Engadget Logo When I went to the host club of the Japanese version of Engadget VRchat, I was watered down and fell into a swamp.

Hello, I'm Higashi, the maker CEO and writer.

During this period when you have to avoid denseness, we are comforting your daily boredom with "VRchat", which allows you to make close contact in a virtual space with peace of mind.

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When I bought "Oculus Quest", I lost 3 kilos and made 100 friends with VRChat.

The other day, I heard from one of my close friends who sometimes plays board games in VRChat that "I'm a play host on the moon" and went out to play.

I visited the VR host club "Altermoon", which is held irregularly once a month. Volunteers gathered and enjoyed it like club activities, so I thought about it as an extension of play, but when I actually went there, the design and operation inside the store were really authentic! The customer service skill was also high, and I was able to get rid of my bones in 10 minutes after the start ...! !! !!

By the way, I have never set foot in the host club since I was born. I was fooling myself into not being addicted to that kind of entertainment ...

After all, I hesitate to have a sweet conversation because I am this visual. When I regretted that I should have been a beautiful girl avatar, I was told, "Well, cute. If Pichikyo (me) wasn't that avatar, I wouldn't like it." "Pink (clothes) is nice, it's like a girl. I like it a lot, that's me," Dogyuun! !! !!

Ren is a friend in the first place, so when I usually meet in VRChat, I'm a friend who exchanges rough quince with Kansai dialect. I was worried that I wouldn't blow out the sweet lines, but I was completely "host / Ren", so I suddenly fluttered seriously. Then, within the time limit of 20 minutes, I replenished the moisture and left Alta Moon with a lustrous feeling.

However, VR is not completely immersive ... If you get close to the distance and stroke your head, you will be shy and it will be quite tempered.

By the way, I enjoyed Altamoon so much that I wondered if I could do anything else, and when I searched on Twitter, the hit was "Altair". It is a long-established host club in the VRChat world that has been operating since 2019.

Luckily, it happened to be the opening day of the store, so I replied that I would like to participate in the Twitter account (@yamada_is_aniki) of the owner Johnny YAMADA. I got consent immediately, so I logged in at the designated time at night.

Since it is only compatible with PCs (* 1), unlike Quest support, the number of polygons is loosely restricted, and the interior of the store is quite gorgeous. It is a large box with a luxurious interior, a shining champagne tower, 24 cast members, and 12 halls and management staff in a spacious space with high ceilings.

* 1) VRChat is divided into a high polygon world that can be logged in only from a PC, and a low polygon world that is optimized by reducing the number of polygons according to Oculus Quest, which has weak machine power.

The popular host "Pharaoh" (@anubisuvrc) told me that the cheeky oraora system is good. It is a handsome animal ears with dark skin and golden eyes.

As expected from the royal family, "You are unlucky. If you know me, all the hosts will be unsatisfactory." The tone seems to be great, but it's nice that he extended it twice, and it's kind of kind.

Hmm ... Ren and Pharaoh both had a very enjoyable customer service ... Thank you very much. I was a little rejuvenated. I wonder if I'll do it again tonight. I want to go every week. To tell the truth, I want to go there about 3 times a week.

By the way, what surprised me when I heard it was the large number of female customers.

In fact, VRChat has a male-female ratio of about 9: 1, which is almost occupied by male users. Considering the height of the hurdles that must be set up with VR headsets and gaming PCs, it is a reasonable number, but about half of "Altamoon" and about 60% of "Altair" are female customers.

Even though it's a host club, it's a virtual world, so it feels like a otome game. You can play as easily as going to a concert of a recommended idol. Many women have husbands and lovers, and everyone seems to be enjoying themselves casually.

Of course, in the context of VRChat, where the "Babiniku" culture (* 2) is flourishing, there are many male customers, and there are also casts who only have male customers. The reasons for their visit were "I want to be a maiden", "I want to be treated as another person I wanted to be", "I like cool men", "It's easy to talk because they talk to me", "I wanted to experience the host club" "And so on. There are surprisingly many men who have a maiden in their hearts!

Even so, we VR girls, who are overwhelming minorities, are gathering by word of mouth, so demand is perfect. If the base of VR users expands, I don't have the courage to go to Kabukicho, but I'd like to try host play. It seems that mysterious ladies and married women like me will rush in (laughs) VR customer service is easy to divert data, so light users Various services may be born as the number increases.

* 2) An abbreviation for virtual beautiful girl meat, wearing a beautiful girl avatar. Many Japanese VRChat male users are active in beautiful girls.

Even though there are kemonos like Ren and Pharaoh, the cast is almost humanoid. However, there is VR that can be transformed into anything. In the future, I would like to receive customer service from snakes, insects, and inorganic substances such as ore. I want to try how much I have a crushing capacity!

And it's better to be able to turn into a beautiful avatar with just one tap, whether you're waking up or twisting. What's the best thing about being a princess and having fun without the hassle of dressing up in real life! !! !! !!

Both clubs are run by volunteers, not businesses. Of course, everyone has their main business, so it is held once or twice a month. Even if the world is virtual, it is all living human beings that move. The stuffing and running of the store is a lot of work, and I am truly grateful that all of these are provided free of charge.

Oculus Quest is 49,800 yen (64GB)! !! It's definitely cheaper than going to Kabukicho! !! Come on, hearts are maidens! Let's buy Tokimeki for less than 50,000 yen! And let's enjoy VR host clubbing with me! (I want friends) (* 2)

* 2) A gaming PC is required to go to "Altair" (High Polygon World).

However, if you are a little gentle and fluffy and stand up, when you pass through the gate of the real big playground where the fierce people who pull out the eyes of raw horses gather, it seems that even the hair of the buttocks will be peeled off.