Computational Experiments: Virtual Production and Governance Tool for Metaverse

The metaverse, as an extension of the physical world, can be described as a highly immersive digital realm constructed with technologies such as mixed reality and digital modeling. It is rooted in decentralized principles and features novel economic forms, individual identities, and institutional systems. In this architecture, the entire social landscape is redefined under the logic of service, gradually becoming a service ecosystem operated and cooperated by numerous intelligent entities. To achieve sustainable and healthy development of the metaverse ecology, this paper first analyzes the operating logic of the metaverse from the perspective of the fusion of the cyber-physical-social tripartite world and the three typical complexity characteristics faced by it: evolutionary complexity, cognitive complexity, and regulatory complexity. Next, the paper focuses on introducing the idea and technical system of computational experiments as an analysis and governance tool for the metaverse service ecosystem. Then, it explores the integration of computational experiments and metaverse technology, including how computational experiments can be applied to the metaverse and how the metaverse can support computational experiments. Finally, the paper introduces the metaverse applications of computational experiments, covering fields such as industrial design, health care, social governance, and military reform.