The metaverse is growing rapidly as an online space where users can interact, play and essentially live out a second (or third, and so on) existence as an extension of themselves.
These augmented-reality hubs take many shapes and forms, and the ever-increasing investment in the field means the size of the community only looks to continue growing in future.
Despite the genre gaining in popularity in the last couple of years, some of these online spaces are already well-established, with new ones opening up on a weekly basis.
Many of these games and meeting spaces require a virtual-reality headset to play, while a phone, computer or video game console are enough to get involved in others. Likewise, a great deal of metaverse applications are free to play, while blockchain currency is essential elsewhere.
PlayStation Universe dissects a selection of the best metaverse games and creations currently available on this expanding market.
- Sandbox
A game that could casually be described as Minecraft on steroids, Sandbox is a play-to-earn forum in which players buy their own plot of land and proceed to let their imaginations run wild.
Each piece of land essentially becomes the user’s own non-fungible token (NFT), and depending on what they build on top of it, can then be sold on an appropriate marketplace like Open Sea or Rarible.
If you don’t want to become too embroiled in the rush for SAND—the game’s native cryptocurrency—there’s always the option of simply playing on other builders’ creations as a ‘guest’.
- Axie Infinity
The metaverse’s answer to Pokémon, Axie Infinity is a very similar concept in which players pit their own Axies against one another in an effort to either dominate the duelling world or sell those creatures for profit.
Each Axie is unique and can be traded as a type of digital currency, though the game also comprises its own money format known as Axie Infinity Shards (AXS).
The play-to-earn style means there is an aspect of money reigning king when it comes to breeding and training in one’s hope of becoming the very best, like no-one ever was.
- Decentraland
Up there with the biggest and most popular AR hubs currently on offer in the metaverse, Decentraland is an online portal where users can game, chat, attend concerts or just relax.
As is only to be expected from a second life in the 21st century, players can even visit the casino and spend cryptocurrency, though it’s recommended to read a metaverse online casinos guide to become acquainted first.
Decentraland already boasts a mighty reputation in the sector and as such is seen as a very coveted space when it comes to companies and businesses looking to advertise their wares via AR.
- Second Life
“Second Life is not a game. It is a multi-user virtual environment. It doesn’t have points or scores; it doesn’t have winners or losers.”
Anyone familiar with The Office legend that is Dwight Schrute will know Second Life has existed for some years in the industry, offering exactly what it says on the tin.
‘Residents’ can customise their human avatars in fine detail and play, talk, build, buy or sell virtual items—the closest thing the metaverse offers in crafting a legitimate ‘second life’.