The purpose of a VRChat meetup is for members of our discord to hang out beyond text. We can explore virtual worlds together, have conversations, and get a feel for each other in a silly or casual way. Even when doin’ some silly stuff, as a host you should make sure everyone feels safe and considered. Bring your own thing, but don’t forget to be curious about others’ interests. We all have different energy and comfort levels, so checking in with someone goes a long way. Not everyone needs to be chatty, but no one should feel ignored in any of our server events.

Here are some tips to make things go better:

Before the Event

• Why do you want to host an event? Is there a certain vibe you want to cultivate? Are there certain topics you hope to bring up in conversation? Picking themes around a VRChat Meetup can help people get excited and more easily bring their own ideas.
• You should verify in advance the worlds you like, to avoid malicious design or other content issues.
• Desktop and Headset have different uses, and both are good in different ways. Don’t be afraid to go Desktop if you want to make hosting easier on yourself.
• Multiple worlds per event is a nice way to keep things from stagnating. A good choice for a first world would be simple and hard to get lost in. Simple worlds also make it easier to troubleshoot technical issues. While it’s not a hard and fast rule, moving up in complexity and world size tends to be better after people have warmed up a little bit.
• Double check the event time, and ping with a “@here” the #vrchat-shenanigans channel. This is good a day before and especially an hour before for Event RSVPers who lost track of time.
• Not everyone feels welcome with every kind of humor and subject matter. If you learn mid-hangout that everyone present hates peeing and hates going to church, change your old plan to hang out in the Pee Church world. <3

Accessibility

• People don’t always have pronouns in their bio. Check if you don’t know someone’s pronouns for sure. Don’t be shy about leading with your own pronouns, and be sure to politely correct misgendering and wrong pronouns.
• Some users (regardless of Desktop or VR Headset) will experience nausea that is preventable with changes in the movement settings. Look for an icon of a person with an arched arrow. This switches to instant snapping movement over smooth motion to help weaker constitutions.
• Some members are Hard of Hearing or deaf. Be ready to help with the in-app keyboard app or maybe have a drawing tool ready (if possible). Let ‘em know about VR Sign language and Signing Worlds if they don’t yet know. If they don’t have subtitles, make sure they’re included instead of overlooked due to a language gap. Keep note of users’ languages, in case someone needs help outside of your conversational languages.
• Some of our members get triggered by noise. Ask users with “hot mics” (picking up constant microphone noise regardless of speech) to go push-to-talk or to mute when not speaking.
• Some users are louder than others. Assist quieter ones in speaking up if they’re talked over. If someone hasn’t talked in a while, see how they’re doing.

Setting up

• Use the Friendathans VRChat meetup group list to make sure no outside members are added unintentionally. Hangouts can get diluted quickly when friends-of-friends or partners show up, if they’d rather not meet others and don’t share our community agreements.
• Make sure your status allows for notifications for joining members. If possible, either keep an eye on the #vrchat-shenanigans channel, or have a desktop user check it for you.