In the last few months, there has been massive growth and the populous understanding of blockchain technology in the world, and with it, the Metaverse has come to life. Everyone involved in the crypto world, especially since the beginning of 2022, has encountered the word Metarverse or heard it being used by someone somewhere. Those who follow world stars have seen Facebook’s CEO Mark Zurgenburg’s obsession with the Metaverse.
So what is this Metaverse? What does it do? What is it bringing to the table? What is its effect on the economy? Matthew Hall’s framework defines the Metaverse as a massively scaled and interoperable network of real-time rendered 3D virtual worlds.
These worlds can be experienced synchronously and persistently by an unlimited number of users with continuity of data, such as identity, history, entitlements, objects, communications, and payments. Another website defines the Metaverse as a concept of a persistent, online, 3D universe that combines multiple different virtual spaces. One can think of it as a future iteration of the internet.
Metaverse will allow users to work, meet, game, and socialise together in these 3D spaces. Most people are engaging in this virtual world to play games, have in-game events, and in the crypto sector, create a virtual economy. In the Metaverse, a person has the power to create, assume an identity, create value and meet new people with whom they will have transactions in real-time.
Cryptocurrency allows you to create a digital economy with different utility tokens and virtual collectables (NFTs). Examples of blockchain Metaverse applications are Axie Infinity, Second Live, and Decentraland, allowing players to interact and play in the Verse and earn through the virtual collectables NFTs. The Metaverse is driven by augmented reality, with each user controlling a character or avatar, and they can possess the skill set that the user desires. For example, a user can take a mixed reality meeting with an Oculus VR headset in their virtual office, finish work and relax in a blockchain-based game, and then run their crypto profile and finances inside the Metaverse.
Apart from supporting gaming or social media, the Metaverse will combine economies, digital identity, decentralised governance, and other applications. Even today, user creation and ownership of valuable items and currencies help develop a single, united metaverse. All these features provide blockchain with the potential to power this future technology. The Metaverse is projected to possess a market size of $800 billion by 2024. It signals a new turn in civilisation, and an adequate understanding of its relevance and applicability must be properly utilised and maximised.
