Online gaming is taking a new approach with the Metaverse. It is combining blockchain and NFTs to provide gamers access to exclusive virtual worlds where they can play games and enjoy immersive experiences.
It is making use of many of the things the metaverse is looking to incorporate, such as avatars, virtual currency, and trading of virtual items.
Gaming in the Metaverse
Metaverse games are video games that take place in the metaverse. Thus, metaverse gaming is gaming within the metaverse.
It combines the key elements of a video game with the metaverse, which includes an interoperable 3D world, players as avatars, in-game assets, gameplay, and virtual reality (VR) hardware or augmented reality (AR) to provide an immersive digital experience for players to explore battles and more.
Metaverse gaming can be accessed through VR equipment, desktop computers, and phones, providing a 360-degree perception, and unlike today’s most popular digital games, things happen in real-time in the metaverse—there are no pauses, the game skips, or it resets.
Metaverse game worlds connect remote people within a common platform or connect across platforms, where players can explore and interact. This type of gaming has a real feel to it.
NFTs also play a major role in metaverse gaming and are major contributors to its evolution.
Metaverse games are expected to account for more than half of the metaverse’s market value by 2024.
Here are five top metaverse games you can jump into today:
1. Second Life
Second Life is a massive 3D-generated virtual platform full of user-generated content where people can interact with each other in real-time. It was released in June 2003 by the founder and former CEO of Linden Lab, Phillip Rosedale.
Almost from the beginning, Linden’s vision has been that Second Life is a place of escape where users can visit the 3D virtual world to create avatars, communicate, build, buy, and sell.
The game is an example of a metaverse with a central authority. It has built a community of millions who “live” together in virtual spaces.
2. Habbo
Founded in 2000, Habbo started as a virtual chat service that has evolved into a digital hotel where users can customize their rooms, hang out with friends, and play mini-games in the common areas.
The social game provides users with the opportunity to build their virtual avatars and interact with other users from around the world in any number of designated rooms – or central hubs referred to as “hotels.”
Jungles, high schools, and coffee shops are also built into the game.
3. World of Warcraft
World of Warcraft has had a real cultural impact since its 2004 launch. It is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG).
Players can explore a vast world full of heroes, villains, gods, and monsters, along with a more player-friendly experience than its contemporaries.
Its popularity among the gaming community has become so well known that Hollywood has adapted it into a blockbuster called “Warcraft.”
4. Minecraft
Minecraft is a 3D sandbox game developed by Mojang Studios in which players interact with a fully customizable 3D environment made of blocks. It is a diverse place for imagination and creativity, and a place to coexist in harmony with the unique wants and desires of each player.
There are two main modes in the game: survival mode and creative mode.
In survival mode, players need to build houses, structures, and tools to protect themselves from mobs. This mode of the game tests one’s survival skills. In creative mode, the player is in an open field with all the resources from the start, which allows him to do whatever he wants to do.
Each new world created in the game brings new challenges and new ideas to the player’s attention.
Users can play in single-player or multiplayer mode. Likewise, Minecraft is a very free-form game. It doesn’t come with a set of instructions or a specific objective, meaning there is a lot of flexibility in terms of gameplay.
Users can recreate an existing fantasy world or build a new one from scratch, they can fight against bad guys and search for adventure.
The game provides endless building blocks and a blank board. It is up to the players to create something incredible, silly, or whatever, using the tools it provides. The tools are easy to use, as are the systems for using those tools.
5. Fortnite
Fortnite is one of the most popular games in the gaming market right now. It is an online battle royale game, developed by Epic Games.
The game is set in modern Earth, and one of the basic game mechanics is collecting materials to construct defensive fortifications against zombies.
Players parachute onto a small island, they are equipped with an axe and must scavenge for more weapons, while avoiding the deadly electrical storm.
The platform allows users to get as creative as they can, from building a simple log cabin to a gigantic castle, a flame-throwing castle, and collecting other equipped weapons.
6. The Sandbox
Sandbox is a play-to-earn game that combines Ethereum-based blockchain technology, Defi, and NFTs into a 3D metaverse. It is an open-world video game on PC, Mac, and mobile devices that allows players to freely explore a virtual dimension consisting of thousands of unique experiences.
The Sandbox marked its debut as a mobile game in 2011 and is known for two of its smash hits on mobile devices: The Sandbox (2011) and Sandbox Evolution (2016).
Its virtual world allows gamers to create and customize their games and digital assets using free design tools.
The virtual goods created can then be monetized as NFTs and sold for SAND tokens on The Sandbox Marketplace.
7. Roblox
Roblox is an online gaming platform that allows users to play a variety of games, create games, chat, and communicate with others online.
In Roblox, fun comes not only from playing games but also from making games. The games are not officially developed by Roblox, the parent company, but by users of the platform.
Roblox states that players can build their ultimate theme parks, compete as professional race car drivers, star in fashion shows, become superheroes, or simply design a dream home and hang out with friends by downloading the separate Roblox Studio software.
Conclusion
The Metaverse is continuously revolutionizing the gaming industry. It extends immersive experiences and fantasy worlds to bring simple games into our everyday lives. Taking it from 2D to 3D and providing a realistic experience, in addition to allowing players to profit from some of these games. With so much talent and capital invested in metaverse gaming, it is exciting to see what the future of gaming in the metaverse holds.