1. What is BurnerSphere?
BurnerSphere is an immersive documentary experience that tells the story of the communities that make up the Burning Man culture through a unique interactive, multiplayer platform. It is an official virtual Burning Man experience created by BRCvr in collaboration with Burning Man Project. It offers a year-round social VR platform for participants to connect, explore, and engage with the essence of Black Rock City from anywhere in the world.
2. Do I need a VR headset to join BurnerSphere?
No headset required. BurnerSphere runs on Mac and PC, no VR hardware needed. For the fully immersive version, BurnerSphere is optimized for Meta Quest 3 and 3s, also works on Quest 2 and Pro, and is available on Steam for PCVR. However you want to step in, we want to be radically inclusive of the hardware you have.
3. What is the goal of BurnerSphere?
Our goal is to bring the global Burner community together and share our stories. BurnerSphere aims to facilitate and extend the culture that has emerged from the Burning Man event into the larger world, fostering connection, creativity, and participation in a virtual space while embodying the Principles.
4. How does BurnerSphere recreate the Burning Man experience?
BurnerSphere accurately mirrors the sights, sounds, and spirit of Black Rock City through:
- A dynamic social VR environment that fosters real-time engagement
- Fully explorable virtual Playa
- 360° and 180° 3D video footage from past Burns
- Photorealistic 3 dimensional art installations
- Interactive theme camps
- Resurrected Temples, Man bases to create the Temple Museum and Museum of the Man and other large scale art from Burning Man’s history
- Live music, artist panels, wellness workshops, and lectures at the virtual Center Camp
5. Who is BurnerSphere for?
BurnerSphere is for everyone, from veteran Burners to those curious about Burning Man. It welcomes all who wish to experience the radical creativity and participatory culture of the Playa in a virtual space while learning about the diverse communities that shape Burning Man culture.
6. How do I access BurnerSphere?
BurnerSphere is currently in Beta and open to the public. Sign up at burnersphere.com and click Join Now. BurnerSphere is membership-based, see #8 for more on Camp Dues. You can also find BurnerSphere on the Apple App Store, Windows Store, Meta Quest Store, or Steam. Either way, you’ll still need to set up a free account at burnersphere.com.
7. What can I do inside BurnerSphere?
Participants can:
- Attend events hosting throughout the year
- Connect with the Burner community all year round
- Engage in playa adventures with other Burners from around the world
- Learn about the various communities that work together to build the city, build art, art cars, and host theme camps. And how you can get involved.
- Recreate the experience of arriving at Burning Man by entering through the virtual Gate Road
- Immerse yourself in Burning Man culture through 180° 3D short documentaries
- Freely explore the Playa and discover glowing video portals that transport you to seemingly endless new experiences
- Engage in real-time conversations with other participants
- Experience interactive art, music, lectures, and workshops
8. Is BurnerSphere free to use?
BurnerSphere is a membership-based platform. Think of it like paying your Camp Dues. You are a member of a camp and the dues help cover the costs for that camp to happen. For BurnerSphere, those camp costs are servers, development, and additional future content and functionality. Every time your avatar enters a world it pings a server. Each ping comes with a cost. Membership is open to all. By joining you become a Camp Mate. Camp Mates can fully immerse themselves in the experience, hanging out with friends and exploring every corner of the virtual Playa 24/7/365. Camp Mates also have access to Discord server channels to keep the conversation going. Events such as artist talks, meet the makers, music mixers, dance events and workshops will be available without membership. A basic level of content will be available for non-members. Registration is still required. Check burnersphere.com for updates on membership options and pricing.
BurnerSphere is committed to keeping Camp Dues as affordable as possible while covering server, development, software, and maintenance costs. Camp Dues start at $47.98 a year, or $6.98 a month if you’d rather pay as you go.
9. How much does membership cost?
10. How does BurnerSphere uphold the 10 Principles of Burning Man?
Before entering, all participants will learn about the 10 Principles and must agree to our community standards, ensuring that the virtual Playa remains a space of radical inclusion, communal effort, self-expression, and participation.
11. Can I contribute my own content or experiences to BurnerSphere?
Yes! BurnerSphere thrives on participation. Artists, performers, and creators interested in contributing should reach out through the website. To uphold the goal of BurnerSphere and keep the platform stable, all content will be uploaded by the BRCvr team. Send us a message through the contact form about what or how you’d like to participate.
12. How can artists, theme camps, and art cars showcase their work in BurnerSphere?
Artists can have their work represented in BurnerSphere in one of three ways:
- Providing a 3D model of their artwork
- Having their physical piece scanned on Playa during a Burning Man event
- Having a 3D model rendered by the BurnerSphere team
Each model will be accredited with the creator’s name, the name of the piece, their location, an artist’s statement about the piece, theme camp, or art car, and a URL where participants can learn more or contribute to fundraising efforts. This initiative helps connect participants with artists, theme camps, and art cars, fostering deeper community engagement and support for creative projects.
There are future plans to create an honorarium granting process to award funds to artists who participate. More details on this initiative will be announced as development progresses.
13. I saw my art in BurnerSphere but don’t remember granting permission.
We make every effort to find email addresses for artists whose pieces are represented in the BurnerSphere and individually email each one requesting permission. Most of the information comes from the BMP Event Archive website. Sometimes those emails are out of date. If you believe your art is in the BurnerSphere and want to update the information we have or request it be removed, please contact Athena and Doug. Info (at) burnersphere.
14. Who developed BurnerSphere?
BurnerSphere is developed by Big Rock Creative (BRCvr), an award-winning XR experience company known for its innovative work in virtual reality events, including previous official virtual Burning Man experiences. Its founders and team include veteran Burners who have volunteered their talents to help gift BurnerSphere to the community.
15. How does BurnerSphere differ from past virtual Burning Man experiences?
After three years in Microsoft’s AltspaceVR, BurnerSphere is a brand-new app designed for greater interactivity, immersion, and accessibility, offering a seamless and enhanced experience for participants. It is also the world’s first social virtual reality immersive documentary experience dedicated to telling the story of the communities that define Burning Man culture.
16. What hardware do I need to run BurnerSphere?
BurnerSphere runs on Mac and PC desktop computers, no headset required, and in VR on Meta Quest 2, 3, 3s, and Pro, or PCVR via Steam. Future releases will support additional VR platforms.
17. Who can I contact for more information?
For inquiries, contact Athena or Doug through the contact form on this website or at Info (at) burnersphere (dot) org.