WATCH - It’s Verity! Meet the spooky Minecraft mod that’s going viral
A viral Minecraft-based horror trend called 'Verity' is gaining popularity among youth on platforms like TikTok and YouTube. The trend features a fictional AI character that becomes increasingly sinister, reflecting modern anxieties about technology and AI.
Why it matters
It highlights how digital storytelling and horror trends are evolving to incorporate fears surrounding AI and parasocial relationships with virtual entities.
Move aside, Ballerina Cappuccina . Take a seat, 6-7 . There's a new brainrot meme that's trending.
It's called Verity, and you might hear people repeating it whenever they spot a yellow smiley face IRL.
Verity started out as a fictional character based in the world of Minecraft - a friendly AI helper who becomes more and more sinister as the game goes on.
Now Verity memes are taking over YouTube, TikTok and school hallways.
Verity is the villain in an alternate reality game (ARG) series, which blends gaming with fictional storytelling.
He first appeared in May in a series of Minecraft videos posted by a YouTuber named ThatMob.
Using a smiley face to depict a friendly AI agent who turns creepy is an interesting choice, said Amy LeBlanc, an expert in scary literature who teaches at the University of Calgary, Alberta.
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