The potential of Metaverse
In the previous post, we have detailed why only with blockchain technology can the metaverse reach its true potential. But how high can this potential be and will the metaverse forever change the internet?
This will be the topic of today’s article. Let’s begin.
The minuscule scale of Web3 metaverse
Despite the recent hype of the metaverse games such as Sandbox and Decentraland, their market cap is still extremely small compared to traditional Web 2.0 video games companies.
Source: Grayscale
Therefore, as decentralized metaverses disrupt the gaming industry thanks to the advantages of blockchain technology and NFT, their market cap will rise dramatically and we can see that the potential is enormous.
Recently, the sale of metaverse land is also gaining traction among both retailers and institutional investors alike.
Source: DappRadar
A total of $106 million was spent on virtual property in the last week, with purchases of digital land, luxury yachts, and other assets, according to data from DappRadar. Sandbox alone accounted for $86.56 million in unique non-fungible token land sales.
Nevertheless, if you compare this to the total value of the real estate market which is about $326.5 trillion in 2020, the upside is enormous.
Finally, in terms of users, metaverse games have experienced exponential growth in the number of players and unique wallets over the course of 2021.
Source: Grayscale
Once again, despite the phenomenal rise, metaverses still have a long way from catching up with their competitors such as Roblox or Minecraft.
Source: MatthewBall.vc
Big players enter the market
The metaverse hype begins with Facebook officially entering the market and boldly rebranding to Meta. However, this is just the beginning of a wave of institutions’ involvement in this new trend.
As FOMO (fear of missing out) happens to retailers and traders on a regular basis, I believe the same will occur to big players as they do not want to lose to their competitors and will gradually dip their toe into this highly potential market.
Sandbox has secured $93 million in a Series B fundraising round led by Softbank Vision 2 Fund, marking the fund’s first investment in crypto assets.
Sports clubs are diving in too. English soccer club Manchester City has teamed up with Sony to build its own virtual world. German sportswear maker Adidas announced it had partnered with Coinbase after announcing it would expand its activities in the metaverse.
Gemini exchange founders Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss said they had raised $400 million in a funding round which they will use to help build their own metaverse.
World-famous auction house Sotheby’s has recreated its London New Bond Street galleries in the virtual world of Decentraland. After getting involved in NFT auctions, the renowned auction house now becomes part of the metaverse with its own virtual location.
Source: The Art Newspaper
Final thought
With the recent statistics and development, we believe that metaverse will not be a passing trend but will truly change the technological landscape as we know now and open up the door for mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency and NFT.
Our long-term goal is also to turn WidiLand into a metaverse where people can make friends, collaborate on farming tasks, and compete in challenges, with new features still in development. We will also introduce the use of VR/AR for a truly immersive experience for our players.
There is still a lot of work to be done, the metaverse market is still in the early innings and we are committed for the long term.