The year is 2017. People are building smarter cities, discovering more habitable planets and the world is connected on a level we couldn’t have ever imagined. It’s undeniable that tech has played a huge part in the world’s rapid development in the last decade. We’ve made strides, changing our standard of living on a constant basis. And while there may be too many sectors and niches to cover when it comes to discerning humanity’s most impactful technological innovations, it’s undeniable that Virtual Reality has gotten a little bit of spotlight in more ways than one these last couple of years.

Whether that intrigue is caused by its potential to make us more productive as a people or because people just want to live out their Ready Player One or Sword Art Online fantasies is beside the point. We can all agree that exploring these mobile app developers potential would be cool as hell. So let’s explore this in the most practical way we know how - by gathering the best ideas on how we can integrate this awesome technology into apps!

Here are the most ingenious ways virtual reality based apps could possibly change the game.

1. Virtual Reality for 3D Modelling

Forget trying to do models on your personal computer. Imagine the amount of precision and ease engineers and architects alike could wield to create structures and plans if they could have a full-blown visual of what it is they’re trying to create. Virtually unlimited amount of space and the possibility of designing immediately to scale might revolutionize how we do industrial designs forever.

2. Using VR for Online Shopping Applications

Have you ever had problems shopping for clothes online? It’s a little annoying when you find something cute, but you’re never really sure whether or not it’ll fit you. Shopping applications that are paired with virtual reality technology might easily solve this dilemma. Given there might be many other technical considerations for this to work (for example, this needs to be coupled with providing accurate measurements of your own body to scale), it’s still a possible integration that could be very exciting for the world of retail.

Besides clothing, this might help with how we shop for furniture too. Given the right conditions, we might be able to integrate virtual reality to shopping apps in a way where you can get a better visual of how a certain piece of furniture would go with the rest of your room.

3. Virtual Walk Through History

Imagine being able to walk with the dinosaurs or run through the onslaught of World War II. No one would ever be able to say that history is boring if they stop reading it off of a book and are will instead be forced to live it, be immersed in it! Historians could help build the tiny details for the historical VR environments and it would revolutionize how we all learn history as a people.
4. Virtual Tours and Vacations

VR tours would be a great way to destress society as a whole, especially is you’re one of those people who can’t seem to get away from the city! You can walk through the streets of Tokyo and then see the Northern Lights in the span of minutes! A getaway doesn’t need to be so far away suddenly.

5. Virtual Fitness Pal App

Some people only keep around trainers because that sort of motivation is the only thing that can force them to stick to their goals. Incorporating VR to fitness apps can emulate the feeling of your super ripped coach screaming into your face to work out harder can make their programs that much more effective! Those featured fitness gurus can finally be more accessible to everyone, too!

6. Haunted House App

Having a haunted house app isn’t an original idea, as there are already so many horror-themed VR apps out there! However, it may seem like we’ve yet to see an app that could be a full-blown haunted house, right at your fingertips! Since haunted houses are such immersive experiences, this sort of technology is your best bet to giving everyone a real fright, even if you’re not really there!

7. Therapy App

Similar to the immersion that haunted houses bring you, therapy needs to rely on presence to be really effective. This is why often, phone calls or Skype calls may not be enough for effective therapy sessions. Virtual reality might change this completely. If we reach a level of refinement where we can replicate the whole therapeutic experience, we might just be able to give therapy access to those who might need it the most!

8. Concerts with VR

There would be no more complaining about missing Tomorrowland or a day of Coachella. If virtual reality could recreate the feeling of being at a concert, or maybe even recreate a concert you might’ve been too young to go to, we can hardly really complain! Imagine being able to jam out to your favorite artists on-demand, with just an application in hand!

9. Virtual Classrooms

While walking through history may already seem like a huge idea to take on, we take it one step further by using every potential of virtual reality to improve our educational systems. More kids could have better access to education if they could interact with their teachers at home in the same way that they do at school. Teachers would have an easier time with visuals then, too! Given virtual reality technology, they could easily draw out whatever they needed to to communicate ideas in the best possible way.

10. Interactive Advertisements

And of course, where would we be if we didn’t include innovation for capitalism’s sake? While some may think that advertisements aren’t the best use of virtual reality technology, it can completely change how corporations reach out to their customers. Companies are already changing the way they communicate with their target market through efforts such as native content (content infused with subtle mentions of the brand they were written for), imagine how well they could educate markets with truly immersive promotional content. It’ll be the epitome of engagement.