A Tourism Social Platform That Combines the Real and the Virtual

"HELLO! TOKYO FRIENDS" is a promotional campaign recently unveiled by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau that utilizes the metaverse, AR, and other technologies to promote the various attractions of Tokyo to both domestic and overseas travelers. Users can explore a metaverse space filled with famous Tokyo landmarks, play games, and enjoy AR experiences in the actual streets of Tokyo—relishing in the attractions of Tokyo while making new social connections.

Playing Tokyo Like a Game to Make Friends

The metaverse space has been constructed in one of the world's leading immersive platforms, Roblox. The Modern Area features over 10 famous landmarks, including Odaiba, Tokyo Tower, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo Station, Ryogoku Kokugikan, Shibuya, Akihabara, Toyosu Market, and Nihonbashi. Meanwhile, the Edo Area recreates in dynamic detail the cityscape of several hundred years ago, from Edo Castle to the bustling Nihonbashi neighborhood that was once the economic center of Japan, to Sensoji Temple in Asakusa, which remains a popular tourist attraction today. Users can register for an account through the Roblox app and explore the metaverse as their avatar, wandering freely around famous landmarks and interacting with other users. 

Users can even climb on top of these recreated buildings, and gaze out over the entirety of the metaverse space. In some spots, some users said they felt high enough up that they felt a bit of real fear.

There are many different ways you can enjoy the metaverse. There are treasure hunts where you can look for treasures, including figurines like that of Tokyo Tower and Edo Castle; "Sushi Showdown," a plate-picking survival held at a conveyor belt sushi restaurant; "Edo Dash," an obstacle race in which users compete against one another; and much more. Notice boards in the areas also provide tourism information on the various Tokyo landmarks.

A variety of measures have been put in place to make it easier for users to make friends with one another. This includes the ability to set tags that indicate your preferences or interests ("Anime Fan!," "Guide me!," etc.) to make it easier to start conversations with other avatars. The chat feature also includes translation functionality for English and 15 other languages, meaning Japanese users, for instance, can communicate with those from other countries entirely in Japanese. Users can also report avatars that are causing trouble within the space to police avatars.

"TOKYO HUNT!" for Real-Life Tokyo Fun

"TOKYO HUNT!" is a mobile web app that you can use for free, without having to register for an account. The app provides information on nine famous landmarks in Tokyo, from the best sightseeing spots to how to get to the landmarks themselves. This includes the Tokyo National Museum; Kaminarimon Gate in Asakusa; the sumo wrestler statue at Ryogoku Kokugikan; Manseibashi Bridge in Akihabara; Hama-rikyu Gardens; Toyosu Market; the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku; the Hachiko statue in Shibuya; and #Tokyo Tokyo BASE, a PR hub for Tokyo brands at Tokyo International Airport (Haneda). Each of the landmarks also has links to the relevant page on the Tokyo Metropolitan Government's official tourism site, "GO TOKYO," where you can get information on the surrounding area as well.

Actually visiting these landmarks earns you a special emblem based on your location data. Visit Shibuya, Asakusa, Ryogoku, and Hama-rikyu Gardens, and you can even take commemorative photos with AR original characters like sumo wrestlers and Japanese military commanders—samurai. Collect three emblems from these landmarks, and you earn a rare item that you can use within the "HELLO! TOKYO FRIENDS" metaverse.

Users enjoying themselves in the Tokyo of "HELLO! TOKYO FRIENDS" may one day decide that they want to visit the real city as well. They may explore Tokyo's famous landmarks in the virtual space, winning various items that they can show off to their friends. In this way, this project—which combines the virtual with the physical and allows users to go back and forth between them—is a way to heighten interest in Tokyo around the world, and draw in future tourists in a sustainable manner.