“That time I trialled virtual reality porn” wasn’t a sentence I thought I’d write, like, ever. I’m no prude, nor am I the opposite of that. (What is the opposite of that?)
To be frank, it just wasn’t on my radar.
And then like the good employee I am, some months ago when my editor sent me to Sexpo, I nodded my head, picked up a pen, notepad and headed in. No-one, I soon realised, walks into Sexpo with a pen and notepad. You can probably imagine why.
Within moments, my moment with virtual reality porn was upon me. A kind stranger threw some robot-like, futuristic glasses on my head and before long I found myself in the thick of a porn scene. Amongst it. Around it. In it. Whatever you want to call it.
And it was… interesting, if not a little confronting.
Virtual reality porn, which generates realistic images, sounds and other sensations that replicate a real environment, made me feel like I was in a sex scene. Which would be fine if it didn’t make me feel a little bit like a pervert.
So with virtual reality porn cracking into the adult industry and it’s use increasing more and more with time, how will couples, and singles, navigate its rise?
According to Michelle Flynn, founder of Lightsouthern cinema and producer of adult film, virtual reality porn is nothing more than a “diverse” and “alternative” way to watch porn that’s “far more realistic”.
“Creating virtual reality porn allows us to try to have a fun with sex, stay away from mainstream tropes and not take ourselves too seriously. It means we have more flexibility to show diverse sexuality, and often make it far more female friendly.