# Developing a Virtual World for an Open-House Event: A Metaverse Approach
###### Abstract  
The concept of a metaverse, a virtual world that offers immersive experiences, has gained widespread interest in recent years. Despite the hype, there is still a gap in its practical application, especially in the realm of education. This study presents the design and implementation of a metaverse tailored to the needs of education. The goal of this paper is to demonstrate the feasibility of such a system and evaluate its effectiveness. It is crucial to understand the architecture and implementation of a metaverse to effectively customise it for educational purposes. To assess user experience, a field study was conducted, collecting data through questionnaires and qualitative feedback. The results show that users were pleased with the features, player experience, and ease of use. metaverse; metaverse platform architecture; virtual world; user study; player experience; system usability +
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cnextORCID-19 pandemic has dramatically impacted the way society operates, with a shift towards digital technologies and online platforms [1; 2]. This has led to increased interest in the potential of virtual worlds, also known as the metaverse, as a platform for education and communication. The metaverse is an online social application with multiple innovative technologies, which vows to provide immersive experiences [3; 4]. It is not a new concept [5; 6]. The readiness of people, social media, and technologies is pushing our society towards the metaverse era. The key metaverse features are interactive, embodied, persistent, realistic, ubiquitous, interoperable, scalable, immersive, accessible, synthesised, multi-layered, and collaborative [4; 7; 8; 9; 6]. A description of each feature is summarised in Table 1. Nonetheless, one of the most important features of the virtual world, providing a sense of individual personality, is an avatar, which is a personalised representation of the user in the virtual environment [10; 11]. Major tech companies have invested a substantial amount of resources and efforts into metaversees in reference to the economy [12; 13]. It is estimated that 2% of consumers will spend at least one hour in the metaverse engaging in various activities, such as work, shopping, socialising, and entertainment [14]. However, the European Parliament Research Service (EPRS) has highlighted both the potential opportunities and risks that need to be addressed [15]. For instance, transactions in the metaverse are expected to be conducted using cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), which raises concerns about data protection and cybersecurity. If left unchecked, some vulnerable individuals who require special protection may experience serious negative consequences in the immersive digital world [16]. Metaverses are expected to be utilised in a variety of fields, such as education, medicine, sports, social, and entertainment. The education sector holds a lot of potentialfor the use of metaverses [5], particularly for academic purposes such as virtual learning environments [17; 18], virtual sandboxes for digital creation [19; 20; 21], information helpdesks, collaborative learning environments [22], and socialisation [23; 24]. However, a wider understanding of metaverses is crucial; otherwise, the platform may go unused [25]. To overcome this challenge, a hybrid solution has been proposed where traditional classrooms and metaverses are used together. The traditional classroom would serve as the main platform, while the metaverse would be an optional system for social gathering, assignment submissions, and self-paced learning. [PERSON] et al. suggest a blend of virtual and physical solutions for post-COVID-19 education, utilising the metaverse features for learning and teaching [24]. Likewise, it has been found that the use of metaverses can improve educational opportunities, providing access to learning environments that were previously restricted by cost, time, and space constraints [22; 26; 27].