Lounges are persistent immersive spaces that act as digital third places, drawing on Ray Oldenburg’s principles from The Great Good Place. They offer welcoming, always-on environments where audiences can gather, explore, and connect with storyworlds across mobile, web, and VR.
What Lounges Enable:
• A neutral social space that encourages informal community and repeat visits.
• Ongoing extensions of a storyworld beyond a single experience.
• Narrative ambience combined with lightweight social play.
• Multi-platform access that lowers barriers to participation.
• A discovery pathway into immersive extensions and long-form content.
Our first Lounge – Introducing…
The Obscura Society
Developed in partnership with HTC VIVERSE and arriving in early 2026, The Obscura Society reimagines Atlas Obscura’s editorial spirit as a live, explorable bar where an AI bartender shares global curiosities and cultural stories. It links the Atlas Obscura web properties with the full Atlas Obscura VR app (produced by New Canvas), creating a continuous journey from digital content to embodied, immersive, social exploration.
Follow us on LinkedIn or Instagram for more info on the release and read more about it at The Verge.
Contact us
New Canvas is a founding member of the Byron Bay XR Collective and honours Australia’s First Nations Peoples; acknowledging the Arakwal, the traditional custodians of the Bundjalung Country, on which New Canvas was founded and the place we continue to foster a shared sense of belonging for all Australians.