You’ve most likely heard of the term ”metaverse” by now, as it has gained tremendous attention in the news and social media. The increased interest partly originates from the rebranding of Facebook to Meta, a case that received substantial media coverage and sparked interest in the metaverse. However, even though people have heard of the metaverse, it potentially remains a mystery to many of what this phenomenon actually entails. As this might be the case, we will in this article answer the question ”what is the metaverse?”.
In the following section, we’ll look closer at the metaverse and explore its use cases. Following this, we’re also going to delve deeper into some of the most popular metaverse companies and their ongoing projects. This will provide a better understanding of the current situation and indicate where it’s heading. Lastly, we will explore Moralis’ premier option that you can utilize when building your own metaverse projects.
Moralis is the easiest way to develop metaverse projects such as dApps (decentralized applications), games, and other creative and innovative Web3 ideas. Moreover, Moralis is the best operating system for blockchain development in general and helps expand the decentralized web by providing a more accessible development process.
Moralis offers an infinitely scalable, underlying backend infrastructure allowing you to avoid ”reinventing the wheel” when creating your Web3 projects. The platform also provides an extensive toolbox with solutions such as Moralis Speedy Nodes, native support for IPFS, the NFT API, and much more.
So, are you looking to become a blockchain developer and build your own metaverse project? Well, then the first step in the right direction is to sign up with Moralis. You can create an account for free, and you’ll receive immediate access to all the tools of the platform!
What is the Metaverse?
Facebook’s rebranding to Meta might have increased the recent interest in the metaverse; however, the term has actually been around in literature since the early nineties. Moreover, it is a concept that has been diligently explored in games, books, TV shows, and movies. However, these depictions often significantly deviate from our reality as we don’t have the necessary technology. So, what does the concept actually entail when it comes to our situation?
Even though the metaverse is gaining increased traction, it is still difficult to pinpoint an exact definition of the concept. However, loosely defined, the metaverse refers to an alternative virtual universe where users ”live” through digital avatars. As such, this is a way to connect people from different places and platforms.
With the current technological situation, this essentially suggests that the metaverse is a new version of the internet. A space where people can interact that provides a more immersive social experience. It consists of 3D avatars, dApps, virtual worlds/realities that are sometimes powered by technology such as crypto and NFTs.
As a ”universe” of different virtual worlds and realities, the various platforms of the metaverse are connected and intertwined through interoperable assets and experiences. This provides the metaverse with vast potential to revolutionize and change the world in several aspects. For example, it can positively influence how people work, communicate, operate businesses, and consume goods.
Moreover, even though the metaverse is far from the universes often depicted in pop culture, it is rapidly accelerating and developing along with technological strides. Nonetheless, the future of the metaverse remains unclear as it’s a relatively new concept taking shape in a real-world setting. This makes it hard to predict the actual impact it will have on people, something that only time will tell.
Metaverse Companies
Although it is difficult to predict to what extent the concept will impact the everyday lives of individuals, it is clear that the metaverse has great potential. However, to better illustrate the current state of the metaverse and provide a more comprehensible answer to the question ”what is the metaverse?”, we’re going to dive deeper into some of the most prominent metaverse companies and platforms that currently exist.
In the following four sections, we’ll take a closer look at companies such as Microsoft, The Sandbox, Roblox, and, of course, Facebook/Meta, which aims to become the leading company in developing the metaverse. However, these are only a few examples, and there are thousands of additional great platforms on the market. But with no further ado, let’s continue with taking a closer look at Facebook!
What is the Facebook Metaverse?
Meta, formerly known as Facebook, aims to bring the metaverse to life. The rebranding from Facebook partly originates from this mission of making the metaverse a reality.
The way in which Meta tries to make the metaverse a reality is to help develop the space. As such, they set out to create technologies that can help people connect, explore, and expand this new digital reality.
An example here is Meta’s Horizon Worlds – originally called Facebook Horizon. Horizon Worlds are essentially digital worlds where people can interact and communicate. It is possible to access this world through various devices, and among them are both Oculus Rift and Oculus Quest. When navigating this world, people will be able to play, explore, and interact with other players from across the globe.
What is Microsoft’s Digital Universe?
Just like Meta, Microsoft is showing an interest in the phenomenon. They would also like to create a more interactive and immersive internet experience where people can explore, play, and interact with one another.
Microsoft believes that some of the main ideas of the metaverse, such as interacting with people online through avatars, have been around for a long time within the gaming space. Furthermore, they further suggest that they have the necessary experience from the gaming sector to help build the next platforms for the metaverse. Moreover, the recent acquisition of Activision Blizzard for $70 billion contributes to this expansion, something that Microsoft considers more than just a side bet.
What is The Sandbox Metaverse?
The Sandbox is a virtual metaverse where users can build their own worlds, monetize their in-game experiences, and let other people play them. In addition, it is possible to sell/buy land and assets on the platform through the usage of NFTs (non-fungible tokens).
If users hold land within The Sandbox’s universe, they can customize and develop their assets in numerous ways. Some people use their land to create art galleries where they can sell NFTs; meanwhile, others create exciting games. This suggests that it is merely the imagination that limits the users.
What is the Roblox Virtual Universe?
The Roblox metaverse is already prosperous and vastly populated, with around 50 million active daily users and 9.5 million developers helping to create and expand the Roblox universe. In fact, Roblox is highly dependent on its users as players create the in-game experience of the platform. As such, their primary mission is to facilitate a place where creators can pursue their visions and create an immersive experience for other players.
Roblox has more than 24 million user-created projects or experiences that players can dive into, suggesting that the platform is huge. However, an issue with allowing users to create the metaverse is setting rules. It is hard to prevent people from misusing the opportunities of the platform to, for example, implement graphic violence. Therefore, the platform has over 4,000 moderators that help regulate the platform to solve this.
Moreover, Roblox develops the platform with the intention of utilizing already existing technology. They believe that technological advancements when it comes to VR and AR aren’t really necessary. Instead, they advocate an immersive and interactive experience that rather emphasizes social innovation.
What is the NFT Metaverse?
Now, there isn’t a specific ”NFT metaverse”; however, NFTs will most likely play an essential role in the future of the metaverse. So, to understand why NFTs have such potential, we first need to understand precisely what they are. As such, we’re briefly going to cover NFTs and answer the question ”what are NFTs?”.
NFTs is an abbreviation for non-fungible tokens, and the keyword there is ”non-fungible”. The term ”non-fungible” describes assets that have unique properties and value, such as real estate. For instance, most houses are entirely unique, suggesting that one piece of property can’t be directly exchanged for another without monetary compensation. This means that non-fungible assets are completely unique and aren’t interchangeable.
Based on this, it essentially means that NFTs are unique tokens that aren’t interchangeable. However, their uniqueness does allow NFTs to represent ownership of the non-fungible assets. This makes NFTs ideal for representing ownership of metaverse assets such as weapons, lands, property, etc. For example, a piece of land on The Sandbox’s platform is represented by an NFT. So, if you hold this token, you are the owner of that specific piece of land.
However, a critical distinction is that NFTs only represent ownership of something. As such, the token itself doesn’t generally contain any assets but rather points to something specific such as digital art, virtual land, or other items in these digital universes.
This suggests that NFTs might come to play an important role in the metaverse as a mechanism to enable users to hold unique assets. It becomes imperative since some digital assets like digital art represented by NFTs are selling for millions of dollars, meaning that a secure mechanism like tokens is ideal.
What is the Moralis Metaverse SDK?
So, now that we understand what the metaverse entails, we can discover more about creating metaverse experiences and Web3 games. The easiest way to develop these experiences and projects is by utilizing Moralis.
Moralis provides an already developed backend infrastructure to all users, making Web3 development more accessible. In fact, with Moralis, it becomes possible to develop blockchain and metaverse projects markedly quicker as the operating system allows you to cut down development time by an average of 87%.
Along with the backend infrastructure, Moralis also provides several helpful development tools. One of these is the Moralis Metaverse SDK. The Moralis Metaverse SDK allows developers to quickly and easily develop Web3 games and metaverse experiences across the various blockchains of the market.
What’s more, the Moralis Metaverse SDK features integration with Unity, which means that you can build projects for Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, Windows, macOS, and even iOS and Android due to Moralis’ React Native support.
As such, if you are looking to develop dApps, games, or other projects, it is well worth your time to take a closer look at the Moralis Metaverse SDK. All you have to do to receive full access to this development kit is to sign up with Moralis!
What is the Metaverse – Summary
The term ”metaverse” has exploded in the past couple of months, and it partly has to do with Facebook’s rebranding to Meta. However, even though the metaverse is becoming an increasingly popular concept that captures people’s interest worldwide, there are still questions regarding what the phenomenon actually entails.
The term ”metaverse” has been around for 30 years, and it’s a concept that’s frequently depicted in pop culture. However, the movies and literature about the concept show a different picture, a picture dominated by more advanced technology. In reality, the metaverse is essentially a new version of the internet. It’s a space where people can interact with one another that provides a more immersive social experience. It is built around 3D avatars, dApps, virtual realities/worlds and is sometimes powered by blockchain and crypto technologies.
The metaverse has the potential to revolutionize the internet and how people work, communicate, consume, create businesses, and much more. It will be interesting to see where it’s heading and follow along as the metaverse expands and becomes more immersive.
If you are interested in developing metaverse projects, you should definitely check out the Moralis Metaverse SDK. The SDK is the easiest way to develop dApps, games, and other metaverse projects. Moreover, with Moralis, you’ll have endless opportunities as the operating system makes Web3 development significantly more accessible.
If you’d like to learn more about Moralis, feel free to take a closer look at the Moralis blog. The blog provides the best and most relevant information regarding blockchain development. If you are interested, check out the guides on how to mint 10,000 NFTs, how to create a great dApp UI, and Web3 authentication.
So, looking to become a blockchain developer? Then sign up with Moralis today!
