The Metaverse, Crypto, And Blockchain
The Metaverse, Crypto, and Blockchain
Have you ever found yourself engrossed in the virtual realms of games like those depicted in "Ready Player One," wondering when such immersive experiences would intertwine with blockchain technology? Well, the wait is over! Game enthusiasts now have the opportunity to delve into the world of blockchain-powered games, and the excitement doesn't end there. In these innovative games, players can earn cryptocurrency as they immerse themselves in digital adventures. Today, we'll delve into a specific category of these games known as metaverses. This article will delve into the intricacies of metaverses, shedding light on what they truly entail. Furthermore, we'll explore the myriad ways players can earn cryptocurrency within these virtual realms. Additionally, we'll provide a glimpse into three of the most prominent metaverses currently making waves in the market.
Disclaimer: We want to emphasize that this is not financial advice. Cryptocurrencies operate in a volatile market, where values can drastically fluctuate in a blink of an eye. It is imperative to conduct thorough research and seek guidance from a qualified financial advisor before investing.
What is a Metaverse?
So, what exactly constitutes a metaverse? As previously mentioned, a metaverse represents a distinct category of blockchain-powered games. It serves as a virtual realm where players are afforded the opportunity to engage in gameplay, carry out tasks, earn rewards, and interact with fellow gamers. This immersive experience is made possible through the utilization of blockchain technology – a decentralized network comprising interconnected nodes. Through this technology, individuals can execute actions in the form of transactions, eliminating the need for intermediaries to facilitate these exchanges. Within the metaverse, these transactions encompass a wide array of activities, ranging from mining and chatting to earning rewards. By harnessing the capabilities of blockchain, the metaverse empowers players to engage, accumulate rewards, and transact without the confines of geographical boundaries.
Within the realm of metaverses, a variety of distinct types exist, each representing a different game with unique gameplay mechanics. If earning cryptocurrency is a possibility within a metaverse, players may be required to undertake diverse tasks to accrue rewards. In many of these games, participants can earn cryptocurrency by engaging in the exchange and transaction of various assets, which are typically represented as non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
As previously mentioned, metaverses witnessed a surge in popularity during the peak of global lockdowns, providing individuals around the world with a means of generating income from the comfort of their homes. Beyond financial benefits, the metaverse also offered an escape from the somber realities of lockdown-induced isolation.
Now, let's delve into the ways individuals can earn cryptocurrency within the metaverse.
Ways to Earn Crypto in the Metaverse
The concept of the metaverse is still in its infancy. With this being the case, the exploration into ways to earn crypto while playing in the metaverse is still going on. However, there are still a few ways that you can start earning today.
When taking a look at how to earn in the metaverse, it is important to note that each metaverse offers players different ways to earn. Looking at all of the metaverses currently in the market, there are three main ways to earn and they are: purchasing and raising sprites, owning land, and mining resources to mint NFTs in the metaverse. Let’s take a look at these three main ways to earn in the metaverse in more detail.
Purchasing And Raising Sprites
Sprites are NFT-based characters in the metaverse. Depending on the metaverse, each sprite has a different set of capabilities as well as a different earning potential. The process to earn from sprites is pretty simple. You start by purchasing a sprite on an NFT marketplace. Once you have the sprite, you then develop and/or train them. Lastly, once the sprites are developed and grown, you sell them at a profit on the NFT marketplace. Some metaverses that implement sprites also allow you to battle with other players’ sprites and earn rewards.
This way of earning in the metaverse is one of the first ways people started to earn and has grown in popularity since. Its popularity first started to grow in the Philippines during the lockdowns as citizens in the Philippines were left jobless and desperate for a way to generate an income. Since then, mainly because of the success in the Philippines, this method of earning grew really popular. The metaverse game that is leading the way in this method of metaverse earning is Axie Infinity.
Owning Land
Blockchain and, more specifically, cryptocurrency unlocked digitized forms of the assets we are familiar with. Real-world assets such as oil, gold, and silver are digitized in the blockchain space and are represented in the crypto space through various cryptocurrency coins and decentralized application development platforms. It was only a matter of time before new asset classes were represented in the blockchain space. Queue virtual real estate. Yes! You can now buy, own, sell and rent out virtual land in the metaverse.
Land in each of the metaverses has become one of the virtual assets with the highest demands, with the collective amount spent on purchasing these lands topping several 100 million Dollars. Large companies, and even celebrities, are joining the race to own virtual land in the metaverse.
Each piece of land is represented as a non-fungible token and can be purchased and sold in any NFT marketplace that supports the blockchain that the metaverse is built on. For example, if the metaverse that you bought the land in is built on top of the Ethereum blockchain, then you can sell the land NFT on any marketplace that supports the Ethereum blockchain. Purchasing land is quite expensive due to the popularity of virtual land in the metaverse. The average price for land can range anywhere from 10 thousand dollars to 100 thousand Dollars. However, there are metaverses that offer land for just over 500 Dollars. This is because these metaverses are still new projects and people still need to be made aware of them. Before purchasing land in these new metaverses, it is important to do some research into the team and project so that you can speculate on the project’s potential before purchasing land.
Once you own a piece of land, the ways that you can earn cryptocurrency from it may vary slightly depending on the game. Usually, you can rent out the land or sell the land for a profit. Some games also give you access to exclusive in-game assets for owning land. Lastly, you can also earn cryptocurrency just by owning land and staking the land in the network. Some of the most popular metaverses to buy and own land are The Sandbox and Decentraland.
An exciting new development in the blockchain space is the ability for NFT owners to fractionalize their NFTs. This enables them to sell portions of their NFTs in an NFT marketplace. This new development will open up the NFT market to people who cannot afford a whole NFT, but it also gives the NFT owner access to a larger market when trying to sell or, in the case of land, rent out the NFT.
Resource Mining
Some games require that you mine resources so that you can spend the mined resources to mint wearable NFTs. In other games, you can also mine and mint in-game assets that can be sold on an NFT marketplace. A popular metaverse where you can mine resources to mint wearable NFTs is Decentraland. In Decentraland, you can mint wearable NFTs by mining virtual meteors in a land called Wondermine. These wearables can then be sold on any of the NFT marketplaces in the market. Other games, like League of Kingdoms, allow you to collect and sell in-game resources as NFTs.
These are the main ways that you can earn cryptocurrency in the metaverse. Although there are currently only three ways to earn cryptocurrency in the metaverse, new projects are looking to add more ways for their users to earn. Some projects also include more than one way for players to earn cryptocurrency, like Decentraland.
The Rise of Play-To-Earn
The emergence of blockchain-powered games that enable users to earn cryptocurrency has given rise to the concept of Game Finance, often abbreviated as GameFi. Within this realm, a new term has taken shape: "play-to-earn." This innovative approach has gained remarkable traction within the GameFi sector, particularly in the rapidly expanding metaverse domain. The allure of these blockchain-powered play-to-earn games has intensified, especially as individuals seek to rebound from the global repercussions of widespread lockdowns.
The surge in popularity of play-to-earn games has ignited a fervent competition among blockchain enterprises, each vying to craft the most exceptional metaverse experience. These endeavors encompass not only diversifying the methods of earning but also creating an immersive and authentic virtual environment. This fervent race to cultivate an enhanced metaverse signifies a monumental shift in the way people interact with digital platforms.
As the pursuit of an enriched metaverse accelerates, the convergence of play-to-earn games and the metaverse is poised to establish itself as a substantial and viable income source for individuals across the globe. This convergence offers an unprecedented fusion of entertainment and financial potential, shaping a landscape where players can seamlessly blend leisure with earnings, all within the confines of a virtual universe.
Most Popular Metaverses
The three most popular metaverses currently in the market are The Sandbox, Axie Infinity, and Decentraland.
The Sandbox
The Sandbox is a metaverse that allows players to create in-game assets and experiences and then monetize. These assets are created using SandBox’s VoxEdit software, which is a 3D pixel art and animation editor. Apart from monetizing game experiences and assets, players can also buy land in The Sandbox and rent it out or sell it at a profit.
Axie Infinity
Axie Infinity first gained popularity in the Philippines due to the impact of lockdowns and is a metaverse where players can purchase, battle with, and sell in-game characters called sprites.
Decentraland
Decentraland is a fast-evolving metaverse that offers players a few ways to earn crypto. Players can either mine virtual meteors for resources and then mint sellable NFT wearables in the marketplace, or play other games in Decentraland that enable them to mint NFTs. Players can also buy, sell, and rent out virtual land.
Metaverse as the Future Internet
There is a growing belief that the metaverse will be the next phase of the revolutionary cycle of the internet and that it will become known as Web 3.0. As more and more demand is placed on the number of jobs around the world, people will either create jobs for themselves or they will look for jobs on the metaverse. After all, the amount and type of jobs, as well as the rate of expansion in the metaverse are only limited by a person’s imagination. The metaverse combined with blockchain technology will unlock new types of jobs. This will lead to more people joining the metaverse in search of online work. Once a certain number of the global population is on the metaverse, not only will we work and earn in the metaverse, but we will socialize, trade, and run new decentralized economies all in the metaverse. This will result in the metaverse becoming the next internet.
Metaverse, Crypto, and Blockchain: Recap
A metaverse is a virtual world built on top of a blockchain. These virtual worlds have unlocked a new concept in the blockchain space: play-to-earn games. Play-to-earn games offer people several ways to earn cryptocurrency simply by playing them. You can earn crypto by either owning land in a metaverse, raising sprites, or mining resources needed to mint NFTs. Some metaverses, such as Decentraland, offer multiple ways for users to earn. Due to government lockdowns, play-to-earn games grew popular as more people had to stay at home and were left jobless. This popularity has led to a race to create a better metaverse that offers users more ways to earn and a more immersive experience.
