead.
As the Romans say, “Better to try than only study.” In this case, it was 100% true.
Secondly, many pre-loaded games were not working as I was expecting. I couldn’t get many of the experiences I initially tried to work properly. It was frustrating and makes me think I was kind of stupid. But I did not surrender and went back to AI looking and asking for advice. That was a good decision, as I expected.
What the AI essentially told me was: No, you are not stupid, you are entering demos and unfinished products, sometimes students’ projects, and other junk games. The purpose of it is to show you generally what is planned and what is possible. If you want to start a real experience and know what and how to do it, try a proper, 100% working game.
I learned that, and I signed up for a three-month trial to try multiple games from Meta Horizon and then decide if I want to stay and pay.
Immediately after that, the mixed-reality world opened the gate for me a little wider.
Eureka – I was fully in, and everything seemed to be working.
Well, not everything, to be honest, but most things did. And to be honest again, I am still not always sure what is a bug and what is simply my lack of intuition or experience.
I will leave that question open for now.
So, after checking again with AI models about the best strategy for me, I chose and redeemed my first three games: Real VR Fishing, Gun Club VR, and Golf+.
Golf was an interesting choice, because I have never really decided to play it in real life. I always found it a little boring and, compared with fishing, perhaps even a waste of time. If you know me well, you know that golf is not exactly my cup of tea.
Quest, however, proved something totally different.
Who knows what else Quest may be able to prove? I am not even trying to guess.
Then the Fishing Begins.
From the first try, I loved it. It was exactly how I expected it to be. Almost real, and superb in its details, even for someone like me with a strong background in real-world fishing.
After a quick tour and introduction on a timber-looking pier, I landed on the shore of a lake in Korea. Perfectly imitated water, sky, hills, and a bridge. I grabbed my fishing rod with the float (my favourite style of fishing) and executed the first cast.
What happened next, you can probably guess.
Bite after bite. Fish after fish.
It felt very similar to real fishing when the bite is good, and everything suddenly starts happening at once. You stop thinking too much, react quickly, and simply enjoy the moment.
Some fish were too small to keep. Some escaped because I made a mistake, or maybe they were simply smarter than me and won that round.
Each time I caught a fish, I was asked whether I wanted to keep it or release it. I released a couple of them, and to my surprise, I received special points. I was also awarded polarised glasses, which now allow me to see fish better under the surface.
A small detail, but a clever one. Even in a virtual world, the game reminded me that fishing is not all about catching. Sometimes it is also about choosing what to release.
In reality, I never take more fish than I need. I also do not really like “catch-and-release fishing style” just for fun when it involves real fish.
But here, in the Horizon world, it does not matter in the same way. You can cast, hook, and land as many fish as your playing time allows.
That is one of the advantages of virtual reality fishing. It gives you the experience, the focus, and the enjoyment without the same real-world consequences.
The Rain and Boat experience.
After some time spent on the shore, I was advised to go to the shelter. Have a rest and equipped myself better.
In a hotel-like building with impressive looking fireplace, I received an additional award and got a proposal to take a trip to Korea for lake fishing. I did not hesitate long, and after confirming and some clicking, I landed in the timber boat in the middle of the lake.
I owned a couple of boats in my life, in Poland and in Australia, so there was nothing new for me. But I was mesmerised by the beauty of surrounding and reality on experience. It started raining. I could see it and almost feel it. Instinctively, I found myself looking for a roof or an umbrella. The good things about mixed-reality rain are that you do not get wet, so after a while I did not bother. Fishing in rain is quite romantic and spectacular, event in real would setup. I had been wet to the bone on plenty of fishing trips in Poland. Here I was, sitting safely at home while fishing in the rain somewhere in virtual Korea.
Long story short, I caught a few fish, but most of my attention was actually on the bridge, watching the traffic and trying to guess the models of the passing cars.
Because of that, quite a few big fish took their chance to escape. For the first time in my life, I did not really mind.
It was time to take off my Quest headset. The battery was getting low, and I suddenly felt quite exhausted.
I was happy, but tired.
I clicked the “Leave” button and shut down the Quest.
Some Extra Thoughts & Afterglow.
I am not trying to sell or promote anything here. I simply experienced something I had wanted to understand for myself.
And that brings me back to something I increasingly believe about emerging technology: use one to know one. Reading and watching are valuable, but experience reveals things that specifications cannot.
It was my first proper, independent, and longer experience with a well-functioning virtual game ecosystem. I could see my avatar wherever I looked at the mirror, and probably random people (and perhaps even my followers) could see me as well.
Recently, one avatar started talking to me in, even though I had not tried to contact him first.
I did not panic, but I did not respond either. I simply froze for a moment, like a possum. Suddenly, I wasn’t only learning a new interface. I was entering a new kind of social space.
Step by step, and first things first. I need to better understand the rules, settings, and possible code of conduct. It is easy to go overboard or do something silly, even while fishing. It becomes even more challenging when visiting VRChat worlds, where real people, avatars, and social interaction suddenly become part of the experience.
Knowing myself, I will probably start looking for friends there. Maybe we can fish, shoot, or even play the bloody golf together – why not?
The near future will tell.
If you are visiting the Metaverse, look for me and say, “Hello, mate.”
Cheers, The Author.