For the longest time, the metaverse has been seen as the future of video games. Gamers have enjoyed the endless content in Roblox and the NFT-centered economy of The Sandbox for years. But recently, the metaverse has become so much more than just a place for video games.
On May 5, 2022, NASA announced a challenge, in collaboration with Epic Games and Buendea, for gamers to create “new assets and scenarios” for its Mars XR project, an immersive VR metaverse with 400 km2 of Mars for players and creators to explore and expand upon.
The metaverse utilizes user-created content to build a world that feels alive, and NASA’s project is no different. In Mars XR, developers can use the open world canvas to create unique experiences that will be used to prepare astronauts for life on Mars. Mars XR can serve not only as entertainment, but also as an educational tool.
A wide range of experiences makes these worlds feel complete and like a place millions of people can return to every day to explore, play, and hang out with friends.
For example, take the wildly popular Lil Nas X concert on Roblox in November 2020. The two-day event drew over 33 million views, according to The Verge, during the heart of the pandemic in 2020. The experience connected people from all across the globe, and it proved that the metaverse has a cultural impact on the world. Roblox’s Global Head Of Music Jonathan Vlassopulos said that he was “very excited” about the future of virtual concerts in the metaverse during a January 2021 interview with IQ.
“It’s all very exciting,” Vlassopulos said. “And as the Metaverse expands, we’ll see new forms of entertainment emerge; new Metaverse artists will be able to launch careers virtually without ever having to play a real-world show.”
From men on Mars to massive music concerts, the metaverse is a mixture of thousands of different experiences that people can engage in. That strength is what has made the metaverse so appealing to so many partners.
Organisations such as NASA see the metaverse as a way to experience the impossible. A virtual concert doesn’t have the limitations of an in-person venue, and it’s unlikely most people can get a chance to walk on Mars. But with the metaverse getting more investment from a wide range of industries, people can enjoy an endless supply of experiences that keeps them coming back.
The metaverse relies heavily on user-created content. Worlds such as Roblox let players be their own video game developers and create the video game of their dreams. As different industries create their own experiences in the metaverse, the worlds will feel more well-rounded, and players will choose to spend even more of their time on the future of entertainment.
GosuRabbit is a marketing agency that specialises in providing entertainment, esports and gaming marketing services for brands, businesses and agencies across the globe.
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